Today we introduce EFFA flycasting instructor from Holland, Ferdy Geerdink - "When fly fishing, for him it's not about the size and number of fish caught."

Ferdy works as a teacher, among other things for language support for refugees. He lives in Holland, not far from the German border in Aalden. He is 60 years old and has been an EFFA member since 2010. Since 2012 he has also served as a member secretary on the EFFA board and is a certified EFFA instructor. He is secretary of EFFA Holland and tresurer and instructor in the regional national association VNV.
He came to fly fishing through films and books. Like "Once in al blue  moon" or the book by Mel Krieger "The Essence of Flycasting" or also the DVD series by Oliver Edward "Essential Skills". It was the active way of fishing and the elegance combined with the unique technique that fascinated Ferdy about fly fishing and what still captivates him today.
Ferdy had a particularly great fishing experience on the Glomma in Norway. The Glomma promises pure nature and is best fished for the first time with a guide. He still remembers the many large grayling caught exclusively on dry flies in September. A real feast.
Initially, Ferdy  was inspired by Mel Krieger. "The way he teaches his students fly fishing is unique". Later he learned from Sepp Fuchs, Bas de Bruin, Rudy van Duijnhoven and Jupp Verstraten. All excellent fly fishers who unfortunately did not live in his immediate vicinity and he had to travel a long way for a casting course.
And of course Ferdy is also ambitious when it comes to fishing. The size and number of fish caught are not important to him.  "The most important thing is the inspiration and the moment of happiness on the fishing water. All the unpredictable things or coincidences that can happen are much more valuable. So it was no coincidence when he suddenly caught a 90cm pike in a small local water, with a gold nymph, 12 leader and a #6 rod.
After a while you become confident in casting. Finally the fly lands where you want it to land, a controlled cast. Understanding the casting technique requires a lot of training and so Ferdy prepares for the EFFA instructor exam. Unfortunately, there were only a few opportunities for a course in Holland at that time and so he went to Oostvoorne/Rotterdamm to take the exam. Which he also passed in 2009.
Unfortunately, there are no ideal fly-fishing waters in Holland and so people turn to eastern, northern and southern countries. There are excellent waters in the Netherlands where you can actively practise this great sport with little effort. "We just have to remain vigilant that the last good waters are not affected by commercial use and that fish stocks are not decimated. Actually, everything would be quite logical and simple if only we humans didn't think of ourselves first so often".

Infos zu Ferdy Geerdink: http://home.kpn.nl/geerd060/www.home.knp.nl_geerd060/Welkom.html

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