I found the following article in the March addition of Sport Fishing Magazine. I know that surf fishermen don't need the accolades, but Barta has been around the mill a few times as far as different types of fishing are concerned. Read it to the end:
"FOR THE RECORD” Big Question Not So Easy Answer By Tred Barta DURING A RECENT MOTIVATIONAL SPEECH I GAVE TO a group of freshwater and saltwater anglers, one person asked me which discipline I think takes the most skill. At the time, I dodged the question, but the answer has pestered me ever since. A hot bait-and-switch blue marlin during a full moon on the North Drop in the Virgin Islands comes to mind. How much skill does an angler need to catch it? Well, the process is a team sport, and the angler must possess perhaps the least skill of anyone on the team. The man in the blue suit will inhale a Seeker lure! How about trolling dead bait for billfish? Fun? Absolutely. Breathtaking battles? Yes, sir. But how much skill does it take? Well, now that we use circle hooks on a worldwide scale, the truth be known, a monkey can learn to troll for marlin in about an hour. I've got it. Battling giant bluefin tuna with today's modern fishing chairs and harnesses can be a tough fight. As a captain, I've helped catch many a first-timer's tuna. Stand-up fishing for giants requires more skill and strength than most species, but also a lot of adept boat handling. The art of billfishing on fly, although also a team sport requiring bait- and switch talents, truly showcases the spectacular bite. But when you boil it down to its essence, casting by the angler is so easy it's a joke, and the hookup sequence is also extremely easy to learn. Before everyone gets their knickers in a twist, the art of lure fishing with single- or double-hook, artificials is for the most part exactly what it sounds like: drag 'em and bag 'em. I have taught inexperienced anglers to use 6-, 8- and 12-pound-test successfully for sailfish in an afternoon. Once again, great sport - but it also requires a seasoned crew. The angler is only one fraction of the equation. Visiting the flats, we start to see more complicated skill sets: fly-fishing for bonefish and permit, and of course, the king of the flats - tarpon. In salt water, fishing for tarpon on fly may be the true contender for most demanding and skill-intensive. On the other hand, all you saltwater snobs answer this: Have you ever been to Lake Okeechobee, in Florida, and tried to master pitching plastic worms or spinner baits in the hydrilla? I find this extremely difficult to manage, and many, including myself, just can't get the feel. The movie A River Runs Through It, or was it "Around It?" or some¬thing like that, with Brad Pitt, the stereotypical L.L.Bean-urban-trendoid, tarnished the image of freshwater fly-fishermen everywhere. Truth be told, a freshwater fly-caster exclusively fishing dry flies for salmon and trout in streams - in my opinion - abso¬lutely requires the most skill, making it undoubtedly the hardest fishing discipline to master. Hey, everyone, we're not talking strike indicators, bobbers or double nymph rigs - dry flies only! The thrill of a largemouth bass crashing a popper or the clicker going off as a large sturgeon inhales the bait is just as exciting to some as a blue marlin inhaling a skipping mackerel. Sure, the old adage, "When in Rome, do as the Romans do," has some merit. I fish dry flies when I'm home in Colorado. I do it for the challenge. But harder or easier, my heart will always be offshore, awaiting the next strike. As long as we are rating fishing disciplines (and to salve the ruffled feathers of saltwater colleagues), I consider the second-hardest type of fishing to be surf casting for striped bass in the Northeast: epic places like Montauk, Martha's Vineyard, Nantucket, Cape Cod and the flats of Maine, to name but a few. The roar of big surf, standing in thrashing waves and casting big plugs at night can be unnerving and requires an incredible amount of skill as well as athleticism. So there we have it as I see it: Casting dry flies for trout and salmon plus surf casting for monster striped bass are my choices as the toughest types of fishing. If you don't agree with me, it's OK. I'd love to hear your opinion (at www.sportfishingmag.com/tred).
