Do You Know

 I met a man while walking by the angling section of the local Canadian Store.  I couldn't help notice he seemed confused, so I stopped near him and tried to figure out what he was doing without giving away that I was watching him.
            I didn't go unnoticed though as the man looked right at me and asked.  How do I know what size hooks to buy for fishing salmon.  Of the many questions I thought of asking the first to come through my lips was, "Where are you fishing?"  "The Kenebecassis", was his reply.  The only thing I could say to him was, "I haven't got a clue as I don't know the river at all."  I felt stupid as the man walked away, and as he walked out of sight I thought.  I should have asked him about the time of year he planned to fish the river.  Is the river deep with holding pools, or slack slow moving water?  Is the river fast running, wide, narrow, shallow, deep?
            I then thought, even if he answered these questions what should I have told him.  After all I didn't know anything about the river.  What would you have done?

            Being bothered that I was absolutely no help to that man, and ashamed that I didn’t know what to tell him I decided to posed this question to a friend and well respected angler I know.  This is what he told me he would have said.

            “Are you looking for Dry Fly Hooks, or Wet Fly Hooks?”  I would have given him a number like 94840 for Dry, 38941 for wet available for fishing salmon.  Whether he was fishing for them in the Spring, summer or fall, then I would have cautioned him that the "Kennebecasis River" is closed for fly fishing for salmon. at any time of the year, as it runs into the Bay of Fundy,  All rivers in the Bay of Fundy have been closed to fly fishing for salmon for more than five years.  I would have told him he could fish for Bass in the river and hook a salmon but would have to release the fish, because of the Closure in effect and trout fishing on the river is over on the 15th of September.  The river is something like a brook roaming through cattle country, sandy bottom with deep pools.