The (pure) joy of fishing

Reading The Adventures of Tom Sawyer I have been reminded of what it means for boys (and men) to live near a river with, in the case of Tom and Huck, the opportunity to catch catfish, grill it over an open fire and then, leaning back on moss-covered logs, enjoy the fish for dinner. Even an elaborate feast couldn’t compare with this simple food.

Not forgetting the girls. I recall the fun I had with my cousin Sally Johnson, using a simple pole and fishing from the floating dock at Uncle Jim and Aunt Barbie’s cottage on Merrymeeting Lake. We would stand quietly just at the edge of the painted wooden platform, our tiny toes dangling over the edge, staring into the crystal water when suddenly there would be a slight tug, then another, on the line dangling from some sort of pole, light as a willow stick. We would pull it up as high as we could to find at the end a squirming, amphibious creature, its gray scaly skin shining in the sun. Now what?

“Aunt Barbie,” one of us would call out, “We have a fish, will you come and help us?” Neither of us had the courage or the daring to touch the miserable fish. This was usually the time in the morning when she was handling domestic chores and would interrupt whatever she was doing and come to our rescue. The fish would be kept under lockdown few hours in a large blue enamel pot that was just next to the shore before an adult would quietly release it back into the lake.

By then we were distracted by other activities and figuring out how to snatch one of Aunt Barbie’s soft, sweet butterscotch brownies before dinner.

We are lucky to have so many lakes in New Hampshire and opportunities for fishing. If not in the lakes – Winnipesauke, Winnisquam, Squam, Merrymeeting – then perhaps in one of the rivers and streams found here to there.

The New Hampshire Fish and Game Department has a list of the rivers that are stocked with trout, many with romantic names – the Androscoggin River and the Contoocook River being two. The name "Androscoggin" comes from an Abenaki term that is said to mean: river of cliff rock shelters — or deep dwelling river. The Androscoggin River flows through New Hampshire and Maine.

I’m always curious about things and have learned that the saltwater fish found in New Hampshire include American Shad, Atlantic Cod, Bluefish, Haddock, Monkfish, Yellowtail Flounder and Ocean Pout. There are cold water fish, including Brook Trout, Rainbow Trout, Brown Trout and Landlocked Salmon and in the warm water one can find Bass, Pickerel, Perch, Walleye and Northern Pike.

It’s carefree, fishing, watching a line floating in the water. Drifting in a boat. Noise spooks the fish, so it’s quiet and motion is kept to a minimum. While we’re waiting calmly there is time to think. Time to dream. To imagine what we might just find awaiting there in the quiet still water.

Maybe it isn’t really the fishing? Maybe it’s all about drifting in the silence.

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Elizabeth Howard’s career intersects journalism, marketing and communications. Ned O’Gorman: A Glance Back, a book she edited, was published in May 2016. She is the author of A Day with Bonefish Joe, a children’s book, published by David R. Godine. You can send her a note at: Elizabeth@laconiadailysun.com