Why Do We Fish?
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I remember when I first started fishing. My dad was in the Air Force and we were stationed in France. The base was at the edge of the Argon Forest in an area that had been bombed out by two wars. We lived in Airstream trailers and the view from the windows was bleak. There wasn't much to do on the base and we were continually taking excursions into the local towns and countryside for sightseeing and picnics
The Lindre' river was close by. My little sister and I were taken "fishing" there. We were outfitted with green branch fishing poles that had safety pins tied to them with short sections of kite string. Tough crusted French bread was bait. The swift current would immediately stretch the string to its limit leaving the bread bouncing and tugging on the surface until it finally dissolved. Not often, but sometimes a small French fish or two would come up and swat at the bread. Of course we could never hook one, but unlike my sister, I would never loose interest in trying. When it was time to go I was reluctant to abandon the effort. I had seen fish. I was bound and determined to catch one. My four year old mind did not comprehend that I had been set up for inevitable failure. I couldn't hook a fish, but I was hooked on fishing.
Back in the States, a time came when I was finally provided with appropriate equipment. The new problem . . . we were in southwest Texas. The body of water where I attempted to improve my record was Sweetwater Lake (misnomer) south of Abilene. Other than scraggly mesquite there wasn't a tree in sight. I don't think water flowed in or out of Sweetwater Lake. It was probably the world's largest, deepest mud puddle. There may have been fish in it, but the only life we saw were stray minnows or water moccasins. Still, my desire to fish only grew.
When I was about seven we went to visit some of my mom's relatives who lived further east where trees and grass actually grew. They had a ranch outside of town. A half a mile from the house here was a large man-made pond that, in that part of the country, they called a "tank". When my 12 year old second cousin heard of my fishing experiences, my lack of "luck" and my longing to catch one, he took me down to the tank. We used "Zebco's" armed with "Mepp's Spinners". I caught a nice little bass on my first cast and a couple of more after that. They quit biting way before I quit fishing. The feel of that first fish on my line had resonated with a primordial vibration within. I caught the fever!
We kept moving around the country. I got much better at actually catching fish and learned to adapt techniques to each area. It's pretty much the same everywhere. In Arizona I caught blue gills and small bass in lake Apache. In Virginia, I caught bass and lots of croakers in the Chesapeake. New Hampshire has trout, small mouth bass, pickerel and salt water fishing that piqued my interest. It was cheap to take a party boat out for a day of reeling in one pollack after another. I hit the jackpot with a couple of big haddock on one trip. I read "Field and Stream" and dreamed of Florida. Then, one day my Dad came home at the beginning of the New Hampshire January and told us we would be moving to Florida to a waterfront house in St. Petersburg. There, I met our neighbor, "The Colonel", who taught me how to fish for snook with lures alone, but that is another story.
Like the song says, "Any fish'll bite if you got the right bait." They don't always bite, though. I have been asked by non-fishing friends why I spend so much time and effort at the activity. Why do I continue on undeterred even by lack of success? I have written and read many attempts at explanation. Most wax poetic without hitting the mark.
It wasn't until I read about a clinical, psychological study conducted on rats that I fully understood the underlying dynamics. Each rat's cage was equipped with a button that dispensed a little food when pushed. The rats quickly learned how to acquire a meal. It became routine. The scientists then set the buttons in half of the rats cages to dispense food intermittently, and at random. The rats with normal buttons only pushed them when they were hungry. Soon, the rats with modified buttons began to punch their buttons continually. Finally, some even reached a point where they were so obsessed with pushing the button that they would ignore the food when it was dispensed. The unrewarded anticipation became a stronger motivator than the reward itself. The scientists used this as an example of how compulsive behavior works.
So, now you know. When someone spends thousands of dollars to fish offshore, makes cast after cast all night in the drizzling rain, bores a hole on a frozen lake, or sits motionless in a small boat all day under a blazing sun . . . . don't settle for romantic reasoning . . . they are just a nut case!
You will need this stuff to go fishing . . . just go crazy!
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Aluminum Fishing Boat 14 Foot 1980 Mirror Craft w/Evinrude *FRESH WATER*
Current Bid: $900.00
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1998 Grady White 248 Voyager Fishing Boat - 250 HP Outboard with Trailer
Current Bid: $26500.00
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2012 Solo-Boat, lightweight portable fishing boat
Current Bid: $229.50
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8S Travel Mini Pocket Tackle Fishing Fish Pen Rod Pole and Reel Combos Telescope
Current Bid: $7.87
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Zebco HAWG SEEKER With BITE ALERT SC Fishing Rod and Reel Combo Catfish Bass
Current Bid: $59.95
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Saltwater Fishing Tackle Pen Rod Pole and Reel Combos
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Hook Kids On Fishing - start young & keep them for life.
This is our dream (one of them, anyway). World peace!
Anglers For Conservation is a grass roots movement to promote environmental responsibility, community development, and individual awareness through education and experience. We want to change the world. We are dreamers, and we are also pragmatic. In india they say sometiing like, "You can eat an elephant if you do it one bite at a time."
This is a good place, and a good way to start!
Link
- Hook Kids on Fishing
Take a trip with WD Curry 111 to the Anglers For Conservation (AFC) progarm for family, community, and individual development. Hook Kids on Fishing!
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An Official Fish-aholics Annonymous census question.
What kind of angler are you?
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- Funny (2)
- Awesome (3)
- Beautiful (1)
- Interesting (7)
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Hi, I used to go fishing with a group of friends, I was fine until I hate to put the bait on the hook! lol! horrible little maggots, yuck! but they were the same, they loved to fish, and I must admit sitting by the river watching the wildlife and world go by was lovely, nell
Hi..i used go fishing with my Dad when I was a kid...i only go fishing when i make a trip to countryside.Nice article!!!
@North Wind - thanks for your excellent comment. That's what it's all about. Your terminology is apropos. Now there is nothing like catching your own fresh dinner, especially when every moment out of the water affects quality. Bring a kid to a Hook Kids on Fishing clinic and learn along with them.
@Nell Rose - Just being outside and noticing is the main attraction. I use lures almost exclusively. No yucky mess.
@adhijee - The new avant guarde. Thanks for coming by. Come to Florida, one day and we will wet a line.
Call me a nut Case WD cuz I love ice fishing.. fresh water fishing salt water fishing.. fly-fishing stream/rivers you name it oh by the way great Hub nice share :) Frank
I lived in New Hampshire where the ice gets 4 or 5 feet thick on the salt water bay. I thought the locals were crazy. How can that be fun? I tried it and went crazy too.
I am no good at fly fishing, and am out of vogue in that regard. I will make that my New Year's resolution. I don't like to have line out when I fight a fish, though. I guess you get used to it. It seems like more fun in the Georgia streams for trout, where I have only used ultralight spin gear.
The term, going to fish, is one turning point for all of mankind. Without this abundant source of food, vitamins and minerals there would be a lot less people in the world. Our fishing skills were passed down from generations. What an awesome post.
My Husband, "Lover Man" just Fishes for the Relax of it...He doesn't care if he catches anything or not. Good Hub, very Interesting, and l like your dry wit, WD Curry.
i asked why people fish not some stupidness you people are not answering my question idiots i hate this site
csheal6249 - awesome comment. We are treating our stocks too much like an unlimited resource, and the loss of habitat is another factor in the world wide decline of fish. We'll still be out their all day trying to catch one, though.
bMalin - "Lover Man" is obviously well adjusted. He is not acting out of compulsion like a fish-aholic. Sigmund Freud will probably tell you it is because he is well taken care of.
dfyhgv - we fish for many reasons. I can only do one thing at a time. The root of all fishing behavior . . . our ancestors got so hungry, they tried to eat one. Ultimately, we fish to eat. Do you feel better now?
I bet you would like to buy one of those fishing poles up there!
As a child, I went nearly every weekend with my Dad and brother, at least in the summer time....after high school, I slowed down...and a married dad, I rarely go, but still sneak out with one of my kids, and still find that enthusiasm as I feel that tug on my line...
fun hub!
Chris
Wow... you learnt to fish at a very young age. I wish I knew how to fish - not for a hobby. Just to put it on my list of "interesting things I have done." :)
Very interesting for me;I don't fish myself but I go along with my partner and while he fishes I write.
Thanks for sharing.
Take care and enjoy your day.
Eddy.
@CMerritt - Indiana rivers, lakes,ponds and brooks are beautiful. Boyhood fishing is the best. It is good to take the kids. I took my daughters before they could walk. I put them in a Snuggly (baby sling) when I waded into the Indian River Lagoon after snook, gator trout, redfish, tarpon etc. I took an extra diaper. Sometimes they fell asleep. They loved it, especially the younger one. She caught huge fish on her own by the time she was six or seven.
@Lady_E - The Romans messed up the fishing on the British Isles with their introduction of carp (their favorite for some strange reason). British fisherpersons are very polite and follow rules of etiquette that I wish Americans would adopt. Brits will move well away from a fellow angler to give room and not interfere, even at their favorite spot. If the average Yank sees you are catching something, they will come right over and crowd your scene.
@Eiddwen - You guys have a good system. In my book, you are fishing together. We call it fishing, not catching, because you may fish without catching a thing. Isn't it nice to get by the body of water, and remind yourself that you are still part of nature?
Nothing more relaxing and soothing than sitting on the bank in the warm sun, sometimes with a cold beer, gazing at the clouds in the sky. It's not the catch that counts, but it sure helps!
Thanks for bringing this up!
No, thank YOU for bringing it up. I think I'll use my common sense to do the logical thing. I'll grab a beer and go fishing!
It isn't always relaxing around here. A big snook in a tight area on light line can give you a heart attack!
This hub reminds me of how long it has been since I actually went fishing! A lot of the creeks around here has dried up over the years, and I only know one person who has a pond albeit they live too far away, and the river I live by is polluted about as bad as a liquid version of a landfill - due to it being surrounded by chemical plants with poor waste disposal methods. Hmm... Well, it looks like I'm buying my fish for a while, but I do miss the fight those pesky Smallmouth bass and Redeye bass would give me while creek-fishing as a kid. ...Good food, as well! :) Live crawdads/crayfish was always my bait of choice. Hook 'em in the tail, and cast that sucker out... Have fun...
New England? New Jersey? In the south, they are crawdads, not daddies, maybe Ohio? Cleveland? Pittsburgh?
I give up. Come on down and wet a hook. I know you are a true fisherperson. You said, "Have fun!" . . . not,"Good luck." . . . that's bad luck!
Fun hub about fishing. Thanks WD!
I love to go fishing sometimes. It relaxes my mind, even if I don't catch anything. And always reminds me of my childhood; me and my brothers would walk a dirt road several miles to go swimming and fishing in the summertime. Good memories.
I've caught some fish in Kentucky. That's where I learned that catfish is good. We don't eat the saltwater variety. It is good to have you by.
Though I used to fish as a child with my dad, I never enjoyed it. Funny that he never asked me if I did or not. He just assumed it was fun for me. Voting this Up and Interesting.
You are alright, my brother. We often fail to engage our children properly. We do the best we can. Join me, I pray that our God will fill in the blanks.
The ending made me LAUGH! I have never fully understood this sport and always assumed it was a form of meditation or a way to escape the wife/family for a few hours lol ... seems I was wrong.
SHARING this with followers and tweeting, everyone needs a laugh during Mondays.
I'm definitely not a fisherman(woman), but I really enjoyed your hub. It was especially fascinating to learn the behavioral psychology behind the compulsion to fish. Like the rats, I think my husband thrives on the anticipation of the fish as much as actually catching one! :)
The photograph of the children sitting on the dock fishing is beautiful!
Brett.Tesol - there are degrees of madness. Many people are not obsessive about it, but they don't fish very often. May I compare the compulssive activity to HubPages.
One example:
You want to catch a fish, but all you get is a swirl behind your lure, or a quick tug on your line. It gets you excited and you try again the next day.
You want to make money writing online, but all you get are scores, accolades and comments. You try again the next day.
I appreciate your generous offer to share, I am not up to speed on social networking. I like your stuff, by the way, and am looking forward to more!
Stephanie Henkel - Your husband is a nutcase, too? Sorry, I am having trouble focusing after watching the Superbowl.
What an awesome memoir of your fishing experiences! I remember fishing with my dad when I was young. Even when I didn't catch anything I had a good time. I try to get out a few times a year as I am a casual fisherman. I still don't catch much but I enjoy being out on the water and a feeling of freedom surrounds me. Was the psychology experiment you mentioned B.F. Skinner's "Skinner Box"? I remember reading about that back in college. This is a warm article and I enjoyed the nostalgic read. Voted up and SHARING!
JSMatthew~
J.S. Matthew - I do believe it was one of BF Skinner's experiments, but I wouldn't take it to court. You enjoy the best part of fishing . . . being there and enjoying the relaxing activity. Around here, people can get intense and so does the fishing, I love to take my kids to a near by pond and fish with a cane pole. That has always been relaxing for me and exciting for them. They are getting older, now and want in on the intense stuff. They turn up their nose at the pond now. The little rats.
Great article. I have always loved to fish, my grandfather used to take me out to the lake and then when I was older out on his and his friends boat to fish at sea. These days I often do diving for sea food such as crabs and shell fish during the warmer weather. This hub brought back great memories. Voted up
Excellent Hub about fishing, WD. I still want to slam a sturgeon before I die, but trout, catfish and stripers will do for now. Oddly enough, it was my ex who taught me how to fish. For that, and only that, I am grateful. Voted up and everything else.
R9139 - I'm glad you enjoyed it. What a coincidence. I just got some footage from the boys at Pure Ocean productions. They went diving for stone crabs and I am planning a hub about it. Take it easy.
Arlene V. Poma - I hope you slam that sturgeon . . . then release it. How about a tarpon? The are prehistoric, too. Sorry your ex was a drag. Mine were too.
this is a passion...
I have heard many people claim the same. It is a sweet way to describe the warped compulsion that drives the avid angler. Thanks for stopping by.
I always wondered why, after sitting on a freezing beach all night drowning worms with not a fish in sight, I would be ready to try again within hours of thawing out! Now I know - it's because I'm nuts!
I love to fish when I get the chance and got lucky a while back when my wife won a fishing trip for two to Lake of the Woods. How lucky is that?
Thanks for sharing your story!
Geoff
Sorry, that wasn't luck. Providence intervened on your behalf. Did you have any luck? I tell people,"Luck is not involved. It is all skill. I haven't had much skill today."
Man we do have a lot in common for am a fishing fanatic! Even I also live Florida I have not fished like I would like...I plan to change that soon though!
I was just wondering how you were doing. Now I know. You are a nut case, too.
North Wind Level 6 Commenter 4 months ago
I tried fishing a few times and caught nothing. I also damaged my friends fishing gear. I always wanted to be an ace fisher person (don't think that is the right term) and I just wish I could shout like Ernie, 'Here fishy, fishy, fishy!' and the fish would jump into the boat. My motives for becoming good at fishing are simple. I love fish: fried, baked, roasted, or in a broth :)