By Rich Niccum, Education Services Manager
While introducing cane pole fishing to visitors at Gallant Farm last Saturday, I remembered how fishing as a child shaped the adult I am now.
Thanks to a sizeable donation from Linda Nester, a passionate farm volunteer who passed away a couple of years ago, a fishing dock was built at the farm last fall. The dock provides a relaxing place to sit and enjoy the sights and sounds of the farm, and it also allows us to offer cane pole fishing during special events. This was the first time we had tried cane pole fishing at the farm and it brought back many fond memories for me as I watched visitors, young and old, try their hand, some fishing for the very first time. We had a lot of fun, had only a couple of tangled lines, and almost everyone went away with a fish story about the one they caught or the big one that got away.
Growing up, I was very fortunate to spend almost every weekend fishing, boating, swimming and exploring Grand Lake St. Marys in western Ohio. My grandparents had a cottage on the lake, and it was just a short walk down to the channel to their dock. The whole family fished hours at a time each Saturday and Sunday starting in early April and running all summer. There are photos of me as a baby with my parents as they were fishing and then as I got older with my big bulky life jacket standing on the bank with my very first pole. I am sure there is a photo somewhere of me with my very first fish!
I remember fishing for crappie in April each year and catching them by the hundreds; then watching my grandfather fillet and freeze them to eat throughout the summer. I remember the first time my dad let me take the row boat out to fish by myself: what a feeling of freedom!
My grandfather loved to fish for carp, which provided several humorous memories. He didn’t eat them, but instead gave them to the next-door neighbor who knew how to prepare them to avoid their mud vein. My grandfather loved the fight they gave when one would bite on the doughball-covered hook. He always dipped the doughballs in sweet anise oil, claiming it would attract the carp. I am not sure how true that was but it seemed like he had pretty good luck with it.
I can remember my grandfather walking away from his pole while he went to work on the dock or his boat, then hearing a plop in the water. The next thing you would see is his fishing pole bobbing in the water as the carp made off with hook, line and pole into the channel. He would jump in the row boat, shouting some words not made for young ears, and try to catch up with the quickly moving carp … and pole.
Fishing helped me to develop a sense of appreciation and wonder of nature. I watched water snakes swim by, turtle heads peek up through the water and great blue herons perch nearby. I also came to appreciate the many plants that grew in and around the lake. I remember fishing within a vast lily pad landscape and being amazed by the large, beautiful flowers and alien-looking seed pods. As a child, I enjoyed seeing the seeds of the giant cottonwood trees float on the wind and cover the ground in several inches of fluff, but as a I grew older I found out how those same seeds would irritatingly clog the reel of my pole. Fishing also taught me patience and allowed me to practice my knot-tying skills.
My love for nature and the outdoors I owe to these experiences. My hope is that someday I will share those same experiences with my grandkids. And my hope is that our park visitors take advantage of some of these same opportunities. I encourage them to purchase or borrow a fishing pole, dig up some earthworms and head to Blues Creek Park. There, they can fish on the dock, enjoying the sights and sounds of nature, and hopefully catch a fish or two as well.
We’ll post special fishing opportunities, including cane pole programs at Gallant Farm, in our program guides and on social media. Don’t be afraid to try something new by yourself or better yet invite a friend or your family to try it with you. It could be the start of a lifetime of wonderful memories.
