"You Need A Net For What?....": True Stories

I worked for a while in a fly shop. There was usual questions about this rod or that reel or what line to use. But the strangest request I had was from a man who came in for a landing net. He needed the largest fishing net we had. I asked what kind of fish he needed it for -- thinking it was for a salmon or a steelhead or even possibly a muskie. No not exactly!!!!! Apparently the man was restoring a building nearby. And a seagull (probably an immature adult) had somehow managed to get into the basement (completely windowless), likely coming down the chimney.

The problem was the bird had been making "deposits" that even a bank wouldn't accept all over the newly finished concrete work. The seagull was obviously not very happy about being in such an enclosed space -- and was very much alive -- and active. Unfortunately the only nets we had in stock were for landing trout, not for providing a "landing strip" for a bird. I do hope the man was able to practise "catch and release" though. But I must admit to wondering how many flies one could have tied with all those seagull feathers.

Second funniest thing I heard while working in a fly shop was the guy who came in with his Sage rod for repair after he had broken the tip. Apparently his wife had decided to use his rod to rid their cottage of a bat when he arrived and he was "dumbfounded" to see her attempting to "swat" the bat with his rod. His loud "exclamation" at her use of his brand new Sage rod caused her to react by slamming the door of the bedroom (that the bat was residing in) on the tip of the rod, causing it to break. Eventually he was able to "reside" in the bedroom himself (once he had spent the night on the couch AND the bat was finally removed -- "catch and release" was definitely used in this case).

Strange but true this fly fishing stuff!!! Much better than even the East Enders!!!

Tight Lines,
Mike

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"Fly fishing is solitary, contemplative, misanthropic, scientific in some hands, poetic in others, and laced with aesthetic considerations. It's not even clear if catching fish is actually the point." -John Gierach

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