The Right Bait

Fish and I drove around for a while yesterday. We went to Mill Cove and saw some of the scallop draggers offshore, then went down to the Harbour and watched crews on a few lobster boats cleaning up. The traps will remain on scows (mostly) until spring and the unused bait will stay in freezers.

One peculiarity of lobster fishing is that the most rewarding part of the season happens during the first two weeks. After that the catches for many boats are greatly diminished. They get creative though. This year I know of boats not only trying crab instead of herring as bait, but also deer meat and even potato chips (honest!).

A rather odd thing happened down on the wharf the other day. I wasn’t there to witness it, however I have spoken to a number of fishermen involved.

Understand these are the same men who did everything they could to avoid a documentary crew here last summer. They don’t go looking for media exposure and will do a lot to not get involved in it. This is relevant when you find out, as I did, that they’d been speaking with a reporter.

I asked who this reporter was representing. They all gave me blank looks. The reply from each was then “Bangor”. I said “Great. TV? Radio? Print?”. Nobody knows. Maybe they just all forgot – I mean, a reporter should identify who they are representing. Right?

So I then wanted to know what the topic was. Their answer was that she was here to discuss the whole “all our mail is being intercepted” debacle. OK, that is plausible.

“Did she ask you about your mail?” The universal reply was “no”.

Her questions, after she had their names and photographs (must be print then, right?), were all about any difficulties they have getting through the Border. Really?

OK, so we have an unaffiliated “reporter” asking personal questions with legal implications of normally laconic fishermen and getting all their details out of them.

I may be old and cynical but the wharf isn’t the only thing smelling fishy about this.

The biggest mystery to me was still why on earth they spoke to her. I thought about it and then asked them what she looked like.

“Young” “Blonde” “Pretty” and “Very Pretty!”

uh huh

Somebody knew what they were doing when they sent that “reporter”. You don’t need chips to get the best of a fisherman. sigh