The Great Smelt fishing expedition
One nice day in early April, the suns out the snow is melting and our anxiety and Cabin Fever is getting the better of us Aubrey R and I discussed going smelt fishing to Parry Sound about 200 miles north of Toronto. In Parry sound the Seguin River runs into Georgian Bay and in early April the smelt start to migrate up the river in great schools.
By the time we decide to go that night we have Allan M. not myself Ralph G. Aubrey R. Luigi G and myself going.
We rush home after work to pick up the equipment net, poles, and liquor. and head for Parry Sound in my 67 Pontiac, so this would have been about 1970 or 71.
We get to Parry Sound and it's still light out and the smelt don't start running until after dark so we scout the area for a place to eat.
The area was still unspoiled in that there were no burger joints, McDonald's Wendie's there yet, so we had to be satisfied with a traditional restaurant.
When it got dark we headed to the river and assembled the net and poles to start fishing.
We were fishing for a while but were not doing to good until we decided to move up the river to a Marina where they had some floating boat slips in the river.
Whether it was the move or they just started to run, they were coming in gangbusters and in fact the hauls were so heavy we had to tip some out of the net so we could haul it in, and in fact each guy got tired of hauling them in.
When it's Ralph G's turn to start with the 4by4 net at the end of some hollow aluminum poles he goes out to the end of the slip and by this time another guy who had been fishing without much success decided to follow Ralph out on the slip to see how he was doing.
The guy that follows Ralph out was not with us, just some other curious fisherman, who wasn't getting anything.
Ralph makes a big dip in the river and raises the net, and with it water in the hollow pole, which is aimed at the guy's rubber boot who had followed him out.
I happened to be watching and saw Ralph fill the guys rubber boot with extremely cold water, as the river still had ice floating in it, it was dark but I could see the expression on the guys face as he was wondering what the hell was happening how was his foot getting so cold and wet, and judging buy the expression on his face he wanted to punch Ralph in the head, the trouble being Ralph is about 6ft 4in and looks like Paul Bunyan beard and all, Ralph even sensed the guys dilemma, and said well you shouldn't have been standing so close. We all started laughing so much the guy skulks off somewhere to lick his wounds, or at least try to dry his foot and we continue on, all the while the guys are having a few nips to banish the cold as it was getting, as it does in these northern climes at this time of year.
We head back with 3 or 4 bushels of smelts in the trunk, the cars rear end almost dragging on the ground, having to watch for bad bumps because of the frost coming through the road.
I don't nor have ever drank, but each of the other guys did and each had a bottle, and by the time they had gotten down to the half way point on each of their bottles started to try each others bottle, so they all had a little of each others bottle which can and was a dangerous combination.
All was going well until we made a turn onto hiway 9 going in towards Newmarket when Allan M says pull over I think I am going to be sick, so I pull over in the dark, and All darts out of the car and just as fast dissappearas from view.
We all get our to see what had happened and there is Al at the bottom of a very steep bank up against a fence on the ground wretching his guts up, with all of us laughing at the top of the hill.
We give Al a little room until clear of the mess he made, and had to help him up the hill and into the car, and continued on our way, my dropping them all of at home with some fish.
I cleaned smelt half the night and gave the rest away the next day.
The stupid part of this story is that I don't even like fish, but everyone else in the house does.
The good part of the story is that it made for some good stories for the next few days at work.
Allan
One nice day in early April, the suns out the snow is melting and our anxiety and Cabin Fever is getting the better of us Aubrey R and I discussed going smelt fishing to Parry Sound about 200 miles north of Toronto. In Parry sound the Seguin River runs into Georgian Bay and in early April the smelt start to migrate up the river in great schools.
By the time we decide to go that night we have Allan M. not myself Ralph G. Aubrey R. Luigi G and myself going.
We rush home after work to pick up the equipment net, poles, and liquor. and head for Parry Sound in my 67 Pontiac, so this would have been about 1970 or 71.
We get to Parry Sound and it's still light out and the smelt don't start running until after dark so we scout the area for a place to eat.
The area was still unspoiled in that there were no burger joints, McDonald's Wendie's there yet, so we had to be satisfied with a traditional restaurant.
When it got dark we headed to the river and assembled the net and poles to start fishing.
We were fishing for a while but were not doing to good until we decided to move up the river to a Marina where they had some floating boat slips in the river.
Whether it was the move or they just started to run, they were coming in gangbusters and in fact the hauls were so heavy we had to tip some out of the net so we could haul it in, and in fact each guy got tired of hauling them in.
When it's Ralph G's turn to start with the 4by4 net at the end of some hollow aluminum poles he goes out to the end of the slip and by this time another guy who had been fishing without much success decided to follow Ralph out on the slip to see how he was doing.
The guy that follows Ralph out was not with us, just some other curious fisherman, who wasn't getting anything.
Ralph makes a big dip in the river and raises the net, and with it water in the hollow pole, which is aimed at the guy's rubber boot who had followed him out.
I happened to be watching and saw Ralph fill the guys rubber boot with extremely cold water, as the river still had ice floating in it, it was dark but I could see the expression on the guys face as he was wondering what the hell was happening how was his foot getting so cold and wet, and judging buy the expression on his face he wanted to punch Ralph in the head, the trouble being Ralph is about 6ft 4in and looks like Paul Bunyan beard and all, Ralph even sensed the guys dilemma, and said well you shouldn't have been standing so close. We all started laughing so much the guy skulks off somewhere to lick his wounds, or at least try to dry his foot and we continue on, all the while the guys are having a few nips to banish the cold as it was getting, as it does in these northern climes at this time of year.
We head back with 3 or 4 bushels of smelts in the trunk, the cars rear end almost dragging on the ground, having to watch for bad bumps because of the frost coming through the road.
I don't nor have ever drank, but each of the other guys did and each had a bottle, and by the time they had gotten down to the half way point on each of their bottles started to try each others bottle, so they all had a little of each others bottle which can and was a dangerous combination.
All was going well until we made a turn onto hiway 9 going in towards Newmarket when Allan M says pull over I think I am going to be sick, so I pull over in the dark, and All darts out of the car and just as fast dissappearas from view.
We all get our to see what had happened and there is Al at the bottom of a very steep bank up against a fence on the ground wretching his guts up, with all of us laughing at the top of the hill.
We give Al a little room until clear of the mess he made, and had to help him up the hill and into the car, and continued on our way, my dropping them all of at home with some fish.
I cleaned smelt half the night and gave the rest away the next day.
The stupid part of this story is that I don't even like fish, but everyone else in the house does.
The good part of the story is that it made for some good stories for the next few days at work.
Allan
