One of the more common interests amongst travellers is getting out the rods or the tinny, and spending time catching, or perhaps trying to catch fish.
I often wonder what the attraction is to this pastime; there must be something that provides the fisherman with pleasure to keep doing that which he loves.
Do fishermen catch fish for eating, or is it the thrill of hunting, or thrill of the chase?
I used to go fishing when I was a kid with my father, and did enjoy it at the time from memory. However, I guess I was taken fishing as my father didn’t know how to snare rabbits or catch kangaroos. To me it would seem to be the same thing as in being hunting, the food and the thrill of the chase would still be there. So perhaps fishing is a cultural thing. If fathers took their children out hunting for red meat, would the child be more prone to doing so as an adult?
Is it because fish actually taste better than red meat? I’d much prefer a barra to fried rabbit to be honest so maybe it is the quality of the meat that is procured.
Is process of fishing that is the attractant? My last fishing trip over a four day period near
Kalbarri about four years ago was more memorable for catching up with old mates, than the fish that we caught (or didn’t catch).
I, and I guess many of us are surrounded by this love of fishing. Many of my friends and colleagues from work spent their entire annual leave going on fishing trips, some organised professional trips.
One only has to look at the TV guide or in the local newsagent or the camping store to see that fishing is, and will always be more popular than rabbit or kangaroo hunting. Why is this?
Cheers
Alan