The Trot Line
A true story of the adventures of two young boys
and their dream of filling a trot line with Channel Catfish .
Homer and I had heard that by making a TROT line we could really clean up on Catfish. We wore out the Outdoor Life magazine on the material and method of construction. With our hard earned money we made a 300 foot line with about 50 drop line hooks and studied the facts of best bait to use, it also stated that best results were at night.
The Muskingum river was calling and Ellis Dam 7 miles up was calling too, and I had use of my Dad’s Kayak duck boat, paddle power only, but we were young and strong.
Now the (best) bait was Chicken guts they said in the magazine and we were in luck as Lucas & Allen Gro. just up the street had farmers bring live chickens in each Thursday that they slaughtered and we could obtain all the entrails for free. Oh boy what a gift!! My mother let us use 3 of her quart canning jars that we were to return.
The big catfish adventure was on! Armed with our bait, trot line, and old army wool blankets (sleeping bags) off we went on our bikes to where the boat was tied up. It must have been a sight at 9 in the morning seeing two young boys going down Ridge Ave. with fishing poles, camping gear and a wicker basket across the handlebars.
Loaded up the Kayak and it was a hot July day but we set off for Ellis Dam full of how we were going to really clean up on the catfish. It is about a 5 hour up stream paddle to Ellis and when we got there we made a camp. We spent awhile studying where to place the Trot Line and find rocks the right size to hold it on the bottom. We found that it was not easy, what with all the dangling hooks but got the job done.
Had our Spam dinner, and we were ready to bait up before dark. Now things got a bit out of hand. It seems strange things had taken place with the jars of chicken entrails that had been laying in the bottom of the boat in the hot sun all day .
When you are around 10 or 11 your mind is full of more important things and it causes brain damage that effects all logic to boys full of adventure. We paddled out and picked up the Trot Line and laid it across the boat so one could paddle and the other bait. The baiting job fell to me as Homer’s pocket knife was so dull hot butter was a chore. Now grasping the first jar and removing the lid proved to be very hard and as a last resort I placed between my knees so I could use both hands on the lid.
You have no IDEA what a quart of chicken entrails can do after being in the hot sun all day. When the lid popped off hitting me square in the face, a ten foot column of foul,expanding as it went, chicken bait caused me to holler “ralph” as I bailed over the side of the boat and some how not getting a hook in me while Homer looked on in pure surprise But with presence enough not to allow me in the boat till I stripped buck naked.
Needless to say, the other two jars were gently dropped over the side and it took some time before I could tell my mother what happened to them, but she had the grace to see the humor in the great Adventure.
After thought!! Could this be the fuel for the Booster Rockets ?
DJM 1939