I never thought that I would be fishing as part of my new job...
Sure I work around water all day as I inspect canals and so forth but I just did not fathom that fishing would be part of my day. The weird thing is that I was not fishing for cards or fish, I was fishing for a tree stump.
I was however using a pole...
I carry a long handled pitch fork with a curved fork, and a long handled log spear. These poles are what I use to fish items out of the canals and ditches. I first saw the large stump this morning as it was stuck up against the legs of one of our catwalk bridges. I tried to get the bugger out of the water but quickly discovered it was too heavy to pull out with either pole. I got it to move just enough to send it down river knowing that we would meet again.
Fast forward to early this afternoon about 2 miles further down the same canal. It was here that our battle began anew. The nasty stump was once again stuck at the base of a catwalk. We fought briefly but it won again and slipped off its moorings and began to travel downstream.
I was not going to stage another battle and so I followed the log as it drifted by running down the bank. The current was slow and this allowed me to reach out my fork and direct it to the bank. Having trapped it I began to pull on it with my hands. This foe was fighting as if it was a huge catfish. I rolled it several ways and could not pull it out. Finally I found a notch that I could grip and pushed my feet into the dirt, and with my backside protruding, I was able to pull the stump onto the bank.
Battle won!! Hail the conquering Hero!! No longer was I stumped.
Consider it a lesson learned.
The Author is Brian Servoss, more than a ditchrider.
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