December 3, 2004

Fish Tale

By Marilyn Fahey
Special to the Times

Where were the fish? That was the big question on a recent Sunday in November during a “Fishing in the City” fishing clinic. Sixty or so fishing poles hovered over the chilly water, their lines all properly hooked, baited and cast, yet no one was getting a bite.

Jim Fahey catches a catfish, and one of the many volunteers on hand helps to get the fish off the hook. Jim’s dad Bob Fahey and young brother Will Fahey watch the process.

My husband, Bob, wasn’t surprised. He’d taken our two boys, Jim and Will, to previous fishing clinics at Lake Cunningham, and he knew it would be tough to catch anything.

“This lake has been tough for us,” one of the volunteers, who chose to remain anonymous, told us. “One year we stocked trout here, but the water was too warm and they all died. Now, the water is cold enough, but it doesn’t have enough oxygen.”

This time, they’d stocked the lake with catfish. “Only thing is,” he said, “catfish like to feed at night.”

Still, it was hard to complain, considering the clinic was free. Fishing in the city programs are supported through an excise tax on fishing tackle and motorboat fuel, and the fishing clinics are run by volunteers.

When we’d first arrived at the Ruby Creek picnic area that morning, dozens upon dozens of volunteers were ready for us—from the California Department of Fish and Game, Lake Cunningham Park, the Rotary Club and Piedmont Hills and Mt. Pleasant High Schools.

But more about the free stuff. Before we’d even registered, a volunteer had handed both our boys a free book, “Kids Book of Fishing.” After registering (registration opened at 8 a.m. sharp), the boys picked out “loaner poles.”

Then, volunteers led them through different “stations,” where they learned about fishing etiquette, how to tie a slipknot and the importance of protecting watersheds.

They learned how to cast at the fourth station, while at the fifth they were given mini-tackle boxes and supplies and taught how to hook their lines. The final station was the bait table, where each fisherperson was allowed one Dixie cup of night crawlers (plastic ones, I was happy to see).

Fully prepared now (visiting all the stations had taken about 40 minutes), we walked along the lake until we found what we hoped was a good spot. And then, after the boys cast their lines, we waited.

An egret watched us from the opposite shore. At the end of the lake, Raging Waters stood silent and seemingly abandoned, like a boardwalk amusement park shut down for the winter.

Volunteers walked along the lakeside path, shouldering their nets, ready to help bring in a catch. One volunteer began to toss tiny marshmallows on to the water, hoping to lure the catfish to shore.

“Jim, you have a bite,” my husband said. I couldn’t see it—it was the tiniest of nibbles—but it was a fish, all right. Bob hooked the fish—parents aren’t allowed to catch fish for their kids, but they can assist them—and Jim reeled it in.

“Fish on! Fish on!” Will, my 4-year-old, yelled, like he’d been taught to at the casting station. A volunteer netted the fish then tied it to a rock in the water.

But after that rush of excitement, all was quiet again. Sam George, who’d accompanied his son’s Bear Cub Scout Den from Saratoga, was philosophical about it all. “They came here to learn about fishing. And they did. This is a good experience for them.”

Still, he added, “It would be a better experience if they actually caught a fish.”

By the time we left at 10 a.m., someone else had caught a fish, but she wasn’t a Cub Scout. We were on our way to the cleaning table as it was being netted.

Yes—there was a cleaning table. They even had volunteers to clean the fish! The woman who took our fish from us got right down to business. Before slicing it up, she wanted to make sure it was dead, so she pounded it on the head with the knife handle. That didn’t work, though, so she pulled out a hand broom and whacked it with that. It worked.

I don’t know what happened then—seeing the poor fish go through a pounding was enough for me—but within a few minutes we were headed home with catfish fillets.

Fishing in the City also holds fishing clinics at Hellyer Park in San Jose, Vasona County Park in Los Gatos and Don Edwards Wildlife Area in Fremont. The next clinic will probably be held in February and the next clinic at Lake Cunningham will be in either May or June. Call (415) 892-0460 or check http://www.dfg.ca.gov/coned/fishcity/sanfran.html for updated information.