Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2021 - 15

NOTES from theStreams
so he did not get spiders all over him.
That was the nicest spider stick I have
ever seen.-WCO Scott D. Opfer,
Fayette County.

Rolling tackle shop

Patrolling Lake Nockamixon, Bucks
County, I talk to a lot of anglers. One
angler impressed me more than most.
When this angler opened his trunk to
retrieve his fishing license, I could have
sworn I just walked into a tackle shop.
There was tackle hanging down the
sides and bags and boxes of assorted
lures, hooks, and baits. The angler asked
me if I have ever seen a musky fly. He
proceeded to pull out the biggest fly I
have ever seen that he made to look like
a mouse. As impressed as I was with
the fly, I was skeptical that something
like that would ever work. I told him
when he catches that monster, I hope I
am the first person he finds to share the
story. I am eagerly waiting to cross paths
with this angler again.-WCO Peter N.
Labosh, Northern Bucks County.

The mystery makebelieve nail salon

I was patrolling along a wild trout
stream just outside of Clearfield,
Clearfield County, when I noticed
a bag of trash discarded close to the
road. I pulled over, put on gloves, and
looked through the bag to see if the
responsible party left behind identifying
information. I found two sheets of
notebook paper, one containing a
telephone number and address. The
other page said, " Nail salon open, come
on in. " Both were written neatly in
fluorescent pink highlighter.
I spent the next hour searching the
internet for information relating to a
local nail salon, and maybe one that
was run out of someone's residence.
My attempts at locating any local
salon that could be a potential match
fell short. When I called the number,
someone would answer, but I would
only hear dead air. With options
running low, I visited the address and
found no indication of a nail salon.
Also, the apartment building's tenants
did not recognize the number nor did
they believe the other tenant had any
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connection to a nail salon. As a last
resort, I left a card and requested that the
other tenant give me a call.
I received a call back from the other
tenant, and sure enough the number
matched the one found in the bag of
trash. The woman on the other end
of the phone explained that she and
her daughter were playing " nail salon "
together and that this was her trash.
I laughed when I realized I spent a
whole hour trying to locate a makebelieve nail salon. I discovered that
the trash was taken by a friend due to
having perishables, and the trash was
not scheduled to be picked up until the
following week. The woman informed
me that her friend claimed that a bear
took the trash more than a mile away
from his house to the site where I
discovered it. She added, " But I do not
believe him. " " That makes two of us, " I
said. After a short conversation with her
friend, it was admitted that the bear was
as real as the nail salon.-WCO Justin L.
Schillaci, Clearfield County.

Follow the rules

This past summer, DWCO Walter
Gutzan and I were patrolling Lake
Wallenpaupack in our marked patrol
boat. We observed a boat with an
expired Kansas registration. The
occupants (2 juveniles and 1 adult male)
were fishing close to the Wayne County
shoreline. We observed the occupants
for a few minutes before conducting a
boarding of their vessel. At the onset of
the boarding, I asked the boat operator
and owner for the vessel's current
registration. The registration expired in
2018. The gentleman said, " I thought
boat registrations were extended because
of COVID-19? " He then said that he
follows all the rules and never breaks
any laws. As we continued through the
boarding process, I asked to see life
jackets for everyone onboard. He could
only produce one. I then asked to see
his throwable device since his boat was
greater than 16 feet. Unfortunately, he
was missing that as well. He was able to
produce the required fire extinguisher,
but it was not serviceable. Finally, I
asked to see his fishing license. His
head slumped downward as he said, " I

do not have one. " -Sergeant Walter A.
Buckman, Northeast Region.

Teaching an old dog
new tricks

I was patrolling Sheppard-Meyers
Reservoir, York County, when I
observed an older gentleman fishing
and was unable to see his fishing license.
I approached the angler and asked if he
was having any luck. The man told me
he caught a White Perch. I asked if he
had a fishing license, and he showed me
his license. I noticed a stringer holding
only a small Bluegill. I told the man
that the fish was a Bluegill, not a White
Perch. He asked me if he was allowed
to keep Bluegills, and I told him he was
allowed to keep it, but a single lonely
fish was not going to fill him up for
dinner. He told me that he was there for
a few hours and was having no luck. I
asked what kind of bait he was using.
He replied, " worms " as he pulled his
line out of the water. I asked what he
was fishing for and he told me panfish.
I told the older man that fishing on
the bottom for panfish is not the best
way, and he should try a bobber. " I
have never used a bobber, and I do not
know what they do, " said the angler.
After looking through his tackle box,
he found a bobber. I showed him how
to put the bobber on his line. His first
attempt at casting the line was not the
best, as he attributed it to me making
him nervous. He insisted I back up,
because he was left-handed. I did as he
asked and his second cast was a long,
straight one. I told him that when the
bobber was fully under the water, to
jerk the line and reel. Just as he turned
his head to ask me another question, I
saw the bobber go under. I yelled, " You
got one! " With excitement, he jerked
the rod and began to reel in a fish. He
turned to me and said, " You were right! "
As he continued laughing, he pulled in a
nice Bluegill. He told me he should not
have doubted me and thanked me for
taking the time to help him. I wished
him luck with the rest of his fishing and
walked away. As I walked back to my
vehicle, I could hear the man giggling as
he caught another fish using the bobber.
WCO Rachael L. Thurner-Diaz, Adams
and Western York counties.

Pennsylvania Angler & Boater * January/February 2021

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Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2021

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