Throughout the course of our lives, we get thrown into situations with lots of different people of lots of different personality types.
Fishing is no different.
Supporter Spotlight
A lot of the time, people we end up fishing with become our best friends or lifelong companions. Other times, well let’s say, it’s just not as good.
For every person we meet on a fishing trip who counsels, guides or otherwise helps us, there are, hopefully not too often, one or two who, for some reason or another, don’t keep up their end of the deal. Just look closely for the gems.
True Mentors
The True Mentor is an exceedingly rare type of fishing companion. This is the type of person with whom you can share, and they will share with you, and we can all improve by being together. The arrangement is mutually beneficial.
It’s commonplace for most anglers to only have one, and maybe — but only if they’re extremely lucky — two True Mentors in their fishing lives. Anytime a person like this comes into our sphere of influence, we should consider ourselves blessed.
These are the types of people who determine what kind of an angler — among other things — that you will become. Their influence will have long-ranging effects on you and, in turn, probably somebody that you will mentor in the future.
Supporter Spotlight
Meet the Leeches
Conversely, a Leech is a guy who will suck you dry for any piece of information or knowledge that you can be persuaded to part with. This person will take anything you can offer and give nothing in return.
They will end up fishing in your spot while you’re not around, and then not tell you anything in return that could possibly help you in the future.
The worst kind of Leech is the one who doesn’t know anything at all, but they act like they do. Tossing salt into the wound, they then go and share your information as if they had acquired it on their own through years of experience and without the help of any other person.
The Know-it-All
Next, we have the Know-It-All. This person already has the answers to all the questions that ever need to be asked about fishing. The problem here is that this person doesn’t actually know anything and will give recommendations based on something that they heard about on a TV fishing show.
It gets worse, because Know-It-All always assumes that they are correct and whatever you say is wrong. And they continue to mess up all the ideas you have for the rest of the day.
Know-Nothing
In a similar vein, the Know-Nothing will tell you that he knows nothing about what is going on is and is just there to learn.
In reality, like Know-It-All, they think they do know everything and will complain incessantly when you make a decision that they don’t agree with. Then follow with, “Whatever you decide. I don’t know anything, anyways.”
Grumpy Old Man
Let’s talk about the Grumpy Old Man.
This is a person who is not necessarily old but is generally grumpy for some reason, and 99% of time they are indeed a man.
This person will never be happy.
Go out on the boat and if the fishing is slow, they will complain about fishing being too slow. If the fishing is really good, they will complain that the fish are biting too easily. If he hooks the biggest fish he’s ever caught in his life, he will be complaining about how long it takes to get in. If he’s only catching little fish, well of course he’ll complain about that as well.
Don’t even bother trying to make a lunch for the Grumpy Old Man. You might make the most amazing gourmet lunch anybody has ever heard of or seen and he will complain that it’s too fancy. But woe be to the one who only comes with PBJs!
If the boat is a little older, he’ll complain that it’s too beat up, and if the boat is brand new he will complain that it’s too fancy and you should get something more his style.
The Grumpy Old Man will never be satisfied no matter what you try to do for him.
The Mentee
The Mentee is similar to the Leech in that he personally learns a lot from the Mentor but, unlike the Leech, is fully appreciative of all guidance from the Mentor.
He gives full credit. He loves the feedback. And he will often be the kind of person who becomes a lifelong friend.
A really good Mentee will offer others fishing trips, often taking the Mentor to other places, and even buy really nice meals for the Mentor and the Mentor family. These are the kind of things that come unbidden, and the Mentor-Mentee relationship is often fulfilling for both parties.
These are great opportunities to cultivate lifelong friendships.
Ideal Fishing Companion
Izaak Walton said, “Good company in a journey makes the way seem shorter.” He was talking about fishing companions, of course.
The Ideal Fishing Companion is a person to whom and with whom spending time isolated in a boat or another fishing spot is a pleasure.
You will be able to converse about the myriad of subjects that come up when you’re fishing. There can be disagreement, of course, but it will not be disagreeable. Most of the time, the worst thing to talk about is college football or something like that, and if a true political discussion comes up, you can resolve the issue without harsh words.
The style of fishing demonstrated by these kinds of companions is generally similar, and the amount of stamina each has is similar, as well. That’s important, too.
Needless to say, Ideal Fishing Companion is difficult to find. There will be many people who come around but who don’t fit the bill. That’s fine.
Because in the meantime, you have been fishing, anyways, and isn’t the whole goal of this, anyways, just to be fishing?
An old Assyrian proverb states, “The time spent fishing is not deducted from the total time man spends on this Earth.”
I would like to think that is 100% correct.
