Scary Stuff

It is October. The end of the month is Halloween. Folks like to celebrate all things spooky and scary for Halloween. Isn’t that strange? Why do we like a good fright now and then?

Oh, it is the adrenaline rush, no doubt about it. It makes us feel alive. The unknown also heightens our senses, clears our head, makes us focus.

I believe we have a connection and fascination with the rawness, even violence of the natural world. Afterall, we are all predators (look in the mirror, your eyes are in the front of your head, just like all predators).

Isn’t that why we like spending time in the “wild”? In the outdoors? Isn’t that one reason we like to hunt and fish?

When I think of “scary stuff” for Halloween, I think of “monsters”, monsters in the wild. Is it not the presence of those large, often predatory creatures, that makes it wildness/wilderness? I love the time I get to spend in places where I might come around the corner and catch a glimpse of a bobcat, a coyote, maybe even a rattlesnake. Or taking it up a notch, I love the thought that there could be a mountain lion, bear or wolf out there. Yes, those creatures are scary, but that is exactly the point. That is why they are important, that is why I love the places where they live!

I have the same fascination when I am on the water. In fact that wonderment might be even greater when I am on the water because it is difficult to see below the surface.

I will never forget one of my first encounters with a northern pike, or if you will, Esox lucius, the water wolf. As a young boy I can remember sitting on a dock and peering underneath. I saw the long, sinister shadow of a pike. I am sure it was not a big pike, but I knew what that shape was. That was something mean, and I was curious about it (probably lucky I did not fall off the dock).

To this day I cannot get enough of big fish, big fish of any species. But, I have to admit, I spend a lot of time pursuing big predator fish; a lot of time pursuing big predator fish with sharp, nasty teeth. There is just something so wild about them, something that makes me feel alive.

So, for Halloween, I would just as soon watch this:

If you fish, I am betting you would just as soon watch that too. In fact, if you want to waste more time, check out that kanalgratisdotse channel. Yeah, I know, it is Europe, and you may not understand what they are saying. Except, fishing is the universal language, I understand completely!