03773 - Newport, N.H.
Robert LaClair Jr. grew up in Newport, N.H., and now lives in Claremont. He works weekdays as a mobile home escort driver, weekends as a cashier at Wal-Mart, and fishes whenever he can find the time. The following is an edited interview.
Fly fishing might be the thing for this spot, but I don’t know how to do that. My arm would get too tired going back and forth, back and forth, trying to get the line out, so I’m fine with this. There’s no special techniques, no secrets. I put a worm on a hook and cast it out. That’s it. All you need is a hook and a worm, and I’ve got plenty of them.
I’ve been working 7 days a week all winter, so this is my first time out this year. My boss was going to Massachusetts and he didn’t need me along, so I thought, hey, I’m going fishing.
The earliest I remember fishing here I was about 5 or 6 years old. That’s almost forty years, so I’ve learned all the spots. There’s a rock sitting over there, I don’t know if you can see it, that's usually where the trout are hiding, but for some reason I can’t cast that far today.
The nice thing about this spot is you can see wildlife. The bugs get pretty thick but I’ve got these cigars to keep them away. You’ll see deer through here, they’ll come right up to the water, and ducks and geese. There was a woodpecker a little while ago. There’s big suckers out here, some trout, some dace — they’re like a big shiner — and some crayfish. There’s a lot of hooks and sinkers out there, too, two of mine from today.
I’ve traveled all over the country, but I always end up coming back. If I had my way about it, I’d live out here. I like it because it’s quiet. It’s relaxing. It’s a place to leave the girlfriend at home because she doesn’t like to fish. I can get out here by myself and it gives me time to think.
Traffic over the bridge doesn’t bother them any. The vibration shakes them up and moves them around. In the Connecticut River down by Ascutney, the only time the fish bite is when the train goes by, they hardly bite any other time. Fish have their own way of thinking.
I haven’t caught anything yet this morning, but I’ve only been here an hour and a half. They’re nibbling a little bit. I just wish there was some way to make them quit playing and just bite the thing.