Nets and Holes

Back in the day, if you wanted a seine, you had to make it yourself, hire someone to do it or buy it if you could find one for sale.  If making it, it would be one knot at a time and require many spools of twine. It would take years to have a net deep and long enough for my dad’s vision.

When dad was living in New York he dreamed of moving back home to the islands. Every free moment, evenings, weekends and holidays he devoted towards his dream. It took ten years. 

The net was in four sections and each section fit perfectly in sturdy shipping barrels. With his family and nets by his side they made the journey to home sweet home. 

Mom, four children and with me on the way dad hit the ground running. Partnering with Uncle Joe, Ashield Bryan and Delborne Querrard he had a team. Each brought key elements needed to succeed. Uncle joe had a truck and would assist with selling the catch. Delburn had an outboard engine which made it so they can venture further.  Ashield had the confidence in my dad and the bravado to join him on the boat to establish new fishing spots. Dad had the boat, seine and vision. 

Together they worked stringing the new net with a float and foot line. It was a seamless operation securing the lead weights on the foot line and spacing the corks appropriately on the float line. The four sections joined together made it the deepest and longest net ever used by any of these men.

It took a group effort to move the net from the seine house to the truck and then from the truck to the boat.  Humbly they each took the role of a donkey and had as much of the net as they could support piled on their shoulders and draped over their bodies.  Six men shuffled closely together with the mounds of net covering their entire frame. With only the top of there heads and feet visible it was truly was site to witness as they moved in sync.

Today’s net fishermen are fortunate, they can readily order a net to their specifications and when it arrives have many conveniences available to get it in the boat. 

I know of only a few fishermen that have the knowledge and actual experience needed to make their own net and string it correctly.

Most net fishermen know how to repair holes with a ball of twine and mending needle. It is inevitable, a seine will get holes. It will get fastened between two rocks, tangled in the big blue teeth of an ocean gar and endure many other mishaps. Rest assured, it will get holes. 

When diving and clearing the net one quickly recognizes the occasional high pitched “twang”. It is like the sound of a pinched guitar string. That is the twine popping and a hole being born.

One of my jobs when diving the net is to swim with a tyre head and to temporarily stitch any holes with a piece of palm. Holes are easy to spot when the net is stretched out in the water. The palm strands we use are durable and strong.  It will hold up for a few months and will make the difference when tucking the fish. At some point in time that piece of net will make its way home to the mending pile. The pieces of palm will continue doing their job making it easy to find the holes for mending.

Soon the website will have images of my art which will include “Tying Holes”.