Today was “P” day for the Rosses. It was a day for rest, relaxation and a change of pace. Among other more mundane things, we decided to visit our favorite beach, Stone Haven. The surf was extremely low so no boogie boarding. But the sun was bright and the breezes strong so we were happy.

While at Stone Haven, we came across a delightful happening that intrigued, amazed and ultimately disappointed us. You see, a group of over a dozen net-fishermen were laying out their net and preparing to haul in their catch. We watched as the net went out. Not knowing what was really happening, we paid minimal attention until we figured out that they were putting the net into a vast semi-circular pattern that stretch hundreds of yards out to sea and down the beach. Once played out, the net had to be pulled in (all done by hand). Dad even got involved in helping pull one of the ropes. His contribution was very minimal but it did make for a good photo-op.

We walked to the far end of the beach (picture at top taken here) and saw the net floating in the water. The previous picture was taken at the other end of the bay.

Over an hour later the net had been worked down the beach near the other end.

So, the net was out, the pull-in was begun and we waited and watched with eager anticipation. As the circle of net got tighter and closer to shore, our excitement grew to a near fever pitch. Dad had been promised a fish for his help so he was almost frantic with joy.

The last few yards finally were drawn up on the beach, revealing the “catch.” How disappointing! It turned out to be little more than a bunch of “bait” fish. We never did determine if that was the anticipated catch or if the fishermen were as disappointed as we were. By the way, Dad didn’t wait around to collect his “fish” reward.

The most exciting part of the whole experience was watching the sea-birds dive and steal some of the bait fish from the net. They made out better than the humans who did all the work.

It just goes to show. Hard work does not always pay off in the way you may anticipate. However, it can almost always provide a sweet little photo-op for some vacationers or missionaries. By the way, as you’ll notice from the pictures, the crowd awaiting the final catch was enormous and equally disappointed.