American Hunting: Starting with Solitary Life in the Wilderness

Chapter 61 A Novice with a Pole, an Experienced Player with a Street Stall

The time has come to the fifty-second day.

The morning chill was stronger than usual, and Lin Yu'an woke up very early. After adding new firewood to the stove, he quickly walked to the newly built net platform by the lake.

He stood on the net platform, his eyes fixed on the float line.

The line remained still, showing no sign of being disturbed by the school of fish.

He picked up a long wooden stick, carefully dipped it into the water, and gently stirred the gillnet.

It feels relaxed when you hold it, without any resistance or struggle.

"It seems we got nothing last night again."

A hint of disappointment flashed across Lin Yu'an's face, but he quickly regained his composure.

He was mentally prepared; the passive fishing method of gillnetting is inherently full of uncertainty.

"It could be that the recent drop in temperature has changed the fish's activity range, or it could just be bad luck."

"However, we can't just sit here and wait. We need to take the initiative and attract the fish."

He returned to the shelter and retrieved the blood bait, which was in a clay pot and emitted a strong, fishy smell.

He scooped up a clump of sticky blood bait with a wooden spoon, added some fine sand to help it sink to the bottom, and then forcefully threw it into the water about one or two meters in front of the gillnet.

With a few "splashes," the blood bait scattered in the water, and the strong smell of blood probably spread through the calm water as well.

"Hopefully the baiting will be effective! I'll check back this afternoon to see if there's any harvest."

After doing all that, he went to check the tanning vat where the deerskin was being soaked.

The dark reddish-brown tannin seemed to have lightened in color, which he knew was a result of the hide absorbing tannins.

He scooped up the deer hide, turned it over, added some of the tanning liquid he had prepared earlier to the pool, and then submerged it again.

Back at the stone house, Lin Yu'an did not begin another day of firewood collection.

As he stood on the fishing platform, a thought flashed through his mind.

"Guys, there's an old Chinese saying: 'A novice starts with a stick, but an expert sets up a street stall.'"

"I used to fish with a hand line. Although I could catch fish, the control was a bit lacking."

"It's said that every newly made fishing rod has a 'new rod aura'! I've decided to make myself a 'wilderness edition' fishing rod! I hope it will have that 'new rod aura'!"

He re-entered the forest he knew quite well and began a search that was more rigorous than any he had ever conducted before.

"When making a fishing rod that can withstand tremendous pulling force, the choice of the rod body is of paramount importance. It must meet several almost demanding conditions."

"Lightweight, tough, with excellent flexibility, and a perfectly natural taper from root to tip."

He first ruled out tree species that grew too fast and had loose wood.

Ordinary birch or willow branches are far from sufficient to make a fishing rod capable of fighting large trout or pike in the depths of Lake Chirco.

The image that came to his mind was of a tree species in North America that was regarded as a "sacred tree" by the local indigenous people—the Pacific yew.

Pacific yew wood possesses unparalleled elasticity and toughness, making it an excellent natural material for crafting top-quality longbows and fishing rods.

As Lin Yu-an searched through the valley, he explained to the camera, "It usually grows in the understory of coniferous forests and grows relatively slowly. Finding a 'pole' with a perfect shape requires a bit of patience and luck."

Finally, on a damp, shady hillside shaded by tall fir trees, he spotted his ideal target.

It was a young Pacific yew tree that grew exceptionally straight upwards in order to compete for the limited sunlight.

The root diameter is about three to four centimeters, and there are almost no side branches. The length is exactly three meters.

Lin Yu'an lightly tapped the dark red trunk of the yew tree with his finger, and a dull but solid echo could be heard.

“It grows slowly, so the wood fibers are extremely dense, and its trunk is incredibly resilient. This is the top-quality rod material I’m looking for.” He used his homemade chainsaw chain to saw it down from near the base, then carried it back to camp.

He carefully peeled away the thin outer bark of the yew trunk, revealing the tough, reddish-brown wood beneath.

Place the peeled yew poles above a flame and slowly and evenly rotate them to bake them, performing initial straightening and stress relief to ensure the poles are straight as a line.

After the shaft had completely cooled and set, Lin Yu-an began the most crucial shaping work.

He took out a piece of rough sandstone that he had found earlier by the river and began to polish it little by little, starting from the base of the fishing rod and working his way up to the tip.

He was very focused on polishing, and the sandstone made a soft "shh" sound on the hard yew wood pole, with wood shavings falling one after another.

It's not just about making the rod smooth, but also about fine-tuning the taper of the rod during the polishing process, so that it forms a smooth and natural transition from the thick part of the handle to the slender tip.

As he polished the rod, he explained to the camera, "The soul of a good fishing rod lies in its perfect taper."

"This allows the force to be evenly transmitted and distributed from the rod tip to the grip, maximizing the rod's resilience."

Only after the rod body was finely polished to his satisfaction did he begin the final performance enhancement steps.

Place the already shaped, smooth rod body above the flame and slowly rotate it for even secondary heating.

"Now that the shape of the pole is fixed, we will heat it again, but this time the purpose is not to reshape it."

"Instead, we need to open up the micropores on the surface of the wood to prepare for the subsequent oil treatment, allowing the oil to penetrate deeper."

When the yew trunk was heated until it was slightly hot and its color became darker, he dipped some of the previously refined pine resin oil from the earthenware bowl and applied it to the entire warm trunk.

"The resin is being absorbed by the thirsty wood."

"Oils can penetrate deep into the wood fibers, greatly enhancing their toughness and water resistance."

He repeated this process of heating and oiling three times until the entire yew trunk turned a deep, oily reddish-brown, like an enlarged magic wand.

Next is the treatment of the rod tip's tethering structure, which is one of the most critical parts of a hand rod.

"Without a fishing reel and line swivels, all the power will be transmitted to the fishing line through this small rod tip."

Using the tip of his multi-tool, he carved a shallow, circular groove about one centimeter from the tip of the pole.

“Now, we’re going to make a permanent ‘pole tip knot’ here.”

He took the nylon thread, soaked in pine resin, and wound it around the rod tip in a spiral, one circle overlapping the other, from the bottom of the groove.

When he got to the groove, he made sure to wrap it a few extra times to create a slightly raised reinforcing ring.

Finally, tighten the end of the thread with an anti-slip knot, cut off any excess thread, and apply a thick layer of rosin.

Once solidified, the resin and nylon thread will form a hard and smooth whole.

That small groove perfectly holds the main fishing line attached to it, ensuring that it will not slip off under high-intensity pulling.

Finally, he wrapped a loop of willow bark rope around the handle, which not only provided a non-slip effect but also further protected the wood of the handle.

After a full day of meticulous work, a brand new, oily, deep reddish-brown wilderness-style "fishing rod" has finally been completed!

Lin Yu'an held the rod with both hands and swung it a few times in the air. The rod cut through the air and made a "whooshing" sound, while the tip of the rod trembled sensitively!

He bent the fishing rod into an astonishing arc, and could clearly feel the powerful and resilient rebound force from the Pacific yew core emanating from the rod.

Lin Yu'an's face revealed an unprecedented confident smile as he gently patted the sturdy rod.

"Now, I have absolute confidence in the strength of this fishing rod! I definitely won't come back empty-handed tomorrow!"

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

(It's the last day, please vote for me! I'll be happy if I can get 6000 votes! I'm still a few hundred votes short~)

(End of this chapter)