Summer 2011- Johnston, Shaun

Fishing is a behavior that many cultures around the world practice, and do so in different manners. I conducted my anthropology project over fishing at Koontz Lake, Indiana. The lake is present in both Marshall and Starke County, and is comprised of approximately 3.9 square miles. One historical highlight that makes people want to visit this particular lake is that Samuel Koontz at one time had his saw mill where the current dam reconstruction is taking place.
My recording was documented on a Saturday night in the month of June 2011 on the east side of the lake that resides in Starke County. The weather was great; it wasn't too hot or too cold for fisherman to be present. I recorded a female fishing about dusk when a majority of recreational; fisherman are present throughout the lake. The individual wasn't "talented" at fishing by no means, but was just doing the action for her own satisfaction of having fun, which is what a majority of people do at Koontz Lake. I was recording the sample from a neighboring pier that was present at a public access site. I was looking for a boat with some experienced fisherman but all that was present was a local civilian trying to have fun.
The concept that I am portraying in my anthropology project is fishing. There is more than one kind of method for fishing and that's why I thought I could relate this behavior to those of differing cultures and foreign areas of the world. For example, at Koontz Lake people usually fish with just a simple bobber, weight and hook leaving the sophisticated tackle to bass fisherman and other people that fish a lot. However, the female shown is bass fishing. She was using a type of spinner bait in which she casts out into the water, and reels it in as soon as the bait hits. As she reels the tackle, it makes a shining appearance and wobbles in a manner that makes bigger fish look as if the fake minnow is injured; therefore, making the bait easy prey.
Making this documentary for anthropology was not one of my easiest tasks. I tried setting up an interview with Mrs. Stanley, who has owned and ran Stanley's Marina for over twenty years. I was going to ask her for a minute of her time and ask her how fishing has evolved over time at Koontz Lake but she cordially declined and stated, "Why would I waste my time answering a stupid question like that?" So I let her be and went out patrolling for samples to document. Another obstacle I had to bear with was the construction of the dam that's taking place on highway twenty-three. The dam was said to be losing over five hundred gallons of water per minute and would eventually undermine the road. This has caused a lot of fisherman to stray away from the lake because of the noise and commotion taking place on a daily basis. In conclusion, I portrayed the behavior of a female bass fishing on a cool, remote night in June off of her pier at Koontz Lake, Indiana.

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