Life at the coast is all about ‘fish or cut bait’

Fish or cut bait. That’s a familiar idiom we hear frequently in Carteret County, N.C., especially in the Down East region.

 

The writers at the blogsite Heroes, Heroines & History (HH&H) tell us: “Fishing for the exact meaning of this phrase submerges us in murky waters. Some people use it to prompt another person to make a choice or decision. Others use it as a spur to get someone to either act or quit.”

HH&H found the earliest print reference in 1837, within the Oneida Observer in Albany, N.Y.: “Politicians cannot shilli-shalli along now. They must either ‘fish, cut bait, or go ashore.’”

Audrey Atkins of Birmingham, Ala., creator of the Folkways Nowadays blog, added: “A little research revealed that in a fishing culture, the act of cutting up bait fish into small and useful pieces is just as important and integral to the whole process of catching fish as…well…actually catching the fish.”

In a culture defined heavily by commercial fishing, the saying emphasizes that “every member of the team or community must pull his and her weight and commit to the mission.”

I’m not sure this is a “fish or cut bait” moment, but I’ve been thinking that the Crystal Coast needs is an official beach music theme song – a tune you can dance to as well as sing along.

A good candidate may be the classic shaggin’ song “Gone Fishin,’” written in 1976 (50 years ago) by the “king of beach music” General Norman Johnson and performed by The Chairmen of the Board. 

Here’s a bit of it:

I’m going to lock my doors and close my blinds

In my window, I’m gonna leave a sign

Gone fishin’

 

And waste some time (gone fishin’)

Leave my trouble behind (gone fishin’)

Rest my mind, if I don’t get away

I’m gonna lose my mind, hey-hey!

The beat is smooth, mellow and laid-back, like the aura of the Crystal Coast – not frantic.

 

Painting by Norman Rockwell

“Gone Fishin’” is one of the standards that the DJs spin for patrons at the legendary Memories Beach Club in Atlantic Beach, N.C. 

(The tune ranks No. 21 on the all-time beach music hits chart at Radio Station 94.9 FM – The Surf in North Myrtle Beach, S.C.)

 

The American Sportfishing Association and others say there are approximately 60 million people who identify as fishermen or fisherwomen in the United States. 

About 1.5 million North Carolinians are licensed anglers.

North Carolina is considered the fourth most popular fishing state in the nation, trailing only Florida, Maryland and Michigan.

North Carolina offers a variety of fishing experiences from “the mountains to the coast,” which make the state fairly unique. The North Carolina chapter of the Native Fish Coalition says North Carolina has 17 major river systems and more than 274,000 acres of lakes and ponds. 

Our State magazine photo by Derek Diluz.

Additionally, North Carolina has more than 3,375 miles of saltwater coastline.

 Our State magazine photo by Daniel Pullen.

North Carolina has two “official state fish” species. Representing the freshwater category is the southern Appalachian brook trout. 

North Carolina also recognizes the red drum (channel bass) as the state saltwater fish.

 

Smaller “puppy drum” are prized by chefs for “its sweet, mild and clean flavor alongside a firm, flaky white texture.”

The fishingbooker.com website says that one of the “best freshwater targets” in North Carolina is catfish, which “are almost ubiquitous in North Carolina’s rivers and lakes. 

There are different types of them swimming about, with flathead, blue and channel catfish being the most common catches.”

 

“You’ll find great catfishing in rivers such as the Tar, Neuse, Cape Fear and Roanoke,” all in eastern North Carolina. We’ll have to cast a line….