In this case it is Col the worm catcher who catches the worms. If you look at the bottom left of the photo you will see a man bending over. That’s Col, out and about very early at Main Beach. He is a professional worm catcher. The worms are used by fishermen for bait. It is very interesting, take a look.
As the wave recedes, a fish is held close to the sand and when the worms come up to feed, Col grabs them and pulls them out of their sandy homes.
As long as you don’t mind getting your feet wet, and you have lots of patience, it is not all that difficult to do. We used to catch worms when we were kids, not for bait, but to tie them in knots and watch them wriggle out of them. They are surprisingly fast at this.
Col had a seagull keeping an eye on his fish.
I caught up with Col as he was leaving the beach. He had quite a haul.
He estimated that this bucket of worms was worth about $600. Before you dash off to the beach with a fish and a bucket, you should know that a worming licence costs a fortune and you have to be out in all weather. Col had orders to fill and was heading off to another beach for some more fun. He must like it, he has been doing it for 45 years.
There was another hunter out early as well. He looked a bit like Kevin Rudd, perhaps he has fallen on hard times.
People lose all kinds of things at the beach and in the surf. It can be quite lucrative scouring the sand for this stuff.
There were a couple of courting seagulls out early. One was circling the other, trying to get a bit of attention.
There didn’t seem to much interest, and then they flew off.
It was a beautiful morning at the beach.
Bob was out with his fishing rod, hoping to catch breakfast.
He caught a fine looking flathead.
I think Bob’s face says it all. What could be better than being at the beach to watch the sun come up?
