Guiding and fish tales

“I can still go into Keji and into the backcountry and carry a canoe a mile over portages. It keeps you young and active.”

The Martins Point man is speaking at the Library Café 10 a.m. Feb. 17 in Thomas H. Raddall Library.

He says the definition of guiding is different for different people but he likes to simplify it. “You take people where they wouldn’t feel comfortable on their own and get them back at the appointed time.” He laughs. “If you don’t get them back safely everything else is immaterial.”

MacDonald has spent much of his life in the woods and loves fishing, which has developed into expertise sought by would-be adventurers and even such noted fishing authors as Paul Marriner. “I go to rivers, streams, lakes, wherever there’s a puddle of water and I think there’s fish in them.” He adds, however, many of his clients are also people who simply “want to go into the wilderness for a day or two.”

He started as a teenager but then went to school, worked and raised a family. When he retired from Michelin, he decided to take professional guiding courses to add to his learned skills.

He says guiding also takes research, especially when he needs to find current fishing “hot spots.”

He also spends time ensuring he knows what his clients require from their experience, some of who are primarily used to pavement and concrete instead of trees and wildlife. Many customers are summer residents as well. “The main thing is to have their wants. I also try to be accurate in my description of what they can expect. I don’t paint a rosy picture if one isn’t justified.” He laughs again. “I don’t guarantee them a salmon.”

He also enjoys the entertainment side of guiding. “We can tell stories; whether people believe them or not is up to them. I don’t guarantee the truth,” he explains with yet another boisterous laugh. “I am a fishermen and fishermen are not too reliable about the truth.” He promises to spin some yarns at the Café in addition to the guiding information.

MacDonald was highly involved in last summer’s The Tent Dwellers Centennial Celebration of the book by that name. It tells the story of a turn-of-the-century fishing trip through the wilds of what is primarily Kejimkujik National Park and Tobeatic Wilderness Reserve.

MacDonald says he bought an autographed copy of the book about 50 years ago when he was a student in Montreal. “I took it and had it for few years, read it, and then got to know it. There are a few spots (from the book) I haven’t been to but I’ve been to most of the places they went. It’s interesting. Where they said you can catch trout in the old days you can catch trout today.”

On fishing, he says he often hears people state it is disappearing. “People go out on a hot sunny day in July or August and say the fishing isn’t like it used to be. When you go at the right time, the fish are there.”

He says guiding is not a huge money maker nor is it a hobby. He says he loves it because of the people. “I’m a dedicated angler and you make a lot of friends worldwide. It’s just a satisfying job.”