Horse fishing in Belgium

August 26, 2011 7:46 AM

The last horse fishermen of Belgium.

Once a widespread fishing method around the North Sea, only a few horseback fishermen remain to ply their trade for tourists.

posted by kuujjuarapik (13 comments total)

Can we make "Belgian horse fishing" the new "underwater basket weaving"?
posted by theodolite at 8:01 AM on August 26, 2011

Some jobs were made for the Amish.
posted by stbalbach at 8:07 AM on August 26, 2011

Two things sprang immediately to mind:

1. Overheard in a Belgian Waffle House: "If it weren't for my horse, I wouldn't have spent that year as a shrimper".

B. Fishing for eels in the North Sea using a horse's head in The Tin Drum.
 
posted by Herodios at 9:13 AM on August 26, 2011 [2 favorites]

Wow. When I read that first link title, did I ever have the wrong mental image.
posted by sourcequench at 9:20 AM on August 26, 2011

"Each fisherman has his own recipe to cook his shrimps," said d'Hulster. "Normally, shrimps are cooked in sea water but the horseback fisherman uses fresh water.

He adds salt and also a little something more.

"It's a secret of the fisherman. They all think they have the tastiest shrimps - but they are liars because mine are the most tasty."

Excellent.
posted by entropone at 9:33 AM on August 26, 2011 [3 favorites]

IIRC the fishermen do not make living from the catch. They are instead paid to fish by the local town council as they are a boost to the local tourism industry. Only in Belgium are the fishermen government employees.
posted by Virtblue at 9:51 AM on August 26, 2011 [1 favorite]

Fishing for eels is great thing when we were there in the North Sea.
posted by nvsr4u at 9:57 AM on August 26, 2011

So what kind of bait do you use when you're fishing for horses?
posted by Faint of Butt at 10:34 AM on August 26, 2011

Related
posted by TheCoug at 10:58 AM on August 26, 2011 [1 favorite]

And here I thought horse shrimping was something you could only do in Amsterdam!
posted by The 10th Regiment of Foot at 11:00 AM on August 26, 2011 [3 favorites]

You gotta watch out for those Belgian horses. They hit your hook seriously hard.
posted by Goofyy at 11:48 AM on August 26, 2011

The 10th Regiment of Foot, given the confluence of (1) your name and (2) the fetishy meaning of half of your metaphor... Well done.
posted by IAmBroom at 1:51 PM on August 26, 2011

Exploring the Eerie Underworld of Belgium's Abandoned Crypts
posted by homunculus at 3:29 PM on August 26, 2011 [1 favorite]