“It’s the unofficial first day of spring for me,” said Tony Floyd of the first day of trout season March 1. “I’ve been going [to Montauk] for a long time,” said Floyd who has been attending opening day since he was a kid. “I’m a Montauk kid,” he said.
“I actually grew up not five miles from the park,” he said.
Floyd is a Green Forest R-II alumni and he later graduated from Licking High School in 1984. He has also worked for Intercounty Electric Cooperative for more than 15 years. June 1 of this year will mark his sixteenth.
When Floyd was young it was his aunt, Jennie Holland, who first got him into fishing.
Floyd told The Salem News that in the 56 years he has been on this earth, he has only missed a few opening days—that’s while he was playing baseball in college and was eventually drafted in 1988 by the Oakland A’s to play on their farm team. Floyd’s baseball career was later cut short in 1991 after he underwent four shoulder surgeries.
“I have a lot of good memories at that [fishing] hole,” he said.
For Floyd fishing is more about the fishing than the fish.
“In all those years, I’ve only caught one lunker,” said Floyd.
When Floyd was a teenager, he even worked at the hatchery for a couple of summers.
“I worked the hatchery when I was 14 or 15,” Floyd reminisced of the names of some of the old hatchery staff he got to know. He worked with Tom Perry who used to be the hatchery manager, Dave Waller who was the assistant hatchery manager, and Leroy Davis who was assistant hatchery manager after Davis and Larry Cummings.
“We got a lot of work done, but we had a lot of fun,” he said.
Floyd also remembered, with a grin on his face, a particularly frigid fishing trip with his friend, Todd Cummings (Larry Cummings’ son), when the younger Cummings fell into the water in waders and all.
“He had icicles forming all along the inside of his chest waders,” he said. “Golly, it was fun,” said Floyd. Although, it may be worth asking Cummings if he remembers the freezing water so fondly.
After college, Floyd started attending the opening day of trout season with his father-in-law, Jim McDaniels.
This year marked Floyd’s 33rd consecutive opening day.
Floyd’s wife, Stephanie, was able to attend with him this year.
“We used to fish by the bridge, but after it flooded, things kind of changed there,” he said. They subsequently started fishing at a different spot.
“We’ve had some really good times down there; cold days, hot days, there’s been some days down there that you couldn’t hardly cast because your line was freezing in the reel and on your pole and you’ve got to stick it in the water (to thaw it),” said Floyd.
“One of the things that I love about opening day is the people,” he said. Floyd said that most everyone is great. “You get to meet a lot of people over the years,” said Floyd.
Floyd spoke fondly of competing with McDaniels to see who can catch their four fish limit in the fewest casts. “One time out of all these years, that I can remember, I got all my fish on five casts,” said Floyd. “That was always the goal, see how fast you can catch them and then get out and watch everybody else fish.”
“When I was going with my father-in-law we’d drive around and talk to people for a few hours,” said Floyd. According to Floyd, McDaniels’ work as a bus driver and later as the transportation director for the Salem school district made him a well-known person around the community.
“It would take us two hours to drive around the park and talk to everybody, which that was the fun part. You know, we’d catch our fish and go around and see people who caught lunkers or go to campsites,” said Floyd.
The Salem News asked Floyd what his favorite part about fishing is.
“It’s the peace. There’s something peaceful about fishin’,” said Floyd. “It’s calm and it’s just fun,” said Floyd of the pastime that he holds in a purposefully high regard.
“That’s how it is for me. And after that first cast everyone is just relaxed and you’re talking and there are people catching fish, and you’re watching kids catching fish—when they’re catching their first one, you know that’s one of the neatest things ever,” said Floyd, recollecting some of his more precious memories over the years.
“That’s weird, it shouldn’t affect me that way,” said Floyd with a few unshed tears of endearment welling in his eyes as he contemplated the transcendent peace that overcomes him when fishing.
“I have enjoyed Montauk over the years,” Floyd said simply nodding his head with reverent joy; his simple choice of words encapsulating a much deeper respect for the time and place than might be noticed at first glance.
