Hunting in the night - for worms

by R. Thomas Funk
| July 2, 2015 5:00 PM

Duck Dog barked twice to let me know someone was knocking at the back door. When I opened it, I was pleased and surprised to see my grandson Matthue Mergenthaler grinning back at me. He had ridden his bike up from Evergreen to spend the day with Grandpa.

I am still trying to get used to looking up at my grandkids, but with so many of them towering over me, there is no getting around it.

I invited him in. We caught up on family gossip while I fixed breakfast and then we began plotting our day. Matthue mentioned wanting to go fishing and maybe do a little target shooting.

I thought that was a terrific idea. He asked about bait and I just smiled.

The night before I had gone night-crawler hunting so I had more than a dozen in a container in the fridge.

I have a long tradition of night-crawler hunting. It was my second attempt at self-employment. My first attempt started when I was about 6 years old. Every Saturday morning, I would get up early, take my little red wagon to a nearby saloon, and search the parking lot for undamaged Olympia beer bottles.

Once I had finished canvassing the area and collecting the bottles, I would transport them to the little neighborhood grocery store. There I would sell the bottles for 4 cents each. Then I would hit the candy counter. Remember, in those days, a candy bar cost a nickel and there were all kinds of penny candy and bubble gum.

When I finished collecting my loot and headed home, my mother would confiscate the candy and make me share it with my little brother. I believe that is why I am a Republican.

When we moved to our new home on the east north side of town, my neighbors and good friends, Don and Duane Wallace, and I would sleep out at night for most of the summer and spend hours hunting night crawlers. These we sold to the local sporting goods store for 25 cents a dozen.

It doesn’t take much, as far as equipment goes, to hunt night crawlers. I would carry a little metal pail partially filled with dirt and grass and a flashlight.

The keys to successful night crawler hunting are patience, a keen eye and quick reflexes. You stalk across a grassy lawn or field with your flashlight moving slowly back and forth.

You don’t want to shine the light directly on the night crawler, because it can sense the light and will disappear into its hole. As soon as you spy a night crawler on the edge of the light, you stop moving forward.

You carefully lower yourself into position and strike. You have to be fast because the target can disappear in an instant.

You need to grab the worm carefully between your thumb and forefinger.

You can’t squeeze too hard because you will injure the night crawler. If you grab too lightly, it will slip through your fingers. Also, once you have a hold of the night crawler, you can’t pull the worm out of the ground. You will tear it apart.

Here is where getting up early in the morning and watching the birds feed is a useful teacher. When a bird snatches a night crawler, it doesn’t yank it out of the ground. Instead it applies a steady upward pressure. The night crawler tries to hang on to the edges of its hole, but eventually it tires and can be withdrawn easily without damage.

Parents, if you want to give your kids an incentive to do their chores, tell them that a freshly mowed lawn makes it easier to see the night crawlers. Also, a good watering of the lawn after mowing will bring the night crawlers to the surface en masse.

This may not be as much of a motivator as it was when I was young, but who knows?

After breakfast, Matthue and I collected some fishing gear and headed down to one of the secret family fishing holes. We were hoping to collect a mess of rainbows but the rainbow spawn was over. We caught one 12-incher and the rest of the time was spent catching 4- to 6-inch pike minnows. Pike minnows make terrific ice fishing bait for northern pike, so onto the stringer they go.

If you are like me, and are always looking for an excuse to get outdoors, try night-crawler hunting. It only takes a little time and no license is required.

Funk is a retired educator and a lifelong resident of the Flathead. He lives in Kalispell.