Welcome to Week CXXXIV of 鈥楩ishing Parkland Shorelines鈥�. Like most of us I am a novice fisherman, loving to fish, but far from an expert. In the following weeks I鈥檒l attempt to give those anglers who love to fish but just don鈥檛 have access to a boat, a look at some of the options in the Yorkton area where you can fish from shore, and hopefully catch some fish.
Since starting this weekly look at fishing, I have tried to offer a rather diverse range of material.
While it鈥檚 great to get out and fish, and take you along by writing about the experiences, the love of fishing, at least in my case is a multi-faceted interest; ranging from books, to stamps, to artisan lure making and now I just have to touch on a Canadian coin.
The coin, when released, was described on the Canadian mint site as, 鈥渁 father, a child, a dog, a dock and two fishing lines: just add water to create the perfect recipe for lifelong memories. Sons and daughters across Canada and the world treasure special moments like this one. This coin is a unique and beautiful fine silver coin to celebrate Father鈥檚 Day.鈥�
The scene indeed sounds idyllic, and it is one familiar to most of us that love fishing, because generally that love has been fostered by a parent who also lived for the tug of a feisty fish on the line.
Designed by Canadian artist John Mantha, the coin depicts a familiar uncomplicated scene certain to evoke nostalgia in fathers and children of all ages. A father and child sit on a long dock, bare feet dangling above the water, waiting for the fish to bite. They are joined by their young dog, its ears perked up as it looks out across the water. The reverse is engraved with the word 鈥淐ANADA,鈥� the date 鈥�2013鈥� and the face value of 鈥�3 DOLLARS.鈥�
Yes you read that correctly, it is a three-dollar coin so you will not find it in the average pocketful of change.
The coin is rendered in fine silver (99.99% pure) and features a combination of four different finishes.
If you want one as a keepsake, or maybe a lucky charm for the tackle box, the coin comes encapsulated and presented in a maroon clamshell case lined with flock and protected by a black Royal Canadian Mint box.
You can check it out at http://www.mint.ca/store/coin/fine-silver-coin-fishing-2013-prod1680009#.VGutd_nF_5M.
In preparing this week鈥檚 article I did a quick Google-search, and while I can鈥檛 say it was particularly in-depth, I will note that fish and fisherman, at least sport-fisherman, have not found their way on to many coins. When I say that, I am not limiting myself to just Canadian stamps but on a worldwide basis.
That I suppose is not particularly surprising, since holding a rod waiting for a pike to bite a lure, is not necessarily among the great pursuits of human kind. That is not to say it鈥檚 not a great joy for those of us who partake, but it doesn鈥檛 exactly rate among notable things we as a species have accomplished.
Yet in this Canadian coin the best of what fishing is has been so well-captured. The scene with a father and son fishing together is at the heart of what makes fishing so great.
While some appreciate the solitude of river fishing by themselves, most of use enjoy that fishing is an activity we share.
Whether a father teaching a son, two brothers out for the day, or life-long friends making the 397th trip to their favourite fishing hole, it is about the bonds forged between the people as much as the fishing.
A father bestowing how to tie a leader onto a line, how to set a red and white spoon once a fish hits, or how to safely release a fish back to the water are skills the son, or daughter can use for a lifetime.
In many things other people influence what our children learn, but in fishing, most comes from parent to child, and in time to the following generations. Len Thompsons were my dad鈥檚 go to hooks at Tobin Lake. They are generally the first lures out of my tackle box. My son鈥檚 tackle box too is fully stocked with the lures.
There is something basic in the sharing of how to hunt and gather and to fish, something I suppose goes back to our days as cave dwellers, a time we learned that fishing might be a safer way to feed their families than to take on a woolly mammoth with a pointy stick.
That is why this coin strikes a chord, at least with me.
It should be noted the coin is also an award winner.
A Nov. 18 release states, 鈥淭he Royal Canadian Mint is honoured that its 2013-dated $3 Fine Silver Coin - Fishing won the Most Inspirational category of the 2015 Krause Publications Coin of the Year awards. This award places the Mint in the running for the overall Coin of the Year prize which will be announced on January 31, 2015 at the World Money Fair in Berlin, Germany.鈥�
鈥淭he Royal Canadian Mint takes great pride in designing coins with Canadian-inspired themes which resonate with a wide variety of customers,鈥� said Marc Br没l茅, Interim President and CEO of the Royal Canadian Mint in the release. 鈥淲inning the Coin of the Year award in the Most Inspirational Coin category is yet another prized recognition of our efforts to produce collector coins which are as memorable for their meaning as they are for their craftsmanship.鈥�
The annual Coin of the Year competition receives nominations from an international consortium of mint representatives and numismatists. The judging is conducted by an international panel of the world鈥檚 leading mint officials, medalists, journalists, central bank and museum officials.
For some additional background, the Royal Canadian Mint is the Crown Corporation responsible for the minting and distribution of Canada鈥檚 circulation coins.
For more information on the Mint, its products and services, visit www.mint.ca
Krause Publications, based in Iola, Wisconsin, is the world鈥檚 largest publisher of leisure-time periodicals and books. They offer more than 40 periodicals, and do 10 hobby shows, including the Chicago International Coin Fair and Chicago Paper Money Expo.
