I'm 22 and a first time poster. Just graduated from college, and struggling w/ the age old question. Fish or Work? I'm not independently wealthy, so it looks like it will have to be both. To you guys that have figured out this dilemma, how did you do it? How do you bring in the bacon and keep yourselves sane with a couple fishing trips every week? By the way, I'm not married and no kids. (NMNK) Also, where in best place in Washington to live to capitalize on both river and ocean fishing.
Thanks,
Matt Allen

Good Question... I have thought this very topic out many times. I couldn't come up with a good way to make a living fishing, so I found a job that allows me to have lots of time off to fish. Teach. I work 181 days a year and usually can be out the door by 3:00 (if I do my homework later that night). Of course you get summers off, and lots of vacation days in between. The pay isn't great, but it isn't bad either. Then look forward to retirement!

Good Luck!

Rockcod, if I could start over I would get into a line of work that worked weekends, and had week days off to fish.

Excellent question. I searched around and also asked a bunch of people this very question. When I was 19 I joined a "High-Tech" firm (SEH-America) at an entry level position. We're the worlds largest supplier of silicon wafers. I have always worked 2 on 2 off, 12 hr shifts. Now they call me a Supervisor of our Crystal Growing dept and with 16 yrs in, I get 10 weeks paid vacation every year until I hit the 20 yr mark and then I'll get 12 weeks off a year. This all adds up to working <154 days/year. Great benes', 401K match up to 5% and pay from 50K-100K. Some of the guys with all this time off either hold down small businesses of their own or sit around and have heart attacks. Some, like me, fish until the wife reminds them that they're married too.
Other options I considered were being a Firefighter. After volunteering for 5 years and having many friends that are career FFs I realized that the pay sucks, especially for what they do and their expected life expectancy. If I were Pres I would increase the pay for FFs, Teachers and Police. Vote YES when levys come up in your areas. I'm rambling. Just my $.02.
x

[This message has been edited by Extreme (edited 07-31-2000).]

extreme, you hit it right on the money. Firefighter has to be the best fishing job. I was a firefighter for four years, in the military. We worked day on day off and 3 day weekends. Was not hard labor. We worked 8 hour days ( if you could call it work) and sit around the station watching tv at night. I know the city firefighters here are making some bucks average at least 30 k per year. A paramedic I know makes around forty.
I left that line of work to become a fisheries biologist ( currently in school ). I will never have a schedule like a firefighter though.

I am completely worthless around the house. I always want to fish. My wife thinks I have no other pleasures in life besides fishing ( I do but they are when steelhead season is closed! )
I thought school would bring me more fishing time......wrong.....its called homework. It is nothing of hard labor, but you have to discipline yourself. I have to force myself to put down salmon trout steelheader and pick up trigonometry.
Anyway. We can always dream of being on the river, even if it ain't today

rockcod:

I agree with BW01.....Taught for 30 yrs., now retired so I can fish LOTS....and I do. Have 7 rivers close, within 20 miles, some have summerrun steelhead, most have winterrun steelhead, ALL have salmon. The ocean is 25 miles away, so I can clam dig, crab, jettie fish, etc.

I would do it all over again. School hrs. 7:30-3, and then I could be "on the water" by 3:40......I never kept track but I bet that I fished 175+ days some yrs., not very long on some days but still I was doing what I love to do.

"Worse day sport fishing, still better than the best day working"......

BWO1 and Drifter:
Before I even fished I thought about becoming a teacher because I always thought I was very good at getting across ideas without being boring, I guess that is one quality of a teacher. When I was in elementary school my teachers made me tutors for younger grades...well anyways I am in pursuit of my degree in Fisheries Science and I was wondering what does it take beyond that basic BS to be qualified to become a teacher?
Thanks
Ryan