Lions, Bears, and Trout Up Your Pants Leg

I found a story by Paul Pittman on the NC Wildlife Resources website that talks about he history of the Waynesville, NC fish hatchery. Built in the 1920's the hatchery was a tourist attraction even before the area around Maggie Valley became a vacation destination. In addition to the trout, the hatchery was home to a collection of animals that included a black bear and a mountain lion. It appears that just like the tourists of today, some of the visitors couldn't resist the urge to bring home a souvenir. The author describes one so inclined young lad :"One enterprising boy had a fish line rigged inside his pants running down and out the bottom of his pants leg. Baited with a red worm, he would put his foot up on the raceway, dangle his lure in the water and pull a fat rainbow up his britches leg! This worked fine until a hatchery worker noticed the boy's leg twitching uncontrollably."