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"No brag, just fact!" Ray Turner, also known as "The Eel Man," is
one of the most interesting characters ever to cross paths with Rough
Terrain and GreenWorks.
Ray
has lived on the upper Delaware, outside of Hancock, New York for
most of his life. Ray lives right on the East branch of the Upper
Delaware, where every year he builds an eel weir. An eel weir is a
trap set up in the water made from rocks and a wood trap that allows
Ray to catch eels. Eel weirs date back over 3,000 years in North America.
They are one of the oldest forms of fishing used by Native Americans.
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| Eel is considered a delicacy in many parts of the
world. Whether they are barbequed, fried, or smoked (as Ray prefers
them). Every year Ray and his dog Nicholas, also known as Smell, spend
their spring, summer, and a good part of the fall, catching eel. Ray
then takes the eels and smokes them in his own smoke shop that he
has right next to his home. |
We spent two days with Ray, learning about the intricacies
of catching eels and just how much time a job like this entails. GreenWorks
host Pearce Bunting helped Ray through the whole process of trapping,
catching, then cleaning the eels. Pearce also overcame his initial
fear of these slimy creatures to the point where he actually swam
with them. |
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