Ancient Fishing Methods Still Live at Madras Beach

Loading the nets

Pushing off

 Rowing out through the surf

Subsistence fishing in places like the beach at Madras probably hasn't changed much since the days when Jesus walked the shores of the Sea of Galilee and called four fishermen to be his apostles.

Just as the boats used by fishermen on the Sea of Galilee were well-adapted to that smaller body of water, the fishermen of Madras developed a boat with a high bow and stern adapted to the usually larger surf of the Indian Ocean.

The boat in these photographs had a captain and a crew of five oarsmen who pushed the boat out into the surf until it floated, then jumped aboard and used their oars to move the boat into deeper water.

Returning from their fishing at the end of the day, they used the force of the surf to drive the boat as far as possible up onto the beach, then used muscle power to shove it up beyond the high tide mark. They then unloaded their catch and went into town to sell it.

(All photos made with Olympus OM-system cameras and various Zuiko lenses,

Fujichrome 100 film.)

Photographs and text copyright 2022, David B.Jenkins. 

I post Monday, Wednesday, and Friday unless life gets in the way.

Soli Gloria Deo -- For the glory of God alone

My book, Backroads and Byways of Georgia, is now out of print, although copies are apparently still available from Amazon, and possibly other sources. The second edition is now in the editing stage and is scheduled to be released on December 6th.