As told to Sogadan one besotted night in the Hall of Fire:
"Well, my friend, I have had good and bad fortune in my life, and have lost and found my belongings, and hopefully you shall, too. I remember once finding an abandoned Malledhrim pack-satchel under the trees beside the road, during the days of darkness and fear. There was dried blood on it that was not black orc’s blood...but inside, what a treasure trove I found! There were packets of waybread, a fishing hook, a signal-glass, which I did not know what to do with, a metal flask, and in a little pocket inside the bag nestled a sewing kit. I spread all of these things out upon my cloak before me, and never did any dragon gloat over his hoard with more delight. I thought my heart would swell to bursting with happiness at my good fortune, and my head was crammed full of thoughts of a great fish dinner.
I traveled south and west until I reached the Anduin, and found a little marshy inlet sheltered from the wind. I recall reading a guide on fishing in which it was written that one must have light spirits to catch a fish, for if they are heavier than the fisherman’s rod, then his creel will remain empty. Ha! I think this is complete drivel, for my spirits were never lighter, Sogadan, but I did not catch a single fish. And I even rose early and set out, and found a green limb of ash, and stripped the bark off, and swished it through the air, and thought it to be very pliable, yet firm and sturdy, and that it would suit my purposes quite well, just like the guide said. Then I rode Morlanthir to the riverbank and refreshed myself with a draught from the metal flask. Oh, that drink! The liquor in the flask was unfamiliar to me, but it has a warmth going down the throat which is very pleasant, especially on a cold, raw day. Perhaps you know what I am talking about - no? Well, the wind was whipping over the water mighty powerfully that day, and it was very good to drink. I used some strands of my hair which I twisted and knotted together to the end of the stick, and cast this line into the river, and waited, and after a good while, I had not a single fish, Sogadan! I thought back to the fishing guide and tried to recall what else was written, but all I could remember was it telling a story of an ancient spirit that haunted a stream night and day, and that the stream was ruined because of it, and if there were no fish to be found, then this was the likely reason. I did not see any wandering spirits about, yet I could not get any fish to bite my hook.
Then I thought harder, and I do not know why I did not think of it before - ha! you smile, you would have known immediately, my clever friend! I finally remembered that I needed something to attract the fish, as they would not just throw themselves on my hook, without an invitation to do so. I dug around in the mud by the shore, and found a fat and juicy worm, and strung it on the hook. I cast my line out and waited. I waited a very long time, all day as you recall, ha ha ha! The waters were clear and sparkling, and my heart was lighter than it had been in many a day, for the sun was bright, and the birds cheerful, and it was a very good day for fishing. I waited a long while, listening to the birdsong over the rushing water. When I looked back at the sky, I was surprised to see that the sun had moved far overhead. By this time, my stomach was very impatient for my fish dinner, and thinking it would help if I went to deeper water, I took another draught from the flask, to prepare myself for the next burdensome task.
I laid the flask on the ground, and waded out in the icy water until it was up to my waist, where I cast out my line again and waited. I saw it twitch, and I realized something was snapping at it, and pulling quickly back, I saw the worm was gone, and that I would need yet another. I headed back to the shore for the worm, and since it was convenient to do so, I had a draught from my flask before hooking it, but it was much harder to do than the first time, because this worm kept wriggling about, and I near speared the hook through my own thumb, and I dropped the worm and it almost escaped, ha! But I hooked the tricky worm at last, and waded out again to where I felt the fish bite. And in no time I saw my line twitch and then my fishing rod was near jerked from my hands, but I held on, and pulling back I saw I had caught a tremendous striped bass!
I began to back up to the shore, when something suddenly came up against me, and I was knocked hard into the water, so that I dropped my fishing pole and went under, and I had a time of it regaining my footing! When I surfaced, I saw my pole floating away, and I had to swim as fast as I could to get it, and it was not easy. Yet I was able to retrieve it, and clenching it between my teeth, I swam back to shore and saw that proud Morlanthir had gotten loose, and he was standing in the river. He tossed his head with a loud neigh and snorted at me.
And I think if ever a horse could laugh, he was laughing then! Ha ha ha! Oh, I could not be cross, Sogadan, you know me! I was feeling mightily sluggish in my limbs and in my wits and there was an odd humming in my head. I decided to forego my fish dinner, and lie down beside the fire and sleep instead, so I collected my things and headed back to shelter."
