On most weekends, Aiden Chuang (10) can  be found hosing down docks, handling fishing rods, and talking with customers at Seaforth Landing. What began as a childhood interest has since grown into a part-time job and possible future career.

“I was introduced to fishing in sixth grade during sixth-grade camp,” he said. “After seeing a camp counselor catch a fish for the first time, I went home and convinced my parents to buy me a fishing rod.”

From the beginning, fishing wasn’t just about catching fish for Chuang. Time spent waiting, watching the water, and learning patience drew him in.

“A lot of days you’re going to go out and catch nothing,” Chuang said. “But it honestly doesn’t get to me too much because for me, it’s really about being outside and having the chance to catch fish more than anything else.”

Most of Chuang’s early fishing was done from the shore, meaning that before his job, he had little to no experience with boating.

As his interest in fishing grew, Chuang met new people and received new opportunities, and started joining competitions. 

“I knew somebody from fishing tournaments who worked at Seaforth Landing,” he said. “He’d been there for about 30 years, and he asked me if I wanted a job.”

Now a part-time dock worker, he spends his  time supporting the flow of fishing trips departing from the dock every day, and much of his work focuses on managing the fishing gear and handling the fish after they are caught.

“I mostly help out with whatever the other guys aren’t doing, since I’m not full-time,” Chuang said. “I take all the rods off the boat and switch the line out on the rental rods. “I also handle the fish that come back and clean up the dock.”

He began working at Seaforth Landing last April, an experience that, according to Chuang, shifted his perspective by allowing him to see fishing from the dock side, and the behind-the-scenes work that goes into preparing the boats.

“I never really thought about working at a fishing landing,” he said. “But working there completely changed my perspective on fishing.”

Through the job, he said he has learned how fishing trips operate and how boats are maintained.

“When I started, I didn’t know anything about boats,” he said. “Now I understand how the trips work and what it takes to keep everything running.”

The landing has also given him more experience fishing on the water, and Chuang says that being around experienced fishers has pushed him to pick up better habits, from handling gear and organizing equipment to understanding how experienced fishers approach the sport.

“I meet so many experienced people every day,” he said. “They teach me their techniques, and I’m able to use that in my own fishing.”

For Chuang, fishing offers a sense of accomplishment and calmness. 

“It’s so fulfilling when you hook a fish,” he said. “It makes you feel like you’ve done something really important.”

Chuang said that his passion doesn’t stop when he leaves the water.

“It’s just always on my mind,” he said. “Even if I’m in finals or doing something else, I’m thinking about fishing. When I wake up, I’m thinking about hitting the pond or going back out to the beach to get some fishing done.”

Looking ahead, Chuang hopes to turn his passion into a career.

“Yeah, I definitely want to become a deckhand,” he said. “To me, this job really is my passion.”