A Eulogy for Joe Mulson
It made me very sad to learn that Joe Mulson passed away this week. He was in his eighties.
Joe was a member of the Backcountry Flyfishing Association of Orlando, which is where we met. He was a retired physics professor and an ardent, active fly fisherman, fishing throughout Florida through the winter and throughout the west with his wife Eleanor during the summer. He was a role model to those of us who knew him through his 60’s and 70’s. I want to be like Joe if I reach that age!
Joe had a share of a hunting camp in Pennsylvania. He’d go up every autumn and return to Florida with plenty of venison. For many years the Pennsylvania venison he gave me was the only red meat I ate.
One year Joe and I took the Bang-O-Craft to Everglades National Park over Mother’s Day weekend. I paid for that for the rest of the summer, but Joe’s wife Eleanor didn’t seem to mind at all.
Joe and I fly fished together in coastal North and South Carolina and all over Florida. He was always ready to go, often at a moment’s notice, on canoe trips, houseboat trips, surf fishing trips, wading trips, whatever. You would never hear Joe complain, except about perhaps the state of the country. As far as aches and pains went you would never suspect that he had any. Maybe he didn’t!
Many years ago Rodney Smith took Joe and I out on the Atlantic on his old Hewes skiff. First we ran into a barrage of crevalle jacks. When that ended Rodney found the Spanish mackerel motherlode. I’ve never seen them like that since. Anyway, all three of us were flycasting simultaneously, often resulting in triple hookups. We kept eight or so for the table, then it was all catch and release.
Rodney and I found the novelty of a fish every cast wore off pretty fast. We thought it was too easy. Joe was having the time of his life.
In spite of Joe’s enjoyment we left the Spanish hoping to find cobia or tripletail. It was a mistake. We found neither. Joe gently reminded me of that error for a long time afterwards.
One year I intended to go up to Atlantic Beach, North Carolina to guide during their false albacore run. Pathfinder Boats loaned me a 22 foot Pathfinder from which to conduct my business (an awesome vessel, by the way). I had no way to tow it up there. Joe hitched it up to his Suburban and drove me up, 12 hours each way. Five weeks later he came back to get me, bringing Rodney with him.
I’m happy to report supper was hot and waiting for them when they walked in the door.
We went fishing the next day. The weather was atrocious at first, but the wind gradually calmed down and it turned into a beautiful day. The fish were ON. Joe, Rodney, and John the Science Polack (my other guest for the day) caught a lot of fish, but Joe got the biggest one, a 17 pound tunny. Joe made the task much more difficult than it needed to be by foul-hooking the beast at the base of the dorsal fin. It took him an hour to boat that fish.
One year I needed $1500 in order to get a book published. Joe offered to loan me the money, and the book got published. Joe got his money back a month later, along with some books.
Joe and I did a lot of our fishing together when I was writing a lot. Photos of Joe (shot with film) appeared in many different fishing and fly fishing magazines. People would recognize him at fishing shows. It worked well. He was a good model. I enjoyed photographing him. He enjoyed the notoriety.
We went on a couple of houseboat trips together. When it came to snoring, Joe was world class and he knew it. He finally got a breathing machine, but there was no power on the houseboat. So he very considerately brought earplugs for everyone.
As Joe got into his eighties he stopped going fishing. He would tell me, “I have caught so many fish. Whenever I want to catch one now I just sit in my rocking chair and close my eyes.”
He never tired of teaching fly casting though, and continued teaching to the end.
I considered Joe to be one of my best friends and I feel a powerful sense of personal loss at his passing. But his was a long, healthy life well-lived. My guess is he had no regrets. Joe, you will always be a role model to me.
John Kumiski
http://www.spottedtail.com
All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2013. All rights are reserved.
A very nice remembrance John. Joe was a hoot. I enjoyed his company every time I was with him. He made time every year to explain his new casting theories and techniques to me. A good man. A really good guy, too.
So well said John. Thank you for honoring such a good man. We attended the viewing tonight and will celebrate his life tomorrow morning at his memorial. A long line of people with a good and kind word about a good and kind man. Will miss you. Guide well.
John,
Thank you so much for you wonderful eulogy for dad. We sure miss him. I know you were a good friend. We sure enjoyed the wonderful articles and pictures of him over the years. I always told him he was becoming famous by association.
John:
Thank you for beautiful eulogy. Joe Mulson was my Academic adviser and friend
at Rollins College. He got me a Texaco scholarship to work on his Field Ion Microscope.
(I spent the summer in a dark basement looking and atomic images.) Although I finished my studies with Joe, I felt I would enjoy business more than science. Joe helped me learn how to think which has been a life-long gift.
Thank you, Joe!