La Tratta - an old way of fishing- 2015
Every year on the western side of the central Adriatic coast in some towns takes place several historical celebrations about a kind of word that is not anymore with us. In these events the younger generations have the opporunity to see with their own eyes techniques that their parents and grand-parents used as land or sea workers. The one that I want to tell you is called 'La tratta' and it is an historical celebration that remebers the way the fishermen were used to fish until not that much time ago.
La tratta comes from the italian verb trarre that means to pull. The old fishermen were going on the seaside during the summer in the very early morning or some minutes before the sunset. With the help of a little boat called 'batana' a couple of them were taking the fishnet in the deep water while the others were staying on the seaside holding the fishnet with the external ropes, one group on the two sides in order to make an half-circle.
At the righ moment the fishermen were hooking the rope to the one that each one of them was holding on the chest. Then they were moving from the sea side to the sidewalk, going up to the beach in order to have enough space for 'tirare a secco' pulling outside from the water all the fishnet. At the end of the operation the two groups were getting closer in order to close the fishnet circle and trap the fish. Finally they were pulling outside all the net and, once opened, someome of them was starting to take out the fishes in order to put the into begs and sell at the market while others were collecting the ropes and cleaning the net for the next 'calata' at the evening or at dawn.
Today 'La tratta' is forbidden due to the high risk of the Adriatic coast to remain fishless, this kind of fish technique by touching the sand ground takes with her everything, not just the fish but all the environment that lives in the water. Only throught celebration organized by local people is possible to admire this particular way of fishing that is quite different compared to the one of the past. Indeed the modern fishnet is smaller and the people don't hook anymore the two ropes but they jus pull out rope by standying and the amount of fish that can be taken in this kind of events is quite less than the one that our grand-parents could take in their worst day. Despite all, the excitement of seeing the net closing and the few fishes trying to escaping out while these men are screaming and shouting in order to pull out the net clearly is still alive and bright, like the daylight of a new day that is coming and the awarness that our past will never be compitely lost.
La tratta comes from the italian verb trarre that means to pull. The old fishermen were going on the seaside during the summer in the very early morning or some minutes before the sunset. With the help of a little boat called 'batana' a couple of them were taking the fishnet in the deep water while the others were staying on the seaside holding the fishnet with the external ropes, one group on the two sides in order to make an half-circle.
At the righ moment the fishermen were hooking the rope to the one that each one of them was holding on the chest. Then they were moving from the sea side to the sidewalk, going up to the beach in order to have enough space for 'tirare a secco' pulling outside from the water all the fishnet. At the end of the operation the two groups were getting closer in order to close the fishnet circle and trap the fish. Finally they were pulling outside all the net and, once opened, someome of them was starting to take out the fishes in order to put the into begs and sell at the market while others were collecting the ropes and cleaning the net for the next 'calata' at the evening or at dawn.
Today 'La tratta' is forbidden due to the high risk of the Adriatic coast to remain fishless, this kind of fish technique by touching the sand ground takes with her everything, not just the fish but all the environment that lives in the water. Only throught celebration organized by local people is possible to admire this particular way of fishing that is quite different compared to the one of the past. Indeed the modern fishnet is smaller and the people don't hook anymore the two ropes but they jus pull out rope by standying and the amount of fish that can be taken in this kind of events is quite less than the one that our grand-parents could take in their worst day. Despite all, the excitement of seeing the net closing and the few fishes trying to escaping out while these men are screaming and shouting in order to pull out the net clearly is still alive and bright, like the daylight of a new day that is coming and the awarness that our past will never be compitely lost.