NEWS Of The Area is pleased to announce that John ‘Stinker’ Clarke’s longrunning fishing column will now be a weekly editorial within our Port Stephens News Of The Area and Myall Coast News Of The Area publications.

An iconic Port Stephens identity, Stinker has been keeping the community entertained with his fishing stories, insights and anecdotes for 37 years.

“It is very pleasing to report that Stinker and Stinkpot have made a return,” Stinker said.

“With your input and ongoing interest, I will continue to give you a weekly report on all matters fishy, coming events, environmental issues and another of my great interests – local history.”

After hearing the news that his column would no longer be a feature of the Port Stephens Examiner, Stinker said he had been blown away by the outpouring of community support.

“Can I take this opportunity to sincerely thank this great community for the overwhelming support I have received over the past week or so.

“It has been very humbling to discover how passionate and proud local residents are to protect local media input.

“Next year will be 50 years since my wife Ella and I drove into Nelson Bay in our little red Mini Minor after leaving Perth WA and crossing the unsealed Nullarbor Plain.

“We settled in Fingal Bay Port Stephens in 1975 and haven’t moved an inch since.

“Port Stephens is a magnificent part of the world and for all the time I have spent as a resident I’m not over it by a long shot.”

News Of The Area Director Michael Wright said he couldn’t wait to see Stinker’s columns appearing in the NOTA.
“Stinker is a legend around Port Stephens,” Mr Wright said.

“When we saw that his column was coming to an end we saw it was a great opportunity to get him involved.

“Hopefully the readers will continue to enjoy his humour and his passion for fishing and the community for a long time to come.”

Far more than a sport, Stinker instead sees fishing as “a way of life”.

“It’s just something that you do.

“In sport there is some type of structure, generally an opponent and a result, a score, a winner and a loser.

“In fishing, to my way of thinking, there are no losers.

“Everyone wins a prize whether you can catch a fish or not.

“The prize is the recreational experience which can be even more valuable if you share that time with someone.

“I’m sure the fishing experience resulted in my father and I being greater mates.

“I’ve always seen the funny side of fishing because I have never taken it seriously.

“To me, fishing is fun.

“It’s as simple as that.

“Catching fish is easy, finding them is the hard part!

“There are a lot of places where fish aren’t.”

To appear in Stinker’s column to show off your fishing exploits, you can contact him at stinkerfishing@yahoo.com.

“Please continue to send me your fishy photos with a short story and hopefully it will appear in the paper which you can then cut out and stick it on the fridge door,” Stinker said.

If local businesses would like to sponsor and appear alongside Stinker’s column in News Of The Area going forward, please contact Client Account Manager Tracey Bennett on 0484 263 558 or at tracey@newsofthearea.com.au.

By Doug CONNOR