Angler’s dying wish granted as his ashes are turned into 30lbs of fishbait
Last updated at 01:42am on 07.08.08
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Pete Hodge who had his dying wishes fulfilled by being turned into groundbait
Pete Hodge who had his dying wishes fulfilled by being turned into groundbait
In life, he was never happier than when catching fish in his favourite river.
And after his death, Pete Hodge was determined to help his fellow anglers continue to enjoy tight lines too.
So much so that he arranged for his remains to be turned into bait so he could sleep with the fishes.
Mr Hodge, from Puriton, near Bridgwater, Somerset, made his bizarre request after discovering he had terminal motor neurone disease. He died last month aged 61 and was cremated in a coffin made from wicker to look like a fishing basket.
A friend then mixed Mr Hodge’s ashes with maize, hemp and soya to create 30lb of groundbait which was rolled into balls so it could be catapulted into the River Huntspill in Somerset, where he had fished for more than 40 years.
His widow Caroline and daughter Sally were the first to propel the bait into the water, and it was not long before bream were attracted to the spot to be hooked by Mr Hodge’s fishing friends.
Mrs Hodge, 56, said: ‘Pete always said that when he died he wanted the fish to gobble him up so he could swim up and down the river after his death.
‘When he got ill a couple of years ago he put it in writing that this was what he wanted. Everything that he wished for was done right down to the last. It was only right for us to carry out his final wishes.’
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