‘Magnet fishing’ craze in Baltimore getting people hooked

By Kim Dacey

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    BALTIMORE (WBAL) — Magnet fishing is a new craze that’s quickly catching on in Baltimore and helping to clean up the waters of the Inner Harbor.

Evan Woodard formed a magnet-fishing group in Baltimore that’s growing by the week. He started the group about a month ago after seeing the activity on YouTube.

“I just wanted something else to do to go outside. I have fun with my friends that’s chill, but also clean up the water here and help out the harbor, help out the city in any way I can,” Woodard said.

On a recent trip, 11 News watched as the catch started with an old ship hook from the 1800s or 1900s pulled from the Inner Harbor.

“Oh, this is a keeper. This is going on my wall. I’m (going to) clean this up,” said Woodard, owner of Salvage Arc.

It was the best find during Thursday night’s magnet fishing in Fells Point.

The craze is catching on quickly with more people of all ages and walks of life joining every week, bringing their own powerful magnets and hooks, fishing for anything metal.

Stephen Broadhead brought his 7-year-old son, Calvin, to the fishing session.

“I like that it gets Calvin out here, out on the bay, cleaning up our city. I think it’s a good cause,” Broadhead said.

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Since they started, they’ve pulled all kinds of things from the water, including scooters, chairs and even a gun. During the most recent session, in addition to the ship hook, they pulled some rebar, an old doll’s head and a lot of trash.

“It’s kind of like almost like trophy fishing, where you’ll get bottle caps or twigs and leaves, maybe pieces of plastic. But when you get a big piece of rebar and you compare it to the other ones, you really get a comparison, like, weighing out fish or something like that,” magnet-fisher Jack Benson said.

It has become so popular, Woodard plans to branch out into other parts of the city and beyond.

“I definitely want to take this show on the road. I want to go out and travel to some other cities and do the same thing in those places. If there’s a body of water and if I can get to it and it’s on public property, I can fish there,” Woodard said.

Anyone is welcome to come down and try magnet fishing at the Fells Point Pier on Thursdays from 6-8 p.m., or check out the Salvage Arc website.

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