Behind the Badge - PQ
PQ
District Game Warden Dan Hoenke
I can still remember the first time I heard Paul Quinn talking on the radio.
I was driving with my wife as we were moving to Dickinson and Paul had a unique radio voice and we both chuckled as we discussed if he had come from Transylvania.
Little did I know in my time working for the North Dakota Game and Fish Department I would have numerous encounters with Paul.
I am not sure I have met many people who were as interested in fishing as Paul.
I had found him fishing in a variety of places around Dickinson, so much so that if I saw someone fishing in one of those spots, I knew who would be waiting for me when I arrived.
Generally, each license check would take about an hour as Paul was not going to let me go until he had told me a fishing story and extracted all fishing information that I could give him.
Paul was a fisherman of habit and I rarely found him fishing outside of the city limits due to his mode of transportation being a bicycle with fishing rods strapped on the back.
I would see Paul riding all over Dickinson on his bike with fishing gear in tow.
Eventually Paul wrangled me onto his radio show for a few outdoor interviews, which I was glad to do for such an avid fisherman.
One of the few times I found him outside of Dickinson I happened upon him at Larson Lake fishing for pike.
Paul didn’t have ice fishing poles and was using his regular open water fishing poles.
Paul recognized me right away and came right over.
While we talked, I heard a noise and could see Paul’s fishing pole skidding across the ice until it disappeared down the hole.
Paul and several other fishermen tried to snag the pole but with no luck.
I asked Paul if he was upset about the pole and he calmly stated, “no I just wish I could have caught that fish, it must have been a big one.”
About two years ago I was talking with a biologist in the office and Paul’s name came up.
“We always called him PQ” and I stated that I had not checked him for a while.
I had a bad feeling and checked on-line and found his obituary.
I was saddened at the news, sometimes as a warden you develop relationships with people that you come to know through work.
We may not have been best buddies, but I appreciated PQ’s love of the outdoors and miss our talks about fishing.
I would definitely like to be able to tell Paul where the fish are biting today.