Marlins Seen at Burke Lake. Fishermen Left Embarrassed and Confused.
Police were called to Burke Lake Park late Saturday morning after several fishermen became irate with park staff upon learning their long drives had been for nothing. At least 5 pickups pulling gleaming white fishing boats were turned away from entering Burke Lake Park Saturday when they attempted to enter for the chance to hook a marlin. Apparently, a Nextdoor post is responsible for the confusion.
The original post and a sample of replies follows.
“Did anyone else walking around Burke Lake last Saturday see that school of marlins? There must have been 15 or more of them. I’ve never seen so many colors!” asked noseycat431.
“I saw them. Man, can they move!” replied bigmower12
“I’ve seen them before. Every Saturday morning when the weather is warm you can catch them. Anyone understand that strange sound they make when they pass by? It sounds something like, “Norlift. Norlift. Norlift,” inquired eyecuwalking12.
“I’m pretty sure it’s, “On your left,” but I could be wrong. Amazing site to see, though!” suggested jmiddleton68.
From what this author could gather from Park staff, one of the fishermen simply skimmed the post and caught the words “marlins”, “15 or more”, and “Burke”. Evidently, he called his buddies and talked them into driving up here from Virginia Beach with a promise they’d snag something unreal and trophy-worthy. What remains unclear is why 4 other people gave up their Saturdays to sit in I-95 traffic without more information. It would seem plausible at least one of them would have realized that marlins do not live in lakes.
The police were able to resolve the situation without arrests, and the fishermen made the long journey home empty handed, but very red faced. Park staff who were interviewed for this story figure one of the fishermen also lost 4 friends.
It remains unclear what exactly the Nextdoor post was referring to, however. I intend to get to the bottom of it, though, and promise you, dear readers, that I will be out Saturday morning riding the trails on my brightly colored Trek bike searching for this infamous “school of marlins”.
The 2025 Trek Marlin 4
