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You'll join Domingos and a handful of fishermen on Canacona's shore as they spread out torn nets from the morning's catch, mending them before the evening tide. He'll teach you the shuttle-needle darning method used to patch holes fast, working alongside real fishermen rather than a staged group. It's unglamorous, practical work, and by the end you'll understand why a torn net can end a family's whole day's income.
Net repair is a daily, unromanticized necessity in fishing villages, and the communal mending circle is also a social institution where news, gossip and fishing knowledge get passed along the shore.
In Goan fishing villages, net mending is traditionally done communally on the beach between hauls, with fishermen of all ages gathering to patch torn mesh using simple shuttle needles and inherited darning techniques.
We're still verifying a practitioner for this experience — check back soon.
Morning
Meet the fishing crew as the day's catch comes in
Midday
Learn the shuttle-needle darning technique on torn sections
Afternoon
Join the communal mending circle to finish repairs
Difficulty
Easy — seated, repetitive hand work
Age suitability
10 and up
Domingos darning a torn net panel
Communal mending circle on the sand
Repaired net ready for the evening tidePhotographs from this experience will replace these panels once available.
Will the schedule change with the tide or catch?
Yes, timing is loosely built around the morning catch and may shift by an hour or two.
Do I need any prior sewing skill?
No, the shuttle-needle technique is taught from scratch and is simpler than it looks.
“Real fishermen, real nets, real work. Not staged for tourists at all.”
Sara L. · 5/5
“Simple but strangely satisfying — and Domingos's stories from the shore made the day.”
Ben O. · 4/5
Not a sight to see — a practice to enter.