Book Two, The Undoing of a Scientific Angler: Anvil Abe and the Phantom Fisherman and Fainting Before the Duel Summary

After Alfred the Great's death, Gus drinks heavily that evening. He awakes at dawn and decides to go fishing, which he later regrets. As he is fishing down the stream in Sardine, his canoe, a fog starts to roll in quickly. Soon, he cannot even make out the shore, which he knows is just a few feet away.

Hungover, he continues to try to find his way to Eaton's dock, which he knows is nearby. Another boat passes him and although he could cry out to them, his sense of communication is so thwarted after weeks of living alone that he doesn't say a thing. The other...