Spear Fishing

The history of spear fishing has shown that the activity goes back centuries and is one of the most popular forms of fishing in the world. This makes spearfishing multicultural as well, from the Dutch of the 17th century to the Native Americans of the 19th century, the latter of which used utilized spear fishing as a predominant means of hunting for meat. As simple as it is, however, spear fishing is still dangerous, even for the experienced, so caution should always be used when divers spearfish, especially in cases of extreme spearfishing when divers are spearfishing shark or spearfishing podcasts.

Most spearfishing equipment is typical of deep sea diving: a wet suit to contain body heat, weight belt and/or vest for assisting in gradual descent so that water pressure and inner air compression aren’t brought on too fast, fins for easy navigation through water, and a snorkel and/or diving mask for facial protection and breathing. Gear indigenous to spear fishing, however, are few but effective: spear guns; pole spears; Ike Jime (kill knife for killing catches right away to ward of sharks and help maintain meat flavor by minimizing the exertion in the fish’s muscles); buoys for identifying the location of submerged divers; Hawaiian slings, which are basically tube spear launchers with appended elastic bands; float lines used to form attachments between buoys and spear guns; and pneumatic-powered spear guns, such as those mounted on the decks of larger commercial or hunting ships.

Four spear fishing techniques include: Shore Diving, the simple means of submerging into the water from the beach areas to fish up to 25 meter (83 feet) below the water surface with the use of either hand-held spear guns or pole spears and knives; Boat Diving, when spear fishermen catapult from boat decks, oil rigs, rafts, kayaks, or other above-water structures to gain access to underwater areas otherwise inaccessible; Non-Diving, the least strenuous way to spear by not diving at all but shooting with a good eye and precise aim; and Blue Water Diving, reserved for professionals and conducted from larger boats and ship in team pack to hunt for big fish like Marlin, Shark, and Dolphin. The last three are those usually done on spearfishing charters.

Learning to do spearfishing requires practice, like anything else, but it must follow the learning of other essential skills like swimming and scuba diving. This is especially in the case of blue water spear fishing, which is basically deep sea and/or team spear fishing.

Visuals depict spear fishing in action. Whether a spearfishing photo or spearfishing video, these visuals serve as a guide for beginners and offer spear fishing tips in the form of illustrative examples. Although Native American females used to fish with only a hook and string, Women spearfishing has now become common as well.

Spear fishing is exciting, but focus, alertness and being physically fit are all important to perform it successfully. It’s not as easy as it looks, but when put to the test, anyone can do it.