Friday, March 27, 2009

Survival Skills - Fishing

Mrs. RW's Catch

Similar to hunting game animals, fishing originally came about as a way of supplying food for survival. Fishing is well known as far back as the Egyptians around 2000 BC and the Chinese have numerous historical references to fishing that date back to the 4th Century BC. Most ancient civilizations all have historical references to fishing. Today fishing is mainly a sport but can be an essential skill for your survival.

The majority of small survival kits include some type of equipment that enables a person to catch fish as a food source. A length of monofilament fishing line, a few split lead shot or ball sinkers and a few hooks of assorted sizes are found in almost every survival kit. Some even include some basic lures such as small spoons, jigs or plastic worms along with a couple of swivels and leaders.

Like all survival skills, obtaining skill at fishing takes practice and a lot of it. You also can spend time digging for live worms or grubs to use as bait while you’re waiting to be rescued by your friends. In a survival situation, fish are an excellent source of protein, as well as being quite tasty when grilled or smoked on your barrel smoker. You also get to learn additional skills such tying fishing knots like the Palomar knot.

In an emergency situation the rule book will probably be non-existent but you don’t need to be in a survival situation to enjoy fishing. It is a great way to spend time alone or with family and friends. It’s great for relieving tension and stress. You will also be much better off if you learn how to fish in a recreational capacity before you have to take a crash course in an emergency situation.

Be prepared with the essentials when you go fishing to get the greatest benefit and enjoyment from your fishing experience.

BTW, if you’d like to catch a bass like Mrs. RW did in the picture above, you can get some tips on catching bass here:

Bass Fishing Tips

Note: Always observe the local laws, rules and regulations for the area you are fishing. Also check if fishing licenses are required and stick to the catch limits and minimum sizes for the type of fish you will be catching.


Staying above the water line!


Riverwalker

15 comments:

Anonymous said...

Good post. I think a cast net will also be useful as a food gathering tool as well.

Springtime spawning - time to break out those topwater base baits!

Anonymous said...

My favorite fishing trick is to spray the bait with WD 40...The main ingredient is fish oil!
Dean in AZ

riverwalker said...

To: anonymous 7:59

I enjoy using topwater lures. Nothing like a good strike that sees them come right out of the water.Thanks.

RW

riverwalker said...

To: Dean in AZ

I prefer to use a little cod liver oil but have had the most success with plain old grasshoppers. The only problem is they (the grasshoppers) move a lot faster than I do now! Thanks.

RW

scoutinlife said...

I love to fish as well! Favorite lures Berkly power grubs,rapala floating and sinking models,mepps spinners. Tiny torpedos. These 4 I can catch about anything that swims in my area anytime.

Sanjac said...

I'm a big fan of the meps spinners/rapalas also Scout and a flat bar/spoon type bait called a Kastmaster. I haven't found them down here in Texas since I moved here but have caught trout/seatrout, bass and stripers with them. A nightcrawler dragged and bounced slowly on the bottom with a sliding sinker setup will catch bass and catfish pretty well also. Good post RW.

riverwalker said...

To: scoutinlife

I've also had good luck with spinner baits and worms for bass. Used chicken livers for catfish along with plain old soap bait.

RW

riverwalker said...

To: sanjac

Haven't seen the Kastmaster spoon but I haven't had much success with spoons...probably more my lack of technique! Sometimes I feel like I'm feeding the turtles more than anything else and other times I kick myself for not going more often when they are biting good. Thanks.

RW

Anonymous said...

If I could only have One artificial, my favorite is the Bassbuster Beetle (or similar) 1/8 oz. lead head jig in plastic body black with chartruese (yellow) strip. Jig it, cast it or hop it along a clean bottom, it does very well for me. Mainly bass and redear. Plain purple body is also very good.

My favorite topwater lure is a Heddon Tiny Crazy Crawler, just watching that dude 'swim' brings a smile to my face. Even if I don't catch nothing, I like watching it work.

H&H spinnerbaits, black and yellow skirt, with silver or gold blades are good. I especially like the double blade model, buzzing just below the surface - bass really sock it to it.

RW, I've never tried that Ivory soap on catfish, but have read the oil in soap does attract them - I should give it a try.

I don't use a boat, so any bait I use is either off bank or wading.

Mayberry said...

OK, you "lured" me in, ha ha! I dunno 'bout that freshwater stuff, but I can fill a boat full of saltwater critters! I reckon the two ain't that far apart....

Ditto on the castnet. Worth it's weight in gold....

Topwaters? Heh heh, nothin' like a speckled trout crashin' a topwater at sunrise.....

riverwalker said...

To: anonymous 12:45

H&H spinnerbaits work good for me also and the soap bait works good for catfish on trot lines. Thanks.

RW

riverwalker said...

To: Mayberry

Did a lot of salt water fishing when I lived down on the coast. Also did a little deep sea fishing for kings off Port Aransas.

RW

Shy Wolf said...

dang dang dang...now I gotta dig out the fishing gear again and check for some open water...you sure know how to lite a fire under someone's butt, RW
Shy

riverwalker said...

To:Shy

You could always tie a line to your shotgun. Then it would be a"dangerous" fishin' pole!LOL

RW

Eyeglasses said...

Good Post.I love to fish as well.

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