I just bought a pole spear off ebay. It's a White stagg w/ a paralizer and two barbed tips. It breaks down into three sections for easy stowage in the yak. I do alot of snorkleing off the yak and thought this could be a way to expand the adventures and get a nice, fresh fish dinner too. I've never spearfished before and was wondering if any of you have any tips, tricks, doos and don'ts. I pretty much have the stalking down from just doing observations underwater. I'll be using it in the waters off Southern California. Oh yeah, I do know not to shoot the big orange fishes ;) Thanks.
Check Kayak Diving Website I do not remember the name but Mark Theobuo (sp) has a kayak diving site out of SOCAL. They hunt lobsters and do some spearfishing down there.
I did a lot of hand pole spearfishing back in the Florida Keys. You need to check the regulations. You probably need to be at least 300 yards offshore and away from underwater structures…
And keep an eye on your surrondings, your boat, and your gear. Wear a long leasch to the boat if it is not anchored. It is very easy to get too focused on the prey. I hate it when I come up and the boat is gone…
Flounder I can easily see mounting a propane powered light on the bow of your yak, then cruising in shallow, clear water at night, looking for flounder on the bottom. Zap, dinner for 2, or more.
spearfishing There are two schools - macho & hungry. be aware of the limitations of a pole spear. You don’t want to tackle the macho trophy stuff, you want the medium panfish. I use the paralyzer head extensively when camping in Central America because you can hammer it back into shape when you miss & hit a rock/reef. I’m typically going for 1 lb dinner fish.
Good points. I don’t want my prey to go swimming off with my spear. 10-12 lbs. is about max for a pole spear, yeah? Also, when I miss what is the average range of a spear on the fly. I like the idea about the cans. Maybe tie a rock to cans with a litte air in them just under the waters surface for target practice. Thanks.
Hang On to the Spear The way I always used a pole spear was to pull the band up the pole, and just let go and it will propel the spear while you hang onto the band.
10-12 pounds might be the outerlimits for a pole spear, but that would certainly be pushing it. You would really have to pin it hard…
