hobo fishing

[spiritwalker]

being an avid fisherman and used to using high tech gear to catch fish i was curious and wondering if anyone has actually caught a fish using handmade cordage and a handmade hook?

as reading past threads when people have posted pics of hobo gear (nettle cordage and a huge hook made of thorns etc) i cant see fish buying into it they are cunning enough on modern gear...

I could imagine virgin fishing grounds being susceptible but todays rivers which have been heavily fished i cannot believe it would work, thinking along these lines i think as a fisherman if i was in a survival situation i would opt for making a fish trap or net instead of trying to make a hook and line.

So has anyone actually made a hook and line and used it successfully?

 

[Miyagi]

being an avid fisherman and used to using high tech gear to catch fish i was curious and wondering if anyone has actually caught a fish using handmade cordage and a handmade hook?

as reading past threads when people have posted pics of hobo gear (nettle cordage and a huge hook made of thorns etc) i cant see fish buying into it they are cunning enough on modern gear...

I could imagine virgin fishing grounds being susceptible but todays rivers which have been heavily fished i cannot believe it would work, thinking along these lines i think as a fisherman if i was in a survival situation i would opt for making a fish trap or net instead of trying to make a hook and line.

So has anyone actually made a hook and line and used it successfully?

But wouldn't natural cordage look, well, "natural"? As if it had fallen from a reed etc.

Patrick on here, who runs an outdoor school in the West of Scotland posted a thread on kit he made. I can't remember if he used it and posted the results.

Hope this helps.

Liam

 

[AJB]

Good question!

 

[jonnie drake]

personally going the whole hog holds no appeal to me but handlines can be just as effective as rods and reels, I've just started trying them out myself. My first time with the handline I caught my first ever sea trout!

 

[spiritwalker]

yeah handlines are not under question as they use mono filament and undoubtable work i am talking nettle cordage or similar

 

[forrestdweller]

homemade hook from wire and eels in NZ, both on nylonline- does it count???

 

[zorro]

Just a note of caution chaps, check you're not breaking any national or local by-laws using these methods.

 

[Front Room Woodlander]

Whilst in Malawi the local boys, with much amusement, took the 'fat white man' fishing.
They cut a pole from the bamboo stands (planted under weird government scheme), used lengths of stripped inner tube rubber as line, attached a reed float with more inner tube then attached a thorn to the inner tube by melting the rubber over a flame (cigarette lighter). This loaded with worm caught tiny fish.
Job done.

 

[Zingmo]

I was thinking just this very question the other day while watching Mr Mears carve a fish hook in the wild. The result was surely a work of art but it was huge. "Is he trying to catch a shark?" thinks I. The very next scene was ponassing a salmon with no mention of how it was caught!

Z

 

[Neumo]

I thing that using natural cordage & a thorn hook would work fine, it just depends how you use them. They are probably used by people all over the world & have sttod the test of time, along spears etc.. , as a way of getting food. Sure nylon, carbon rods, baitrunners are easier but you still need the skill to consistantly get results. It's the knowledge of where, when & with what method to fish that seperates the big catchers from the rest of us; if you have ever sat next to someone pulling out fish all afternoon while you dont get a simgle bite, then you will know what I mean.

The other reason I think it would work, especially of highly fished waters is that the fish will not have seen the method before. It's like when everybody is fishing for carp with boiles or pellets with low success rates then its time to start using something different like corn or bread.

 

[spiritwalker]

okies as to the above im usually that person catching all the fish whilst the others are blanking :-D

i think the only way to test it is to do it which means i cant try it on fresh water as its more than likely illegal, but i am guessing in the sea its ok. All i need to do now is make some cordage and a hook and try a limpet for a wrasse as they are usually easy to catch it will be interesting to see if a home make thorn type hook will hold against the rough of the sea and er well as set of fish nashers....

i guess ill be heading to a nettle field soon lol

in respect to people doing it in the past i think nets where largely used and traps, in issac waltons complete angler there is texts refering to cat gut as line theres lots of cats where i live :-D

 

[ananix]

i think the only way to test it is to do it which means i cant try it on fresh water as its more than likely illegal, but i am guessing in the sea its ok. All i need to do now is make some cordage and a hook and try a limpet for a wrasse as they are usually easy to catch it will be interesting to see if a home make thorn type hook will hold against the rough of the sea and er well as set of fish nashers....

i guess ill be heading to a nettle field soon lol

Just some inspiration as it might be far from what your doing/thinking, I would use a small fishbone and tie a fishline to the middle in a ridge, then hide it in a (or bulk) worm. European perch just gulps the whole thing down and with a bit of luck it will get stuck in the tommy and you can pull it in if its not to big. Think they are good fish to go for (in scandinavia) in this case for several reasons.

Dont know about the freshwater laws over there, and i dont have patience to make my own nettle cortage to spec. But i guess moving on to the sea with nettle cortage and carved hook could be next step. Did not see this in former posts but i would proberly carve it out of bone or antler for use in the ocean?

in respect to people doing it in the past i think nets where largely used and traps, in issac waltons complete angler there is texts refering to cat gut as line theres lots of cats where i live :-D

Yes that and knowledge about habitat and behavior (anual and stuff) and that there where more habitat.