'Survival' Fishing Rod

[mattburgess]

Hi

I'm a bushcraft novice and even more so when it comes to fishing! Saw loads of people fishing from the beach this weekend and would love to have a go at this - especially as I'm going to be setting up my own home smoker soon! I would also like to have a go at river/lake fishing. I’m interested in eating the fish not doing it for just the sport.

Basically I want advice on rods (probably fishing methods go hand-in-hand with this!?). I suspect my wish list below will be completely unrealistic and requires at least two, if not more, rods…here goes anyway!
• Must be a compact rod for putting in the back pack etc. I hear that pack rods are preferable to telescopic at they are less likely to break/be faulty.
• Something suitable for shore fishing. The ones I saw this weekend look about 3metres long so ‘compact’ may not be an option! What are your thoughts?
• Suitable for any other type of fishing…river, lake etc.

Can I get a rod that will do all of these things or is that just wishful thinking? Do not want to spend a load of money on something that I may not use very much. On the other hand I’m willing to pay for something good in quality that will last and fit most scenarios.

Appreciate any advice guys.

 

[Intertidal]

Firstly you are right in your assumption that one rod will not do it all.
Your choice will depend on what type of shore fishing you want to do.
Here is a very basic breakdown of what I do for different purposes:

Beach fishing - 12foot 2-piece beachcasting rod, multiplier reel, 15lb line with 60 lb shockleader. This set up is used to cast long distance and fish on the bottom. It can also be adapted to fish from rock platforms, or even fish a large float rig.

Float fishing, short distance casting and heavy spinning - 11foot 2 piece 'bass rod' with medium sized fixed spool reel, 12lb line (30lb shockleader for short distance casting). Used for fishing off rocks onto clean ground, float fishing off piers or beach rishing very close to shore (bass at night).

Spinning - 9 or 10 foot spinning rod (casts up to 40g) small fixed spool reel with 8 lb line.
Used to cast spinners and plugs short distances (10 - 40m) in a range of habitats. My favourite type of shore fishing - lightweight and mobile - keep moving, fish different spots, not much kit to carry - my favourite for 'bushcraft fishing' combined with a bit of seashore foraging.

You find loads of info on the web regarding tackle for shore fishing, but my advice would be to keep it simple to start.

Nick

 

[Adze]

Can... open... worms everywhere!

You're going to get a helluva lot of conflicting advice and evidence on this thread mate - if you're not already an angler of some sort then your best way to achieving what you want to do is probably to become one first, before trying to adapt it to a means of putting food on the table.

Fish aren't a clever or skilled prey - but they are spread pretty thin and the sea is a very big place. If you don't know where to find the fish, you'll not catch anything. This is one of the first tenets of fishing, either fresh or saltwater and it matters not a jot what rod/line/bait/lure etc. you use - if you're in the wrong place, which can also be read as in the right place but at the wrong time, you'll catch nowt.

My advice - first go fishing with a buddy and break your duck a few times with ordinary, borrowed gear. Then look at getting yourself some inexpensive gear of your own and try your hand a few more times in varying conditions and times of tide and season. Once you can reliably (haha! yeah like anyone can guarantee it) catch fish and you're confident you know what it's about, then you'll be 'qualified' to make up your own mind about what gear you're likely to need.

There aren't rods which perfectly suit every fishing scenario, a beach caster won't cast a #3 silk fly line nicely and a split cane brook rod won't punch out 150yds of 15lB mono from a multiplyer - but then having or needing a rod at all is largely a matter of opinion.

The simplest method I know of, if it's just fish you're after, is to find your nearest rocky beach or estuary (take EXTREME care in estuaries they are one of the most dangerous environments to be unaware in - emphasis on the rocky too, sandy ones can shift between tides and you'll rarely ind the same spot twice in the same condition you first saw it) and bait some fixed lines in the pools which are left at low tide. Wait for the high tide and follow it back down, pick up sea lettuce/weed and shellfish and the like on the follow down until you find your set line - if you've caught any, put the shellfish back at the low tide mark and eat your catch. If you haven't, eat the shellfish. Always eat your greens

I've been fishing for nearly 35 years now and I'd seriously struggle if the only way I could eat was to eat what I caught with rod and line - this is why boats and nets were invented I suspect

Cheers and tight lines!

 

[mattburgess]

Thanks Nick.

Definately up for keeping it simple! Looks like a far cry from the hobo line!

As I suspected I'll have to do some general reading up on fishing before I start buying anything! Did you say that the spining rod is fixed? Was hoping for something compactable.

 

[mattburgess]

Cheers Adam

Think I have some swatting up on fishing to do. As you say I'll start with something modest and go from there. Possibly a trip to the library and getting the Idiots guide to Fishing is a good place to start.

 

[Intertidal]

Can... open... worms everywhere!

You're going to get a helluva lot of conflicting advice and evidence on this thread mate - if you're not already an angler of some sort then your best way to achieving what you want to do is probably to become one first, before trying to adapt it to a means of putting food on the table.

Fish aren't a clever or skilled prey - but they are spread pretty thin and the sea is a very big place. If you don't know where to find the fish, you'll not catch anything. This is one of the first tenets of fishing, either fresh or saltwater and it matters not a jot what rod/line/bait/lure etc. you use - if you're in the wrong place, which can also be read as in the right place but at the wrong time, you'll catch nowt.

My advice - first go fishing with a buddy and break your duck a few times with ordinary, borrowed gear. Then look at getting yourself some inexpensive gear of your own and try your hand a few more times in varying conditions and times of tide and season. Once you can reliably (haha! yeah like anyone can guarantee it) catch fish and you're confident you know what it's about, then you'll be 'qualified' to make up your own mind about what gear you're likely to need.

There aren't rods which perfectly suit every fishing scenario, a beach caster won't cast a #3 silk fly line nicely and a split cane brook rod won't punch out 150yds of 15lB mono from a multiplyer - but then having or needing a rod at all is largely a matter of opinion.

The simplest method I know of, if it's just fish you're after, is to find your nearest rocky beach or estuary (take EXTREME care in estuaries they are one of the most dangerous environments to be unaware in - emphasis on the rocky too, sandy ones can shift between tides and you'll rarely ind the same spot twice in the same condition you first saw it) and bait some fixed lines in the pools which are left at low tide. Wait for the high tide and follow it back down, pick up sea lettuce/weed and shellfish and the like on the follow down until you find your set line - if you've caught any, put the shellfish back at the low tide mark and eat your catch. If you haven't, eat the shellfish. Always eat your greens

I've been fishing for nearly 35 years now and I'd seriously struggle if the only way I could eat was to eat what I caught with rod and line - this is why boats and nets were invented I suspect

Cheers and tight lines!

Yeah,
Lots of good advice there too.
I've been fishing since I could hold a rod and sometimes forget how daunting it must be for someone whos not done it before.

There was a series on the box a few years ago called 'Reel Wars' where 2 very experienced anglers were let loose on the west of Ireland to survive on what they could catch (plus a few bonuses provided on the basis of what they caught) and live in a semi-bushcrafty way. Now I realise this was a made for TV series, but despite their obvious skills, they struggled to consistently catch enough fish to live off.
I've often do similar myself,however, I mostly go to locations I know well and have fished for decades, which makes a HUGE difference in ability to catch fish.
Hopefully you'll try it, enjoy it and learn lots of stuff on the way.

Nick

 

[tobes01]

All sounds like good advice. Woodlore do a fishing kit - surprise, it's a couple of hundred quid!

 

[The Cumbrian]

All sounds like good advice. Woodlore do a fishing kit - surprise, it's a couple of hundred quid!

So do Aldi, and you can get kitted up with a telescopic spinning rod and some spinners / lures for 20 quid.

 

[Adze]

As a side note to what I wrote above:

The only thing to really be aware of and make absolutely sure you prevent happening when setting fixed lines is they're out of the reach/notice of birds. Set them just before the tide is due to flood, preferably don't leave them unatteded until they're covered by water and check them immediately following the ebb - if you're not going to be able to check them at the bottom of the next tide, don't set them. Setting baited hooks for birds, unless it's a do or die scenario, is barbaric and rightly illegal.

Accurate tide times are available free from the Admiralty Easy Tide website for up to 7 days in advance:

http://easytide.ukho.gov.uk/EasyTide/EasyTide/SelectPort.aspx

As regards cheap gear the like of which you'll get in Aldi, there's nothing wrong with it in the slightest, but do test the strength of the monofilament.

Cheap will mean nylon as fluorocarbon and co-polymers are expensive. Not that there's anything wrong with that other than nylon degrades over time and with exposure to both moisture and more importantly sunlight - 6 months in moist conditions and bright light and it could be down to half what is normal for it's diameter. New nylon mono should really be bought every year unless it's kept dark and completely dry all year - unlikely if you use it for fishing

Another one to try is rockpooling - tie a chunk of limpet/half a mussel to a bit of baler twine and dangle it in the bigger rockpools. Every few minutes gently test the bait by pulling gently and taking up the slack in the baler twine - if something pulls back it's likely a good sized crab. A steady pull should lift him up in the water and you'll be able to either net or grab him. The same method using a chicken carcass or sachet of cat food works for signal crayfish in freshwater - but be absolutely sure you can recognize signals from whiteclaws as the latter are protected.

Cheers,

 

[Kroozin]

http://www.boyes.co.uk/
have loads of fishing gear in.
My Dad an I usually fish for carp so we have 3 rods each that are pretty heavy ones. But recently been taking an interest with sea fishing. My Dad bought some lures from Boyes and we put them on the carp rods and we off the sea wall. We also got a sea rod from whitby what is good for catching bigger fish as the carp rods arn't strong enough to cast the heavy leads they will just break.

Abit advice i can give you as a relativly new fisher man (only been fishing for about 6-7 years) it so find your local beach, go there at high tide and ask other sea fishermen things most are willing to talk. Or seeing your from Stratford I was there last year and there were some lovely brown trout in the canal/river running through the town, afew people were fishing too, you could go down and talk to them see what they use.

Most important thought !!!! make sure if you need a licence that it is valid !!!!!!! Dont be getting any fines or bans its not worth it for the sake of a few pound.

 

[Dano]

The majority of my fishing kit is designed for travel, for instance I have a 7 piece fly rod and a 4 piece spinning rod to mention a few, you don’t get the same strength in the multiple sections rods or casting distance but if you read up on the craft you will have more chance of being where the fish are as has been mentioned here above, also learn to stalk and cover the water starting at the bank, that way you wont miss the closest fish or spook others

My advice would always be buy quality, not the most expensive nor the cheapest just good quality and fit for purpose (I generally find telescopic rods not too good) as an example recently in India I used a four piece uptide rod which cost about 12 quid and a entry level centre pin beach reel costing 20 odd quid, I did put expensive 60lb braid on and decent hooks but this cheap combo landed me a 40lb Golden Mahseer, the kit fitted in a regular suitcase

Because I travel a lot I am always looking for travel fishing kit which has led me to design my own but building the prototype and getting the patents really seem like a nightmare so it may never go into production

 

[crazydave]

kit wise I carry a few speedhooks and few normal for nightlines. I have noticed from my childhood growing up in a fishing town that fishing is no where near as easy anymore.

as a kid you could chuck a line in and catch something with in a few minutes.

 

[Wild Thing]

I sort of agree that telescopic rods are generally not as good as multipart rods as i had a telescopic beach caster given to me as a present. It was so stiff it was nearly unusable. However, i have a great little telescopic rod that only cost me £10.00. It co;;apses down to about 2.5 feet long and will cast 10-40 grammes a long way, with a nice sensitive tip that allows me to float or leger fish with it as well.

I also picked up a little 5.5 feet telescopic rod from the local 99p shop and it has a nice action and I have cast upto 30 grammes on it so far with no problem.

For general work, one good rod can do a lot of jobs adequately, but not brilliantly.

You really need to think hard about what environments you are likely to be fishing in and pick a good rod to cover these adequately, or buy a few rods, one to cover each environment well.