The fascination with Spearing

[JimBuck]

Having never speared before, I have always been curious about the sport of spearing. I don't have any stance on the issue and am not here to point fingers or anything. I am simply trying to gain an understanding for the sport and why people are so interested in it. Here's a few questions I wanted to rattle off...

- Is Pike the main target species for spearing?

- Once a big fish is speared, then what? Fillet it? Garbage?

- How about spearing carp or any other sport fish? I know there pretty skidish so maybe it wouldn't work...but there are certainly some sumo carp out there.

Thanks guys, hopefully you can shed some light on the sport for me.

[Laska]

Having never speared before, I have always been curious about the sport of spearing. I don't have any stance on the issue and am not here to point fingers or anything. I am simply trying to gain an understanding for the sport and why people are so interested in it. Here's a few questions I wanted to rattle off...

- Is Pike the main target species for spearing?

- Once a big fish is speared, then what? Fillet it? Garbage?

- How about spearing carp or any other sport fish? I know there pretty skidish so maybe it wouldn't work...but there are certainly some sumo carp out there.

Thanks guys, hopefully you can shed some light on the sport for me.

1. For most it is, sometimes guys take a carp or 2 for the smoke house.

2. Mount it if its big enough(up to spearman on how big is big enough for the wall), or fillet it, No one on this forum spears a Northern and just throws it away.

3. Carp, as well as all rough fish are fair game, Catfish and Bullheads have limits but are spearable aswell. I think Im missing one but that sums up the majority of them.

Spearing= Originated or thought to be originated by Native Americans over a thousand years ago. Somehow making a hole in the ice and using a carved antler, piece of wood of some sort as a decoy to attract fish to come to it bringing the fish into range of there hand made spear, way back when they used Animal skins to drape over the bodies and hole so no light would come in around them, giving them 100% better visability of what was in the water below. They did this to feed there families in the winter months<-- Just what I read anyways.

Now for me Im a 1st generation spearfishing person, I found this sight, heard about Northerns and spearing them and I got hooked the instance I made my spear hole.

When I talk to some guys who have never heard of the sport or very little about it I sum it up like this, in which most guys I know hunt.

Ya know when a big buck stumbles into view after hours of waiting in a deer stand... How your heart beats a million miles an hour n ya start to shake at the mear site of him n hoping that when he comes in range ya wont miss? Yeah thats the same type of feeling I get when spearing Northerns. Its just like Deer Hunting from a stand, Hard work n Patience is what it is and a Boost of adrenaline; when a northern pops into the hole outta no where, just sitting there staring at your decoy waiting to strike. Its quite a rush, think of it this way its a mix of hunting and fishing, its relaxing, its fun, and even if you dont see anything for awhile you still get to have a nice relaxing time out in the outdoors.

So to sum up everything and why I like it is its a really old sport that originated before settlers came here, I love the outdoors, I love hunting and fishing and it brings it pretty much into one, Its relaxing, its a adrenline rush, I have fun with whoever I bring out to my darkhouse and watching the all the different wild fish that swim by my hole is amazing, it gives me a bette undertsanding of how they live and act.

So I hope what I said helped ya some! take care!

[DTro]

I tell ya what, I never really understood the fascination either, but then you give it a try and you understand.

Same with Bowfishing, I never tried that before, then last year I was on my home work and ran into ec30_06 standing in the ditch shooting fish, so he let me have a go at it. Now that was fun!

If I did it a lot, I’d would have to utilize the fish somehow to justify my killing of them though. Killing just to kill isn’t really my deal, unless of course it was to eradicate an unwanted species.

[crothmeier]

I went out with my uncle on the river one christmas afternoon spearing carp. Talk about a rush. that was a blast! I havent done it since, but will in the future get into it.

[Lowblazah]

I've posted this before but I'll give you my grandfather's fascination with spearing.

My grandfather used to spear carp, buffalo, and dogfish on the river backwaters in the winter. He would take a pickup load (no exaggeration, I've seen the truck bed filled with them) back to the farm and let them freeze solid. Then each day when it came time to feed the chickens, he would start up the chipper shredder and run one or two of them through it. The chickens would flock to this "meat pile" and eat until every scrap/scale/fin was gone.

He said the "protein packed" fish used as feed produced bigger, stronger and more eggs, which I certainly can attest to after seeing his eggs vs seeing the ones bought from the grocery store.

I think it had more to do with him trying to stretch his granular feed, corn and pellets as far as he possibly could during the winter months. He was one of the most frugal people i've ever known and he would certainley tell you so if you ever questioned him.

[JimBuck]

Some very interesting reads here guys....I enjoy hearing the different ways in which people utilize there catch. The mental image of a couple frozen carp being thrown in the chipper shredder only to become a meat pile of chicken feed is a riot. It's good to hear most people utilize the fish in some way. I think I'll be giving bowfishing a go this spring here. Thanks for filling me in on the sport.

[Fish&Fowl]

I usually throw my big fish in the garbage.

Sorry I couldn't resist after reading your original post!

One of my favorite things about spearing is the "watch and release" where you can watch these big toothy predators doing their thing in their natural environment without any influence (besides the decoys of course). I also love to introduce new people to the sport and see them get a fish or two...that's what it's all about. I guess I do like to harpoon a few myself too

[Homer_P]

Laska really explained it well with the whole hunting story. The rush of seeing a huge pike is like none other!!

[Mike89]

About all I can say is no matter what fish is below you, your just heart race's!!!!

That's just me. Mike

[broken_line]

i dont know what it is but pulling anything that swims out the seemingly life less lake, just seems so cool..

[bassNspear]

its all about getting out there, seeing fish, and taken a few home every once in a while!

[hawkeye43]

If you have ever looked in a spear hole, it far from life less. There can be all kinds of fish, crayfish, bloodworms and Gods knows what else is swimming around down there. Its like watching a vidio game Its a whole different way of fishing for panfish when you can move a hook around a 2' x 3' hole in front of them to get them to bite. I do like laska's point it like hunting trophy deer, the rush is unreal. The biggest fish I have ever seen, I could not drop the spear if I wanted too. Buck fever, or what ever you want to call it, but I will never forget it, it burned into my mind. That what bring me back to ice fishing every winter when the ice starts banging every fall at freeze up.

[Laska]

I could not drop the spear if I wanted too. Buck fever, or what ever you want to call it, but I will never forget it, it burned into my mind. That what bring me back to ice fishing every winter when the ice starts banging every fall at freeze up.

PIKE FEVER!!!!!!