Survival Fishing - minimum gear you'd need.

The Glass Key

Not posting this in the Survival and Self Sufficiency forum because I'm looking for some answers from anglers.

If you had to "run to the hills" so to speak and take just the minimum tackle necessary to have a chance of catching fish to live on what would you take? Or if you had make up a set of gear for someone else just so they had the bear minimum for fishing (sea or freshwater) what would you include.

In my own area I'd have the opportunity to fish from a sandy beach, fish over rocks from the beach fish from rocks and also fish from a canoe. You could even throw in some river fishing but I discount that in my case because there are only tiny brown trout (?) in our hungry little river.

I realize a beach casting rod is not going to be ideal for catching brown trout so that's the problem that needs solving if your life depended on it what would you depend on to catch your supper in a variety of different locations?

At the most basic you could just have some line, swivels, weights and hooks which is how the fishing component of many survival bags is made up; I'm looking to add at least a rod and a reel to that but what rod, what reel and for that matter what would be considered the most useful general purpose weight of line?

Thanks in advance for any replies.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

Does your premise allow for only legal methods of fishing?

viper123

If I was to take one piece of survival gear if take a packet of fishing hooks about size 8 or 10. Everything else you can fiddle easily from nature. In fact I have a packet of hooks in my wallet at all times just in case :-)

The Glass Key

Elora Beautiful Backgammon wrote: »

Does your premise allow for only legal methods of fishing?

I was asking here with that in mind, if I wanted illegal methods I wouldn't have bothered posting. Thinking about it, I'd ask the Fisheries Protection guys what the poachers are using on some of the other rivers around here if I wanted workable illegal methods.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

The Glass Key wrote: »

I was asking here with that in mind, if I wanted illegal methods I wouldn't have bothered posting. Thinking about it, I'd ask the Fisheries Protection guys what the poachers are using on some of the other rivers around here if I wanted workable illegal methods.

Sorry, it was a genuine question before detailing best middle ground methods. I didn't mean to annoy you. Carry on so!

Personally I would forget beachcasters for survival and stick with light spinning gear.

The Glass Key

Sorry, my bad for an abrupt reply I should have reread before posting.

Light spinning gear is really all I know from fishing as a kid and I used to use it in many situations. It would fit with what I'm thinking of here as it would be useful in most of the situations except on the beach. I was wondering if a Bass rod would be suitable? Seems to me that a Bass rod is also sometimes described as a spinning rod?

Apology if thats a dumb question?

The Glass Key

viper123 wrote: »

If I was to take one piece of survival gear if take a packet of fishing hooks about size 8 or 10. Everything else you can fiddle easily from nature. In fact I have a packet of hooks in my wallet at all times just in case :-)

That's a good start. As a non angler I'd be thinking about larger hooks, but thats probably wrong thinking, what would you expect to catch on those sizes.

Guest0000

The Glass Key wrote: »

I was asking here with that in mind, if I wanted illegal methods I wouldn't have bothered posting. Thinking about it, I'd ask the Fisheries Protection guys what the poachers are using on some of the other rivers around here if I wanted workable illegal methods.

Is this a hypothetical scenario, and if so, a day or two in the sticks would soon change your mind set, as to Whether you would turn game keeper to poacher..

SeaFields

12 foot spinning rod capable of maybe 2oz's. Don't think you could go wrong. Grand off the rocks and beach. You wouldn't get much fight off a small wild trout off it but if the premise is to keep the belly full, then that's a minor detail. A reel filled with 8lb-10lb line. Some insulating tape too and you could fashion the reel onto the top section of the rod if in the canoe. Makes for a manageable set up if sitting on your arse in a canoe.

Terminal tackle wise, id be thinking size 1-1/0 hooks and a spool of thread. A few mackerel feather could be tied after some scavenging. Bait could be picked off the rocks as well and tied on with the thread.

And some smaller hooks for the rivers and lakes. Thread here could be easily used to fashion a few very simple trout flies of needed (trolled with a float if bait wasnt working).

And a large knife - gathering bait, filleting fish.

And if i keep going ill just end up adding to the bag and it would be s&s any more :pac:

.red.

Ive given this waaay too much thought lol.
If i was somewhere that was near the sea, rivers and lakes then id opt for a light beach rod.
My zziplex ptx bass casts 3-5 oz and would cover every situation to an acceptable level. Its suitable for fishing for small flats on the beach upto bigger fish in the surf. It will handle any fish caught off our coast. Fine rod for the lakes and would be a match for any pike or carp around. It would be an ok rod for banging out spinners of 20g and up in the rivers for salmon and trout and could double up as a float rod if the smaller trout were needed to be caught.
I prefer fixed spool reels but would probably go for an origional penn 525 loaded with .35 mono, absolutley bullet proof and will never let you down. This would be slightly too heavy for the bass rod as a pleasure fishing reel but in desperate times it is the ultimate never say die reel.
For hooks id opt of a selection of gamakatsu f314 off set hooks ranging from size 10 upto a 1/0. These are a very strong hook and suitable for all types of baits so very versatile. Also in my terminal tackle bag id have some floats, a spool of 3lb mono and a spool of powergum. This is handy for tying stop knots for floats but a foot of it tied to the end of the thick mono, then add another foot of the 3lb mono will act as a good shock absorber and help with hooking fish with softer mouths. A decent small airtight tupperware box with a lightly oiled rag inside for my hook and i think that would be me happy.
Cant think of anything else.
Like i said above, ive put a bit of thought into it! Nothing better to do kn a p!ssy saturday night lol.

viper123

The Glass Key wrote: »

That's a good start. As a non angler I'd be thinking about larger hooks, but thats probably wrong thinking, what would you expect to catch on those sizes.

You'll catch everything on small hooks and only large fish on large hooks. I think you'll have to define 'run to the hills' a little bit more though, lots of mentions of beachcasters and rucksacks full of various fishing gear going on here at the moment, a lot to be running away with !

gumbo1

Some high strength mono various hooks and maybe some lead shot for some added weight if needs be!
The rest as in bait and a stick to put through the centre hole of the spool of line can be gotten through mother earth!
If you really wanted to bring a rod with you, you could pick up a telescopic one and have it in your evacuation kit!

fiacha

Have a look at the Light / Heavy Rock Fishing (LRF / HRF) setups out there. There are some multisection rods that will easily fit into / onto a rucksack, without getting in your way when moving through woodland etc. A basic telescopic rod will also do the job here.

If your intention is to catch fish to survive using legal methods, then you will be better off catching larger numbers of small / medium fish instead of spending time targeting larger fish. You could always put out a line with smaller fish as bait while you are prepping your meals.

You're not fishing for sport / pleasure so you can put aside all the specialist tackle. A medium action spinning rod, small fixed spool reel, 8 - 15b mainline (braid or mono), a selection of lighter leader lines (including wire trace), hooks (lightweight 16s to size 2 sea hooks, some weights and a selection of floats. Add a few mepps spinners, jigs, flies, and you will catch fish anywhere.

I brought a similar setup with me for a weeks camping to see what I could catch with a basic kit that fit in a pouch. I had Pike / Perch / Trout / Gudgeon / bream and Roach. I released everything, but I would have had no problems feeding myself in a pinch. Obviously, you'd want to be adding other wild foods to increase the carbs etc.

Maybe buy a cheap telescopic setup online and head away for a couple of days and see how you get on. I had great craic stalking brown trout using dry flies cast out with a bubble float.

I'm not sure on the legalities so you'd want to double check but the best way to subsistence fish in tidal areas is to peg out some multi hook lines when the tide is out. You then have plenty of time to hunt / fish / gather elsewhere while the tide does the work for ya.

The Glass Key

Thanks guys, some good ideas.

I had thought about a telescopic rod but decided against that idea as they seemed a bit of a cheap toy, but thinking about it they are so cheap I might get one to see what I can (can't?) catch around the rocks here.

My run to the hills comment was really an added incentive to keep the quantity of gear down and I was trying to avoid survival terms like SHTF and TEOTWAWKI what I was thinking of was the sort of scenario that has the shops closed or shelves empty for whatever reason and staying at home.

I am a bit of gear collector and part of the reason for the question is I don't need another hobby that would allow me to build up a massive collection of stuff. If I pretend I'm not interested in fishing for sport then I may just avoid amassing a huge pile of gear. I have seen guys fishing on the rocks here struggling with massive tackle boxes and I don't want that to be me.

Part of the answer I think from a subsistence point of view is canoe fishing, its hard not to catch Pollack here and night fishing off the beach is always good for dogfish. I wouldn't delude myself into thinking I'd be eating Bass everyday, they haven't been there to be caught the last couple of years - might have something to do with the nets that get placed very close into shore along the beach every so often (another story maybe for another thread?).

I don't know the legality but static lines put out at low tide would definitely be an option but not one I'd be trying unless I absolutely had to. I would wonder if the crabs would get more than me?

newbie2013

If it where me and it was survival, I'd use a net even if it was breaking the law. Sometimes a man has to do what he has to do to survive even if it's against bull**** man-made laws

rpmcmurphy

get back under your bridge

stevenmu

The Glass Key wrote: »

I had thought about a telescopic rod but decided against that idea as they seemed a bit of a cheap toy, but thinking about it they are so cheap I might get one to see what I can (can't?) catch around the rocks here.

I've used a few telescopics and found them pretty decent. In general, for any given price range a telescopic won't be quite as good as the non-telescopic equivalents, but still very usable.

For a bug-out bag, I'd be very tempted to try out some of the "pen size" fishing rods. They're something you could easily fit in a bag/pouch, or even a pocket. In fact, they're small enough you could take a few. I've read reviews of them before and they to be surprisingly good, obviously not quite as good as a full sized rod/reel, but for survival over luxury I think they could be a good choice. Some examples of them here

chopper6

I've used telescopic rods many times...they might not last forever but they're more than adequate for most types of shore or river fishing.

As for equipment,a few different sizes of hooks are necessary...i'd have a packet of size 16's and a spool of 3lb line as well as a packet of size 1 and some 10lb line....the 16's are perfect to catch smaller fish which can be used as bait to catch bigger fish OR if you were desperate that can be eaten by themsleves.

As a kid i often used to fish in rockpools with light tackle,small hooks and a bit of limpet to catch blennies,small pollack and the occasional eel.

Add a folding shovel too...can be used to dig bait or cook fish on in a pinch. A good way of cooking shellfish or smaller fish is to diga hole,light a fire and add some rocks. Wait til the fire has died down and place your catch on the rocks,cover with seaweed or vegetation and add sand or soil over the seaweed. In an hour your catch will be cooked...you dont need to watch a fire and there's no risk of your meal being burned.

Rememeber you will need a way of making fire so always keep waterproof matches or a couple of lighters handy...you can bring dry tinder with you as you find it.

If you really wanna go down the "bare minimum route..you can wrap a spool of line round a small plastic drinks bottle and use that as your rod..it takes practise but it's very efective.
http://www.fieldandstream.com/blogs/lateral-line/2013/05/ohio-man-invents-water-bottle-wrapped-fishing-line

SeaFields

stevenmu wrote: »

For a bug-out bag, I'd be very tempted to try out some of the "pen size" fishing rods. They're something you could easily fit in a bag/pouch, or even a pocket. In fact, they're small enough you could take a few. I've read reviews of them before and they to be surprisingly good, obviously not quite as good as a full sized rod/reel, but for survival over luxury I think they could be a good choice. Some examples of them here

For the sake of it I just bought one on ebay. Will report back on the quality but a little over the price of a pint tis worth a gamble. Got myself a little pen rod with multiplier.

dazza161989

SeaFields wrote: »

For the sake of it I just bought one on ebay. Will report back on the quality but a little over the price of a pint tis worth a gamble. Got myself a little pen rod with multiplier.

Is it one of these you bought, I got one last year and left it in the car , bored one day I used it to free line a piece of worm on a size 18 hook on a local little stream and caught a trout par !!!

SeaFields

dazza161989 wrote: »

Is it one of these you bought, I got one last year and left it in the car , bored one day I used it to free line a piece of worm on a size 18 hook on a local little stream and caught a trout par !!!

Very good. Yeah, I'd say that exact one.

dazza161989

SeaFields wrote: »

Very good. Yeah, I'd say that exact one.

Ya I got it for the sake of it on eBay. €1.99 from hong kong

chopper6

dazza161989 wrote: »

Ya I got it for the sake of it on eBay. €1.99 from hong kong

Well if it works,it works

SeaFields

dazza161989 wrote: »

Ya I got it for the sake of it on eBay. €1.99 from hong kong

I've been ripped off. Mine cost six euro

viper123

Mine was a tenner
Still landed an eight pound carp up in Angle Grove in Galway though!

dazza161989

SeaFields wrote: »

I've been ripped off. Mine cost six euro

Ah daylight robbery!:), can't beat the Hong Kong stuff, except for the fact that the shipping takes an age!!!

dazza161989

viper123 wrote: »

Mine was a tenner
Still landed an eight pound carp up in Angle Grove in Galway though!

What?????? Is it the same as in the pic? I'd say if I caught a 1pound fish mine would seriously struggle I bought it more as a novelty!:)

The Glass Key

dazza161989 wrote: »

Ah daylight robbery!:), can't beat the Hong Kong stuff, except for the fact that the shipping takes an age!!!

It takes so long that you've normally forgotten you ordered it in the first place so it comes as a nice surprise when it finally arrives

chopper6

How much does the shipping cost on the 1.99 rod?

dazza161989

chopper6 wrote: »

How much does the shipping cost on the 1.99 rod?

It was free! But took around 5 weeks!

chopper6

dazza161989 wrote: »

It was free! But took around 5 weeks!

5 weeks doesnt matter too much at this time of year...very few fish around.

Gonna buy me one and see how it goes.

dazza161989

chopper6 wrote: »

5 weeks doesnt matter too much at this time of year...very few fish around.

Gonna buy me one and see how it goes.

I think I'll stick with my fly rods, but it was a bit of fun!:)

chopper6

dazza161989 wrote: »

I think I'll stick with my fly rods, but it was a bit of fun!:)

I always mean to have a rod in the boot of the car in case i just happen to come across a decent bit of water...my reasoning is that now i can keep it in the glove compartment!

I must say i am curious and would love to catch something on an outfit like that!

dazza161989

chopper6 wrote: »

I always mean to have a rod in the boot of the car in case i just happen to come across a decent bit of water...my reasoning is that now i can keep it in the glove compartment!

I must say i am curious and would love to catch something on an outfit like that!

Dats exactly where I keep mine :-)

Super-Rush

Does anyone remember the show on tv about the two guys who had to eat what they caught?

It was set in the West of Ireland and they had to catch Coarse, Game, Sea and Pike. The winner got a steak dinner and the loser got fish and chips. I can't find anything on Google about it and trying to think of the name is wrecking my head.

dazza161989

Super-Rush wrote: »

Does anyone remember the show on tv about the two guys who had to eat what they caught?

It was set in the West of Ireland and they had to catch Coarse, Game, Sea and Pike. The winner got a steak dinner and the loser got fish and chips. I can't find anything on Google about it and trying to think of the name is wrecking my head.

Yea I remember that! One guy had longish black hair and the other had shaved fair hair, it used to be on discovery shed I think!

SeaFields

"Rod wars" wasn't it??

If that program was anything to go on, you'd get hungry fairly quickly if trying survival fishing. There was one episode tho where the shaved head guy had a packet of small freshwater hooks and baited them small baits from the beach. He caught fish after fish, undersized but if you were hungry they'd do.

dazza161989

SeaFields wrote: »

"Rod wars" wasn't it??

If that program was anything to go on, you'd get hungry fairly quickly if trying survival fishing. There was one episode tho where the shaved head guy had a packet of small freshwater hooks and baited them small baits from the beach. He caught fish after fish, undersized but if you were hungry they'd do.

That's it!!!

chopper6

SeaFields wrote: »

"Rod wars" wasn't it??

If that program was anything to go on, you'd get hungry fairly quickly if trying survival fishing. There was one episode tho where the shaved head guy had a packet of small freshwater hooks and baited them small baits from the beach. He caught fish after fish, undersized but if you were hungry they'd do.

Reel wars dude

And yeah you'd soon be starving if you were relying on fish for survival...the human body needs about 3000 calories per day to survive,you'd be hard pressed to get that from fish unless you were pulling in salmon or eels in pretty big quantities.

The Glass Key

So If I was going to spend some money on "minimum gear" should I spend more on the rod or the reel? Budget is say €100 and I expect to spend more on line and terminal gear.

I'm over in the UK in a month on the south coast in Cornwall, loads of places to buy tackle including at least one very good discount outlet so I'm putting together a shopping list - might be only be wish list but have to start somewhere.

In addition I might also get a cheap telescopic rod.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

chopper6 wrote: »

Reel wars dude

And yeah you'd soon be starving if you were relying on fish for survival...the human body needs about 3000 calories per day to survive,you'd be hard pressed to get that from fish unless you were pulling in salmon or eels in pretty big quantities.

To be honest I don't think anybody could survive by fishing in this country using legal means. We all know what a typical week's angling turns up and then you have to take seasons and legal keep sizes for many species in to consideration as well. You could play at it for a day or so but then it would be back home for a feed.:)

The Glass Key

Elora Beautiful Backgammon wrote: »

To be honest I don't think anybody could survive by fishing in this country using legal means. We all know what a typical week's angling turns up and then you have to take seasons and legal keep sizes for many species in to consideration as well. You could play at it for a day or so but then it would be back home for a feed.:)

Close the thread then, obviously the wrong place to be asking about fishing gear.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

The Glass Key wrote: »

Close the thread then, obviously the wrong place to be asking about fishing gear.

No, no. Please don't get me wrong. As I said earlier I'd go for light spinning gear if push came to shove. But, I'm just saying that the reality would be difficult with the constraints that abound.

A telescopic rod with a light reel would cover many situations. Its just that scavenging for shell fish and crabs or shrimp would possibly be a better survival technique when you take time and energy spent in the process versus calories/energy gathered.

Gear for angling as a hobby would be a different kettle of fish of course.

chopper6

My advice would be a lot of small hooks and a few large hooks. A couple of different breaking strains of line...so a small spinnning reel with two spare spools...say one loaded with 3lb mono and another with 10lb mono..a pack of assorted split shot and some small rubber bands...you can improvise floats quite easily.


I've always been a bait fisherman,some people would advise a few different lures for example but i've always caught more fish with bait plus it can usually be scavenged onsite.

If you were on the shore dont overlook simple methods for catching small fish and crusteceans that dont involve actual tackle...a plastic bottle cut in two and reversed,weighted and baited will catch shrimps,small eels and small fish...crabs can be found under rocks at low tide and in seaweeed at pilings.

There is also a river technique called "tickling" wherby you feel for fish with your hands and then pull them out sharply...it takes a lot of practise but it's an old poachers techniique...another is "babbing" which involves threading worms onto wool and lowering it into the water,eels in particular get caught by the teeth in the wool and can be landed that way.

beano345

Found this while looking up minnow traps

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GmDzHyOverg&feature=youtube_gdata_player

SeaFields

SeaFields wrote: »

For the sake of it I just bought one on ebay. Will report back on the quality but a little over the price of a pint tis worth a gamble. Got myself a little pen rod with multiplier.

And the award for the slowest postage in ebay history goes to.....I got mine yesterday :cool: