Thread: Not sure if its hunting or fishing?

My new love in life is bowfishing. It sure beats sitting there waiting for something to bite a hook.



It doesn't need much of an explanation, but for those who have never tried it you actively hunt the fish. I reckon most fish behave like rabbits, they seam to take about the same care to stalk and act the same way to pressure i.e. if you put to much pressure on them then they'll swim away, but if you sneak in from the right angles you can catch the fish off guard and get within range to shoot it.

I've found some new areas where the Koi haven't been there for too long. These fish live in very clear water (because they haven't fucked it like all the other water ways they've gotten into). But what this means is that they can see you and spook very easily. This adds further challenge to the hunt.

You can set yourself up with basic gear for under $100 if you buy a second hand bow off trademe and a $50 reel/arrow set. Anyway, I'm really getting into this sport would highly recommend it to anyone curious about it to give it a try.

kj

It looks like fun. Was keen to try for some mullet in the lagoon but never got a round to it. Can you use a hunting bow with the reel or would it be too fast and drill into the mud/sand

How deep can you effectively shoot them ?
Could you burly up and use it salt water rock fishing?

Originally Posted by Toby

It looks like fun. Was keen to try for some mullet in the lagoon but never got a round to it. Can you use a hunting bow with the reel or would it be too fast and drill into the mud/sand

Any bow will do, but I do wind mine down to about 40lb because you don't need a lot of power for fish. Mud/sand isn't an issue, the arrow will only go in about 6'' and pull right out again with ease. Willow tree roots are another story, but the arrow heads will reverse out if you can get hold of the arrow and give it a couple anti-clockwise turns.

You can even use a plastic coke bottle for a reel, see this link Bowfishing Reel Made From a Soda Bottle - YouTube The arrows are available off trademe cheap as (about $20) and are made from fibreglass fence standards, so they are almost indestructible!

I target mostly Koi carp, but you can shoot whatever you want too?

Give it a go - you'll love it!

kj

Originally Posted by veitnamcam

How deep can you effectively shoot them ?
Could you burly up and use it salt water rock fishing?

Absolutely.

Currently I'm only shooting to about 1m in depth with reasonable consistency, but the arrow will go double that. This issue is the angle of refraction i.e. that phenomenon where you put a stick in the water and it looks bent - but you know its not. The angle of refraction gets harder to read the deeper or longer the shot is, but with practice you'll get your head around it and will actually start hitting things. When that happens its really addictive!

kj

Cool, now if only i lived up north where burly up on the rocks was effective
Spos i could spotlight eels and flounder if i had a dingy.

Thinking I might try a 25lb recurve for flounders. Could probably put a old egg beater reel on it somehow haha

I used to sell koi like that one for around 45 pound back in the old country.

Love your stuff mate, wish I could do it here. Unfortunately it's now illegal in my state. When they were reviewing it the lead recreational fishing body of Victoria supported the ban if you can believe that!

Originally Posted by Pengy

I used to sell koi like that one for around 45 pound back in the old country.

Daylight robbery!:eek::eek::eek:

That was a very in expensive one at 45 quid

Originally Posted by Pengy

That was a very in expensive one at 45 quid

What did prime eating fish go for?

I have no idea. The ones I sold were for pets or the show circuit

Bowfishing from the kajak. - YouTube

Man that looks fun!!!

Originally Posted by Dougie

Bowfishing from the kajak. - YouTube

Man that looks fun!!!

Rambo eat your heart out. Haha. Looks real fun.

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