spearfishing??? on the wrecks in the harbour

Rumour has it that some FFF members are spearos. It's time to come out of the closet.
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BarraBeast
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underwater friends

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Spearfishing

Post by jasonmcc »

Well Barrabeast has been trying to get me into spearfishing. I have always been pretty keen as my Dad was a keen spearo up here. Got an email from him yesterday after I told him I was thinking of getting into it

it read:
It is a dangerous sport though. I've told you this before but it's worth repeating! I lost my best mate (diving partner) when he was only twenty. He died at the Iron Ore wharf from staying down too long after he probably speared a big Jewie. We got his gun back minus the spear!

I nearly did the same at Stokes Hill wharf after spearing a big coral trout. The year I lost my mate, 23 other spearos died in Oz, most of them from hyperventilation. My scuba teacher gave us the best advice, ie' If you are going to use hyperventilation, then practice it in the swimming pool with a mate watching you, and stay down until you pass out! Once you have passed out or come very close to it many times, you will feel it coming on and that gives you a chance to make the surface. Many times I made the surface and went into spasms. It's not a nice experience! Your vision closes in and you lose feelings in all parts of your body.

When your body gets very low on oxygen, the normal response is for your sub-concious to switch you off and take over. The first time it happened to me I was luckily only a few metres from the surface. I came to on the surface dog paddling! I had let go of my gun and the trout but had no knowledge of it! Our scuba teacher showed us a movie of a guy coming up from thirty metres with a big Red Emp. He passed out, dropped the fish and started dog paddling but only went a few metres. The camera man saved him!

Now you have crocs to think about as well! It is good fun though! The best method is to drift the last couple of metres to the bottom without moving and then lay there motionless. The fish will come to you. That's how I won the NT Championships, with over 30% of the total fish speared! I learnt that from Ron Taylor. He had a similar win in the WOrLD championships!
After reading that it sort of puts you off doesnt it, but then again racing motocross and doing 60ft jumps is prob just as dangerous, and im still here.

Jason
...............Wishin' I was fishin'...............
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danger

Post by flicker »

Dunno Jase, I've raced motocross too but I'll admit that I haven't got the balls to dive, (not around here anyway) jumped in for a swim at fenton patches once but didn't stay long before I got scared and got out, seeing jaws all those years ago scared me for life I reckon.

At least when you deck your bike you don't drown.

Cheers Flicker :mrgreen:
you don't know if you don't give it a go
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Re: danger

Post by tatie »

flicker wrote: At least when you deck your bike you don't drown.
dunknow mate. I've seen Barrabeast on a pushie and i recon he could drown the way he sweats! :fu: :rofl: :lolpoint:
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Post by rob povey »

thats right there barrabeast i know off exactly who you are talking about and he does free dive those wrecks and vis doesn't stop them that much... i am a bit of a spear fishermen but i am different, i just enjoy being amongst the fish and the thrill of the hunt.. but i am just as happy to get into range and see a large predatory fish in its environment rather than kill it... sure shoot one for dinner for the family but no need to just shoot them because you can.. fish tastes the best fresh...
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Re: Spearfishing

Post by Jack Priestley »

jasonmcc wrote:

Now you have crocs to think about as well! !
I was told that crocs only attack in their own territory. Is that true? Apparently they wont attack (unless obviously you p..s them off or feel threatened) because they need somewhere to take their food and let it rot (ie. their nest) so they can eat it because they cant chew. And if they're in the middle of the harbour they're probably looking for a new place to live so..?
I would def stay the hell away if I saw one and wouldn't be diving anywhere that I thought they would be..
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Re: Spearfishing

Post by BarraBeast »

Jack Priestley wrote:
jasonmcc wrote:

Now you have crocs to think about as well! !
I was told that crocs only attack in their own territory. Is that true? Apparently they wont attack (unless obviously you p..s them off or feel threatened) because they need somewhere to take their food and let it rot (ie. their nest) so they can eat it because they cant chew. And if they're in the middle of the harbour they're probably looking for a new place to live so..?
I would def stay the hell away if I saw one and wouldn't be diving anywhere that I thought they would be..
dunno about any of that, it's possible. One swam straight past my brother when we were surfing at casuarina beach during a big low monsoonal onshore yers ago. I just dont trust them full stop.


2005 news clip -
Russell August Butel, 55, of Darwin, was taken by a five metre saltwater crocodile about 11.30am yesterday, only five days after British snorkeller Russell Harris, 37, was also killed by a crocodile in the NT.

Mr Butel and a companion were diving near Washon Head on the Cobourg Peninsula, about 150km north-east of Darwin, when the attack happened.

His distraught diving partner, a 41-year-old New Zealand man, raised the alarm by satellite phone about 11.30am yesterday.

He marked the exact location with an emergency beacon as he scrambled to get out of the water after spotting a large crocodile.

Mr Butel dived frequently in his role as an aquarium fish diver.

An autopsy on his body is being conducted in Darwin today.

The death of Mr Harris, who was taken by a four-metre saltwater crocodile while swimming off Groote Eylandt, prompted renewed debate about limited safari hunting of some of the NT's dangerous crocodiles.

Police acting Superintendent Dean McMaster said the man's body might never have been recovered but for the rapid actions of his companion.

"His actions and quick thinking have made the search so much easier," he said.

The pair were diving together in Trepang Bay, about 15 nautical miles east of Cape Don.

"Obviously this person would be very distressed," acting Supt McMaster said.

"He was diving as a diving companion when his mate went missing.

"That must have been a very stressful time.

"He's managed to get out of the water into a boat, where he's placed an emergency locating beacon (in the location) and called police on a satellite phone."

It took authorities several hours to reach the area, and the man's body was found at 4.30pm.

Police said he had injuries consistent with a crocodile attack, but the cause of death would be confirmed by a post-mortem examination.

Police would offer counselling to the man, and officers involved in the search, before taking his official statement, he said.

"Our main concern has been finding the body of the victim and following up with the next of kin," acting Supt McMaster said.

The man's family in Darwin had been told of his death and his body would be returned there tonight, he said.

The incident comes just five days after British snorkeller Russell Harris, 37, was killed by a four metre saltwater crocodile while swimming off Groote Eylandt in the NT.

Authorities were still hunting that crocodile, after a search last night failed to find any crocodiles fitting the description of the reptile that mauled Mr Harris.

Acting Supt McMaster said it was not known if authorities would hunt the crocodile believed responsible for today's attack.

"It's a remote area," he said.

"There are a large number of crocodiles along the coastline in that area.

"I would be hard to pin the attack down to any specific crocodile."

But he warned people should not go into NT waterways, home to an estimated 75,000 saltwater crocodiles.

"It's been well-documented, the dangers of swimming or entering the water in the NT," acting Supt McMaster said.

"People that visit are made aware of the dangers of crocodiles.

"That is an ever present danger."

For those about to say, dont swim in the water then :bonk:
It appears dry land is not safe either :shock:


Oct 2004 - Qld. A 4m crocodile attacks a man sleeping in a tent on a beach at Cape Melville in far north Queensland.
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Post by meter_seeker »

Do you think your pushing your luck everytime you go under water beast?, and for that i reckon your an absolute mad c...t, balls of steel mate 8-) . I can kinda compare to that after the wet, land base fishing off the bank into remote billabongs/rivers, knee deep in lillies/reeds.
Do you ever think about it? i dont? i tend to forget the place is more than likely inhabited by gators. I think those that worry are the ones to go first. Im the same nationality of the persons who got thrown into the adelaide river with batteries a few years back nothing touched them, so i feel pretty safe to be honest. :lolpoint:
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Re: Spearfishing

Post by harmsey »

jasonmcc wrote:Well Barrabeast has been trying to get me into spearfishing. I have always been pretty keen as my Dad was a keen spearo up here. Got an email from him yesterday after I told him I was thinking of getting into it

it read:
It is a dangerous sport though. I've told you this before but it's worth repeating! I lost my best mate (diving partner) when he was only twenty. He died at the Iron Ore wharf from staying down too long after he probably speared a big Jewie. We got his gun back minus the spear!

I nearly did the same at Stokes Hill wharf after spearing a big coral trout. The year I lost my mate, 23 other spearos died in Oz, most of them from hyperventilation. My scuba teacher gave us the best advice, ie' If you are going to use hyperventilation, then practice it in the swimming pool with a mate watching you, and stay down until you pass out! Once you have passed out or come very close to it many times, you will feel it coming on and that gives you a chance to make the surface. Many times I made the surface and went into spasms. It's not a nice experience! Your vision closes in and you lose feelings in all parts of your body.

When your body gets very low on oxygen, the normal response is for your sub-concious to switch you off and take over. The first time it happened to me I was luckily only a few metres from the surface. I came to on the surface dog paddling! I had let go of my gun and the trout but had no knowledge of it! Our scuba teacher showed us a movie of a guy coming up from thirty metres with a big Red Emp. He passed out, dropped the fish and started dog paddling but only went a few metres. The camera man saved him!

Now you have crocs to think about as well! It is good fun though! The best method is to drift the last couple of metres to the bottom without moving and then lay there motionless. The fish will come to you. That's how I won the NT Championships, with over 30% of the total fish speared! I learnt that from Ron Taylor. He had a similar win in the WOrLD championships!
After reading that it sort of puts you off doesnt it, but then again racing motocross and doing 60ft jumps is prob just as dangerous, and im still here.

Jason
yep been there. free diving 35ft and smashed a big cod. just as i was about to surface the cod took off and took me back down. tried to wait it out but the next thing i know im on the floor of the boat??? my mate ended up finding the fish and gun but. :wink: mounted his head on the wall and hung the gun up beside it and have never been back in. :uhh: ended up with water on my lungs too, was sick for ages
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Post by BarraBeast »

Holy smoke Harms, imagine the world without your ugly noggin, Bundy shares would plummet!

Yep, shallow water blackout is the biggest risk, unless your swimming in the mangrove looking for a croc dressed like a cow.

Diving in darwin gives me the heebbie jeebies but you dont have to buy bait and it's great for satisfying serious thrill issues. 8-)
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any keen spearfisherman outthere

Post by Simmo »

gday every body , just like to say this is a ripper forum you all have going on here, I'm a mad keen spearo/fisherman, from carins Qld , been here for 7 months an have only just found this forum, just puttin it out there if any spearo's got room for another fellow diver, i'm always keen got all my gear up here few cobwebs on it though, also have my own 4.6 quintrx tinny. 60hp

cheers for your time hope to here back from some of Neptunes kids
0431398418 keen as
Last edited by Simmo on Wed Apr 14, 2010 10:14 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Post by 4x4xfar »

I did alot of Spearing on the Pilbara Coast but wont do it here.

I have a Clubman Wooden Spear Gun For Sale if anyone's interested.
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Post by BarraBeast »

4x4xfar wrote:I did alot of Spearing on the Pilbara Coast but wont do it here.

I have a Clubman Wooden Spear Gun For Sale if anyone's interested.
post a pic of the gun or 2 ?
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Post by harmsey »

you cant afford it beasty,, youve got bills to pay :fu:
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Post by freon »

This is a good subject. Who has right of way? On two occasions have arrived at the bottle washer to find i cant fish it because divers are down. they put out thier flag and thats it for 100 mts.On one occasion there was two boats working together 100mts apart so no hope for anyone else
Who were these artificial reefs built for bottom bouncers or divers?
Thats my bitch
Cheers
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