Polespear Spearfishing

WANT TO BE A BETTER SPEARO?

Put down the speargun and pickup a polespear.

Some of the old timers will tell you to use a polespear when you first get started in spearfishing.

This is great advice not only for beginners but for experienced spear fishermen and women. The limited range of polespears exposes weaknesses in your spearo skill set.

For example if you see a fish and dive on it but your surface entry is “loud” the fish will spook. With a gun you might still be able to make that shot but it will be difficult. In this case working on a “silent” smooth surface entry to get you within polespear range will serve you well later when you use a speargun.

POLESPEAR FISHING TIPS

Here are some tips I put together from my limited knowledge and observations. Feel free to add more in the comments section.

• Slow Down – The slower/smoother you glide through the water the more likely you are to see bigger fish.
• Minimize Motion – Look around with your eyes and move your head and limbs slowly. Fast movement attract attention and will work against you.
• Scouting Dives – Do some scouting dives without cocking your spear just to see what’s around. When you see a nice fish turn away and with your peripheral vision see where it’s going then…
• Plan your approach – Use rocks, kelp, or any structure to conceal your movement. If you saw the fish hanging out by some rocks approach low from the opposite side. The rocks or structure will hide you as you close distance then come over the top and blast it.
• Don’t waste your good work – At the end of a dive don’t rush to the surface. Come up sooner than normal so you have enough air to do it smoothly.

ARE YOU SMOOTH ENOUGH?

In the book Freedive! By Terry Maas there is a section that talks about the “fish test”. Basically, are you smooth enough to dive and swim with a school of fish without spooking them?

WHAT POLESPEAR DO I USE?

I use the Riffe – 6′ Three Piece Carbon Fiber Pole Spear. It is very rigid and fast. It is short but it the perfect size for close low visibility situations. It is a little pricy and you probably could buy a little speargun for the same price but like with almost all spearfishing gear, you get what you pay for. This is a good spear. If I had to make the same decision knowing what I know now I wouldn’t hesitate to buy it.

CHEAP BEGINNER POLE SPEAR

I went for the expensive pole spear because I already knew I was in love with this sport. If you are not sure yet here is a cheaper alternative. It’s a Scuba Choice 6′ One Piece Spearfishing Fiber Glass Pole Spear with 3 Prong Barb SS Paralyzer Tip
This is a good beginner polespear. It does tend to bow when in the cocked position but that is easily fixed by twisting it as you cock it. The twist makes the stretched band wrap around the polespear distributing the force so it won’t bow.

WANT MORE POLESPEAR ACTION?

VIDEO – Here is a short video from one of my Polespear Spearfishing sessions.

Check a more recent Polespear Spearfishing Video

ARE YOU NEW TO SPEARFISHING?

Well you just hit the jackpot!

We are in the middle of developing Spearfising School. The definitive beginner’s Spearfishing Course. Click here to get  progress updates and be notified when we launch. SpearfishingSchool.com

 

Once you devour that check out our Podcast. It is called The Spear – “The Spearfishing Podcast where spearos share stories, insights, and tips to help you on your spearfishing journey.” As of this update we are getting close to 100 episodes. Have a listen and learn how other spearos got started and what awesome adventures they’ve been on.

This blog (SpearoBlog), Spearfishing School, and The Spear podcast are all part of the SpearoNation network of Spearfishing Websites and Resources. Come checkout the SpearoNation introduction video and learn about how all of this came about and our guiding principals!

Thank you for reading!!

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