Real Fisho’s Fear Rocks, Not Sharks
Posted by Meggs | Fishing Holiday Stories | Posted on November 25th, 2009
The usually sedate Kianinni Bay at Tathra in rough seas
Greetings all,
I don’t have to remind Sydney-siders how damn hot it was over the weekend but one thing is clear that the warmer weather signals the start of the summer holiday season and that can only mean one thing – more fishing on the way!
For a lot of people who haven’t dusted their rods off all year there is a temptation to pack the car and head off to the nearest rock ledge with no preparation apart from pulling into the petrol station for some frozen bait. Once at the chosen red hot rock spot they tend to throw caution to the wind and hug the edge of the rocks with little appreciation of the seas let alone knowing what the tides are likely to do throughout the day.
Now I must admit I didn’t really cut my teeth on rock fishing until my early 20’s but I’m thankful for the people I learned the craft with because we always made sure that safety was a priority. It may come as a surprise to a lot of people but this year in NSW alone between January to mid October 9 people lost their lives as a result of rock fishing. I haven’t got national figures but I can tell you between 1992 and 2000 there were 74 deaths in NSW due to rock fishing whilst Australia wide during the same period only 9 people died as a result of shark attacks!
So how can you play it safe when rock fishing?
The NSW DPI have released the following guidelines for safe rock fishing;
Never fish alone
Inform others of your plans
Wear light clothing and appropriate footwear
Carry safety gear
Observe first and fish later
Stay alert
Plan an escape route
They have also installed Angel Rings at 96 popular rock fishing spots in NSW. Let’s hope the vandals leave them all alone.
Oh, and for those of you that are interested there were actually 122 shark attacks in Australia between 1990 and 2008 but only 19 of those were fatal. When you consider that in less than 10 months in NSW alone we have lost 9 lives this year it’s easy to see why real fisho’s fear rocks more than they do sharks!
Let me know if the Angel Rings installed in your local rock spot are still in tact by clicking on the “no comments” button below. Also let me know if you don’t have any.
Sea you later,
Skipper Meggs
[...] rockfishing and have even compared shark attacks statistics with deaths from the sport – see Real Fishos Fear Rocks not Sharks. Apparently the incident at Flat Rock was the ninth reported there in less than two years. My heart [...]