Survival Fishing Options

In the United States, there are 40 million fisherman according to the American Sport fishing Association. In a survival situation, you are actually bound to have more luck with fishing than trapping or hunting animals on land.

In a survival situation, you will find meat more abundant in the water than on land. All freshwater fish are edible. Many saltwater fish that are edible, but some, such as puffer fish and toad fish, are not. All saltwater fish caught in the open sea and not in the shallows are edible. Sharks, eels, and short-tail rays are edible.

Best time to fish is at low tide or, in freshwater lakes and ponds, in the morning or evening. In streams, fish tend to gather under overhangs, in deep water, under overhanging trees, in eddies below logs or rocks, or next to submerged objects. On saltwater shores, try tidal pools and around submerged rocks.

There are actually a number of options when it comes to fishing. It depends how energetic or adventurous you are.

Fishing line...The most popular option, of course, using a rod and line. The rod can be as simple as a stick with a string on the end and a bent safety pin for a hook. You can also dispense with the rod and hold the line in your hand. Many items can be used to make hooks, such as thorns bound by string or thread, pieces of bone, or splinters of rock. One type of hook is simply a stick whittled so that both ends are pointed with a groove in the center you can attach a line. Then put bait on the stick, the fish eats it, and it's caught. Thread, of course, can be teased from the frayed parts of your clothing. Depending on the strength of the thread, you can braid several together to get adequate strength.

Trot line fishing...A variation on the standards line-fishing method, this involves a sturdy line stretched across a body of water, perhaps from shore to shore in a small river cove. Tied to the line and dangling at various depths are other lines with baited hooks on the end. Leave it overnight, check it in the morning. The fishing version of a small animal traps.

Hand fishing...This involves using your hands to catch a fish, either reaching over from the bank or in the water. One way is to patiently approach fish from downstream...they usually face upstream...avoiding casting a warning shadow on them, wait for a fish to get within reach, move in very slowly and grab it by the gills. During hot weather in shallow water, check under rocks for fish seeking to keep cool. Isolated pools are good places to check. In the southern US, there are aficionados of this hand fishing approach they call noodling who reach under logs and other likely hideouts to grab and haul out a catfish. Inadvisable in tropical saltwater where you might grab a dangerous fish.

Trolling...This method used to catch big game fish like marlin and tuna by reeling in the fishing lure to attract a hit.

Net fishing...Use your shirt attached to a Y-shaped stick and run it through the water, or use it to herd fish. You can even create a net with branches or woven foliage.

Bow or spearfishing...The fisherman stands above the pool of water to shoot or spear the fish. Hand-thrown spears have been replaced by automatic spear guns and standard bows have been replaced by pneumatic bows. Bows, of course, can be handmade from reeds or saplings. Using a torch at night will confuse them so you can get them. Stab with a spear, do not throw or you could lose it.

Gigging....Tie four or five hooks to a line, up to three inches apart, toss into the area where fish have been seen, then pull on the line with fast, short jerks. If the hooks catch you'll embed it with the next jerk and can pull the fish out.

Stunning...Smashing a paddle or log into the water near fish may stun them. You can also try and gently lower two hand-size stones into the water near the fish and strike the stones together to get the same effect..

Dredging....Somewhat more sophisticated, adapting the practice of commercial fisherman to attach a net behind a boat and drag it along, catching up the fish. Often used for scallop and oyster harvesting. This idea can be adapted quite easily to drawing a net across a stream bed. At worst, you might come up with a bunch of crayfish or minnows, both edible.

You can fish from the shore or on a boat. You can also increase your chances by constructing a fish trap. Two main methods involve using live bait such as worms, minnows, insects, or dough balls attached to the hook and the other is spin fishing, which relies on an artificial lure.

Hooked live bait is slowly reeled in to draw the attention of the fish or is jigged up and down. The lure, on the other hand, ideally resembles the fish's natural prey and it spins underwater to attract the hungry eye of the fish.