Spearfishing Is A Perilous But Thrilling Job

[FWS]

Spearfishing is a perilous but thrilling job for adventurers like 'Catching Hell's' Scott Childress

Weather Channel series follows undersea sharpshooters who must battle to bring back their catch



BY Justin Rocket Silverman
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Friday, June 13, 2014

People who spear fish for a living know it is one of the most dangerous jobs in the world.

They do it anyway.

“We are putting blood in the water by shooting these fish,” says Scott Childress. “We are essentially ringing the dinner bell for any shark that is within several miles of us.”

Childress captains a commercial spearfishing boat named Just Shoot Me. It’s an appropriate name in a profession where there are literally a dozen ways to die at any moment. A day at work consists of heading 100 miles off the coast of Florida and then diving down 125 feet to kill whatever you can spear. Often the fish don’t die quietly, and it becomes a deepwater wresting match between man and beast.

There are only a handful of Americans who make their living this way, and in the new Weather Channel Show “Catching Hell,” we meet some the toughest ones.
A spearfisherman goes into action on ‘Catching Hell.’ Weather Channel A spearfisherman goes into action on ‘Catching Hell.’

These are divers who descend into murky waters, even when a typhoon is bearing down on their location. Sometimes the divers can actually hear the storm raging 125 feet above their heads. When oxygen runs low, the divers must decide whether to wait out the storm, or surface and risk getting stuck by lightening.

The show was created by New York City-based producer Poull Brien, who was inspired while trying out spear fishing himself on a trip to the Florida Keys.

“I started wondering if anyone does this for a living and found out that almost nobody does,” he recalls. “But the ones who do are totally crazy.”

Spearfishing can be very lucrative, as restaurants pay top dollar for the superfresh catch. It’s also an eco-friendly way to harvest fish, as divers spear only the fish they are going to sell, and don’t end up with a big bycatch as happens with most commercial fishing.
Commercial spearfisherman Scott Childress, on Weather Channel’s ‘Catching Hell.’ Commercial spearfisherman Scott Childress, on Weather Channel’s ‘Catching Hell.’

Of course, when the TV cameras are not around, these spearfishers try to stay far away from areas where sharks congregate. But drama demands danger, and so for “Catching Hell” there is plenty of spearfishing right in the heart of shark-infested waters.

“You know viewers are interested in sharks,” says Brien. “So it’s not like you are going to try to avoid them.”

“Catching Hell” airs Sunday nights at 9 on Weather Channel.

[trappincoyotes39]

FWS want a challenge try spearing a fish with a hand held fish spear through the ice. You use a lure most made of hand crafted wood and you need a dark house and you cut a whole in the ice and bait them up to the top and throw the spear into them. Ice cold walleye and pike for supper Yeh man!

[FWS]

want a challenge try spearing a fish with a hand held fish spear through the ice.

Yeah, I hate to tell you but that pales in comparison to what spearfisherpersons do in the oceans.

[FWS]

If you really want adventure.....................

[FWS]

Same waters I fish,

[trappincoyotes39]

They also spearfish in the Missouri as well for walleye and such. There are a few freshwater spear fishing orgs out there as well.

Adventure is in the eyes of the beholder.

[FWS]

They also spearfish in the Missouri as well for walleye and such.

And the guys who do would love to spearfish in the Gulf of Mexico, off California, Mexico, the Caribbean, and so on. And many probably do, like doing big game hunts out of state or country.

Adventure is in the eyes of the beholder.

Not really, some things are just plain more adventurous.

A freediver sticking a 200+ lb yellowfin tuna in the open ocean is most definitely more adventurous.............

[trappincoyotes39]

Not when these fish aren't that spooked from divers

Again YOUR term and idea of adventure is different than others.

I have shot coyotes from an airplane is that adventurous ? Some would say yes and I found it to be a part of the job and on bumpy days more adventurous than I like

Some are just happy in the fresh water no hard to understand.


State record this guy from a very small town in SD 14lb 4 oz walleye seems happy to me.

[FWS]

Again YOUR term and idea of adventure is different than others.

And I still think spearfishing a swordfish in the open ocean is far more adventurous and far more impressive than sticking a walleye,



Or marlin,



or a 12' tiger shark,

[trappincoyotes39]

Again adventure is on the eyes of the beholder. The guy from seal town bridge water,SD found this to be a very worthy adventure and has a good memory that will lays him his lifetime. Not to mention a new state record and some fine eating.

[trappnman]

lots of this reminds me of the popular belief everyone needs to have a record to be happy

for example- is it less of a trophy for a hunter that picks up a set of tracks, and follows them to a kill- even though te kill is a doe- vs the guy that sits in his $2000 tree stand, and shoots a big rack that walks by?

in my mind, the trophy hunt is the first guy.

I remember a few years back, I caught a 2 3/4 lb native brookie out of one of our local streams- decide to get it mounted and actually felt a bit embarassed going into the shop with all those huge fish on the walls- but when I laid it on the counter, the guy goes holy cow, and calls the guys from in back out front-

and that reminded me- a trophy isn't based on how it compares to any other ting- but only how it compares within the class.

and spearfishing a shark, or a tuna or a walleye- no difference- no difference at all in the satisfaction ,adventure or skill required- the only difference....is they are different-

[FWS]

The guy from seal town bridge water,SD found this to be a very worthy adventure and has a good memory

And ya' know what, I bet he knows there's more out there than just walleye and wants to hunt other species in different environments and probably has already.

and spearfishing a shark, or a tuna or a walleye- no difference- no difference at all in the satisfaction ,adventure or skill required-

I don't think you're correct there old fella................

It'd be very different, freediving the open ocean is a lot more adventurous and would require more skill, a lot more skill.

[trappnman]

people tend to do what they want-

I've never had the desire to fish the ocean, or even swim in the ocean- and I've had opportunities to do both-

as far as more skill- that's more than debatable

a spear gun a fish and water-

now if a guy was riding a whale spearing dolphins aided by sharks....

[musher]

Or sharks with laser beams on their heads ....

[trappnman]

although dark house fishing is super boring in MO- but the decoys are some of the best folk art around- I've seen everything from mermaids, to 4 winged birds, all hand carved and painted.

[FWS]

as far as more skill- that's more than debatable

Nah, you don't really understand this. Those guys with the swordfish, tuna, marlin, and tiger shark are all freediving, meaning no tanks, only the air in their lungs. The guy in SD is using tanks, and there's nothing big with teeth that will eat him in that man made reservoir with the planted and artificially maintained fish populations.

I've never had the desire to fish the ocean, or even swim in the ocean-

Exactly, so you really wouldn't be able to make an informed comparison.

I've fished a lot of freshwater, and the oceans offer a whole different set of challenges.

So yeah, a guy who is freediving in the open ocean who successfully takes a swordfish has truly accomplished something.

[FWS]

BTW, underwater spearfishing like this is legal only for rough fish in MN, only nongame fish in MO, rough fish and panfish only in WI, and so on.

And it appears in SD that the hook and line guys don't like the spearfisherman taking THEIR walleye.

[trappnman]

sure he has-

but again- its not better- its subjective, and anything subjective, is defined that way for a erason

[FWS]

but again- its not better-

Actually doing it without tanks is better, a freediver can be completely silent, not so with tanks. To get close enough to some of those big pelagics to shoot em' you need silence and stealth. They are not sedentary fish either, they're moving, usually pretty fast.

[trappnman]

now that I will concede- that being less obtrusive would make it easier