swimming!

[minno]

Is it important to know how to swim. ( fishing )



Minno

[Sea-Dog]

More important to know how to float, and send distress signals.

[Kleyny]

I would say it would help.
Landbased for sure and if you were in a boat a good lifejacket would do instead.
Sea dog sending distress signals like the indians;D ;D :P but i do agree with you

neil

[Horse]

If you spend time on or around water than you should be a competent swimmer otherwise wear a lifejacket at ALL times

[loophole]

well hopefully i will never need 2 if my boat stays afloat

[Foxy4]

Atleast be able to paddle and float. If not that good then always wear a PFD of some sort. It could be money well spent one day. Even the best can get into trouble on the water.

[ashh]

I use to do nippers and swimming club etc as a youngster, and now all I do is surf and fish.
I have no problems swimming a good distance, and would say I am a competent swimmer, but I still invested in a quality self inflating PFD.
I wear it when Im fish at night by myself out of my boat. It doesnt get in the way at all and imo was/is a good investment.
Ever tried swimming fully clothed inc shoes, jumper, jacket. beanie and tracky dacks?
It isnt fun.

[loophole]

nah slows u down a bit

[minno]

Do you think a life-jacket is enough.



Minno

[loophole]

yeah they are positive floatation if i had the $ id buy a really good inflatiable one

[loophole]

a life jackett is better than no life jacket

[wadeo]

A good quality pfd type 1 maybe the go . I Took a experienced sailing family for a jearny from moloolaba to brisbane a few months back in my 7m cat and they brought their toddler with them. He wore a pfd 1 at all times and he also had a rope tied onto a harness that was built into back of life jacket. the length of rope was long enough so he could go half way down the deck and the other end was tied to one of my seat pedistals. His young fella loved the trip and didn't seem to be fazed by the life jacket or the rope even though he only ran around for half an hour of trip before crashing out in the cabin.

[minno]

Would you take someone out fishing, if they didnt know how to swim.



Minno

[blaze]

It may suprise many that a lot of pro's I know cant swim. My uncle started pro cayfishing years ago on the west coast of tassie with a 14 foot tinnie, up ended it 3 times in one day ggeting his pots, he is 69 and still fishing.
cheers
blaze
ps
float and relax is the key IMO, and a good pfd

[wadeo]

Would you take someone out fishing, if they didnt know how to swim.



MinnoI can't see a prob with it. ie: a mate or whatever

[minno]

But what if you had no time! What if the equipment failed. Then what!

They tried to put life saving equipment on the rocks , and idiots have thrown them into the water. I don't know if I'am getting my message across, But to swim can mean the difference between life and death.:)



Minno

[Longshot]

Is it important to know how to swim. ( fishing )



Minno

Nah. Just learn to hold your breath and walk on the seabed.

[el_carpo]

Being able to swim well is a major plus for sure. A guy on a local fishing site over here recently had a horrible event happen to him. He was out at night hanging around the lake front (Lake Michigan) with friends. He jumped in and a 17 year old kid jumped in after and they planned on swimming to where their group was going to walk to. It was a far swim at night and the kid was not a great swimmer and drunk besides. Want to guess what happened? He tried to save him but couldn't. Dead at 17. Bad choices.

On a recent canoe trip I took, we had a little incident. My brother and I were with a group of dingbats floating down a relatively shallow river. They didn't know what they were doing paddling-wise, they were drinking (always smart while trying to control a wobbly canoe), they had their life-vests securely stored under their rumps, they didn't pay attention to underwater obstructions, and they weren't able to swim but they were know-it-all genius yuppies so nothing could happen.............WRONG! They hit a submerged tree, the current turned their canoe sideways and flipped them, they panicked and instead of grabbing the canoe, they swam for kookamunga, their flotation devices floated serenely away and they nearly drowned in six feet of water. Luckily, one of their group was good enough at paddling to save them. My brother and I had kept away from their flotilla the whole trip and fished. We saw the whole thing from a distance and didn't laugh too much (until we knew they were safe and they started screeching at eachother, then we laughed pretty good.) We rescued their items that were floating away for them. It was the least we could do for providing us with such entertainment. I hate to take delight in the misfortune of others but as arrogant and obnoxious and flat out rude as they were to us (they made fun of us for fishing), it was impossible not to.

So yeah, being able to swim is a definate plus. Also, making smart choices about safety.

[disorderly]

Dont like my chances of swimming back from my usual reef fishing spots.
60 km's against currents and tides.
I dont think so.

Just ask Tom and Eileen Lonergan(they were left only about 35km's out).
Its more important to have a good lifejacket,an EPIRB and a healthy constitution IMHO.

[disorderly]

Being able to swim well is a major plus for sure. A guy on a local fishing site over here recently had a horrible event happen to him. He was out at night hanging around the lake front (Lake Michigan) with friends. He jumped in and a 17 year old kid jumped in after and they planned on swimming to where their group was going to walk to. It was a far swim at night and the kid was not a great swimmer and drunk besides. Want to guess what happened? He tried to save him but couldn't. Dead at 17. Bad choices.

On a recent canoe trip I took, we had a little incident. My brother and I were with a group of dingbats floating down a relatively shallow river. They didn't know what they were doing paddling-wise, they were drinking (always smart while trying to control a wobbly canoe), they had their life-vests securely stored under their rumps, they didn't pay attention to underwater obstructions, and they weren't able to swim but they were know-it-all genius yuppies so nothing could happen.............WRONG! They hit a submerged tree, the current turned their canoe sideways and flipped them, they panicked and instead of grabbing the canoe, they swam for kookamunga, their flotation devices floated serenely away and they nearly drowned in six feet of water. Luckily, one of their group was good enough at paddling to save them. My brother and I had kept away from their flotilla the whole trip and fished. We saw the whole thing from a distance and didn't laugh too much (until we knew they were safe and they started screeching at eachother, then we laughed pretty good.) We rescued their items that were floating away for them. It was the least we could do for providing us with such entertainment. I hate to take delight in the misfortune of others but as arrogant and obnoxious and flat out rude as they were to us (they made fun of us for fishing), it was impossible not to.

So yeah, being able to swim is a definate plus. Also, making smart choices about safety.

El Carpo,

Of those 2 examples it seems that liquor is more of a factor then their swimming ability.http://www.ausfish.com.au/vforum/../yabbfiles/Templates/Forum/default/undecided.gif

Scott

[Little grey men]

I made a deal with my boy. When he is a strong enough swimmer, we'll get a tinnie or a canoe. Until that day I'd worry far too much about him. Even then he'll still be wearing a pfd.
Last week he swam across the pool twice unaided....That boats getting closer all the time.( picture me rubbing my hands together greedily )
Even when we fish from boats in the Condamine, all kid's must wear pfd's at all times...it's just not worth the risk.

[B_E_N]

PFDs are a must in my books, i used to swim at a rep level, and trained since i was about 9 or 10, but that wont matter because if the condtions are bad enough to sink your boat or over turn it out at sea youve got buckleys, coz once your in the water you need to swim but you panic, get fatigued and dehydrated and tire out then ya stuffed!
i dont think i wwill ever need one fishing in a dam or creek or in a canoe depending if i can turn it over while still in the water which takes a littel practice but i think they come in handy in summer, middle of the day stinking hot, chuck one on and jump in with another one with me and just float in the water, great way to cool off in a dam!

[johnlikes2fish]

If you are on or around the water the ability to swim is a must if not to save your life maybe to save your kids, people who think a pfd is enough should try theirs on in a 1m swell and see if they think it will save their life. Below is what happened to me:-
Going out to Wolf Rock in my new boat about 10yrs ago a manufacturing defect in the boat caused the hull to split and the boat to sink in seconds my mate and i had life jackets on within minutes we realised that a pfd 1 on its own is only good to show the water police we grabbed other floats too my mate a half full 20l jerry and me a small esky we spent 5 hours bobbing around as we drifted we got close to shore (500-750m) I am a strong swimmer my mate wasnt so at that point i had the choice of swimming for shore he didnt, I left my mate bobbing around while i swam for shore and got help we picked him up an hour or two later drifting out to sea on the outgoing tide pouring out of the bay. I had to remove my PFD to swim to shore, try swimming in a PFD 1. If I couldnt swim who knows what would have happened.
Would i bet my life on a pfd alone no way, what would a non swimmer do if the boat sank and he had no PFD on could he even get one on in the water if he could find them unlikely.
If you cant swim you dont belong on the water. IMHO

[SeaHunt]

I thought everyone who went to school in Australia could swim?
If you are worried about it that much go and learn, it only takes a day or two to get good enough to get out of the water. Most of time fishing from a boat you literally have only a few seconds to get back to the boat, the curent usually makes sure that once you are 20 or so metres from the boat you have little hope of getting back.
A life jacket is more important, not going on your own also helps, though I often do.
We all gotta go sometime and I can't think of a better way to go than to drown while I am out fishing, except maybe having a heart attack while pulling in the fish of a lifetime.::)

[B_E_N]

yes, today schools do have swimming lessons from primary right thru to high school, some schools like mine also go one further and do lifesaving with the added bonus of getting your bronze medallion, but some arent as strong as other in the water as like any physical activity but practice and teaching sure does help

[minno]

Little grey men. My father wouldn't let me go near the water until I could swim two lengths of the olympic pool. Its fair enough.



Minno

[Dirtysanchez]

The ability to swim if living in OZ is imperative, My son started when he was 6 months and now, at 6 years of age he is better than me and about to start squad (or so his mother aspires) ;)

Anyway, point is I now have no qualms about taking him out in a boat / canoe and he loves it, if I could now teach him to keep hold of his fishing rod, instead of hoiking it over the side in an attempt to cast the line, it would be all good.
And yes, not a cent was spared in buying him a PFD with all the bells and whistles, including a strap between the legs so he doesn't slip out of it if he went in

What was the point you were trying to make Minno ?

Russell

[Fafnir]

Would i bet my life on a pfd alone no way

Hmmm, been sort of hoping that I could bet my life on it. Don't get me wrong, I can swim, but poor technique (seemingly modelled on that of a badly wounded seal) and a lack of fitness would limit how far. On the one occasion I had to swim to save myself I managed not to panic (just), and get back to safety (just), by swimming across the current. (My one and only attempt at surfing).

I won't go out in a boat without a PFD on. My son (15 months old) has been in swimming lessons for the last 9 months, and will continue going for many years to come. He also won't be allowed on a boat until he is a VERY competent swimmer. Even then, he will need to wear a top dollar PFD the whole time he is on the boat. IMO all children should have a top quality PFD with the straps through the legs.

But being able to swim, and being able to swim any great distance I believe are two different things entirely. I can swim 100m in a pool, probably 200 if I wasn't being lazy. But a bit of current and some swell would see me struggle to swim half that distance.

[seabug]

Still a few that do not wear lifejackets.

Untill they try getting back in a boat that has no ladder (Especially Inboard,straight shaft)then they have not got a clue how hard it is in a choppy sea.

If you think I am laying it on try it.(I have)

Regards
seabug

[rockfisho]

It is imperative that you can swim strongly when you are rock fishing.

rockfisho

[el_carpo]

El Carpo,

Of those 2 examples it seems that liquor is more of a factor then their swimming ability.http://www.ausfish.com.au/vforum/../yabbfiles/Templates/Forum/default/undecided.gif

Scott

I agree with you absolutely Scott. Getting drunk out on the water is far worse than not being able to swim but not being able to swim was the "final nail in the coffin," as they say.

Being able to swim well is even more important when you are talking about the ocean. As you Australians know, probably more than anyone else on earth, there are some nasty creatures out there. To put it bluntly, the less time you spend in the water, the less time they have to eat or poison you. If, God forbid, your boat has a major malfunction and you have an accident, and you find yourself in the water, it is much better to be able to swim back to your boat's hull (quickly and calmly) than to be struggling in the water trying to get to your boat. That struggling and thrashing might draw the attention of something that would be better left unawares of your presence. And wouldn't it just bite to drift into a jellyfish because you couldn't swim well enough to avoid it?

It's just a really good skill to have in general. I say that as a horrible swimmer, by the way. My swimming skills are close to that of a large rock.::)


I guess the way I see it is that the ocean can kill us in a heartbeat so we may as well have every tool available to us that can give us a chance. Swimming is one of the better ones (as are PFDs). Best option -- be a good swimmer and own a good PFD.

...........unless you're me in which case it doesn't matter because I'm so scared of sharks, I won't get within 100 miles of the ocean anyway!:o;D;D;D

[mitch92]

i remember when i was younger (can't remember what age, but am now fifteen and its been at least 6 or 7 yrs) i used to do swimming lessons with a mate. I sure am glad that i know how to swim because its just a heap of fun, but in saying that i know it is a skill that should be known.

Also agree that swimming in any swell or current is a lot different. have swam out to support boats that were anchored off the beach when i was outrigging and in the waves and current both fighting against me it was a hard 30-40m, my mate is a state-level representitive swimmer and i he was struggling as much as me, so i think it is very handy to know how to swim.