The dangerous allure of spearfishing

 

If there’s a more difficult way to catch open-ocean, fast-moving fish than with a speargun, nobody knows what it is. Known as blue-water hunting, it takes place miles offshore, where the ocean is deep blue and the fish are few and far between. It is fishing’s equivalent of African big game hunting, only with sharks and no powerful rifle. On the plus side, if you do manage to kill something, you get to eat it, rather than stuff it and hang it in the den. In short, hunting big, powerful game fish like tuna, yellowtail and even marlin with nothing but a speargun is the ultimate way to put yourself at a major disadvantage to the fish.

“Spearfishing is tough because as humans we’re totally out of our element in the ocean. If you throw a human in the water and tell them to get a fish, it’s not going to be very productive,” says Ryan Moore, a local “spearo” sponsored by Riffe International, a premier spearfishing company based in *San Clemente. “So you have fins to move around, a wetsuit to stay warm, a mask to see, weights to help dive, a snorkel to breathe. And on and on. There are so many pieces of gear that have to come together effectively to be a hunter in the water.”

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My boat, the Thuy Kieu, flying the VNCH flag, in Dana Point Harbor, California 1977/78 with my two oldest daughters, Emily and Virginia.

 UC Diving

I was diving with a buddy in South Laguna one day among the kelp and I kept thinking my fins were getting caught in it. My buddy motioned me to go up, but I didn't want to as I was chasing fish. At any rate, he looked frantic again, I went up and he said a Moray was biting a fin.:) They are great to eat, but better shoot them through the head or they may go for you. At Dana Point at low tide you could take a short bamboo pole with heavy wire leader, shrimp on the hook and poke under large rocks for them. They live a long time out of water in a wet burlap sack. but die immediately in fresh water. Almost lost one in my kitchen sink when it started going down the drain, but it was the garbage disposal side fortunately. :)
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Abalone was the most expensive meat in the world back then. My favorite was breaded. "Off The Steps" refers to an area between *San Clemente and Capistrano Beach off the coast highway. There are steps coming down from the palisades and if you go directly out from there, they are in 18/20 feet of water. They were so big at least back then, because it was so dirty that you could only dive it a few times a year. I got the then California record for Green Abalone here. North of that a few miles is Dana Point where I had my boat. If you go out to the red buoy, you can find big scallops in 80/90 feet of water. We would bring them up and eat them after squeezing lemon or lime on them and hot sauce. Excellent. Lobsters there and big Sheephead also. Almost drowned once as I had a bag full of scallops, then chased a fish and ran out of air, I would kick some, then exhale and finally I thought this would be the last shot and although I didn't make it, I saw the surface, best breath of air I ever breathed. Of, course it would have been easier if I had dropped the bag............:)