Day trips are some of the best for training techniques. You have the opportunity to dedicate some time to one specific project and in that way learn what works and what doesn’t. The latter is sometimes the most important, because with experience of what DOES NOT work, you can often draw many useful conclusions about what also won’t work and what might be better in the end. If you succeed the first time, no matter what it is, you might get the impression that it’s easy. What was straightforward this time can easily cause trouble and problems the next ten times!
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Constructing a primitive Hawaii spear AND fishing with it
Hawaii slings are a slightly refined version of a regular spear. The big difference is that Hawaii slings are hand spears propelled forward using an elastic band. In my case, I used a latex tube from the medical industry, which has an elasticity of several hundred percent!
Conclusion on fishing with a Hawaii sling
In this attempt, it didn’t go quite as expected, and it’s often the case that I want it to work the first time. Personally, I don’t like successes on the first try (what I started with) because the idea that something is easy and straightforward doesn’t align with survival training. I don’t take the direct path, but always the winding and difficult one toward the goal. That way you uncover all mistakes (or at least many of them) that you might make in a “real situation.” You have disarmed those in your training and pursuit of perfection.
It didn’t succeed – so what?
That’s okay. I now know that fishing with a spear is only possible with diving goggles on, at least under Danish conditions. Holding your breath and staying calm is not a problem, but vision is a crucial element. Without diving goggles or a mask, I will have to catch fish in another way.
Advantages of fishing with a spear:
If you have a spear and diving goggles/mask, the chance of getting food is much greater than with traditional fishing. I know the technique from regular underwater hunting with a harpoon, and given that I had my goggles with me, it was dark and the same spot, I would have caught at least one or two fish this way.
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Disadvantages and dangers associated with spear fishing
At a minimum, this requires a pair of diving goggles. A stick or your knife can substitute for a Hawaii sling, as the elastic band basically just makes it a bit easier. Next, water temperature is important. In summer, you can be in the water for 15 to 30 minutes without getting too cold, but later in the year water means hypothermia and in the worst case, death. Even at summer water temperatures around 15 degrees Celsius, you can become chilled. In a critical survival situation, you are typically already low on energy, and here spear fishing suddenly becomes a life-threatening game with your own life!
Improvising solutions
On every trip, you need some food in your stomach. As brought food, I had a can of mock turtle soup and a bag of rice. Once the food was prepared, I realized once again that I had forgotten a spoon, so you have to be creative.
THE TUBE CAN ALSO be used for compression on bleeding wounds. The gear you bring should preferably be usable for at least three things, and a latex tube has many uses. If you need to hide underwater, it can also be used as a two-meter-long snorkel.
Learn to eat with chopsticks – it’s good to know!
A quick and easy solution is to eat with chopsticks. If you don’t already know how, I recommend you start learning right away. Once you master the technique, eating hot food outdoors is no longer a problem.
The small things in life are sometimes the best
During my trip, I found a huge thicket of about 150 m² consisting solely of wild raspberries. They tasted so good the birds sang, and next time, well, now I know where to find my berries for morning porridge. Take the small things in life and stop to enjoy them.
Disclaimer
Use of all techniques and training is at your own risk. Bjarke Petersen or survivalstore.dk cannot be held responsible for any accidents or injuries that may occur based on these blog posts. The posts are simply knowledge sharing of personal experiences.