Fishing for survival in an emergency
In the case of a survival situation arising, your backpack traveling equipment should include an emergency fishing kit. Fish can easily be the food which will keep you alive if you found yourself hungry and stranded outdoors.
One of the great things about fishing is that it can be as basic as can be right through to having high-tech kit. To start with you just need a hook and some line of some sort and this can be nearly anything. In fact, if you have some skill you can fashion your own hook and line from the resources around you.
So, to start with some fishing line and a couple of hooks can be really useful, a life saver in fact, and if you know how to construct a fishing pole from items you find in your surroundings, this could make the challenge a whole lot easier, after all, a fishing pole is just a length of wood or stick, that shouldn’t be too hard to find or fashion.
The essential items in an emergency fishing kit need to include an assortment of fishing hooks, a length of fishing line, a razor blade or a razor knife, and a small, safe, lightweight but sturdy container in which to keep these items. You would also be wise to ensure that the container is waterproof.
If the line you have is not long enough, you can always improvise by tying it onto the end of any other string you find or even use shoelaces to extend the line.
If you want to be really prepared, you can include the following items in your container too: a bobber, a sinker, a couple of lures, flies, some salmon eggs (preserved bait). The inclusion of a multi-tool knife would also be a real plus as it would help with the fishing as well as many other things.
In the case of you being injured and unable to look for bait it is good to have something readily available, hence the preserved bait. The multi-tool knife is a great piece of equipment to carry with you anyway, apart from having all sorts of other practical uses, you can always use it to fashion your fishing pole. And it’ll come in handy too when you come to gut the fish you caught.
Another item that can be used in an emergency is a gill net, in many places, these are illegal, so you need to check the area you’re in before carrying one about. However, in an emergency situation they’re very effective at catching fish (hence them being banned) It’s a useful skill to know how to use one, just in case.
It’s the same with fishing, you need to do some fishing so that you have some experience and you know what you expect from the experience, an investment of just a few hours could make a lot of difference between success and frustration and even more difference if you’re in a survival situation and have a serious need for food.
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