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| Bill Kinney Photography |
Essential Equipment
The basics of bow fishing are simple. You need a bow, reel, bow fishing arrow, and that is it! Make sure you have the right ones though! The bow is to personal taste and is whatever you like to shoot. You can either buy a nice new high quality bow or find a cheap, used recurve or compound for very little money. It is your preference. Recurves and compounds work best because they are smaller and more compact. This is better because you will often either be going through brush and weeds along the shore or fishing from your boat. A smaller sized bow is more versatile.
The next thing you need is a reel and bow fishing arrow. Reels can be a little tricky because you need to make sure they fit your bow. Most newer and compound bows can accomodate them nicely, but if using an older or more unique bow you may have to do a little mounting. To get the best experience, we recommend a high end reel. They can be bought for around fifty dollars and come with the line. A good reel is very important. If you have a cheap or homemade reel it will often tangle the line and cause problems when fishing. This can not only be frustrating, but also very dangerous.
The bow fishing arrow should also be of decent quality, keep in mind though that arrows are easily lost and broken when shooting to the unknown depths. It is best not to use your favorite prized arrow. The most important part though would be the tip. A good quality tip is something you definitely need to look into. Brands such as Muzzy or AMS are very popular bow fishing gear suppliers.
Other Equipment to Consider
We've discussed the basics of bow fishing equipment, but if you plan on going out there, you may want to think about a few other things as well.
A pair of polaroid sunglasses is almost a must when bow fishing. You need to be able to spot the fish and, with glare, it can be almost impossible without polaroids. We wouldn't recommend your best pair though. You tend to get very dirty when wading through the water and pulling in and fighting carp, especially if there are a lot of them! Bring along an old pair to get the job done!
Also remember to bring sunscreen, water proof is best! Bring a wide brimmed fishing hat too or that day of fun will be just miserable the next morning. Don't forget to wear an old pair of shoes either. If you do it right, you're going to get wet. Bring old tennis shoes or water shoes that you don't mind getting dirty. We have participated in bow fishing competitions before and believe us, after that many fish in the boat with you, you aren't going to want to do anything but throw those shoes away!
And there you have it! You know everything there is to begin bow fishing! Well, you have the essentials down. Hopefully this will help get you started. Ask around to find where thee best bow fishing is in your area and then go try it out! It can be a lot of fun! Let us know how it goes, be careful though, bow fishing is very addicting!