I used to as a child, and is something I would like to take back up but never have. Unfortunately no friends seem to want to.... even when I try and sell it as a weekend drinking and camping!
Never really seem to get the time which is a bit of a shame really. The supermarkets are full of the equipment and have cabinets full of bait. Quite often there is a picture in the local paper of a fish that has been caught, and is so large it takes two men to hold it up.
The French love their fishing for sure. We go boating in France every year, and see them all over the place- but I get the impression that the majority of them are fishing for the pot. They must do competition fishing, but not to the extent it's done here. They are also far less surly than English anglers when you go boating by.
I used to belong to a 'Deep Sea Angling Club' in Queensland. We'd hire a boat every two months or so for week-ends of fishing on the Barrier Reef - mainly caught reef fish such as bream, coral trout, red emperor, sweetlip and blue-tooth using hand lines. I only ever used a rod once - had a major tussle with a large grouper which lasted nearly two hours and which it won Since coming to UK to live, I haven't bothered - far too cold to fish for my liking, plus I seriously object to having to pay a fee for what is a free pastime in Oz!
As a child. Landed a Perch in the Thames at Staines once... didn't know what it was, put my hand on it to get the hook out when the blighter sliced my palm open with its fin. Hmmm fin. As the French would say 'end'... which is how it was that day for my angling career!
Caught a red Grouper in NZ it was a knackering struggle but the fisherman with us cooked it there and then and it was lovely!! off the coast of Kaikoura on the way back a pod of Hectors Dolphins popped up playing around the boat!
We go sea fishing out of weymouth, did our first trip to channel islands this year,doing fairly well at mo just curseing the wind!
As a child I used to fish in the local harbour, catching all sorts mackeral even herring! Used to drive my folks mad as they used to ask what bait did I use normally whelks but on the odd occasion used to nick a handful of prawns from the harbour fish market must of wasted loads! When we used to visit my cousins over in Stornoway we used to go trout fishing in inland lochs, funniest recollection was being chased by dragon flys, these things were enormous I have been tuna fishing off Ascension Island, did not catch a thing and fishing in Falkland Islands as well!
Funnily enough tuna have started turning up off weymouth! Their used to be a population in the north sea but looks like herrins are in the channel and tuna are following. One has turned up in a commercial boat and one landed by a spear diver not huge but still encouraging
