Selecting the right speargun for you is one of the most important decisions you will make when you are starting out. By the time you are finished your diving career you will have an untold number of guns. But it is your first gun that you need to get right. There are many factors that will influence your choice of guns such as where you live and the style of diving you will be doing. For instance a 1.4m Carbon gun is not ideal for shooting a feed of fish around your local headland, and in the same way, heading out to bluewater with a 90cm pranger gun is not going to cut it. So what do you choose? James Sakker talks to Todd from Coffs Coast Spearfishing and looks at all the choices and gives some very useful advice.
So you are thinking about heading off on a spearfishing charter to shoot the fish of a lifetime? They do not come cheap and you don’t want to miss out on that perfect opportunity to shoot yor dream fish. So which charter do you choose? How do you know what to look for and what to expect? James Sakker sits down and gives you a full run down on just what you need to look out for and how to prepare.
Why Should I join the USFA? I’ve been diving for years without being a member.
By joining the USFA you will be becoming a member of an organisation that is putting all its efforts into improving spearfishing for everyone. We are constantly looking for ways to improve and give more back to our members. Diver safety and development are high on our priority list along with protecting our rights to spearfish all along our wonderful coast. By becoming a member you will not only have the right people in fighting for your rights politically but you will also have access to all these resources and programs. You will also be protected by our insurance policy. Check out our Insurance section for more information.
You don’t have to be a member, but we sure want you! The more members we have, the stronger we are and the more we can do together to protect and build the sport we love!
What is this ‘Insurance’ and why do I need it?
Go to our Insurance section on this website for specific, up to date information on our policy and how it protects you.
How do I find the closest club to me?
Go to the Club section of this website and look at the list of clubs and the areas they are from. Feel free to call or contact any of the clubs to ask questions and find out when their next meeting is so you can go along.
What if I am not interested in comps. Isn’t the USFA just for serious competition divers?
Absolutely not. The USFA is there for all Spearfishers, regardless of your skill level or experience. We are currently initiating many new programs catering for social spearfishers. Check out our Kingfish Cup and our Outstanding Capture Awards. Don’t forget to keep an eye on our Events Calendar for upcoming Social Meets, Information Sessions and Awards Nights. And if you have other great ideas, we want to hear them!
What are the USFA doing about protecting the sport of spearfishing?
Firstly, we are building our membership so that we can demonstrate that we are a united group of like minded spearfishers who are safe, sustainable and sensible. We have experienced members who represent us on advisory councils and government committees fighting for our rights. We educate, coordinate and encourage submissions from our members on Marine Parks and other issues when they are called for so that we are properly represented when decisions are made.
Finally, by promoting, encouraging and supporting our members to follow our Code of Conduct we are, by ourselves, protecting our sport by example. Reaching out to fellow spearfishers and mentoring them in the same values is the greatest thing we can do.
Be the change you want to see in this sport!!
If you have more questions you would like answered, please contact us for an immediate response!
Launching a boat and the general area around a boat ramp can be a very hazardous place. You have risks of slips and falls, being run over by cars and boats, getting squashed or crushed, being struck or just plain old manual handling lifting your gear and catch in and out of the boat.
Caution and safe practice is not only important launching or retrieving a boat, considerable care and safe practice must also be used whilst travelling in the boat and at sea in general.
The following Boat Safety Guide was put together by the Central Coast Sea Lions Club and details a lot of the risks and controls to be considered and managed whilst working with boats.
Please take the time to look through this quality document and then go to our Training page to sit the quiz.
There are many things to consider when discussing Diver Safety. Not only are there the technical aspects of being a safe diver, but there is also the whole concept of understanding and developing a correct safe attitude and culture. The articles and content within this Diver Safety Section aim to inform as well as encourage all forms of best practice when it comes to the safety of yourself and your dive buddies.
Please ensure that SAFETY ALWAYS COMES FIRST. No fish or deep dive is worth your life. Don’t put your life on the line.
Watch this ‘Spearfishing Safely’ Video which explains the basic essential knowledge.
A guide to safe underwater fishing, from the Recreational Fishing Alliance of NSW and Underwater Skindivers and Fisherman’s Association.
This video was produced with the support of:
NSW Recreational Fishing Saltwater Trust Expenditure Committee
NSW Advisory Council on Recreational Fishing
Industry & Investment NSW
Communities NSW
The production of this video would not have been possible without the assistance of many individuals:
Erez Beatus, Alex Lewis, Andrew Harvey, Garth Byron, Paul Roso, Ian Puckeridge, Jason Montes de Oca, Brett Vercoe, Shane Fitzmaurice, Tim Wilson, Matthew Okkanen, Chris Cuthbertson, Andrew Davis, Rick Trippe, Simon Trippe, Alan Forbes, Tom Holland, Ben Elliot, Emily Gleeson, James Sakker, Peter Saunders, Peter Walsh
Additional footage and materials were generously provided by:
Jason Montes de Oca – Huffy productions
Brett Vercoe – Liquid Focus
Shane Fitzmaurice – Breathtaking films
Tim Wilson
Wilso Films
Special thanks to Erez Beatus. For more info on freediving technique and safety contact: Apnea Australia http:// apneaaustralia.com.au
This guide is to provide the standard requirements for boating activities under the auspices of the USFA. This Guide should be read in conjuction with the standing legal requirements for maritime boating.
Lobster Pad Thai Hello all, Here’s a recipe for many of my like minded spearo’s – if you find winter is great for crays but tire of eating them, this is a good way to use them well and get a bloody tasty and not totally sacrilegious meal out of Em.
Feeds 3 people – can easily be bulked up to feed 4 or more with some fish, chicken breast or extra veg
Sauce 1.5 Tb tamarind puree 1/4 cup chicken stock 3Tb fish sauce 1Tb soy sauce Chili powder to taste, I use about 1Tb, there is fresh Chili to be added to thepad Thai later as well 4Tb Brown Sugar
Method Mix all ingredients together, taste and balance flavors accordingly, when its right it will initially taste sweet and then the hot, salty and sour flavors will come afterwards. Set aside
Pad Thai Ingredients 2 x crays 1 bag pad Thai rice noodles Shallots – lots is good, 4 big ones minimum 1/2 an onion cut into pieces 2Tsp minced galangal, or ginger if you don’t have it 4 cloves of garlic minced 2 fresh red chilis (or more if you want an inferno!) Sliced thin, with seeds 1egg 1 big handful of bean sprouts 1 bigger handful of corriander 1/2 cup of finely chopped roasted peanuts Lime or lemon wedges
Method 1. Grab the tail of the crays and twist out, chop in half and remove meat, devein and into small pieces (5-10mm in size), set aside 2. Boil some water in a jug. Place pad Thai noodles in a saucepan and cover with boiling water. Test noodles after 3 minutes or so, when they are flexible but still have a bit of crunch to them drain then and cover with cold water to prevent further cooking 3. Place a good amount of oil in a wok or large frypan and heat till its very hot. Finely slice the Shallots and fry in hot until until they start to get some color (not a lot) and remove and set aside 4. Add more oil of needed and get wok back to temperature, add the onion and stir fry for 2 minutes or so, until it begins to turn translucent. 5. Add the cray pieces and garlic and ginger cook for around 3 minutes storing as needed until lobster is just cooked through 6. Push everything to one side and crack an egg into the wok on the empty side, chop and stir until scrambled and distribute through the rest of the ingredients (alternatively you can fry the egg in a separate pan, slice it up and put it through) 7. Add the bean sprouts, fresh Chili and drained noodles and combine everything, add about 1/4 of the pad Thai sauce, sour very gently – make sure the wok stays at temperature for this part 8. When the dish is dry add another 1/4 of the sauce and repeat- pad Thai is a dry dish, if you add to much sauce at once it won’t work. 9. Repeat until all sauce has been added, the noodles should be glossy and sticky 10. Serve on a big plate topping with the fried Shallots, peanuts and chopped corriander, give a good size of lime or lemon over the top and you are in for some happy days!
Here’s another SE Asian guaranteed winner – it does the lobster justice while breaking up the flavour
Ingredients:
Rice 8+ Cloves of garlic – finely chopped 4-5 Long red chilis – diced Birds eye chilis/chili flakes/hot chilis 1 onion sliced Shallots roughly chopped 1 Large carrot – sliced 2-3 celery stalks – sliced 1 Tb Fish Sauce 1 Tb Soy Sauce 1 Tb Oyster Sauce Small amount of chicken stock Good handful of thai basil (holy basil or normal basil will suffice if unavailable) 2 cray tails, meat removed and cut to a size of your liking ANything else you want to stir fry up (highly reccomend bamboo shoots)
Method: 1) Get the rice cooking 2) Put a very generous amount of oil in your wok/pan (coconut oil is really good if you have it) 3) Heat until smoking, stir fry garlic, chili and onion for about 3 minutes or until onions have just started to cook 4) Throw in shallots, celery and carrot (and other veges you want to include) – stir fry for a further minute or two 5) Add the lobster pieces, chicken stock and fish,soy and oyster sauces 6) Stir and fry until sauce has thickened and there is no/minimal liquid in the pan, and lobster is cooked through 7) Remove from the heat and stir through thai basil and hot chili’s 8) Serve on rice 9) Enjoy
After a great day in the ocean the laststep is to clean and prepare your catch ready for the table.
To do this, you can gut and gill your fish then scale it if cooking whole, or youcan fillet and debone your fish to be used in other recipes bone free.
In the following video put together by The Gourmet Hunters Team, Alex and Andy, you will see Andy process a nice sized Black Drummer ready for dinner. Enjoy!
Hey guys give this a go if you are looking for something different. Works well with most fish
Ingredients 3 limes 1 can coconut cream or milk 1heaped Tb cumin powder and the same of corriander seed 2-3Tb soy sauce 1Tb fish sauce 2Tb brown sugar 3-4 chopped red chilis Skinned Fillets from a 3kgish fish Fresh corriander Optional – 3-5 kaffir lime Leaves Torn up
Combine all ingredients except for lime fresh corriander and fish in a bowl. Add the rind of a line to the mix and then add the fish (chopped into portions)
Marinate for as long as you have 10minutes works 2hours or more is better
Remove the fish bits and cook on a frypan. While this is happening pour the liquid into a saucepan, add the juice of 2 limes to it and heat on high reducing to a thick sauce. Taste and balance flavours as you go.
To serve place fish on a bed of steamed rice and place fish pieces on top. Pour over plenty of the sauce and top with a handful of chopped fresh corriander. Serve with a wedge of lime and enjoy!
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