Wetsuit Fishing

[Pete_G]

The official fishing in a wetsuit thread.

Often maligned as excessively dangerous, fishing in a wetsuit can be far safer then fishing in waders. Not all of us are "skishing" or free floating the rips.

One danger I find fishing in a wetsuit is being over confident. It's easy to go beyond your abilities and scare yourself. Wetsuiting can be extremely safe (safer then waders) or extremely dangerous. It just depends where you go with it. When swimming from rock to rock it's important to remember that if you get tired you can always rest, the wetsuit's buoyancy usually comfortably suspends you in the water.

What do you wear for footwear? What do you keep on your belt? Wetsuit recommendations? 2 piece, 1 piece? How do you stay safe if you're pushing the envelope?

[Tony G]

For boots i where chota's wit a carbide tipped hex screws they are 3 yrs old now not sure how much time is left in em.
I have a question.
What r mysterioso socks an where can I find em.

[witchhunter]

hey peter , at montauk wet suiting as well as skishing (using dive fins and free drift the rips) farmer john 2 peice suits are the norm may tru december with 3 mml as well as dry suits for warmer or colder conditions.

foot wear varies from corkers to specail made boots . i use dui rock boots retro fitted with small snow mobile spikes , letting me cut right tru the dense
weed ,mussel growth

my belt holds two dive knives, van staal 7 inch pliers ,s/s carbiner clip to sucure my plug bag to my belt to keep the bag from swing as i swim .

safty is no accident i carry a dive light (uses 4 batt) around my neck on a surgical tube , a divers whistle , strobe light ,orange flag, 2 water proof rescue flairs ,

fins , i use two type one being the short boggie board style with golf spikes for standing on those outer rocks in the rips . i also uses 24 inch dive fins when skishing in the rips beyond the rock line . they allow me to swim up tide or kick back against the runs of good size cow !

i also use what i call a sissy strap ( a peice of surgical tube tape over top of my van staal reel ,on the rod that i slip my hand thru as a lanyard should i loose my grip on my $1000 dollar rod reel and plug combo !!!!!

as peter state the wet suit is a bouyancy devise in it self a 7mm farmer john style allows me to float chest hi out of the water with no effort !

so get into wet suiting but get to know your area well ahead of any trips as
prep is the key to a successful nights fishing and a wet suit will give you an edge over the shore bound angler , getting more fish more offten!!!



"witchhunter" aka/bill jakob

[Tony G]

This guy is MY idol.

[Pete_G]

Bill- any pics of the sissy strap? I can't picture exactly how you have it rigged.

And do you fish plugs much or only eels? One of the biggest problems I have is plugs trying to make an escape every time I open my plug bag....

And welcome to the forum. Hope the summer has treated you well.

[witchhunter]

pete think you can see it in the back pages of the van staal catalog i have the rod & reel over my shoulder wearing a wet suit best i can do

can't skish with plugs trebles don't agree with you when there is a bass attached that can then attach to you!!!! i use eels ,bucktail , bait tails etc( single hook only)

the van staal bag is the only one i found that will stay closed even in the roughest surf ( toldem need lots of velcro and flaps to keepem in )

hey the only thing that sucks about skishing is they banded it from all the surf fishing tournements but bunker chunking is ok !!!! wait till i swim out to a rock this year and toss chunks that will send running!!!!

"witchhunter" aka bill jakob

[Pete_G]

Cool, I'll take a look tomorrow at work. I need to make one of those, I'm just asking for a lost rod and reel otherwise.

I ALMOST skish, but not quite. Usually I'm somewhat out of the water once I reach my destination, but it seems the waves sense whenever I'm changing plugs or landing a fish and double in size and standing chest high in the water perched on a small rock that means trouble. I'm always frantically pushing the flap down on my plug bag to avoid plugs being lost as a wave bears down.

I think I have to re-think what plugs I carry. I'd fish far more eels and soft plastics on wobble heads but I just can seem to ever get away with it on account of all the teeth around here. I'd be re-rigging eels or plastic constantly.

[Tony G]

This is a problem for me also.I like to thro plugs but they don't jive when u get in the water.like Peter said seems the knock u offa ur perch wave always comes at the wrong time.Like landing a fish.removing the hooks from a fish or especially when ur bag is opened.It's like a chinese firedrill.
Sounds like he has a piece of surgical tube taped to his rod perhaps a piece about 18 inches so u can put the rod in ur left hand if u need to. with a loop on the other end goes around his right or rod hand,wrist.
Bill do u use something on ur belt like a peice of pipe to hold the rod when u swim.

[witchhunter]

tony , just use the surg tube enough to wrap around wrist with one twist and let you hold rod and reel conmfortable while reeling . i use the side stroke while swimming to a rock (back stroke when skishing ) like a little motor boat

"witchhunter" aka bill jakob

[tlapinski]

I do some wet suit fishing at times in RI and the islands. Here is how I rig up:

I started off with the most important of gear, a suit. The suit I use is a 5mm two piece suit made by Sporasub. It's the same suit that FishEye uses. The bottom half is basically a pair of neoprene pants, and the top has a connected hood, long sleeves, and a strap that goes from your backside between your legs and connects in the front. This locks the pants in. I like the 5mm for all around use. I will be standing stil a lot, so I feel a heavier suit is a little better for me. You can always fill up with sea water to cool down, but it's hard to add warmth while in the surf.

For safety gear, I run my normal surf belt with Boga, pliers, and water jug. I use a head light, and also keep a back up waterproof super bright LED light around my neck in case of emergencies. If I ever get swept out, I want something very bright to be able to signal with. I keep a quality dive knife in my surf bag in case I get tangled in a lobster buoy or fishing line. I had a bit of a run in with a lobster buoy rope last year while snorkeling. I did not have a knife on me at the time, and it could have cost me big. I was able to keep my head straight and free myself with only a mild scare. Light neoprene dive gloves or the Aquaskinz gloves come in handy when climbing up on barnacle covered rocks. For footwear, I wear 2mm neoprene dive socks under my Cabela's Guide tech wading boots. Thes are by far the best wading boots I have ever used. They are very comfortable, supportive, and highly durable. My first pair lasted 3 seasons, and I only replaced them as I figured I had abused the first pair long enough. Over my boots I use a pair of my modified Korkers.

Skishing? Maybe someday. I do a lot of free diving, so i am getting a feel for some very good spots in RI that would work well with this type of fishing.