Diving weedlines

[michaelbaranowski]

I think I am posted this before but there are alot of new people so I figured I was ask again.

Has anyone scuba/freedive weedlines? If so do you have any tips or warnings?

Things are looking good for this coming weekend so if things hold I am going to dive even if just tie of to the boat.

[FlatWater]

I would like to dive the weed lines to. I think I am just gonna hop in and see how things go.

[michaelbaranowski]

The dolphin wouldn't bite last week so maybe I can atleast try shooting a few.

[rustyhook2]

i have snorckled weedlines on a few ocassions. these were 30 to 40 miles out and they were pretty good sized patches. a guess would be 1/2 acre or bigger. i saw lots of bait fish, small crabs and one tripple tail. I would dive down and come up in middle of the patch then use my arms to make a clearing so I could see underwater in the middle of the patch. No dolphin or kings or ling. but it is fun to cool off and use a water-proof camera to take pictures of the boat from water level.

Rustyhook

[LSUBigL]

I have heard that there are some risks in doing this. I think that they are primarily related to drowning due to being caught up in the weeds. Weed lines typically have bizarre currents, which is the reason they are there in the first place so you'll probably want to be careful. Good luck and give us a report if you are able to make it out.

[michaelbaranowski]

I red somewhere that they can be a rip current at weedlines that might pull a person down. But with SCUBA I don't see how big of a problem that would be.

[will_spear4food]

Good luck and give us a report if you are able to make it out.
Ha, ha, ha... gotta love it! If you are able to make it out... :bounce:

I came up in the middle of a big weed patch that floated in around the boat while I was in the water. One of my divers snorkled over to check on me during my deco... and neither she nor I seemed to have any special difficulty... but maybe then we were "lucky"! Atta way to put the fear in'em... :D I think that weed area is usually an area of less current. Let us know what you find out!

WS4F

[Aquaholic]

My buddy and I jumped in a few weeks ago next to a large weed patch. We had been catching dolphin, had enough so in we went.The first thing we see was a Sailfish, he would swim up to within 4 ft of us. Our buddies on the boat tried to catch him while we were in the water. As soon as the bait hit the water the sail would light up and go thrash the bait right off the hook. We felt like Guy Harvey. My daughter also has jumped in with us, so I think its pretty safe as long as your drifting with boat. Also put a poly rope out with a bouy tied to it.


Later
Stephen

[scubaru]

Ski, I tried to send you some pics of our recent weedline diving experience. I'd say it paid off pretty good. We snorkled it 1st to see if it had anything underneath it, then sent 2 divers in with a 45# Ling as a result.

[speckle-catcher]

I've always wanted to freedive under one - got the rigging ready for my gun to do it. Just ever got around to it.

[scubaru]

Ha, ha, ha... gotta love it! If you are able to make it out... :bounce:

I came up in the middle of a big weed patch that floated in around the boat while I was in the water. One of my divers snorkled over to check on me during my deco... and neither she nor I seemed to have any special difficulty... but maybe then we were "lucky"! Atta way to put the fear in'em... :D I think that weed area is usually an area of less current. Let us know what you find out!

WS4F
I'm pretty sure he meant if he made it out to the Gulf, not if he made it out to a weedline and lived to tell about it. But a snorkler at a Deco stop, thats a pretty good one.http://www.spearboard.com/scratchhead.gif (http://www.spearboard.com/misc.php?do=getsmilies&wysiwyg=0&forumid=52#)

[michaelbaranowski]

a 45# Ling would be nice.

[scubaru]

What's your E mail I'll send you a pic. He decided he wasn't ready to die once he hit the floor of the boat and almost blew out both of my knee's. The boys were running from that 5" Slip Tip flying around also.

[Goin Deep]

I was diving under this weedline when this big ol' 45# ling was shot. I was just a little to slow on the ol' trigger.

H:Fishing Pics7-8-05 24-7 Rig 3.bmp

[Goin Deep]

I tried to attach the pic of the big ol' ling but it didn't work for some reason. Anybody got any helpful hints??? I have the pic saved to my computer.

[TAMU'06]

goin deep, can you shoot me the pic. futureagwarden@tamu.edu

[Goin Deep]

you should have it TAMU 06'

[michaelbaranowski]

I sent my address to your email but here it is anyway.

michael.baranowski@mustangeng.com

[TAMU'06]

https://neoweb.tamu.edu/index.php3/image007.jpg?attachment=1&inline=1&path=512&ns=8&twigsi=3&twig_context=a%3A2%3A%7Bs%3A7%3A%22feature%22%3Bs% 3A4%3A%22mail%22%3Bs%3A6%3A%22action%22%3Bs%3A7%3A %22msgview%22%3B%7D

[TAMU'06]

https://neoweb.tamu.edu/index.php3/image006.jpg?attachment=1&inline=1&path=512&ns=7&twigsi=3&twig_context=a%3A2%3A%7Bs%3A7%3A%22feature%22%3Bs% 3A4%3A%22mail%22%3Bs%3A6%3A%22action%22%3Bs%3A7%3A %22msgview%22%3B%7D

https://neoweb.tamu.edu/index.php3/image005.jpg?attachment=1&inline=1&path=512&ns=6&twigsi=3&twig_context=a%3A2%3A%7Bs%3A7%3A%22feature%22%3Bs% 3A4%3A%22mail%22%3Bs%3A6%3A%22action%22%3Bs%3A7%3A %22msgview%22%3B%7D

https://neoweb.tamu.edu/index.php3/image002.jpg?attachment=1&inline=1&path=512&ns=3&twigsi=3&twig_context=a%3A2%3A%7Bs%3A7%3A%22feature%22%3Bs% 3A4%3A%22mail%22%3Bs%3A6%3A%22action%22%3Bs%3A7%3A %22msgview%22%3B%7D

https://neoweb.tamu.edu/index.php3/image003.jpg?attachment=1&inline=1&path=512&ns=4&twigsi=3&twig_context=a%3A2%3A%7Bs%3A7%3A%22feature%22%3Bs% 3A4%3A%22mail%22%3Bs%3A6%3A%22action%22%3Bs%3A7%3A %22msgview%22%3B%7D

[TAMU'06]

posted the pics for goin deep....

[michaelbaranowski]

you might want to try that again. All I see is "X"s

[speckle-catcher]

tamu, email me the pics and I'll post them. check your pm's

[speckle-catcher]

here's the pics

[speckle-catcher]

last one

[michaelbaranowski]

Those are some nice fish. Was the sail on spear or hook & line?

[speckle-catcher]

one more

[speckle-catcher]

Those are some nice fish. Was the sail on spear or hook & line?
seeing as how they are out of wetsuits - I'd guess hook & line.

[Sow Trout]

I think you all should learn more about safety with a spear gun. You should never load or unload a gun out of the water nor should you hold a loaded gun out of the water. I hate to complain, but I would really hate for someone to get hurt.

[will_spear4food]

I'm pretty sure he meant if he made it out to the Gulf, not if he made it out to a weedline and lived to tell about it. But a snorkler at a Deco stop, thats a pretty good one.http://www.spearboard.com/scratchhead.gif (http://www.spearboard.com/misc.php?do=getsmilies&wysiwyg=0&forumid=52#)
Well, I don't know if she knew I was on deco at the time... but it's nothin' to pop down to 20' on MFS. Turned out as she was coming to look for me I was on my way from deco back to the boat. She went back in and snorkeled under and around the weeds and didn't report any strange currents or "downwellings". Let me know what you find out...

I think it's mo-funny the way I took it though!!! ;)

WS4F...

[will_spear4food]

Those are some nice fish. Congrats!

[gaudi]

Back when I lived in florida we used to have this contraption called a sled, and its a piece of wood that you can tilt up or down while it is atached to the boat by a rope, and it lets you go up or down while the boat pulls you, it's meant for looking for lobsters but we used to use it for looking around weedlines and spearing mahi mahi. Btw you should only use it while free diving never scuba

[speckle-catcher]

my ex-father in law told me about those - I think you can still buy them from Trident Scuba supply

[scubaru]

Spec, thanks for posting those pics for us.

Ski, the sail was a succesfull CPR. ( The young guy on the left was visiting from Britain and got to bring it in.)

Sow, there were no seagulls looking down the barrel of the speargun. We have a system that works good for us and it does involve loading the guns in the boat. Safety is paramount on all of our adventures.

[LSUBigL]

Ha, ha, ha... gotta love it! If you are able to make it out... :bounce:

I came up in the middle of a big weed patch that floated in around the boat while I was in the water. One of my divers snorkled over to check on me during my deco... and neither she nor I seemed to have any special difficulty... but maybe then we were "lucky"! Atta way to put the fear in'em... :D I think that weed area is usually an area of less current. Let us know what you find out!

WS4F
I think we are using different terminology here. A weedline, from what I understand, is a line of weeds, trash, and other floating debris on a rip current. The pictures in this thread are of sargassum patches, which is totally different. The sargassum floats right on the surface and meanders about the gulf of Mexico after it floats in from the Sargassum sea, as I understand. They sometimes holds fish underneath. I don't think there's any risk of diving a sargassum patch, but it's very different than a weedline.

[Goin Deep]

Sow, I don't know how much you have been spearfishing but if you have done alittle then you should know how much energy you exsert trying to load a gun under water unless your shooting one of those little two band cap guns. You are much better off letting your boatman help you with some of the labor.

[Goin Deep]

Appreciate you posting the pics Spec!!!!:doowapsta

[speckle-catcher]

I've done lots of spearing and only loaded out of water twice. once at the midnight lump, and once to have a shot at a ling passing on the surface. I did not take the shot at that ling from out of the water.

It's not a practice that I would recommend anyone do on a regular basis - and definately not for a beginner. Too many things that could go wrong. Trigger mechanisms in all but the best spearguns (Wong, Riffe, AimRite and VERY FEW others) should not be trusted - ever.

Would you look down the barrel of a loaded firearm with the hammer cocked?

[Oztex]

Diving weed lines can be fun. The most common fish you will find are triple tail and bait fish. Every now and then you may see crabs and puffer fish. Small dolphin and ling are also common. I have never come across any weird currents. Try it out if it is a nice day you will enjoy it alot.. Have fun

[michaelbaranowski]

I am going Saturday for a few rigs dives and will most likely try a weedline drift dive if find a large weedline.

[Sow Trout]

Perhaps you haven't seen what happens when your spear shaft hits the end of the cable. For your own welfare you should hope that it impales a seagull to slow it down. If safety is paramount, you should not have a loaded spear gun out of the water. That is a very dangerous practice.



Spec, thanks for posting those pics for us.

Ski, the sail was a succesfull CPR. ( The young guy on the left was visiting from Britain and got to bring it in.)

Sow, there were no seagulls looking down the barrel of the speargun. We have a system that works good for us and it does involve loading the guns in the boat. Safety is paramount on all of our adventures.

[Sow Trout]

I was diving and spearfishing 16 years before you were born. I do know what it takes to load a speargun of just about every size. I didn't say that you had to be underwater, but the speargun should be under the water. And I have loaded many of those little two band cap guns, but many more of the three band guns that I used at the rigs out of Freeport, where I grew up. If you don't have the energy to load the spear correctly, you should do some strength training or find a new sport before someone gets hurt.

Sow, I don't know how much you have been spearfishing but if you have done alittle then you should know how much energy you exsert trying to load a gun under water unless your shooting one of those little two band cap guns. You are much better off letting your boatman help you with some of the labor.

[scubaru]

Perhaps you haven't seen what happens when your spear shaft hits the end of the cable. When my spear hits the end of the cable, it's got a fish on it.

[mstuart71]

i have dove some pretty big mats, they are awesome, it is like diving on a upside down reef. all the small fish and invertabrates that live in the weeds then it is a stratosphere of larger fish swimming under, normally you will see some sharks or dolphin swimming around just at your visions limit. i also have seen quite a few rainbow runners. if you dive under the really big ones tend to stay around the edges if you have a emergncy the center can be pretty thick and hard to get threw.

[boomgoon]

The only tangle hazards I have encountered was on the left coast in kelp beds. The gulf's weedlines and patches have never been a problem to poke through.

[primofish.com]

I've done it many times. Pretty cool for pictures and video when looking up from underneath. Usually lots of baitfish and such. Never had much luck spearfishing on them. The larger fish pretty much scatter except for Cobia. Grab a handful and put it in a bucket and see how much stuff lives in that sargassum. If you are lucky, you will find sea horses and frog fish that look just like the sargassum. Always alot of shrimp and krill. Great Aquarium critters as well as food. If snorkeling, you should be careful cause you may have trouble getting air if the weeds are thick. Also the current can catch you unaware and pull you underneath the weeds.

[jd10g]

i've done it many times too with success! i personally like it b/c it's just something you dont do every trip out (change of scenery) like rig divin'. shot some real good ling and dolphins at them. missed some other stuff that i was out of range (harder for me to judge in open water) but it's fun.

http://www.refugepics.com/members/giggem05/weed.jpghttp://www.refugepics.com/members/giggem05/weeds.jpg
man that one was a huge mat! i forgot how big it was. i would have to say about 150 wide and miles long

has anyone ever done tuna??? i think i might try it this summer

[THROBINROD]

Once upon a time, I decided to break the golden rule of never cocking a speargun out of the water. Another gentleman on the boat had purchased a gun that he was unable to cock himself. I had 2 bands on and was going for number 3 when the gun statred to slide sideways on my hip. Rather than start over, I tried to compensate and finish the job. Just as band #3 was about to latch, the butt of the gun slipped off my hip, (I held onto the band) recoiled, and came back foreward with enough force to drive the (thankfully unbarbed) point into the heel of my thumb at the wrist, run up the bone, and come to a stop ~2 1/2 inches later at the bottom thumb joint. This all happened quicker than a cat can lick his you know what. I shutter to think what might have happened if the trigger mechanism had let loose and released the shaft with the other 2 bands cocked. Pulling the point back out hurt even more than going in. Needless to say, I no longer cock spearguns out of the water, but if that is what floats your boat, good luck to you.

[scubacraig]

Once upon a time, I decided to break the golden rule of never cocking a speargun out of the water. Another gentleman on the boat had purchased a gun that he was unable to cock himself. I had 2 bands on and was going for number 3 when the gun statred to slide sideways on my hip. Rather than start over, I tried to compensate and finish the job. Just as band #3 was about to latch, the butt of the gun slipped off my hip, (I held onto the band) recoiled, and came back foreward with enough force to drive the (thankfully unbarbed) point into the heel of my thumb at the wrist, run up the bone, and come to a stop ~2 1/2 inches later at the bottom thumb joint. This all happened quicker than a cat can lick his you know what. I shutter to think what might have happened if the trigger mechanism had let loose and released the shaft with the other 2 bands cocked. Pulling the point back out hurt even more than going in. Needless to say, I no longer cock spearguns out of the water, but if that is what floats your boat, good luck to you.
I agree completely. I NEVER load a speargun in the boat! I do not allow a loaded speargun on my boat! What do these people do when they shoot a fish, bounce dive and bring their fish and gun up to be reloaded? I shoot a fish, take it off, put it on a stringer and reload my gun at depth. It is the safest way and helps me avoid decompression sickness by avoiding bounce dives.

[disgusted]

Pat P, myself and another friend where on a weedline once. We decided to snorkel it. I was just about jump in when I noticed a shadow. At the same time Pat was on the other side fixing to jump in, when he saw the same shadow. The boat had a 11' beam and the tiger shark was sticking out both sides. Needless to say, we did not do any snorkeling that dayhttp://www.2coolfishing.com/ttmbforum/images/icons/oh.gif I have done alot of diving. Not much in the gulf. But I like the inside of a platform alot better than the open water. Maybe that that shark had something to do with it.

[flyingfish]

I used to dive the kelp patties out in California. It was real important to keep your knife in a spot you could reach with either hand if you got tangled but no problems other than that.

I've had my regulator get hung up and I've had a mask or two pulled down while fighting a speared fish. As long as you don't panic and just work through the problem it wasn't a big deal.

gary

[CoastalOutfitters]

man, do i take great weedline pics, need a better female model LOL

[txgunrunner]

who taught gong deep and scoobey doo how to spearfish and cock a speargun. you guys need to stick to sling shots and leave the spearfishing to real men. guys like you keep me from going out in the gulf for fear of catching a stray spear..........

[scubaru]

who taught gong deep and scoobey doo how to spearfish and cock a speargun. you guys need to stick to sling shots and leave the spearfishing to real men. guys like you keep me from going out in the gulf for fear of catching a stray spear..........You sound a little like big ole pink snapper. Show up on my rig and your fears may come to true.

Nice try Jules. I got you locked in now.

[txgunrunner]

dang, cover blown