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Frightful Fishing - 10 Things That Scare Anglers
In the spirit of Halloween, we, here at Angling Direct thought we would gather our top 10 scary moments that us anglers encounter when out by the bankside.
1) Dealing with Other People when Fishing
We are sure that at some point when on an overnight session that the evening can bring some unwelcome guests to your swim. This can be perhaps a drunken stranger mistaking your bivvy for their tent or a fellow angler deciding that next to your peg is a good place to answer their smelly call to nature in the midst of the night. Whether it scares you or frustrates you, other people make it on our list.
2) When your Fishing Line Tangles
A nightmare for all anglers is to wind in your line after a bite to find your rig is in a birds nest of a mess! The fishing line tangles can be costly and often results in a loss of useless line! We know many anglers cringe at the sight of a nest of tangles reaching the surface of your swim. This fear is made even more real when you’ve had fish after fish lost over your embarrassment of a rig.
3) Unidentified Noises when Fishing
Whether you are at the bank with friends or even scarier, solo angling, those sudden, startling noises at the bankside when in your bivvy can really make your blood curdle! Screams, howls and growls that pierce through the silence of the night and make you feel like you’ve bivvyed up in a spooky graveyard can make for a sleepless night! Although its usually a gust of wind, an activated bite alarm or a neighbouring angler watching movies through a speaker, there is still nothing that makes your heart beat faster than these random noises when trying to sleep. You may run for the bivvy light or even jump into your sleeping bag to hide from those crazy noises and we don’t blame you!
4) Haunting Fishing Stories
At some point in your fishing adventures, whether it is amongst the company of fishing friends or being told a chilling story by a lake regular, you are going to hear some spooky ghost tales. These spooky stories are often dismissed until its time to close those eyes and hit the bedchair. Shared ghost stories get your imagination running overboard, especially if you happen to be fishing in the “haunted peg “! The sudden rustling that makes you hide under the sleeping bag is likely your fishing companion winding you up…
5) Broken Fishing Tackle
Forget howls and screams, the worst sound an angler can ever hear is the snap of your very pricey rod or top kit off your pole. It is not just the heart-sinking feeling of a shattered treasure but the sudden dive for cover you must make before your lead rig comes flying towards you. Nasty accidents can happen once your tackle breaks…it is always a good idea to pack a backup!
6) Wildlife Pests when Fishing
Visiting the bankside may be a relaxing retreat for some anglers but for others, it brings unrequited guests to your sleeping area. From aggressive foxes, vicious otters and badgers, supersized grass snakes, hissing swans to a huge nasty insect on your pillow…fishing can certainly bring you closer to nature! You probably heard some stories of unlucky carpers that’s experienced the darker side of bankside wildlife but try not to be spooked by these tales when staring off one of these intimidating visitors.
7) Running Out of Supplies when Fishing
Unless you are incredibly organised, we can imagine that most anglers have had that horrible realisation that the tea bags or coffee container is all gone. Even worse, you pop out to the bushes to answer the calls of nature to find you are out of loo roll! You can hear the cries of anglers who have run short of bog paper or caffeine …. Especially when its early morning and you are on a weeklong session in the middle of nowhere! Carping survival skills are summoned!
8) Fishing in Dangerous Weather
You should always check the weather schedule before heading off to the bank but sometimes the unpredicted climate turns against you. Being in a thunderstorm, seeing lighting on the other side of the lake and feeling the savage winds around your bivvy can all make you feel like you want to head for the car and get home. If you are an unfortunate angler, you may share the pain of having to hold your bivvy to the ground in hours of strong winds to avoid losing lots and lots of tackle!
9) HOW MUCH?! Tackle Spending Sprees Exposed
It may be a bit of an addiction, and many could agree that angling takes a financial toll but you just had to have the latest tackle from your local fishing shop! You may avoid telling the other half which inevitably leads to the doomsday of them finding out you spent a whole month’s wages on new rods, reels, and buzzers. For many anglers, it is the scariest of all prospects! Best get your own storage shelter for all your angling gear!
10) Fishing Boat Battles
It is pretty scary to be fighting a stubborn beast when in a small boat over 1000ft of water… especially if the battle takes place in the pitch-black darkness. It is enough to make even the most seasoned of boat battling carpers eyes lips quiver with pure fear. Paired this with the hurricane winds and crashing waves you start to wonder how good a swimmer you are! It is probably best to get back to the shore before you need to use that life jacket!
That concludes our scary top ten nightmares of fishing. What’s the spookiest thing that’s happened to you on the bank? We would love to know! Let us know via our social media! Who doesn't love a good ghost story…
