Bowfishing in the bayou.

What is bowfishing? Simply put, it is a primitive means of archery hunting, meets fishing untangled into a unique water ballet of total fun and possibly the best the best water sport ever invented. I believe that bowfishing has to have been around since the invention bow and arrow as a means to provide food while hunting and spear fishing near streams.

I was introduced to bowfishing in the winter of 2006/2007. A fellow co-worker had been living in the area about a decade longer then I have. This providing him more time to experience the local fishing bayou tributaries and the lay of the land. Living near the Gulf of Mexico there tend to be salt and fresh water fish galore in the marshes. As an avid fisherman my friend took me out in his bowfishing boat and lent me one of his bowfishing bows. Our state regulations for bowfishing are the same as the spear fishing regulations. That being said we were on the hunt for Red Fish aka Red Drum. Miss after miss and I was having a ball, getting ever closer with each release of the arrow tied to a line. I never had so much fun and action fishing as I did that night bowfishing.

We got stuck in the boat several times. Now problem with a tried and true bayou bowfishing boat. Trim the boat engine down, dig into the mud and drive out. No problem, just mud flying everywhere. The nice thing about bowfishing your always doing something. If your on the front of the bowfishing deck your shooting and pointing out for water hazards. When you drive you don't get as many bowfishing shots off but when the people on your deck are shooting, get ready, you may get a chance to shot at what they miss, It takes a little more experience to drive and shot though.

We shot our legal limit in only a few hours after sunset and had fifteen Red Fish in the boat. I enjoyed myself so much bowfishing that I now have a fully rigged up bowfishing boat and all the necessary bowfishing equipment to sustain myself and three more bowfishing shooters. Generators, light, handheld GPS,to bowfish at night.

Most bowfishing is done in the day time for the invasive common grass carp in the Midwest and also in European countries for just the pure sport of bowfishing.

My bowfishing boat is one of my prized possessions beside my wife and children. Sometimes it becomes a way to contain my child from running into a busy street while getting the boat ready for the next big bowfishing adventure down the bayou. I sent this picture to my father and since he lives in Idaho found it in himself to take a pun at me that I thought was the perfect caption for this picture. He called it, The Cajun Playpen.