Spearfishing Travel 101
The Second Best Feeling
One of the best feelings in spearfishing is training hard, saving up money, going on that dive trip with a group of radical friends, getting in the water and landing a well placed shot on a new pelagic personal best fish. Want to know what the second best feeling is? Sitting in front of your computer and clicking the “confirm purchase” button on your plane ticket for that trip. Now you’re committed, and it’s time to make sure you have all the right gear set up.
Before you go on a big trip, make sure you are prepared. Do the research; know the gear you’ll need to land a big wahoo, or the type of wetsuit you’ll need based on the water temperature (Article). This article is intended to be a helpful resource and checklist to ensure you bring the right gear for your trip, that the gear arrives at your destination with you, and it’s still intact when you pick it up off of the airport luggage carousel.
Airlines love taking your money, which is why some airlines charge up to $150 per extra bag. You’re already probably paying a lot of money for your fishing charter, lodging, food, drinks and transportation – you certainly aren’t going to want to tag a few hundred more on top just to get your gear there, and as you know, there is a whole lot of gear to get there.
First off, your spear gear loadout is not complete without the right luggage to help transport it. While a spearo’s treatment of their dive gear is by no means dainty (cut to scene of surge catapulting a diver onto a rock covered in urchins while “Welcome to the Jungle” plays in the background), the baggage handlers at the airport are even more likely to test the limits of your gear, and how well engineered the luggage is that you packed it in. You are nearly certain to snap your carbon fins, break guns or bend shafts if they aren’t packed correctly. Below we will visit what luggage you need, how to effectively pack it and some tips to help you save money while travelling.
A Note on Booking
All flights are not created equal
Beyond the normal budget and time considerations you would take when choosing any flight, there are two key things you need to take into account when going on a spearfishing trip: what the airline charges for checked fishing equipment (it’s best to give your prized spearguns a more innocuous label), and whether or not you can legally bring them on the route you are planning to travel.
Luggage Fees and Restrictions
The best airlines allow you to bring “sporting equipment” on the plane under your normal checked bag allowance. There are a few, however, that will charge you ridiculous excess baggage fees for any items over the allowed length and weight. It is best to avoid any expensive surprises at the airport by doing your research before booking the flight. Every airline has a page for baggage rules and allowances listed on their website. Typically you will find the rules you are interested in listed under the “sporting equipment” subsection under baggage rules. Most airlines still have length and weight requirements for these types of luggage, but if you follow our guidelines for packing you shouldn’t have to worry about exceeding those.
Keeping it Legal
When planning a spearfishing trip to a faraway and unknown destination, a very important consideration is whether you are legally allowed to bring spearguns into the country. Again, researching beforehand will save you an unfortunate confrontation with the authorities in a foreign country, possibly getting detained and having your gear confiscated. Checking with the Consulate for the place you plan on visiting is a good start. Often a quick internet search will give you a heads up as well - if the area is popular enough that other spearos have visited and reported back.
Even if you know you can bring spearfishing equipment into the country, don’t overlook the connecting flights! Certain countries will not allow you to travel through them with spearguns even if you are on route to a different destination. This is one area where you do not want to be caught off guard.
Luggage Necessities
Luggage necessity #1: SporTube
I used to get a lot of funny looks at the baggage claim in Baja while I struggled to get my soft-case Dakine snowboard bag from the carousel. My gun and shafts were stored in a 3” PVC pipe with a cut out for the handle of my gun, wrapped in a wet suit followed by a towel and everything stuffed in the snowboard bag along with a couple prayers for protection.
Just about any spearfisher that has traveled with their gear will tell you that you need a hard case for your checked in items. It needs to be sturdy because it’s about to get dog-piled in the belly of the plane by an airport employee that just finished a Netflix marathon of WWE - it should be something rigid enough that it won’t bend mid suplex. A simple and safe hard case that has been widely adopted by spearfishers all over the world is a SporTube. They come in 3 sizes, Series 1, 2 and 3. Series 1 is too thin and meant for snow skis or fishing poles but the 2 and 3 are great and very adequately meet our needs. I personally have both a series 2 and 3 and have flown with them many times without issue. The Series 2 is able to be extended longer than the 3 making it good for longer blue water guns, but the Series 3 has much more room and can fit just about every other type of gun.
Series 2 SporTube Information:
MSRP $229
Length - Adjustable from 48" to 83" (122cm to 212cm)*
Width - 11" (280mm)*
Depth - 6" (152mm)*
Weight - 12lbs
Material - High Density Polyethylene
*Internal Dimensions
Series 3 SporTube Information:
MSRP $249
Length - Adjustable from 42" to 72" (107cm to 183cm)*
Width - 14.5" (368mm)*
Depth - 7 7/8" (200mm)*
Weight - 14lbs
Material - High Density Polyethylene
*Internal Dimensions
Luggage Necessity #2: Capable Carry On
While there are not many affordable hard case options, which makes the SporTube an easy brand to recommend, the carry on bag is just the opposite. This is a subjective decision, and the brand of bag is far less important than the functionality it offers. To keep your checked bag from tipping that bag weight limit (which is usually 50 pounds), you’ll want to store any of your lead weight and heavier, non-pointy gear, in your carry on. You’ll also use the bag for your fragile or techy gear like carbon fiber fins, cameras, laptop and drone. A backpack made for hiking that includes a removable top sack, parallel, horizontal straps on the exterior and multiple sections on the interior is ideal. Personally, I use my Osprey Aether AG 60. It is extremely well set up for international travel since my bag is pretty heavy and it has ergonomic padded straps, chest and hip belt. The weight rides on my hips and not my shoulders so walking for miles between terminals and security lines doesn’t bother my back. It fits well in the overhead bin and I can keep the removable top with me under my seat for easy access to items I want during the flight.
Luggage (almost) “Necessity” #3: Fish Cooler
So you have all the spear gear and like every single spearo on the planet going on a trip, hoping you score some very delicious meat, you’ll likely be wanting to bring some home with you. You have several options here:
You might opt to just purchase a cheapo plastic cooler at your destination that you then add your frozen fish to and duct tape shut as a second checked bag and pay the cost. If you go this route, a fun DIY hack is to cut a hole near each end in the underside of the lid, and spray it full of expanding construction foam which can be found at hardware stores. Most coolers lose heat out of the top due to poor insulation, so adding a bit more will help keep your fish frozen during the long journey home.
A soft cooler that counts as a carry on “personal bag.” If you don’t have a huge amount of fish to bring home, a nice soft cooler is a great route. Just make sure that if it’s a roll top, there is a way for air to expand at altitude.
Keep in mind that most airlines require your fish to be completely frozen when you check in. In any case, you’ll want it to be or it might spoil on the way home. Vacuum sealed and kept it in the freezer until you are ready to depart to the airport, a cooler packed full should stay frozen through short to mid-length flights and airport transfers. If you don’t have access to a vacuum sealer, a good hack is to grab some heavy zip lock freezer bags and a bucket of water. Bag your fish and submerge the bag in the water, taking care not to let any water into the bag. The water pressure will get rid of all the air space around the fish, and you can seal the top.
Packing Your Bags
The gear you bring for a trip to Baja, San Diego or Hawaii is generally similar to most places you plan to shoot larger blue water and reef fish. A general checklist is as follows (this is not exhaustive, and some species or locations require very specific gear set ups - for those lists, send us your questions by clicking HERE):
Check List 1: Gear that goes in the SporTube
120-140cm Harpoon (yes, I do mean speargun, but when travelling at airports and through countries other than the USA, NEVER EVER use the word gun - in some countries it’s even considered very rude to say something like “I have my gun with me”)
1-3 spare shafts (double offset flopper and a mori slip tip are best)
3mm, 2-piece, open-cell wetsuit
Reef Safe Lube (for the wetsuit of course)
75-100’ Floatline with integrated bungee
1-2 Floats (depending on fish you are targeting but many places require you to have a float and dive flag for safety purposes)
Dive Flag
Mask
Snorkel
Light colored, thin gloves
Wetsuit socks
Dive light (LINK)
Freedive Recovery Vest
Ocean Guardian Shark Shield (LINK)
Safety Sausage
Mono and spike stringer
Ouch-Pouch (aka trauma kit) with Tourniquet
Buzz bomb flasher
As many throw flashers as you can afford or make
Save-a-dive kit (extra mono, crimps, fin glue, bands (how to tie bands before a trip), aqua seal wetsuit repair tube and a mask strap)
Reef safe sunscreen
Beach Towel
Mesh gear/catch bag
Any smaller, extra, dive gear you have as a backup like a mask
Carbon / Fiberglass freedive fins (If you stow these in your SporTube, make sure to wrap them in cardboard sheaths first) (LINK)
Packing Tips:
If you have anything sharp or pointy, make sure to wrap it in something so it can’t cut or damage your other gear.
Put the majority of your small, loose gear into the mesh catch bag.
Put your heavier items toward the bottom near the wheels.
Make sure your shafts have corks, rubber or stoppers on the spear tips.
With velcro or similar, tie your shafts together and then lash them to your gun barrel. Then wrap your gun in your wetsuit so that it fits snugly into the case and doesn’t have room to bounce around.
Wrap your fragile stuff like a mask in the towel and put it at the very top of the bag.
Make everything fit as snugly as possible.
Put the top of the SportTube case on and push down so it fits fairly snugly and things don’t move up and down during travel.
Use a TSA approved wire combination lock instead of the pin that comes with luggage. Instead, zip tie that pin to the handle near where the pin goes because TSA doesn’t always know how to put it back together after an inspection. Some people even go so far as to tape instructions near the pin hole.
Put lots of stickers on your SportTube - it is proven to make you dive better (just kidding…. but seriously). Preferably use ones of your local dive shop that you support (and definitely don’t leave off a Fin + Forage sticker). We have a personal rule that you can’t add a fish sticker to your gear unless you’ve personally landed/speared one of those fish.
Lastly and most importantly, make sure you put a long strip of white duct tape on the outside of the SportTube and with a black permanent marker, write in large, bold letters, “FISHING GEAR” - specifically that (not spearfishing gear). “SCUBA GEAR” is an alternative that also works. Most airlines have a loophole in the fine print that allows you to bring awkward sided bags without additional cost for the size (they are still restricted by weight) for fishing and scuba gear.
Check List 2: Backpack Carry On
Fins (Note: there is a very minor chance that the gate attendant will ask you to check your fins at the gate, which means they will be unprotected in the wrestling arena - aka belly of the plane. If this happens, try to make the point that they fit in the overhead bin of post planes. If they don’t, they definitely will fit in the attendant closet area. Be nice to the staff - good things happen. So while there is a small risk here, I’ve never had it happen to me and it’s much more fun to have them strapped to your backpack as a conversation starter when people ask about them then offer to buy you a beer to hear about your swimming with shark stories).
Weight belt with appropriate weight plus 3 extra pounds
Drone
Laptop
Heavy duty battery back up (if going on overnight trips without an electrical plug) (LINK)
GoPro with various accessories
Fish weight scale (for your fish and your carry on bag)
Toiletries (don’t forget your anti-nausea remedies!)
Big straw hat
Fin + Forage buff
Clothes
Sandals
Large water bottle
Packing Tips:
All the stuff you’ll want at your seat goes in the top, removable bag.
Weight goes in the very bottom and will need to come out during the x-ray.
Remove fins during x-ray.
Try to get your bag as short and thin as possible with the side straps. A fully packed backpack (if it’s in the 60-75 liter range) won’t be allowed as a carry on.
Tritons in Baja.WOW. That was a big list, right? You might even have additional gear to add to the list, so remember that most airlines give you one carry on and one personal bag. You have a whole other bag to pack with anything else you need (unless you’re bringing a soft cooler).
Well if you’ve read this far, you’re likely getting ready for your own dive trip. So as you pack and you think of something that we may have left off, feel free to drop us a line and let us know so we can make sure that this article remains as helpful as possible for all kinds of divers in the years to come. We hope you have an amazing trip and look forward to hearing your fish story and seeing your pictures when you get back. Just one parting note, as we are all too intimately familiar with, you can be 100% prepared and trained, but sometimes trips don’t include massive trophy fish (nor do they need to). Remember that the trip is about the friends you go with, the memories you make, the food you eat and the beauty of the place you’re diving in.
Gear and Equipment available at https://www.odysseyfreediving.com/shop