Extreme angling is all the rage these days—films of anglers chasing strange fish in far-flung places grace the internet with regularity. But the film below chronicles perhaps the craziest angling I’ve ever seen. Aussie surf casters chasing cobia in the rocky surf show that, indeed, the boys Down Under are serious about their fishing.
Several years ago, I had the pleasure of spending a cool morning in the community of South West Rocks in New South Wales watching a surf angler wander among the rocks while the surf busted in and got us both good and wet. I remember thinking at the time just how dangerous this could be, depending on the mood of the southern Pacific and the water-coated rocks that gave the place its name. We didn’t catch any fish that day, but I did spy another angler as he shoved a kayak off from the beach and paddled off into the blue water, a couple of tightly strung casting rods tied to the stern.
The video above shows the length to which these guys will go to get into fish from the ocean. I don’t think I’d be willing to go to such lengths. Would you?
— Chris Hunt