Fishing Superstitions

Yeah, a few years back I did a charter out of Hatteras, NC. Captain's first question was the same.

Anybody have any bananas, or anything banana flavored packed in their lunches?

Nope.

Anybody have anything, like sunscreen, from banana republic, or underwear from fruit of the loom?

Nope.

Ok then. I'm Rick, your captain.....

I asked him about it later. He said it's basically taken on faith that bananas are bad luck and if one is on board, no fish will be caught, and other problems will arise. When they have fishing tournaments, many times guys would sneak on competitor boats and hide bananas as a form of sabotage. So the first thing they do in the morning is a complete search of the boat for bananas.

One time they missed one in a rod holder. Got out there and put a rod in there. Squished it. Immediately tossed the rod overboard (and those things are big bucks), and hosed out that holder for a half hour straight....

I told him I didn't know much about charter fishin, but I did know it was bad luck to be superstitious. He got a laugh out of that.
 
If you hold your mouth a certain way (Closed) you'll catch more fish.

 
I would be inclined to suspect the B's on boats superstition derived from practical situations such as the Jewish rule against pork
my guess-banana boat workers being bitten by spiders that hide in bunches---deadly
..
 
I have 2.

1. If you plan on keepin a few for lunch/dinner/whatever, ALWAYS toss the first fish back or you'll get the skunk for the day.

2. ALWAYS announce your "last cast" of the day.
 
Pete,

after the NC thing, I looked it up. There are a number of theories to how the b on boats thing developed. Really, all combined is the likely story.

1. Yep. Spiders. Liked to hide in banana bunches. When transporting bananas on ship, they'd then infest the ship and reproduce. Crews now at sea trapped with a ship infested with tropical spiders....

2. Bananas spoil fast. And when they do, they give off gases that makes other food items spoil more quickly. Including the crew's stores...

^^So captains of cargo ships would refuse to transport bananas. And they made up all sorts of stories to explain why. Curses and superstitions often were more powerful than truth. And many of those stories were believed by their crew, who repeated them. But there's more.

3. Boats carrying bananas went fast to avoid spoilage. Cargo ship crews liked to fish during their downtimes, just tossing a line out and trolling it behind the ship. They noticed they never caught fish when they were carrying bananas. The real reason is that they were going too fast for trolling speed, but speed isn't so obvious when at sea with no references. So, with all the stories from captains about the curse of bananas, the legend was extended to say that bananas will prevent a boat from catching fish.

4. Shipwrecks. Bananas float. A floating banana at sea meant somebody sank. And if you got to the location soon after the sinking, the surface would be littered with bananas. And with banana boats being some of the cheaper, poorly made, top heavy ships with shallow drafts (for speed), it was most often banana boats that sank. With captains and boat crews telling stories about the curses of bananas on ships, observing this made it obvious that bananas cause ships to sink too.

So, bananas cause ship infestations, premature food failure, failure to catch fish, and increase the likelihood that the fish will sink.....
 
So at Hatteras did they take you to bouys and wrecks and catch amberjack--fun but not great eating.
 
No. We got a bunch of wahoo and 2 sailfish. Gulf stream.

In past years we've gotten into tuna and dolphin and marlin. Just depends how the wind is blowing and where weed lines are set up and such.

Here's the thread on that trip:


And pictures from a shipmate (better) and me (worse but more numerous)

http://s58.photobucket.com/user/pcray1231/slideshow/Hatteras%20Fishing/Hatteras%202013%20Vacation

http://s58.photobucket.com/user/pcray1231/slideshow/Hatteras%20Fishing

 
love those outer banks-love them
 
AJ are good eating Pete. You just need to clean them properly. Great on the smoker and made into dip.
No bananas on the boat. GG
 
"Always ANNOUNCE the last Cast of the day"

That is to funny, how many times you think one has to tell his or herself that?
I can picture this happening in total darkness on the yellow breeches during the white-fly hatch while nearby anglers keep giving puzzled looks your way as you continue announcing
"THIS is my last cast, again !.....dang I missed one!"

Hat I can live without (I think, Probably not) sunglasses I cannot lol. Although I've never forgot either, one sunny evening I was fishing the Sulfur hatch, and the sun was angled just where I really couldn't avoid it in my location, even its reflection on the surface. My sunglasses were off for about 10-15min and by the time I put them back on and the sun set, I got the worst headache of my life. I now have sunglasses in every vehicle just in-case. Not even sure if it was caused by the sun, but I wouldn't chance it again.
 
I lost my lucky hat.

Go figure...
 
I have one that I follow: never spit into the stream you are fishing. The water gods take offense to that.

Urinating into the stream does not seem to make a difference though.
 

Don't have any
 
I used to have a victory cigar after a nice catch. Now I find it more important to have a preemptive cigar :-D
 
Thanks Pcray for letting me know that superstitutions have to be real.

Just remember not to bring any bananas to this thread.
 
1. Have my reel facing the right ( have to switch hands to use the reel)
2. Have the line coming out of the top of the reel instead of the bottom.
 
Thanks Pcray for letting me know that superstitutions have to be real.
Click to expand...

You're welcome. ;)

That one just struck me because most superstitions, people recognize that it's silly, but sorta follow it anyway. Kinda like as a joke as well as "just in case."

And that one came across as "this ain't no joke, we're dead serious about this one."
 
Had an old St Croix hat that treated me well. It saw lots of fish. Replaced it with a new Simms hat and swear it was cursed. Never had a banner day when wearing it. Somehow, I knocked the stink off it and no longer consider it to be cursed.

Also apply beechnut spit to fresh nymph rig before it's first cast.
 
Hunting is full of superstitions, moreso than fishing.

1. When loading your gun. Last shell in, you kiss. This one's pretty common among hunters I've talked to, actually. Sometimes with a ritualistic mantra, like "fly straight, fly true."

2. There are different Gods for different areas. And upsetting them ruins your hunting in that area for some time. For instance, injuring but not recovering a deer will insult the God's. Or shooting a fawn. Don't come back to that general area for years, cause you wouldn't have any luck there anyway.

But doing something good will improve your fortunes. For instance, passing up a doe with fawns that you can legally shoot pleases them. Or killing a coyote. It will bring you a buck soon. It can even undo a curse from doing something bad.

3. Related. A successful hunt, once back at camp/home, must be celebrated with a shot of whiskey while toasting the God's of that area. 2 shots for the successful hunter, and 1 for all hunting partners.

4. A gastrointestinal emergency, even if you're going to bury it, must be taken care of at least 300 yards upwind of your stand. Preferably near a buddies stand...

5. There are lucky shirts to wear under your hunting suit. Oh yes there are.

6. Of course, there are also lucky guns. And stands. The luck of a gun or stand is associated with a specific hunter. i.e. I could shoot a buck from my stand 5 years in a row, using the same gun, which never misses. But if my brother stood there, nope. It's "my" stand. And my gun won't shoot straight for him either.

7. Face paint. It's necessary. Even if you're bearded. It has nothing to do with not being seen by your quarry. And everything to do with pleasing the hunting Gods of the area to show that you are serious and worthy.

8. New gear/clothing is bad luck. Must get blood on it quickly. Even if it's from something someone else killed. It needs to be taught what it's looking for.
 
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