Have you ever heard of magnet fishing? It is a hobby that has been exploding in popularity in the past few years for several reasons. Part of it is likely due to the quarantine that most of us experienced in early 2020 through 2021 – looking for new activities that were outdoors but avoiding crowded spaces was a priority for many.
If you have had a similar shared experience, then this might be something that you are intrigued by even now that the worst of the pandemic seems to be behind us. I have certainly still been looking for ways to spend time with my family while getting to enjoy nature. The chance of finding treasure is an added bonus too, of course.
The Basics of Magnet Fishing
Let us start off with something simple, and what you have probably been wondering about this whole time! What is magnet fishing, anyway, and why are so many people trying it out? You can check out resources like this one, https://hobbypatrol.com/magnet-fishing/, to get some sort of an idea, but allow me to explain.
In essence, it is a hobby that involves using strong magnets to fish junk (and potentially valuables) out of bodies of water. This could be a lake, river, ocean, or even a stream! Usually, though, it is one of the former two.
There are a few reasons for that, as I am sure that you can imagine, but the primary one has to do with how vast the ocean truly is. Most of the things that you could potentially catch using a magnet are probably out in the deep ocean. The trouble with that is that you could end up harming some of the fish out there as well, so suffice it to say it is not the preferred location.
What makes other bodies of water more appealing, then? Did you know how many shipwrecks there have been in lakes? It comes as a surprise to a lot of people, but a shocking number of ships have sunk in lakes around the world. However, some of the deadliest historically have been the Great Lakes in North America.
That means that there is a lot of wreckage out in those waters that are ripe for something like magnet fishing. A lot of parts of those ships are made of metal, after all. The same goes for some of the cargo, or other valuables!
What Makes this Attractive to People, then?
When I first heard about this, I know that I was quite confused by it. Of course, the first thought that ran through my head was “how do people catch fish using magnets?” Obviously, that is not actually how it works or what the purpose is, but the question still stands to some extent. What do I mean by this?
Personally, I do not care for the traditional style of fishing. Usually, it ends up being a very long, boring day where no one catches anything, and we are surrounded by flies and other bugs. On the off chance that someone does catch something, it is smelly, and in addition to that, I always feel quite bad taking the fish out of their homes. Sure, we can throw them back in, but then it feels like a rather pointless endeavor.
Needless to say, I was skeptical when I heard of magnet fishing. However, when I looked at Brute Magnetics and read through some of the information on it that they provide, I did finally start to understand a bit better. There are in fact several different facets to it. What are they, then?
The first that I would like to touch upon is the one that took me by surprise the most out of all of them. That is a fact that a lot of people start doing this for reasons linked to environmentalism and the concept of “going green.” There is a lot of trash and junk that is cluttering up our rivers and lakes, as one prime example.
This can end up harming the aquatic ecosystems that exist in those bodies of water. Fish that get stuck in a metal trash can end up getting disfigured or worse, sometimes even dead. So, when we begin to fish up that trash, we are actually helping out quite a bit!
I think one of the most appealing parts of that is that we can turn this form of environmentalism into a game of sorts, especially when children are involved. After all, if you create a fun challenge surrounding it, it can become a lot more fun for anyone involved!
Making Things Fun
Trying to find enrichment activities for myself and my family to enjoy can be a real challenge, which is a part of why I started to explore this in the first place. I want them to get to experience the joys of the fresh air and the outdoors without them (and me) ending up miserable at the end of the day. This is one way to do that.
Making a competition out of who can find the most treasure is one method, but of course, there are others. In general, what you can do will largely be impacted by the types of magnets that you decide to get. The stronger they are, the bigger items that you can fish up, but that does not come without some risks.
If you are feeling uncertain about what to get, you might want to check out some of the pages that I linked to in this article today. Of course, most search engines can also provide you with some information there. While it can be difficult to sort out what could work best for our families, it will be worth the time that we spend on it.
Overall, I think that if you do not like regular fishing but still enjoy spending time near the water, this could be something to try out! You will never know if you don’t, right?
