Something fishy: Bowfishing is a sport of skill, precision and camaraderie

For Lance Altenthal of Jackson, bowfishing began as a way to keep his skills sharp in the months when deer season and other hunting periods were closed.

He heard about the sport through friends who also are avid hunters and enjoy being outdoors.

"It was something we were able to do over the summer," he said.

In addition to hunting, Altenthal had always fished, so he combined his skills to pursue bowfishing, which involves going out on a boat and shooting fish with an arrow attached to a reel that's in turn attached to a bow.

To catch the fish effectively, Altenthal has to troll through waters that are clear enough to see the quick, slippery animals beneath the surface. That's why lakes are ideal and usually why bowfishing tournaments are held on them, he said.

Lance Altenthal releases a silver carp, a variety of Asian carp, while bowfishing in Ramsey Creek on Monday morning.Laura Simon

But aside from the skill required to spear a fish from a distance of several feet and with water in the way is how the sport lends itself to gathering with friends and family.

"It's a very social sport, not like deer hunting or turkey hunting, where you have to be really quiet," he said.

Unless someone drops something heavy in the boat and startles the fish, Altenthal said they usually aren't spooked by music or the sound of a trolling motor. If bowfisherman are plying the waters at night, the fish also don't seem to mind lights from the boat.

In a way, it seems to enthrall them, making the fish easier to target.

"It kind of mesmerizes them and they don't really care that you're there," Altenthal said.

Often, Altenthal will bring several people along on his boat when he plans to bowfish. The vessel can fit up to eight passengers, so at times it's much like a floating party.

Altenthal and his guests will fish for a while and then pull up to the shore and picnic or get out and explore the landscape before moving on.

Sometimes, it's also a nice escape for his immediate family and their dog.

"The biggest thing I enjoy is the social camaraderie -- getting out with your friends," he said.

Beyond the fun, bowfishing is a sport that helps keep invasive fish species such as Asian carp from choking out native fish populations.

At the big bowfishing tournaments in Missouri and elsewhere, a majority of the carp and gar caught are handed over immediately for use as organic fertilizer.

Although Altenthal said gar isn't a bad fish to eat, it's difficult to clean because its scales and flesh are extraordinarily tough. As for carp, it tends to have hairline bones throughout its body, and eating around them is difficult, to say the least.

Nick Austin, another avid bowfisherman who lives in Cape Girardeau, said he likes to bowfish after work when the weather is favorable.

Most of the time, he's able to catch 10 to 20 fish, but usually gives them away to people on the bank so they can use the carcasses as catfish bait.

For him, bowfishing is a form of target practice that keeps his hunting skills sharp, so when deer season finally rolls around in the fall, his chances of succeeding are that much more improved.

It's especially challenging to hit an Asian carp as it's leaping out of the water.

"If you can hit a 6-inch fish, you can hit a big old deer," Austin said.

ljones@semissourian.com

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