An unconventional fashion blogger trying to find her place on the internet

Some of you might already know that my husband Aaron is an avid angler (aka fisherman – we’ll get to some common lingo later) and has been partaking in this mysterious hobby for almost a decade now. Over the years, I’ve gone through phases of turmoil, yearning, being completely baffled and finally, understanding. Before The Fashion Faux Pas of Gabrielle was born, I was toying with the idea of “The Diary of a Fishing Widow” but thought it might not have as much scope, so a couple of posts could probably cover just enough.

It’s hard to accept and understand at the beginning, so I’m here to help you come to grips with; what the common lingo means, what impact it can have on your relationship with a fisherman and what the obsession is all about. This is going to be a three part series and first up is…

The Lingo

Angler
The fisherman – this definition covers all types of fisherman; carp, trout, bream, rudd, pike etc. There are MANY types of fish – you will learn this.
Fishing widow
The girlfriend/wife/partner of an angler – you.
Bivvy
A tent used for fishing – but not your standard camping tent, don’t EVER call it a tent. This is for the inevitable night fishing sessions, is normally in some shade of khaki green and comes in a couple of different forms, most common is a standard tent-like set up or a brolly, named brolly because it’s essentially a massive umbrella that you peg down to the floor and store your little set up in.
Boilies
A type of bait that resembles a Bon Bon that you’d pick up in the sweet shop – you just don’t eat them, unless you’re an odd ball that enjoys fish food.
Rigs
The section of a carp rod that is used to hook the fish (at the end of the line with the bait on).
Day/Night/Season Ticket Waters
There are loads of different lakes out there (I’m speaking as a carp fisherman widow, so lakes are more my bag) and different times you can fish them all. Day ticket waters are for fishing during the day, same with the nights – you pay to fish for a single day or multiple nights if you’re going for a couple of nights. Season tickets are for the lakes where the angler wants to visit all the time and the lake doesn’t welcome day/night ticketers. Some season tickets encompass more than one lake.

Things you should know

• Don’t wear new shoes fishing – unless you’ve purchased them specifically for going on trips with your other half. It’s muddy, wet and dirty
• Wrap up warm – even if it looks warm out, don’t be deceived. Lakes are windy places and it can get quite chilly – especially if you’re spending the night lakeside
• Find out what they’re fishing for – a big catfish isn’t the same as a big carp or tench or bream, they’re all different and you should KNOW!
• Expect to plan some kind of fishing trip when you go on holiday anywhere – they will find somewhere to fish 🎣
• This is an EXPENSIVE hobby, so expect to receive birthday/Christmas present requests for fishing gear that seems more expensive than it should be – rods, tackle bags, bivvies, brollies, unhooking mats, THE LIST IS ENDLESS and there’s always something new to buy!

I hope you enjoyed this post and found it useful, make sure to tune in next week for the next instalment!

bloggerclothesfashion bloggerfashion inspirationfbloggerfisherman’s wifefishing guide for womenfishing widowguide to fishinglife experiences