Underwater foraging - Freediving for food: An instructional guide to freediving, sustainable marine foraging and spearfishing

I bought this book for my husband, who gives the following feedback: This is an excellent book which covers both free-diving and spearfishing techniques. The free-diving section is a sensible inclusion considering that the diving skills are necessary for the fishing and foraging. Even for those who would prefer not to go into the sea, it is an interesting book for anyone's collection because it shows how this sustainable food gathering method is still available as an alternative to buying the mass produced food on which most people (in developed nations) rely. For me, the book has extra value in that I have benefited from the author's experience while training under his supervision. (Note: For safety reasons, anyone who wishes to pursue free-diving should seek expert tuition.)

I bought this book after reading Pelizzaris book about freediving. I didn't expect this book will add anything to freediving techniques and I bought it solely because I've got interested in spearfishing. This book covers everything you should know about freediving and I wish I had this book couple of years ago. I can't judge the part about foraging for food as I only got into this but it covers not only spearfishing but also collecting edible plants and shellfish but freediving part is very well written, not overcomplicated. Strong accent on sustainable fishing. Definitely happy with my purchase. There are some minor issues with quality of photographs but I would give it 5 star even the book didn't contain any.

I started spearfishing about 4 years ago with the help of hours of youtube videos on the subject and some rather in depth books into just freediving. Not the smoothest learning curve but hey. I found this book a joy to read due to the amount of extra knowledge i gained in a very short space of time. Very informative on all aspects of freediving, spearfishing and foraging (and not to forget safety). All in all it's a great book and worth every penny. I feel this book will improve your learning curve novice and expert alike. Thank you.

great introduction. wouldnt go much beyond that tho. if yer really into freediving/spear fishing and seashore foraging then you will enjoy the book but find it leaves you wanting more info on all the topics contained within the book. thats not a bad thing, and has cirtainly helped hone and focus my areas to research further.

There aren't many freediving books on the market, and this one is a bit less about the romance and freedom of diving and a bit more about the practicalities of what to do and what not to do, and about feeding yourself while you do it. If you are starting out, i would say always do a course, but this book, from a point of view of detail is enough to develop your understanding. The guide to what fish to take and what not to is very useful. Great for UK divers.

As a very experienced spearo I can see exactly how this book is targeted. It's a well depicted window into the UK waters and put together colourfully depicting what to do to get involved. You cannot expect to completely teach from any book, you have to get out there and into the water and rockpools ideally in between reading it. I particularly like that my kids have been looking through the book and its amazing pics and getting an understanding and interest into where i'm always dissapearing off to. Well done Ian, great contribution to the library.

Great book. Clearly set out and very informative. Packed with all the information needed for the aspiring freediver, spearo or forager, with plenty of emphasis on safety and sustainability. Even if you don't intend to get in the water, this is a very interesting and informaitve book for anyone who loves the sea.

This book has been a great introduction to freediving and spearfishing - very inspiring and I read it cover to cover in a couple of evenings. The first part of the book is a useful all-in-one reference for freediving including training, safety and equipment. The second part of the book is about sustainable foraging-it gives details on how to deal with the catch and how to cook it.

Very good item as described.

Holy smokes! this book is the bomb. The pricetag made me gag a little when shipped to Australia but this is a well thought out, in-depth, graphically designed, beauty of a book. An absolute treasure trove of info for up and coming spearos. The illustrations are a highlight as is the large size of the printed pages. Possibly the best 'how-to' style spearfishing book on the market. Highly recommend!

So far so great!

I bought this book primarily as a reference for freediving-- I don't spear, and am a freshwater diver. The book is divided into 2 primary sections: One on freediving, including history, the second on spear fishing and salt water foraging, including specific fish species, specific plant species, and some information on preparation and cooking. The first section is a reasonably thorough reference to the practice of freediving-- functional, clear and concise information on the enitre process from gear to breathup to entry to recovery. There are useful sections on exercises and meditations to promote longer and more comfortable dives. Everything is well written and well illustrated. It is, however, a little light on specific methods for assisting a samba or black out, but there's certainly enough there to help ensure safe dives. (When it comes to specific safety methods and protocols, a live class is really the best choice.) While I don't spear, I still found the second half of the book, which is specific to salt water spear fishing, to be a very interesting read. Much of the text emphasizes a philosophy of sustainable living, not just in spearfishing, but in all things. This is a fun book on a lot of levels beyond the technical aspects of freediving and spearing, which makes the book interesting, not to mention pretty, even to non-divers.

Libro muy útil con buenas explicaciones, bien escrito, fácil de leer y buenas técnicas de entrenamiento. Muy recomendable. La entrega dentro de plazo.