This lesson suits intermediate learners. After listening, test your knowledge with our quiz.
Learning notes
Language objective:
Talking about going fishing and water safety
Different phrases to use when talking about fishing:
- Going fishing?
- Are you new to this fishing spot?
- I've heard this is a great place for rock fishing.
- I am looking forward to reeling in some big ones.
- I've never fished alone here.
Different phrases to use when talking about fishing conditions and water safety:
- Watch out for the tides and the swell.
- Check the weather and swell forecasts.
- We need to find some safer ground quickly.
- It’s good to monitor the conditions.
- Don’t forget to wear a life jacket and suitable footwear.
- Stay away from the edge of the rock platform.
- Avoid getting snagged up.
Colloquial expressions:
To head out means to go out.
A heads up is an informal expression that is used to give someone advance notice or a warning about something that is about to happen.
Smart move is an informal expression used to commend or acknowledge a decision or action that is considered clever or intelligent.
In fishing, snag up can refer to when your fishing line or hook gets caught or tangled on something.
Vocabulary:
A fishing spot refers to a place where people go fishing. These can be on rivers, lakes, ponds, or any other bodies of water where fishing is allowed.
To forecast something is to say that something is going to happen in the future. For example, we make forecasts about future weather events or conditions using scientific data.
A life jacket is a special vest you wear to help you float and stay on the surface when you are in the water. Boats and aeroplanes carry life jackets in case of emergencies.
To slip is to slide on the ground and lose your balance because it is wet or icy.
A swell is the movement up and down of the waves. A big swell is when there are really big waves.
A tide is the regular rise or fall of the sea according to the phases of the moon.
Cultural Information:
Rock fishing is a type of fishing that takes place from rocky shorelines or coastal cliffs rather than from a boat or a pier. Rock fishing is a very popular activity in Australia, with over a million people participating in it each year. However, it's also very dangerous, and there have been nearly 200 deaths related to rock fishing since 2004.
Transcript:
(Note: This is not a word-for-word transcript)
SBS acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of Country and their connections and continuous care for the skies, lands, and waterways throughout Australia.
Hi, my name is TJ ... What did you do last weekend? Well, I did something for the first time ... fishing! I had a perfect afternoon fishing on a trout and salmon farm near the city. It was a bit hard because it took me an hour to catch a fish, but I was really happy about catching something at last. It felt like a really big accomplishment for someone like me who’s new to fishing!
In this episode, we are going to talk about fishing and some of the words and phrases you can use when you want to find out more about the weather and safety conditions in different places where you can fish.
As we know, Australians love to go fishing. According to a recent National Recreational Fishing Survey, one in five Australians went fishing last year. Our guest historian and author, Anna Clark, will talk about just how much they love it a little later.
But for now, let's begin fishing – I mean, learning – with our characters, Allan and Claire.
Let’s imagine that Claire has driven to a coastal area with her family to go fishing. She has just parked her car and is starting to get their gear out when Allan, a local in the town, sees her and starts talking to her about the area.
Allan
Going fishing, eh? Looks like you’ve got all your gear ... are you folks new to this fishing spot?
Claire
Yeah, I've heard this is a great place for rock fishing. My husband and kids are looking forward to reeling in some big ones.
Allan
It sure is! But just a heads up, you have to watch out for the tides and the swell. If those waves start to come up, you’ve got to find some safer ground quickly!
Claire
Safety first, right? Hmm I’d better check the weather and swell forecasts to make sure.
Allan
Absolutely! I usually monitor the conditions for up to 30 minutes before heading out onto the rocks. I also wear a life jacket and suitable footwear.
Claire
Oh yes, we have them already! My husband even brought a longer fishing rod so that he could stay away from the edge of the rock platform and avoid getting snagged up.
Allan
Smart move. I've never fished alone here, to be honest. I'm always worried about slipping and falling.
Claire
Thanks for the tips.
It’s really good to chat with a local, someone who knows the area well, before you start fishing and this conversation has some useful words and phrases you can use to talk about fishing conditions and safety.
RELATED CONTENT
Unfamiliar conditions can prove fatal during rock fishing
Let’s hear them again …
Are you folks new to this fishing spot?Allan
Allan is a local in the town, meaning someone who lives there. He talked to Claire and used the word folks which is an informal way of addressing people you don’t know.
When he asked if they were new to the fishing spot, it's like a casual and welcoming way to start a conversation and learn about their experience at that particular fishing spot.
A fishing spot is a place where people go fishing. These spots can be on rivers, lakes, ponds, or any bodies of water where fishing is allowed.
In this case, the 'spot' is the coastal area.
Yeah, I've heard this is a great place for rock fishing. My husband and kids are looking forward to reeling in some big ones.Claire
A reel is like a small wheel which we wind. On a fishing rod, the reel is the circular part that holds the fishing line. To reel something in is to pull something in on a thread or line. If you catch a fish on the end of your fishing line, you have to reel it in to get it onto the ground. So, when someone says they are “looking forward to reeling in some big ones,” they mean that they really like the idea that they are going to catch some large fish.
Claire also mentioned rock fishing. Rock fishing is a type of fishing that you do from rocky shorelines or coastal cliffs rather than from a boat or a pier.
It’s a popular form of fishing in Australia, but it can also be dangerous because sea and weather conditions can change very quickly. Which is why Allan warned Claire …
Just a heads up, you have to watch out for the tides and the swell. If those waves start to come up, you’ve got to find some safer ground quickly!Allan
A heads up is an informal expression that we use to warn someone about something bad that is going to or could happen.
Allan said "just a heads up, you have to watch out for the tides and the swell".
The tides are the regular movement of the sea as it moves up and down the beach twice a day according to the phases of the moon. Each day, there are two high tides and two low tides. If you are standing on a rock that is covered by the sea at high tide, you need to watch for the state of the tide, that is, whether the tide is coming in or going out so that you can always walk back to dry land safely.
A swell is the movement up and down of the waves in the sea. A big swell is when the waves are really big, and these can be dangerous if you are standing on the edge of a rock!
I’d better check the weather and swell forecasts to make sure.Claire
To forecast something is to say what is going to happen in the future, so a forecast is a prediction about the future.
Claire said she’d check two things. First, the weather forecast which tells us if it will be sunny, rainy, stormy, or windy.
Second is the swell forecast, which tells us how big the waves will be, which way they’re going, and how often they come.
I usually monitor the conditions for up to 30 minutes before heading out onto the rocks.Allan
To monitor something is to keep watching it carefully over time. So, when Allan said Claire should monitor the conditions for up to 30 minutes, he meant that she should keep watching the waves and the weather for at least half an hour before they head out onto the rocks. To head out means to go out.
I also wear a life jacket and suitable footwear.Allan
A life jacket is a special vest you wear to help you float and stay on the surface when you are in the water.
My husband even brought a longer fishing rod so that he could stay away from the edge of the rock platform and avoid getting snagged up.Claire
In fishing, snagging up is when your fishing line or hook gets caught or tangled in something.
Smart move. I've never fished alone here, to be honest. I'm always worried about slipping and falling.Allan
We say smart move when we think that someone has done something very clever.
Allan is worried about slipping, that is, losing his balance on the rocks and falling because they're wet.
That’s a lot of words and phrases about fishing – but it’s worth it!
Let’s listen again to the whole conversation between Allan and Claire.
(Repeat Dialogue)
RELATED CONTENT
How to stay safe while rock fishing
To give us a bit of history on why Australians love fishing, we will talk to an award-winning historian and author of 'The Catch: Australia’s Love Affair with Fishing', Anna Clark.
TJ
Hi Anna, how are you?
ANNA
Hi TJ, I’m well thank you.
TJ
First question is why do Australians love fishing?
ANNA
I mean it's not just Australians, of course. Fishing is much loved all over the world, but in Australia, there's so much of the natural world, the environment and nature that is still relatively accessible for a lot of people, the beaches and inland waterways and rivers. And so, it's something that everybody can enjoy. Anybody can go outside and enjoy connecting with nature. And so, I think fishing is a really, you know, a really unique part of the ways Australians connect with nature.
TJ
In your book, 'The Catch', you discussed the fishing history of Australia. Can you give us a bit of information about that?
ANNA
Yeah, absolutely. The thing I find really interesting about the history of fishing in Australia is it really follows Australian history more broadly. You could almost tell the story of Australia through fishing, from the earliest connections with the natural world, through Indigenous fishing, which occurred for, you know, tens of thousands of years before colonisation. Then, when colonists first arrived in Australia in the late 1700s, some of the first things they did were fishing. You know, obviously, they had to survive, and they were really struck by the natural world here. They hadn't seen anything like that in England. And so, their connection, early connection with Australia, was also through fishing. And then in the 20th century, of course, waves of migration, particularly after the Second World War, but also before it, from places like Italy and Greece and then later on from Asian countries. Fishing is one of the most important ways that everyday people connect to the place they live in because it helps them feel at home.
TJ
Aside from the history and joy of fishing, what can we expect from your book 'The Catch'?
ANNA
Well, I hope people can enjoy the book by thinking about the places that are described and also the incredible fish in Australia that used to be caught and still can be. But you know, it's a story of some of the history that we have lost, sadly. As Australia, you know, there has been a lot of over-fishing in Australia. So, in many ways, as well as sort of being a history that's a tribute to the joy of fishing, it also shows that fishing can be quite a sad story and that we need to be really careful about managing our fisheries because they're very fragile and they don't, they're not endless, they don't go on forever. And part of the story of Australian fishing has been a story of increasing knowledge and scientific research into Australian fisheries and working out how to manage them sustainably so that we can keep fishing into the future and keep sharing it with our children and grandchildren.
TJ
Thank you, Anna, for joining us today.
ANNA
Thanks, TJ. It’s really nice to chat with you.
A big thank you to our educational consultant, Professor Lynda Yates.
Paul Nicholson and Lily O'Sullivan voiced the characters of Allan and Claire.
Sound effects credit: Pixabay/JuliusH
