'Master swimmer' spends nearly 30 years diving and spearfishing for a living.

QTO - Armed with only a wooden gun with a rubber band and crudely made iron arrows, for nearly 30 years, Nguyen Van Sinh, residing in Dong Ha ward, has been making a living by diving and spearfishing in various sea areas within and outside the province. With this unique and unusual profession, which few pursue, he can both earn millions of dong daily and fulfill his childhood passion for swimming and diving.

Friendly and approachable are the first things that come to mind for those who meet this man from the riverside region. Born in a floating village on the Hieu River in Ward 4, former Dong Ha City (now Dong Ha Ward), Mr. Sinh followed his parents' river trade from a young age. Due to difficult circumstances, he couldn't complete his education like many of his friends. Therefore, he decided to find a profession to make a living.

After some research, he learned about the profession of shooting fish with homemade slingshots and decided to pursue it. Through diligent research, learning from friends and the internet, he tinkered with making his own wooden slingshot to use in his trade.

Mr. Nguyen Van Sinh with a cluster of fish weighing up to tens of kilograms, freshly caught from the reefs near Cua Viet port - Photo: D.V.

According to Mr. Sinh, this gun has a simple structure: The gun body is made of wood, about 1 meter long, and it fires thanks to the tension of strong, elastic rubber bands. The elasticity of the rubber bands is strong enough to propel the iron arrow quickly, piercing even large fish. The arrows are very sharp and he made them from shiny 6mm iron bars. He usually uses two types of arrows: short arrows for shooting small fish, and longer arrows for shooting larger fish, including those weighing tens of kilograms.

From his early days as a novice, Mr. Sinh has now truly become a skilled "fisherman" and "shooter," plying his trade in the seas both within and outside the province. Having known him for many years, I am still amazed to see him emerge from the sea with a string of large fish, each weighing between 8 and 15 kg. Quickly dropping the string of fish onto the embankment – ​​two barracuda and one sea bass totaling over 30 kg – Mr. Sinh said those were just fish of relatively normal weight.

“The other day I even caught a sea bass weighing over 20kg; I was completely exhausted from bringing it up from the sea. The types of fish I catch are mainly sea bass, snapper, barracuda, grouper, brown fish, sea bream, red snapper, pomfret, barracuda, and even lobster… These are mostly seafood with high nutritional and economic value, popular with customers,” Mr. Sinh said happily.

According to Mr. Sinh, favorable weather allows him to catch many large fish, including valuable specialty species. In the southern part of the province, he usually dives and spearfishes in familiar locations such as: the coral reefs in Vinh Thai sea, Cua Tung bridge, Cua Viet bridge, the area around Mui Treo; the area at the foot of Chau Thi bridge, and the foot of Hien Luong bridge (formerly Vinh Linh district). Occasionally, he "changes things up" and dives to hunt for fish in the waters off Hue .

He often travels to fishing spots on his motorbike. He carefully puts on diving goggles, fins, and a long-sleeved outfit to keep warm, and wears protective gloves and socks to avoid sharp rocks and oyster shells that could cause injury. After scouting a suitable location, Sinh slowly dives down to search for fish to hunt.

A sea bass weighing over 15kg was recently caught by Mr. Nguyen Van Sinh at sea - Photo: D.V.

Because he dives without a scuba tank, he has to hold his breath for more than 1.5 minutes before surfacing to take a breath. Depending on the location and depth, he usually dives from 5-10 meters.

“Fish usually move along rocky reefs or hide among coral reefs. After observing and selecting prey, I slowly bring the target into my sights. When I'm about 3-4 meters away and see a fish swimming alongside me, I pull the trigger. Most of the shots hit their target. For me, shooting fish has become instinct, so I can feel the accuracy in each shot,” Sinh recounted.

Currently, the fish caught by Mr. Sinh are mainly supplied to specialty restaurants in Dong Ha and Nam Dong Ha wards, Cua Tung and Cua Viet communes, and some regular individual customers. He sells several types of fish at popular wholesale prices, such as: sea bass at 180,000 VND/kg, barracuda at 150,000 VND/kg, brown fish from 370,000-400,000 VND/kg, grouper at 200,000 VND/kg, snapper and barracuda at 220,000 VND/kg, and juvenile lobsters at around 65,000 VND/each… From this profession, Mr. Sinh can earn an average of around 1 million VND per day, and on lucky days, his income can reach several million VND. Besides fishing, he also dives for hire to cut scrap iron and install concrete blocks underwater for many construction projects in the area.

Every year, Mr. Sinh goes spearfishing in the province from February to around August or September according to the lunar calendar. When it's the rainy season and the weather turns cold in Quang Tri, it's the same time when the weather on Phu Quoc Island, An Giang province, is as beautiful as summer.

“Therefore, I continued to spend three months, from October to December according to the lunar calendar, working as a spearfisher on Phu Quoc Island. Diving and spearfishing in Phu Quoc is quite profitable, yielding many types of specialty fish which I sell on the spot to restaurants and tourists at high prices. On average, each diving trip in Phu Quoc brings me an income of around 100 million VND, enough to save for my family and comfortably cover expenses during Tet,” Mr. Sinh happily said.

For Mr. Nguyen Van Sinh, spearfishing is not just a means of livelihood but also a passion and a hobby in his life. - Photo: D.V

Mr. Sinh said that in southern Quang Tri, he is one of the few people who make a living by spearfishing as their main occupation. Although this profession provides a relatively high income, not everyone can pursue it. Mr. Sinh explained: "Few people can stick with this profession for the long term because of the inherent dangers in the deep water."

Many people who have pursued this profession have suffered paralysis of the legs and arms, partial paralysis, or deafness due to the pressure of the water at sea. To survive in this profession requires both passion and extensive experience in diving, knowing how to breathe to dive deep and for extended periods, excellent underwater spearfishing skills, and a bit of luck. Thanks to spearfishing, Mr. Sinh and his wife have been able to provide for their four children's education, and three of them have now graduated from university and found stable jobs.

For Sinh, besides earning a living, spearfishing allows him to fulfill his passion for exploring the seas and rivers, a passion that seems to be deeply ingrained in his blood.

Duc Viet

Source: https://baoquangtri.vn/xa-hoi/202606/kinh-ngu-gan-30-nam-lan-bien-ban-ca-muu-sinh-0964731/