Bahen. He or she probably makes 

 $80,000 or more a year. 



A second group includes the 

 young executives whose annual 

 salaries range between $50,000 and 

 $90,000. They frequently fish in 

 tournaments, as many are geared 

 specifically to them. 



Families with smaller boats 

 make up the third category of 

 sport fishermen. With salaries of 

 $25,000 to $40,000, they use their 

 boats to travel to the Outer Banks 

 or teach the kids to ski, Bahen 

 says. And when there's the chance, 

 the fishermen in the family puts 

 out a net or line. 



The inshore fisherman has dif- 

 ferent characteristics, says 

 Johnson. During a two-year study, 

 he compiled information on fisher- 

 men from six regions of North 

 Carolina's sounds. His work ex- 

 amines bank fishermen, who fish 

 from banks, piers and bridges, and 

 boat fishermen. 



The typical sound fishermen are 

 white males in their early 40s who 

 have enjoyed recreational fishing 

 for over half of their lives. Each 

 year, they spend an average of 40 

 days on the water, waiting for 

 croaker, trout, bass, or any other 

 edible species to bite their bait. 



Of the two types of sound fisher- 

 men, those who fished from boats 

 were most like offshore anglers. 

 They were more educated, worked 

 in white-collar jobs and had higher 



Photo by Steve Murray 



incomes. On fishing trips, boat par- 

 ties of two or three people spent an 

 average of $212 in 1982, while bank 

 fishermen averaged $238. Most of 

 their expenses were for lodging, 

 food, fuel, bait and tackle and boat 

 maintenance. 



Other than expenditures for 

 goods and services on a fishing trip, 

 tournaments and charter boats are 

 big moneymakers for the state. In 

 the off-season, billfish and 

 mackerel tournaments attract hun- 

 dreds of saltwater sport fishermen 

 anxious to hook the biggest fish or 

 catch one of the prizes. 



Tournaments "have a great 

 economic impact in a limited area 

 for a short period of time," says 

 Arrington. Some effects are 

 documented in a 1979 survey of 

 1,060 saltwater tournament fisher- 

 men by Sea Grant researchers 

 Leon Abbas and Peter Fricke. 

 They found that fishing parties 

 spent an average of $978 for each 

 tournament entered. This included 

 all expenses but entry fees. They 

 also noted that the average fisher- 

 man was 42 years old, had a college 

 education and made about $70,000 

 a year. 



Rich Novak, a Sea Grant marine 

 recreation specialist, recently com- 

 pleted another study of partici- 

 pants in a drum tournament in 

 Hatteras last fall. From a sample 

 of returned surveys, he found that 

 most of the money spent by fisher- 



men was for lodging, meals, 

 groceries, gas and beverages. Since 

 the event was on the Outer Banks, 

 the men and women tended to stay 

 in the area for a few extra days, 

 and brought along a few friends. 



North Carolina's economy also 

 benefits from the use of 100 or 

 more charter boats or headboats. 

 For $300 to $550, six people can 

 hire a large fishing vessel for day or 

 half-day trips. But this pleasure 

 may be on the decline, says Bahen. 

 Many of the charter boats are 

 staying closer inshore to save on 

 fuel costs. 



When gas is expensive, the big 

 ticket items like charter boats do 

 feel a pinch, says Arrington. But he 

 feels the greater affect is on 

 tourism. "The fishing's not cut 

 back, but travel is. People don't 

 travel as far to fish." 



So if you want to go offshore and 

 don't mind fishing with a few more 

 folks, you can take your tackle 

 aboard a headboat. They take 

 about 100 people, and it costs about 

 $30 to $45 a day, says Bahen. 



Although the price of saltwater 

 fishing is rising, merchants and 

 businesses associated with the in- 

 dustry need not worry. Sport 

 fishermen will keep casting their 

 lines as long as there are fish to 

 catch. And that's good news for 

 North Carolina's economy. 



— Sarah Friday 



The promise of tranquility and fish lure many anglers to North Carolina waters 



