Back in January I was invited (as a user of the Fishbrain mobile app) to participate in a very unique and exciting project, called World Fishing Day. I’ve been anxiously posting about this event leading up to the day which took place on June 23rd, 2018. Now that the day has finally come and gone, I wanted to share my experience filming World Fishing Day.
What is World Fishing Day?!
World Fishing Day was created by Fishing TV, a television network located in London, United Kingdom. The event was created to unite anglers from all around the globe in a celebration of all things fishing, and to inspire more people to get involved in our incredible sport.
For 24 hours on June 23rd, Fishing TV hosted a live broadcast (streaming on television and online) featuring anglers in 24 different counties showcasing some of the best fishing locations around the globe and the most iconic species. This was the first ever event of it’s kind. The broadcast also highlighted conservation issues, charities and organizations that use fishing to promote healthy lifestyles, mental wellness, and nature education. The live broadcast began in Australia, New Zealand, Japan, and followed the sun around the world and finally ending up in Ontario, Canada and Alaska, United States. I was very honoured to be representing fishing in Canada!
Naturally, it was expected (and encouraged) that anglers would be out on the water during World Fishing Day. Throughout the broadcast, anglers were invited to share their fishing photos on social media using the hashtag #WorldFishing Day for a chance to be featured in the broadcast and win prizes. Fishbrain was the official app partner for the event and the popular platform was abuzz with anglers sharing their catches throughout the day.
Chasing Largemouth on the Bay of Quinte
I decided on heading to my home waters for the live broadcast, the Bay of Quinte to chase largemouth bass. The initial plan was that I would be co-hosting the live broadcast with superstar YouTube angler, Robert Field! After following Robert’s adventures over the years, I had been so anxious to finally meet up and get out on the water together. Unfortunately 2 days before the event, there was a change in plans and Robert was unable to make it. Not to mention, a cold front came in and lightning, rain, and high winds were in the forecast. Uh oh!
I kept an eye on the weather and thankfully it improved but we still had some rain and wind to deal with. I invited Eric (my significant other and usual fishing partner) to co-host the live broadcast with me. We picked up with the film crew at the dock and set out in our Alumacraft to find some fish. The pressure was on!
Thankfully it seems the stars aligned as we tucked in to some sheltered waters out of the wind and the rain stopped. Woo hoo! I don’t mind fishing in the rain but with cameras on board, it can be tricky to deal with. I was a bit nervous to be speaking live in front of the world at first, but as soon as we started catching some fish I was back in my element.
Eric and I had earpieces and microphones on so we could communicate with the production team in London and hear what was happening throughout the broadcast. During our time slot, which was from 2pm to 7pm, we caught some nice largemouth bass and even a few other species. We were streamed live intermittently throughout the time slot and we were interviewed a few times about our catches and fishing on the Bay of Quinte. I was worried the cold front could make the fishing tough but we were grateful to find some hungry fish! Unfortunately we lost our connection a little early so we weren’t able to go live right through to the end. Regardless we had a blast sharing our catches for a few hours and were grateful at the opportunity to share our passion for bass fishing with the world!
Thank You!
A HUGE thank you to each and every person that made World Fishing Day such a successful event! The crew at Fishing TV blew me away with executing this massive project so seamlessly. I cannot imagine the planning that went into pulling off the live broadcast and coordinating anglers all around the world. I’m so grateful we had this opportunity through the folks from the Fishbrain app. This was such a memorable experience to be a part of and one I’ll never forget! The replay of the live broadcast will be available soon at http://www.fishingtv.com
And thank you to all the anglers that got out on the water and spread the joy of fishing on the first World Fishing Day!
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