Burnout is a thing many people experience at work. What’s interesting about it is the fact that even people who absolutely love what they do can suffer burnout. It doesn’t matter how passionate you are or how important your job is to society; if you get overworked very often, you’ll be experiencing burnout quite frequently.
Although the human body can be trained to endure long work hours, it isn’t wired for this naturally and at some point, would have to break down. Therefore, rest is an important part of being effective at work and in just about any area of life that requires physical or mental effort. As you’ve probably already guessed, this is why more established companies make provisions for employees to go on “leave”. Visit https://www.lifehack.org/347808/why-rest-days-are-important-for-higher-efficiency-work to learn more about the importance of rest for work efficiency.
They understand that to increase employee engagement and prevent burnouts, rest is required. During this time off, many employees de-stress and unwind by engaging in their favorite hobbies. For some, traveling is the best way to unwind, there’s also hiking, kayaking, writing, mountain climbing, sky diving, swimming, cycling, and many other usual hobbies.
We said “usual” because there are some hobbies that are rather unusual, but people have and find them quite interesting. Today there’s magnet fishing, extreme ironing, insect collecting, news-raiding, and even suing, to mention a few. While some people may find hobbies like these weird, to those that engage with them, it is a fun way to spend time and relax, and that is all that really matters.
In this article, we’ll be exploring what magnet fishing is, why it is fun for many people.
What is Magnet Fishing?
It is exactly what it sounds like; fishing with magnets. But unlike regular fishing, you won’t be reeling in an exotic fish for dinner, rather, you’ll be hauling up metal trophies. That’s basically what magnet fishing is. A rope is tied to a very strong magnet and thrown into a body of water such as a lake or river. If you’re lucky, the magnet sticks to a metal object that you can take home as a trophy.
You’re probably wondering how the hobby came to be in the first place. Well, many people believe that the hobby was borne out of a necessity. When people accidentally dropped their keys or other important metal objects down a drain or into a lake, retrieving them was quite difficult. But do you know what makes it easy? You probably guessed right, it’s magnets.
As the act became more frequent, people began taking a liking to it. Since drains didn’t have that many trophies to pull out, it only made more sense to work with lakes, rivers, and streams. Because the magnets were being tied to ropes and thrown into the water, as is done in conventional fishing, “magnet fishing” naturally became the name of the hobby.
What’s the Appeal?
None-magnet fishers may wonder about what the appeal is in this hobby and there are a few reasons why people engage in magnet fishing. It is ecological in the sense that it is a fun way to get rid of metal objects that are dumped into water bodies. As more and more people engage in the hobby, more metal junk is removed from local lakes and rivers, making them cleaner and safer to swim in. Click here to learn more about lake pollution.
Another reason is that it allows people to enjoy the thrill of fishing without actually hurting any fish. However, the main reason why people engage in this hobby is the possibility of finding sunken treasures. Although the chances of this happening are very slim, every once in a while, some incredibly lucky fishers do stumble upon real-life treasure chests!
The closest thing to this is a safe and you’d be surprised just how often people find old safes in rivers. But truth be told, nine out of ten times, they are empty, which means they were probably dumped into the water after a robbery. But on the list of the most prized trophies found fishing, guns are probably second place behind real-life treasure chests.
Guns show up a lot in canals and rivers, especially in Europe which apparently is still littered with World War II weaponry. Some fishers even find these old revolvers that are still in good working condition. But if you find a modern weapon, it’s probably best to get the police involved as it could be key evidence in a case.
Magnet Fishing Gear
Unlike many other hobbies, you only need a few basic equipment. You’ll be needing the following:
Magnet
You can’t go magnet fishing without a magnet. But before you go running off to a lake, you should know that magnets used for this type of fishing aren’t regular ones; they are a lot stronger and have a more powerful adhesive force. Neodymium magnets are quite common among magnet fishers, so you’d want to get that when fishing.
They come in a variety of strengths, ranging from about 200lbs to over 1000lbs of pulling force when measured under ideal conditions. For beginners, a 500lbs magnet is a good starting point. You can visit Brute Magnetics to learn more about magnets for this interesting hobby.
Rope
You’d also need a rope, a strong, specially designed rope for the hobby. Regular ropes aren’t ideal because as they aren’t as durable and they get wet, making pulling out heavy objects a lot harder. You should buy ropes made from polypropylene and other synthetic materials. Unlike regular ropes, they do not absorb water as much and do not rot.
Gloves
Since you’d be handling rusty metals and pulling ropes a lot, gloves are a must if you want to keep your hands safe. Don’t worry, you don’t have to get a specially designed glove; regular gloves sold at hardware stores will do just fine.
Final Thoughts
As interesting and exciting as this hobby is, new fishers should know that it can also be dangerous. Part of what has been found by fishers include grenades and even mortal shells. Now, why the chances of finding one of these are slim, it is still a possibility and one that people thinking of taking up this hobby should consider.