What is Deep Sea Trawling?

Deep Sea Trawling is a **Sailing-integrated fishing method** where players deploy large nets from their ships in deep water regions to catch specialized, high-level fish.

What are the requirements for Trawling?

Trawling usually requires a high **Fishing skill level**, a medium-to-large **ship equipped with a Trawl Net**, and sufficient **Sailing experience** to reach the deep-sea zones.

What are the unique rewards from Trawling?

Unique rewards include highly valuable **deep-sea fish**, resources for **advanced ship repairs**, and pieces of the coveted **Angler's Outfit** or similar gear.

OSRS Sailing Fishing Guide | Deep Sea Trawling

© gamerblurb.com | Published on 11/22/2025 at 7:02 PM CST (USA)

Old School RuneScape (OSRS)

Deep sea trawling is one of the newest hybrid activities in Sailing. It mixes Fishing and Sailing into one loop where you chase moving shoals, haul in large stacks of fish, and manage your crew and facilities. This guide gives you everything you need to start trawling safely and efficiently.

How Deep Sea Trawling Works

Deep sea trawling begins when you find a shoal marked on the world map. Once you sail to it, line your boat up and deploy a trawling net. Your crewmate operates the net while you helm the ship and keep it aligned with the shoal as it shifts around.

Shoals move for short bursts and then settle down for a full minute. This gives you windows to relax and windows where you must reposition quickly. You earn a small amount of Sailing experience while the net is running and Fishing experience each time a fish is caught.

When the shoal disperses, repeat the process with a new one.

What You Need Before You Start

You must install a trawling net on your boat. Rope nets work in shallow water and higher tier nets reach deeper seas and pull in larger catches. You also need fish offcuts in your cargo to run a chum station if you have one. Offcuts are made by cutting fish with a knife.

A crew of at least three is recommended for clean runs. One helms the ship, one runs a second net if you have one, and another manages the chum station. A Sloop is ideal because it has space for two nets and a station.

Bring some repair kits for ocean creatures. Getting sunk costs you everything in your cargo.

Finding And Following Shoals

Shoals spawn near map icons and move randomly within those zones. A fathom stone shows the general direction of the nearest shoal. A fathom pearl points directly to one. Once you find it, line up your boat and drop the net.

Shoals can also change depth. You will see a chat message when they do. If your net is at the wrong depth, raise or lower it through the net options so catches resume.

Using Facilities

Trawling nets come in multiple types. Each upgrade lets you reach deeper seas and improves minimum catch amounts.

Chum stations make shoals more effective. When a crewmate runs the station, it spreads offcuts and boosts how many fish you pull in before the shoal breaks apart. An advanced chum station improves this even further.

Fathom tools help with tracking shoals. A fathom stone gives broad direction while a fathom pearl gives exact arrows.

Run the station each time the shoal pauses. This is one of the best ways to increase total catches.

Shoal Types And Required Levels

Shoals scale with Fishing level and sea depth. Early shoals stay shallow. Advanced ones appear in moderate and deep waters. All shoals require offcuts as bait, with higher tier shoals needing fine or premium offcuts.

Your trawling net and Sailing level determine whether you can reach deeper shoals. Higher tier nets match deeper zones and offer better catch output.

What You Earn From Deep Sea Trawling

Deep sea trawling gives access to fish not found on shore. These fish heal well when cooked and some give special effects such as run energy restores or prayer boosts. Fish also break into offcuts for future trawling runs. Some fish act as Herblore secondaries.

Rare giant variants can appear. These can be stuffed and displayed in a player owned house.

Fish crates expand storage. These hold raw fish and can be built with camphor planks and nails, but do not hold Burbs. Combined with a large cargo hold, you can return with hundreds of fish per trip.

Tips And Tricks From Early Testing

Deep sea trawling can be excellent for bulk fish gathering. A player and a crewmate can catch up to two fish each at the same time, stacking catches fast. This works even with basic nets. Shoals stay still for long periods, so you can relax during these stretches.

The catch rate is strong, but experience gains are low. Early reports show around ten to fifteen thousand Sailing experience per hour and normal Fishing experience based on your level and attention. Catching two fish at a time does not double Fishing experience.

A trawling run needs focus when shoals move and when depth changes. If you react quickly, you can keep the net active almost nonstop.

Final Blurb

Deep sea trawling mixes Sailing and Fishing into a smooth loop of tracking, hauling, and resource management. It is great for bulk fish gathering and offers unique species and useful secondary items.

While the experience rates are not high, the fish yield makes it worth learning the rhythm of the shoals and fine tuning your crew and facilities.