# What not to do



## ncdead (Jun 16, 2015)

I thought it would be interesting to start a thread that sheds light on those close calls that most of us who have been fishing for years have had that might serve as reminders to others of things to avoid while on the water. Things that might seem funny after the fact but at the time were potentially hazardous. I was fishing on the jetty at radio island across from the port in morehead city for flounder using a carolina rig with a finger mullet when i got snagged in what i thought was about five or six feet of water. Frustrated, I started snatching to try free the snag that turned out to be way closer to the surface than i thought. After about a half dozen snatches that one ounce egg sinker broke the surface at what seemed like 100 miles an hour heading straight at my head. I turned my head at the last second and it struck me in the top of the ear...luckily the handle of my sunglasses took the majority of the impact. Even so I thought my skull was fractured....There was blood streaming down my head and i felt like i was going to black out. After thirty minutes or so i realized i was ok but if i hadn't turned my head at the last second i could have lost a half dozen teeth or been hit in the forehead by eggsinker musket ball. Makes for a haha moment after the fact but a VERY close call.


----------



## LEADDRAFT (Oct 9, 2001)

Walking down the Length of the pier when spot fishing is full swing...


----------



## ez2cdave (Oct 13, 2008)

ncdead said:


> After thirty minutes or so i realized i was ok but if i hadn't turned my head at the last second i could have lost a half dozen teeth or been hit in the forehead by eggsinker musket ball.


And your new "nickname" might have been "Goliath" . . . LOL ! ! !

Glad to hear the injuries were minor . . .

Tight Lines !


----------



## Garboman (Jul 22, 2010)

LEADDRAFT said:


> Walking down the Length of the pier when spot fishing is full swing...


Even if it is raining really hard and you have no rain gear, never walk out on a pier wearing waders, leave them in the truck.

If you are going to stick a 9/0 Drum hook in somebody it is better to get your buddy than to put one through your left nostril.

If you insist on meeting your next wife on the end of an OBX pier, at least try and be sober while doing so.

If parents drops their unruly kids off at the pier every morning and then go shopping, do not get mad at the parents, might as well make friends with the kids and go fishing, you will probably learn something.

If you are a tourist and have no rain gear, do not use the trash bags out of the trash cans as emergency poncho's, you are going to get soaked anyway, why look like an idiot.

If a young hot chick in a bikini comes out to the end looking for Turtles, do not pretend you are not interested.

If your wife drops you off at the pier in the morning and then never ever comes back for you, do not despair.

If some really hot young mom drops her miscreant pier monkey off at the pier every morning, do not get upset with her, that pier monkey will grow up to be your stepson.


----------



## Digger54 (Sep 11, 2012)

Sticky worthy!



Garboman said:


> Even if it is raining really hard and you have no rain gear, never walk out on a pier wearing waders, leave them in the truck.
> 
> If you are going to stick a 9/0 Drum hook in somebody it is better to get your buddy than to put one through your left nostril.
> 
> ...


----------



## ncdead (Jun 16, 2015)

''The world according to Garbo''....funny stuff man!


----------



## flathead (Dec 18, 2003)

ncdead, I have a golfing buddy who didn't fare so well. He was in a bass tournament and hung a Carolina rigged lizard in a brushpile. he thought he could break the snag but she came loose while he was looking straight down at it. It was touch and go for him for about six weeks. He now plays golf and fishes with one eye.


----------



## kurazy kracka (Oct 14, 2008)

ncdead said:


> I thought it would be interesting to start a thread that sheds light on those close calls that most of us who have been fishing for years have had that might serve as reminders to others of things to avoid while on the water. Things that might seem funny after the fact but at the time were potentially hazardous. I was fishing on the jetty at radio island across from the port in morehead city for flounder using a carolina rig with a finger mullet when i got snagged in what i thought was about five or six feet of water. Frustrated, I started snatching to try free the snag that turned out to be way closer to the surface than i thought. After about a half dozen snatches that one ounce egg sinker broke the surface at what seemed like 100 miles an hour heading straight at my head. I turned my head at the last second and it struck me in the top of the ear...luckily the handle of my sunglasses took the majority of the impact. Even so I thought my skull was fractured....There was blood streaming down my head and i felt like i was going to black out. After thirty minutes or so i realized i was ok but if i hadn't turned my head at the last second i could have lost a half dozen teeth or been hit in the forehead by eggsinker musket ball. Makes for a haha moment after the fact but a VERY close call.


had similar occur. Was fighting a striper off a bridge and it breached the water and shook my 1.5oz lead head which launched at me full force from 30yards away and caught me square in the cheek. My face instantly swelled up and was swollen and tender for a few days. 

Up in NY a couple years ago a guy was fishing the rocks and got 3oz stuck. He was pulling straight up on it and it popped loose. came straight up, hit the bridge of his nose and shot through his brain and killed him instantly.


----------



## Dixiedawg80 (Nov 18, 2013)

Great stuff Garbo.


----------



## ncdead (Jun 16, 2015)

We have been going to marathon fla. for about twenty years to fish offshore. The first five years or so we just rented the 22 foot Boston Wailer that was part of the rental deal but now we have upgraded to a 27 foot cat. Around 2000 we were down there and it was windy all week,but we were determined to fish....this was our week, go for it. We were getting beat up but catching mahi so all was good. Toward the end of the week we went out despite increased winds. We worked the waves and made it out about fifteen miles, picking off fish along the way and then turned down seas which made for a smoother ride. Once we got to the area out beyond the seven mile bridge things got ugly. Seas that were rough became deadly. We had to turn and head back in and it took at least two hours to get back to somewhat calm water. When we first turned to head back in it was terrifying. Coming off the crest of a wave with the prop spinning free in the air and the hull slamming into the trough ...utter insanity. All I can say is that we dodged death that day. If we had gone in the water we would have been done. All these years later my brother and I talk about how stupid/lucky we were on that day. Strong currents, heavy seas, storms, catching a fish is not worth risking your life...that day still haunts me


----------



## cooper138 (Aug 8, 2012)

If we are here admitting dumb things one of my dumber actually happened last October in avon. After a really good week of fishing we were out on our last night trying to pull some more drum out of a hole that had been producing well early in the week. Had a few dink sharks early then nothing, after things calmed down we started to empty the cooler, not the bait cooler. After midnight my rod starts screaming and the rush kicks me into gear thinking drum. A few minutes into the fight I realize I'm sharky but what the hell last night a little pullage is nice. End up getting a nice 7plus garbo in the edge of the slough. I grab the tail and my buddy grabs the shock. Then two things happen simultaneously, I yell watch the leader and a big wave comes up unexpectedly. Well leader snaps and we are both knocked back. Next thing I know the shark is now knocked into me and the wave is pushing his now freed head between me and the beach I'm falling back towards. I remember falling back towards her face to face going well sh#%. Well she wanted nothing but to get back to deeper water but I will never forget falling towards the head. Lesson learned drinks do not mix well with sharks. My waders were warmer after that.


----------



## Reelturner (Dec 24, 2003)

ncdead, flathead, kurazy kracka,

fishing in mouth of Cape Fear for flounder and I had a 3/4 oz hung up came back but I was lucky and was able to swing somehow my head back away as it whizzed past. I can relate...I was lucky.

But the first instance that came to my mind after reading the title was.....back

In the early eighties when I first came down to the Outer Banks and the first time I ever stepped foot on the Bonner bridge I came close to death.

Me and a co worker had been planning "the trip"for months and after hearing about the stories of the grand structure we stopped there one evening just about dark and walked out on the catwalk. I was amazed at the size of it much less given the opportunity to get to walk out on it. Wow ...just too much so we proceeded to walk out on the west side and by now all you had to see by was some fisherman fishing with their lights to illuminate the narrow walkway. There was a chain linked fence to keep people safe ....I thought. After standing there a minute I decided I had to get a better look down where someone had a fish on and I was determined to see it. So, I leaned and rested my arms and body on the top of the fence and unbeknownst to me the fence gave away and swung out toward the sound. I do not know nor care how far the fence swung out but all I know as it came back toward the bridge like a trampoline effect. I didn't have time to do nothing, wasn't holding nothing either. After getting my balance back I discovered that the metal post wasn't securely fastened in the concrete at the bottom. It was more than one metal post needing repair....anyway I said..."Dale....uhhh think can we go back to the campground??"..........Silence......... NOW. We left, I'll never forget that first time to the Bonner bridge. And to this day EVERY TIME I see a fence near an bridge or overlook I make sure I check out the fence and/or don't get close to the edge. I was damn lucky once, don't want to test it ever again.


----------



## BLACK ADDER (Nov 15, 2006)

I told this one on another site...
A few years ago my nephew had a huge sandtiger hooked up. When he got it in close, it finally cut through the mono leader and was free. Meanwhile, your reporter was following the shock line down to the shark in about three feet of water.When the shark broke the line, my sister ,standing up on the sand, yelled "Grab him!!!" Unfortunately, I did.....I had a swimming sandtiger by the tail. He bent around and bit my left thigh, he knocked me down, and it was all over...he went really fast one way and I went really fast the other way. FORTUNATELY, I was wearing bib overalls, and all he took out of me was a huge piece of material and left nothing but tooth marks. If you ever look in a sandtiger's mouth,you will see what an incredible thing it is not to loose a big chunk...of me.

BA


----------



## phillyguy (Aug 9, 2010)

BLACK ADDER said:


> I told this one on another site...
> A few years ago my nephew had a huge sandtiger hooked up. When he got it in close, it finally cut through the mono leader and was free. Meanwhile, your reporter was following the shock line down to the shark in about three feet of water.When the shark broke the line, my sister ,standing up on the sand, yelled "Grab him!!!" Unfortunately, I did.....I had a swimming sandtiger by the tail. He bent around and bit my left thigh, he knocked me down, and it was all over...he went really fast one way and I went really fast the other way. FORTUNATELY, I was wearing bib overalls, and all he took out of me was a huge piece of material and left nothing but tooth marks. If you ever look in a sandtiger's mouth,you will see what an incredible thing it is not to loose a big chunk...of me.
> 
> BA


Your sister sounds like trouble.


----------



## phillyguy (Aug 9, 2010)

Early in my surf fishing career I was down along the south Jersey shore during the fall striper run. The beach was lined with guys throwing plugs, bait, metal, you name it. I find a spot at the end of the line and set up. Noob that I was the plan was to fish two rods spiked, even tho everyone else was holding their rods. I soon found out why. Well I cast the first one, spike it and get ready to cast the second one without realizing that the current had carried my first line directly behind me. So I step into my off-the-ground cast and catch my other line with the rig. Long story short, I had to cut both my lines to sort out the mess to the complete amusement of the anglers nearby. I found another spot to fish.


----------



## ncdead (Jun 16, 2015)

I was plugging for spanish on one the atlantic beach piers back in the late ninties when this guy beside me caught a decent sized bluefish. As it was flopping the deck he set the rod butt on the planks while holding the rod in the middle leaving the rod tip doubled over and the fish at his feet. Just as i was thinking ''bad idea'' the gotcha plug shot out of the fish's mouth and hit this dude right in the eyebrow lodging one of the barbs completely through. He took it in stride......walked to the pierhouse , had the hook removed and was back out plugging about thirty minutes later.


----------



## LEADDRAFT (Oct 9, 2001)

Ncdead, that has happened to Me last Spring, during a Spanish Blitz..
Feller next too Me caught a Nice Spanish, getting it up off the water, some reason I looked down, while plugging.. Thank the lord for sunglasses.. The last thing I saw was a Plug heading straight up, then BAM! I opened My eyes, STUNNED, As I was laying flat on the Planks.. That Gotcha plug TKO'ed Me on the spot, broke My sunglasses, but saved My eye sight.. Had a Big'o knot on My eyebrow...


----------



## dena (Jun 20, 2010)

That's why they callem Gotchas.

I have only run a crankbait treble in my thumb just before going down a stretch of rapids in a canoe.
Got me right in the webbing between my finger and thumb with the back hook, while I manuvered through the rock garden, while trying to avoid rocks, and getting stuck with the front hook at the same time.


----------



## Papa-T (Sep 5, 2011)

I was fishing on a party boat years ago out of Wilmington. This guy who was intoxicated was dolphin fishing from the back. He landed a nice dolphin and gaffed it and pulled it onto the boat. Oh I forgot to mention he was bare footed. After getting the fish onto the deck he decided to step on it to hold it down while it was flopping around with the hook in its mouth. Yea; you know what's next. The hook came out with the line still through the mouth of the dolphin. The hook went in behind the guys ancle and burried All the way in. With the big dolphin still flopping around it was jerking the guys foot back and forth and blood was spurting everywhere. Someone finally jumped on the dolphin to hold it down. The captain came down and wrapped the guys foot and gave the guy three options. 1- Call the Coast Guard to air lift him off. 2- pay all the fishing fees that everyone had paid and he would turn back to the dock. 3- wrapped it more with the burried hook in, drink more beer and wait out the trip. The guy chose number 3.


----------



## Greywalls (Aug 17, 2015)

This one's a little off-topic, but in my teens and early 20s (39 now), I was both fish-crazy and flat-out stupid... A buddy and I, once our pier fishing was wrapped up and our gear back in the truck, would regularly stroll back down the pier... Sometimes mid-way, sometimes farther... And, after making sure no staff were nearby, we would hail mary launch ourselves off the railing and into the water below -- followed by a hasty swim through the breakers and fast-stepping to the truck. Couple times at night, too. To now think of all the fouled submerged tackle likely down there, sharks (low risk, but still) and unseen bad stuff that could have gotten us in big trouble, I shudder at my stupidity.


----------



## Papa-T (Sep 5, 2011)

How the hell did we ever survive our stupid years? LMAO


----------



## 1BadF350 (Jul 19, 2006)

Papa-T said:


> How the hell did we ever survive our stupid years? LMAO


No kidding. As a kid I played with enough gunpowder to arm a battleship. Lost some eyebrows in the process.
We used to smash groups of 209 primers with bricks and stuff. One day my brother decided to smash a bunch of them on the bottom of our aluminum john boat to amplify the bang. He blew a hole the size of a nickel in it. When he managed to hastily paddle back to shore he got his butt whipped pretty good by our dad. 
It was as funny to me then as it is now retelling it. LOL


----------



## SloppyTilapia (Oct 4, 2013)

Do not try to gaff little 1-2 pound sailcats or hardheads......they are not heavy enough to get the tip of the gaff through their skin and become flying missiles. I found out the hard way, to the tune of a sailcat fin being stuck in the joint of my big toe. Worst pain I have experienced in my adult life. No joke.


----------



## ncdead (Jun 16, 2015)

my brother had a good old boy buddy down in Georgia that would go bass fishing in the morning before going to work in the afternoon. cracks me up every time I hear brother Dave tell this one. his buddy was fishing one morning using a top water plug with double treble hooks when he gets it hung in a tree along the bank and starts jerking to try to retrieve it while looking down...Just as he looked up the lure connected with his lip/face...impaled by treble hooks. they worked together so the next day Dave asked why he didn't show up the day before....after relaying the details of what happened on the water he said ' Dave, that wasn't the worst part....I had to drive the boat to the launch, trailer the boat and drive myself to the emergency room. Normally when you walk into the emergency room they ask why you are there but when you have a four inch top water lure hanging on your face you don't have to describe your ailment''


----------



## ncdead (Jun 16, 2015)

papa-t,I can relate to this..we have never been impaled before after doing our own thing in Florida for many years, however, you always keep your wits about you with dolphin. even small ones are a hazard if you don't stuff them in the fish box right away. they tend to go crazy when they hit the deck...worse yet when bailing them the action is hot and heavy with multipe fish coming in the boat in short order, everyone is excited....easy to let your guard down.


----------



## Elgreco (Aug 12, 2014)

I had that happen once with a gotcha. A blue or Spanish slammed my gotcha pretty close to the pier. I yanked on it and it came flying. Luckily it was about 10 feet to the left of me.


----------



## ncdead (Jun 16, 2015)

Reelturner...your post struck a cord....the bonner bridge was slated to be replaced ten years ago. Construction on a new bridge was supposed to begin in 2006 and be completed in 2010. Politics and indecision have delayed the project, putting the public at risk. There is a rating of bridge integrity and on a safety scale of 0 to 100 the bonner bridge ranked 0 years ago from what I understand. Divers have been down and found some of the pilings hanging loose....completely free of the sea floor. There on spots on the catwalk where you can drop down and fish off the concrete slabs/pilings at the base of the bridge and find some shade. We have done this and on a couple of occasions have felt the whole structure swaying with the current, and that was over ten years ago. There may have been steps taken to help sure up safety over the past few years, regardless, that fifty plus year old bridge is in dire shape. I just hope the new bridge gets built soon.


----------



## ncdead (Jun 16, 2015)

Hopefully the new bridge will have a catwalk that allows fishing.....very productive at times.


----------



## DrumBum (Apr 25, 2013)

Looking back over my fishing "career," I can think of 3 different incidents that make me go "hmmm."

At least 10 years ago when I first started flounder gigging on my own setup, a buddy and his brother talked me into hauling my rig to unfamiliar territory but "they knew exactly where they were going." Against my better judgement, I put in around 10 that night and went where they told me to go. There were 3 of us in a 1436 riveted jon boat. Next thing I know, we are in the middle of a VERY rough inlet. I'm told to make a hard right to get around a narrow sandbar and the next thing i know, we're beached on the bar, boat's parallel to the crashing waves and I'm thinking we're about to lose it all. I yell at them to hold on and throw the hammer down on the little outboard trying to turn it into the waves. The other guys were in the fetal position in the bottom of the boat when a wave, the wave that should have flipped or swamped us, hit with enough water to get under my prop allowing me to literally jump it and get back in deep water. The flounder trip was over and I was taking our soiled-pants back to the dock.

A second encounter with rough seas was several years ago out of New Topsail Inlet. We were fishing several miles offshore when it started popping lightning in the distance. We pointed the bow toward home and there was a small gap in the clouds where 2 big storm clouds were on the way to colliding. We made it back to the inlet and the seas were way rougher than our boat should be in. we stopped about 100 yard from the inlet to pick our spot because the inlet was nothing but white caps. 2 men are in front of the center console looking and I was standing behind the driver. All of a sudden I hear a loud roar and turn around just in time to see a wall of water coming at us that was higher than our T-top. I scream GO GO GO and the driver slams the throttle down just in time for the wave to crash in our prop wash. Had it been 2 seconds later, that could have been the end of us.

My last story happened on my bachelor trip to Portsmouth Island a few years ago (I know, no strippers or wild clubs but there's no place better than PI!) We had done a lot of fishing (mostly in the cooler) and were at the far north end of the island. We've always fished out of old suburbans and this trip was no exception. Running low on adult beverages, we start to head back south to stock up when one of the suburbans dies. We tried everything we could to get it going but diagnosed a bad fuel pump. We hook the straps up and tow several miles. By this point, the coolers were empty and we were ready to get back on the beach. We push the burban up to the ferry dock and waited for the ferry to come so we could get it off. The burban had porch built on to the back and was attached through the reese hitch with LONG square tubing. The ferry arrives and all 12 of us push as hard as we can to get it up the ramp when we heard a crash and the suburban stopped in its tracks. The porch was caught on the ramp, the old rusted pin had sheared off, and the square tubing pushed through the reese hitch and rammed straight through the gas tank, which of course had at least 3/4 of a tank. Gas leaking everywhere and a porch that had to come off, a brave soul (well "hydrated" of course) climbed under the suburban and proceeded to beat, yes he was swinging a hammer with gas dripping all over him, a pin into the exposed hole on the tubing so we could hook it up to a tractor and pull it out. Luckily, no sparks flew and everyone walked away safely. So yes, I understand the question of "how did we ever survive?" all too well.


----------



## Papa-T (Sep 5, 2011)

Damn that sounded bad. Good times. Lol


----------



## Papa-T (Sep 5, 2011)

Years ago several friends were surf fishing off Wrightsville. My best friends dad hooked up on what we thought was a monster. It stripped line and he stopped it brought it back in then off it went again. All the time he's yelling "He's making a run, He's making a run." Well people started gathering to watch. Several runs later and probably 30 minutes the monster broke through the waves. A STUMP. Yea that's right he had hooked a large stump. We just walked a away as if we didn't know him. He was so humiliated. The next year for Christmas we made a varnished stump with a beautiful bronze tag with all the trophy information of that special day for him. Presented to him in a classic style of course. Never make a scene if you hook into something big. Just play it cool instead.


----------



## Dixiedawg80 (Nov 18, 2013)

Papa-T said:


> Years ago several friends were surf fishing off Wrightsville. My best friends dad hooked up on what we thought was a monster. It stripped line and he stopped it brought it back in then off it went again. All the time he's yelling "He's making a run, He's making a run." Well people started gathering to watch. Several runs later and probably 30 minutes the monster broke through the waves. A STUMP. Yea that's right he had hooked a large stump. We just walked a away as if we didn't know him. He was so humiliated. The next year for Christmas we made a varnished stump with a beautiful bronze tag with all the trophy information of that special day for him. Presented to him in a classic style of course. Never make a scene if you hook into something big. Just play it cool instead.


Great Story Papa-T!!


----------



## Shooter (Nov 14, 2004)

What not to do? OMG there are so many times and stories that fills my fishing life 
I guess we start the one time on Grandview pier we stood there watching the lighting storm across the river when we hear this strange buzzing sound, well when someone touched their fishing rod ZAP  just from the static in the air the rods were humming. Dummy me took the time to reel up my line instead of just running for the pier house and got zapped a few times, do you know what a 12' fishing rods looks like? YES a lighting rod.
Another time on the same pier everyone had said Saturday was going to be a bad cobia day so none of the regulars showed up, of course I not being normal fished anyway. I thinking when the clicker went singing was going to have the last laugh,,, YES I am hooked up on a nice cobia and the fight is on and on and on. I finally wear the beast down and get him close to the pier and now is when excitement turns to dread,,,, the only other guy on the end of the pier is DRUNK  A few yells later and he stirs to life and stagers over to the railing and I plead to grab the pier gaff, now the cobia aint quite as out of it as I had hoped and the first attempt to gaff the beast lands a belly hook,,, half way up the hook tears out, thank the lord I had loosened the drag and splash another short fight and second gaffing goes a bit better and a good solid hook set and we get my biggen up and over the rail. Do ya think I should have planned a little better?
It only gets worse so I will stop there.


----------



## dialout (Feb 5, 2011)

Should start one of these threads...where ya been hooked....

On the end of Avalon pier about sundown during a bluefish blitz. I have one on and shortly there after feel it break loose. I instantly thought line broke as I had already caught a few without re-tying the chewed up leader. I almost as instantly felt something hit me in the side. I look down and have a nice chartreuse body/red head gotcha hanging from my up until then unblemished love handle. Darn thing shot under the top rail, right past my unbuttoned shirt and promptly lodged about an inch above by belt. Didn't feel it go in, but it hurt like hell when I pulled it out.


----------



## Benji (Nov 19, 2014)

Was cleaning up after doing a repair job at some old dilapidated marina. (payment for using the guy's ramp for a month) When a boat pulled up, an older gentleman got out, walked over and calmly asked if I had anything he could use to remove a hook... Then I seen it. The hook went in the side of his thumb, deep enough you could make out the point under the center of the nail! I suggested he should go to the hospital. "that's what he said " said the man pointing with his other hand to his friend on the boat. His friend looked every bit as grossed out as I was, whilst hook man carried on calmly. Taking his time to gather all his gear out the boat before driving himself to the hospital.


----------



## Drumdum (Jan 6, 2003)

Never try to throw a castnet off the bow,especially if that bow on your boat has rails.. I was throwing for livebait in Rudee Inlet,I came around with the net and a wave hit the boat and pushed it backward.. My leg was caught under the rail as I went forward,left me with no balance and I went over.. Did I also mention we were fairly close to rocks? haha Well I managed to dodge the rocks on the way down,and luckily my leg just slid out from under the bow.. Also was lucky I wasn't fishing alone that day as I did often back then... :redface:

Another story was not me,thank the lucky stars... A friend of mine and myself were on Avon Pier years ago.. There was this annoying lady from waaay up north with a heeeeavy accent that was asking questions and all into the action at the end of the pier.. There were 12lb plus bluefish everywhere,and you could not have fit another person on the end.. My friend and I were using gotchas on 7' spinning rods catching them and having a blast doing it.. Well my friend always liked to put max pressure on a fish and had that spec rod bowed up damn near like an uglystick commercial,with "upnorth lady with accent" in tow watching every move... His hook pulled free of the fish,shot back at him at warp speed.. He hopped straight up in the air trying to avoid the gotcha,but it went straight through the second rail and caught him in the jewels... There he was standing with gotcha dangling from between his legs with jeans on (lucky to have been wearing them),with some "upnorth lady" yelling "it gottem in the bawls"!!!!! haha Like I said,he was lucky to have been wearing jeans that day,because it would not have been pleasant to remove those hooks from that tender area.... haha


----------



## dirtyhandslopez (Nov 17, 2006)

Alrighty then.
Had ridden down to the James where Rockets landing is now on my scooter, fishing rods, something to smoke and a six pack with me.
Had a 5lb+ catfish flopping around and the hook was dangling, all still wrapped up in the fish. I remember thinking to myself "do not go to pick that up, you're going to get stuck". And yes, I did get stuck, right inbetween the very first joint in my finger, past the barb. Couldn't ride home cause the hook was in the clutch hand so there was nothing for it except down the six pack and smoke what was available as quickly as possible for some pain relief then move on to getting the hook out. It did not want to come out. Set the hook on rock and put all my body weight on the finger(of which there isn't a lot, granted), still would not move. Luckily, I am feeling pretty good still, so the decision was made to sharpen up the pen knife with the hook sharpener and have at it. After some cutting,sawing and pulling the thing finally comes out, leaving a nice big hole and a whole lot of blood around. Thankfully, I was able to ride home, didn't get stopped and breathalised and no infection set in. The catfish got put back in the river. That finger hurts to this day.
Moral of the story is if a little voice in yer head says to not do something, you should probably listen to it.
Oh yeah, and don't pull anthing out of your pocket on the end of Avon pier on a windy day, paper money flies really well in a stiff wind....


----------



## phillyguy (Aug 9, 2010)

Papa-T said:


> Years ago several friends were surf fishing off Wrightsville. My best friends dad hooked up on what we thought was a monster. It stripped line and he stopped it brought it back in then off it went again. All the time he's yelling "He's making a run, He's making a run." Well people started gathering to watch. Several runs later and probably 30 minutes the monster broke through the waves. A STUMP. Yea that's right he had hooked a large stump. We just walked a away as if we didn't know him. He was so humiliated. The next year for Christmas we made a varnished stump with a beautiful bronze tag with all the trophy information of that special day for him. Presented to him in a classic style of course. Never make a scene if you hook into something big. Just play it cool instead.


I have the same exact story only the "monster" in my case was an empty sandbag like the ones they use to shore up the pilings on beach houses. I knew at the time it wasn't a fish, but the crowd on the beach could only see me with my rod bowed up being towed down the beach and getting spooled by "something". Everybody had a good laugh.


----------



## Greywalls (Aug 17, 2015)

dirtyhandslopez said:


> Alrighty then.
> Had ridden down to the James where Rockets landing is now on my scooter, fishing rods, something to smoke and a six pack with me.
> Had a 5lb+ catfish flopping around and the hook was dangling, all still wrapped up in the fish. I remember thinking to myself "do not go to pick that up, you're going to get stuck". And yes, I did get stuck, right inbetween the very first joint in my finger, past the barb. Couldn't ride home cause the hook was in the clutch hand so there was nothing for it except down the six pack and smoke what was available as quickly as possible for some pain relief then move on to getting the hook out. It did not want to come out. Set the hook on rock and put all my body weight on the finger(of which there isn't a lot, granted), still would not move. Luckily, I am feeling pretty good still, so the decision was made to sharpen up the pen knife with the hook sharpener and have at it. After some cutting,sawing and pulling the thing finally comes out, leaving a nice big hole and a whole lot of blood around. Thankfully, I was able to ride home, didn't get stopped and breathalised and no infection set in. The catfish got put back in the river. That finger hurts to this day.
> Moral of the story is if a little voice in yer head says to not do something, you should probably listen to it.
> Oh yeah, and don't pull anthing out of your pocket on the end of Avon pier on a windy day, paper money flies really well in a stiff wind....


Ha -- great story. Sounds like you have a good time fishing!

I'm in RVA, as well.


----------



## dirtyhandslopez (Nov 17, 2006)

Used to, having a child changed all of that.


----------



## chriscustom (Jun 17, 2006)

Guy come around the end of the pier from halfway down with his heaver bent in half. Really nice heaver I thought, must know what he's doing. After fighting this Cow Nose ray for 20 min or so I dropped the gaff over to give him a hand. That's when I noticed the two hook bottom rig. Not a nice big ole single 9/0 hook but a #6! I turned and told my son to BACK UP! 
Turning back around to see the fish the 5oz sinker nails me square between the eyes! BOOM I hit the deck thinking I was going to die. Luckily the sinker hit me on the flat side and not point first. I had a big goose egg and head ache to match. Oh yeah this happen right after digging a gotcha plug outta my finger the was sunk up to the shaft of the hook and I couldn't push it through. A nurse on the pier told me to get away from her. So I sat down, wrapped a piece of fifty around the hook and around my hand, gritted my teeth, got ready to giver it a yank, and said NAW! So I just pushed down on it and slid it right out...... stung a little but not as bad as that sinker.


----------



## LEADDRAFT (Oct 9, 2001)

_Oh yeah, and don't pull anthing out of your pocket on the end of ANY pier on a windy day, paper money flies really well in a stiff wind.... _ 

I watched a Googan once do that, was sending his Wife back for MO BREWS... He opened His Billfold, next thing I saw was diving/Scrambling towards the rails as "several" 100's & 50's & 20's,, Bunch of 5's & ones just,, Looked like they flew out the Billfold ---> Out floating into the Stiff N.E. wind(s),, over the Pier-railings ,, floating like Styrofoam away.. Poor Guy cried, his Whole vacation "funds" blown away as well As His Gas funds back up to the Westward part of NC, (Wilkesboro)...No credit card, or bank card,,, He owned a GMC Full sized Suburban, (3.70 gas per gallon last fall).. All us Local Kinger guys took up donation(s),, enough to get Him & the Misses back home,, Along with "donated" Sea Mullets from all of us, (filled His cooler),, "Just because.." :fishing: , He was very, very thankfull... Happened 2 years ago... he came back Last fall, again about the same time, Late Oct... Some of US were there from the Previous year, remembered Him,,, He brought back *several* Mason quart Jars of that "Spring Water" from the mountains, giving everyone that was there the year before a Jar..


----------



## ncdead (Jun 16, 2015)

Ok, so I started this post on radio island with a story of pain...I appreciciate all the the responses....have enjoyed the feedback. Thanks everyone. One more humorous moment from radio island...my girlfriend and I were fishing about fifty yards away from this guy who caught what looked to be a just legal red or a big croaker. He stepped down off the rocks/concrete slabs and went back to fishing after dropping his fish into an open top bucket. At that time back in the mid ninties there were a number of feral cats that hung around the jetty.Shortly after he went back to fishing we all turned just in time to see one of the cats stealing his fish. The cat snatched the fish out of the bucket and made a beeline for the impenatrable brush that lines the shore there. It was to die for..this cat dragging a fish between its front paws toward the brush with this guy in hot pursuit. The cat made it to cover and this guy was out one fish. You had to be there.......


----------



## boomer (Jul 1, 2009)

I saw this on the pier when I was 8 or 9 years old, A guy catches a nice blue fish, takes it off the hook and proceeds to pick it up for pictures by using the bass fisherman technique of lipping it. Well the blue went around his thumb like a can opener , blood went everywhere, looked painful to me. He dropped the fish , it flopped off the pier back into the ocean and he went the ER to get his thumb put back together. So at that age of 8, I learned blues have plenty of teeth and know how to use them and some words and phrases cannot be repeated in front of mom.


----------



## Papa-T (Sep 5, 2011)

That reminded me of the time I took my Scout boat to Wrightsville for some fishing with a friend that had never ocean fished. Before we got there I kept telling him not to grab any fish like a bass. First fish he caught was a nice blue. As he reached over the edge of the boat I thought " no, he's not gonna". Sure enough he lips it just like a bass. Ripped his thumb and hand up. Just can't fix stupid. We fished together many times since that. He never made that mistake again.


----------



## Thrifty Angler (May 5, 2002)

Drumdum said:


> Never try to throw a castnet off the bow,especially if that bow on your boat has rails.. I was throwing for livebait in Rudee Inlet,I came around with the net and a wave hit the boat and pushed it backward.. My leg was caught under the rail as I went forward,left me with no balance and I went over.. Did I also mention we were fairly close to rocks? haha Well I managed to dodge the rocks on the way down,and luckily my leg just slid out from under the bow.. Also was lucky I wasn't fishing alone that day as I did often back then...
> 
> 
> 
> ...


The lady in your second story sounds like a lady I was crabbing beside in Lynn Pier. She kept mentioning that the guys wading out crabbing had better be careful. She said the crabs might grab em between the ballz... they might mistake it for a chicken neck. I asked her to repeat it....thinking her accent was keeping me from understanding what she meant to say. Nope...nothing was lost in the translation. I laughed for half an hour. Every so often she would try to warn them....she made a pinching motion as she yelled out for them to watch out. Laughed and cried a lot on that trip. I tried to share that story with my sons and they cringed each time.


----------



## LEADDRAFT (Oct 9, 2001)

Oh My.. Isn't this a Grand Ole thread dug up..

You know it's WINTER around these parts..
From 2015 no-less, you KNOW Cabin fever has set-in real good here..
Where's GarboMan? Bet He's got one good story or two left for this awesome thread..
Hrrrm lets see...

Back in the day.. When I was commercial oysterin...
So We put in bright & early intending to get our limit of Oysters, Me & a buddy..
Temps were about 14 degrees..
It was so COLD.. dern trout were laying up side, the sunny sides of the creek banks tryin to get some sun..

Around Mid-after noon it started clouding up, wind(s) kickin out of the NE 15~20...
Almost having our limit of shellfish..
We decided to head back to the Old dirt ramp up in the Shallotte River, & load up..
By then, winds were blowing everybit of 30+ with a light rain settin in..

Back the Ole Ford truck & trailer down... AND..
We couldn't load the boat onto the trailer... 
Coupled with the wind & a HARD incoming tide, it just couldn't be done.... (Wind & tide pushing & blowing the boat sideways)..
So.....
Muh Dumb arse, tried re-positioning the truck/trailer at a "ANGLE" on the side of the DIRT Ramp to manage to get the boat onto the trailer..
On the side of the ramp that NO-ONE ever used...
I then found out WHY....
As the trailer was managed to be secured... I started to pull out..
I felt the ass-end sink, (Like as in a hole?) suddenly, ... I glanced out the winder,, I realized My rear axel was buried..
There was NO coming out of that Mudhole with out a Tow...
So I sent my Buddy threw the woods, up to muh house & call some-one,, ANYONE to come rescue us out of the predicament.....

So while I waited with the truck & boat/trailer.. I sat in Muh truck cab, engine running, heat full blast..
Then I realized something.. How far UP was the tide gonna come-in on this stiff NE wind?
I looked down through the rusted Hole in my floorboard..
Watching water slowly, was gushing up though that Hole, (about the size of a beer can)..
I wasn't so concerned at first..
When it rose up to my calf, everything was OK.. I could simply wash things out..
When water got to my knees.. I started to worry some..
My arse started to get wet, I noticed minners swimming inside with Me in the cab... I started really to get worried where my buddy was..
about 10 minutes later I felt the back of the truck moving, looking back the boat looks like it's about to take the whole truck downriver with it...
Then I heard cough cough, with a gurgling sound.. As the Carb sucked in salt water...
By then My buddy showed up with a Tow..
I managed to get out...
Realising only the front wheels were even touching the ground underwater.. As I then tied the strap onto the frame of the Truck, (underwater)...
Nevermind the Water temps was in the Mid-40's and the Air temps was still in the Mid-20's...
We managed to pull the Truck out, SANS the trailer & boat...
My "buddy" have forgot to secure the Safety chain, Coupled with the strong Wind(s) and Tide, managed to somehow un-hook the trailer from the ball it was attached too..
It ALL went floating up-river.. Trailer & Boat
Got the truck to the house..
I was almost hypothermic... Sold our oysters.. You'd be surprised HOW Far a trucks transmission would go with over half of the "fluid" being nothing but salt water..
(Had to go,,, Electric bill was DUE)..
Rebuilt transmission & flushed out engine, Ole truck still run great..
Boat was recovered a few days later up river a few miles.. Minus the trailer, (still no idea where it went)...
Never used "that side" of the ramp ever again...


----------



## 1BadF350 (Jul 19, 2006)

Don't trust a fart at the end of the pier......


----------



## Spiderjhn (Dec 23, 2015)

I'm 62 and have felt the sting of a few hooks but never anything serious. This past Thanksgiving week I was Pompano fishing in Fl throwing a 1/2oz pink jig that was long triangler shaped with a treble hook. Just after daylight I started catching trout. I was standing on a sea wall about 6ft off the water. I was lifting a trout up and the jig pulled loose. It hit me in my right eyebrow near my nose and my knees buckled. Blood poured immediately. The edge of the jig cut me and the hook was in my forehead. The girl I was with pull the hook out that was in right to the barb. I always wear sunglasses when I fish for protection as much as comfort. I'm not sure if Costas has any ANSI impact ratings but I have wondered if that jig would have hit my glass lenses if they would have shattered. I was very lucky. As it was blood drained out of the corner of my eye for a couple of days and I sported a black eye for a good while.


----------



## Drumdum (Jan 6, 2003)

LEADDRAFT said:


> Oh My.. Isn't this a Grand Ole thread dug up..
> 
> You know it's WINTER around these parts..
> From 2015 no-less, you KNOW Cabin fever has set-in real good here..
> ...


So far,that one gets the prize my friend!!


----------

