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View Full Version : Almost had a 45 degree swim on Sunday




Tulcat
03-06-2006, 02:40 PM
Well Sunday a friend wanted me to go out with him and teach him how to catch Spoonies. So we met at his place about 6AM and headed to Sailboat Bridge at Grand Lake.

Before too long we were out on the water, in his 20 year old ba$$ boat, and immediately found the Spoonies and started snagging them. Well just as I hooked into a nice one and yelled "fish on", I stood up to get better leverage. As I looked down to position my feet better, I noticed water was a gushing in from the side of the boat between some trim pieces.

I asked my friend if that was normal, as I continued to fight the Spoonie. He moved to the back of the boat to check the engine compartment, and when he opened it up he about laid some bricks as he shared a few choice phrases not repeatable here. And he basically finished by saying to hurry up with the fish, as it was time to make a mad dash to the shore.

We were way out in midlake and the water temp was about 45 degrees, so swimming was not a good option. He pointed the boat towards the shore and tried to get it up on a plane, as I moved myself and all the gear up to the front of the boat. For the first several minutes we could not get up on a plane, and the engine was sputtering. At that point I was trying to figure out what gear I was swimming with, and what gear I was leaving in the boat.

But finally we got up on a plane and made it to the shore, and quickly got the boat trailored.

At that point he tells me he has had a crack in his hull for the last 9 years, but his blige always made it a non-issue. The bilge was running, but no water was getting pumped out. Since the bilge was mounted under his fuel tank, we were basically done for the day and headed home.

He called me about 5 hours later and said the issue was part of a zip tie had managed to make it into the pump and prevented the pump from working.

What a fun day that was!




FishMan
03-06-2006, 02:43 PM
sounds like time for a new boat, LOL, Glad you didn't have to take that 45 degree swim, bur cold.

Danny

TDawgNOk
03-06-2006, 03:21 PM
Thank goodness you didn't have to make that 45 degree swim, but, on the bright side, at least it was warm on Sunday

loanwizard
03-06-2006, 03:44 PM
Whew that would be a cold swim. Looks like he needs a little clear silicone to seal the hole as well as keeping stuff out of the bilge. It looks like the good Lord ain't ready for you yet.

Tulcat
03-06-2006, 05:41 PM
... It looks like the good Lord ain't ready for you yet.

I hope not until at least the Spoonies have stopped running!

blackwaterkatz
03-06-2006, 05:46 PM
You'll remember that catch for the rest of your life! Glad things turned out ok in the end.

sal_jr
03-06-2006, 05:47 PM
Whenever we meet, I want to share a beer with a hole it it with you.

LOL

Good to know you're safe.

Sal

BIG-G
03-06-2006, 06:20 PM
Glad all turned out well.
JUST ONE THING!
I don't see any mention of putting on the PFD. That should be the first thing ya do when takein on water. To hell with the fish!

Tulcat
03-06-2006, 06:26 PM
Glad all turned out well.
JUST ONE THING!
I don't see any mention of putting on the PFD. That should be the first thing ya do when takein on water. To hell with the fish!

For once in my life I already had on my PFD, and that was one less thing to worry about.

I never wear a PFD because I hated the "bulky, puffy, constrained" feel. I have had my eye on one of those suspender types that automatically inflates if you get submerged, but didn't want to spend the money unless I was sure I would wear it. Well with all the cold weather Spoonie chasing I've been doing, I knew I was rolling the dice with my life so after a long talk with the sales rep at BPS I bought an inflateable vest they had on sale.

It was it's second trip out with me, and to be honest you never know you have it on.

Best investment I've made in a long time.

oldprowler
03-06-2006, 06:50 PM
Glad everything turned out well for you. You did not say if you got that spoonie on board or not???

Tulcat
03-06-2006, 07:05 PM
Glad everything turned out well for you. You did not say if you got that spoonie on board or not???

Yep I got the critter landed and we think we got a quick photo (picking up prints in 30 minutes) but did not get him weighed. It looked like about 26#s, as the one my buddy caught earlier was 25#s and I'm sure mine looked bigger ;)

Tulcat
03-06-2006, 08:05 PM
Here it is, plus the one my friend caught.

catfishcentral
03-07-2006, 02:10 PM
Counting on a blige pump to keep water out of the boat probably wasn't the best thinking on your friends part. I don't know how many times I've gotten crap (leaves,sticks, shad parts) stuck in my bilge pump impeller where it wouldn't pump out water. I'm glad you didn't have to swim either that water is pretty darn cold, but hopefully there was enough foam flotation built into the boat that is wouldn't have comepletly gone under water if it came to that. Good luck on your future spoonbill adventures.

Tulcat
03-07-2006, 02:22 PM
Counting on a blige pump to keep water out of the boat probably wasn't the best thinking on your friends part. I don't know how many times I've gotten crap (leaves,sticks, shad parts) stuck in my bilge pump impeller where it wouldn't pump out water. I'm glad you didn't have to swim either that water is pretty darn cold, but hopefully there was enough foam flotation built into the boat that is wouldn't have comepletly gone under water if it came to that. Good luck on your future spoonbill adventures.

Yea we had a nice talk today about how a bilge pump in not fool-proof, and is a piece of equipment that can fail on a regular basis as they are not designed to last forever.

He has tried to fix the hull crack in the past, but the repair lasted less than a year. But I think I did talk him into carrying a spare portable bilge pump as a backup, at least if I'm going to be on his boat ;)

And this weekend I will be back in my boat, chasing the Spoonies once again.

DensSang
03-07-2006, 02:35 PM
i fell in a couple days ago but the water is like 65 degres HOTT ditch

greenwing7
03-07-2006, 11:19 PM
my little sister went swiming this past weekend and there was ice in a few of the bays, it was for the polar plunge she is crazy you wouldn't have lasted long ni 45 degree water tho

slabmaster
03-23-2006, 02:08 AM
ikm with old prowler what happend to the fish. did you land it or hit him with the slack.

TeamCatHazzard
03-23-2006, 01:41 PM
LOL! Good story, and I am glad that it all worked out for you and you didnt end up swimmin cuz that would have been just a little cold! lol Id say he better get that crack fixed so that doesnt happen again!