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Disclaimer: I'm posting this hoping it might help someone else not make the same mistake, (and because it's a good story ;-)). Please resist the urge for lectures, I already know I &$#ed up!
I went out to the bridge in my jon boat tonight for a few minutes of fishing before dark. It was a little windy, but not too bad. I found some fish on the jig north of the bridge. I drifted off the spot and started the engine to reposition. There was a very strong outgoing which had some crab pot floats pulled almost under. When I made the turn, I hooked one which wound around the prop and killed the engine. No problem, I'll just reach out and pull it off. This is where things started heading south.
The line was wound around the prop too tightly, so I needed a knife. I could barely reach back to the prop, and wouldn't you know it, I dropped my knife on the first try. I looked around and the only thing I had to cut with now was my braid scissors. I don't know if the current got stronger or the waves got higher, but the crab trap was holding fast and this time when I reached out to try and cut the line I took water over the stern. I tried again, thinking I could maybe saw the line into before taking too much water. The water came rushing in so fast I had to stop right away. Worse still, the extra water in the boat had lowered the transom now so that waves were starting to splash over. ****.
This was quickly turning into a survival issue. I got up on the bow with Crockett, pulled out my flares and put on my life jacket then started going over my options. Even sitting on the bow I was getting a little water over on bigger waves and I knew my little bilge pump wouldn't keep up. Figured I had about 20 minutes. I made a survival plan when - thank god - another little boat came chugging up from the bridge.
After I flagged them down and got cut loose, I started wondering what I could've done differently. Of course, the primary thing would've been stay away from the crab pot, but I honestly didn't see it. That boat is too little to be out in anything but dead calm, so I guess that was a mistake since things change so quickly. You can bet I'll always have a back-up filet knife with a lanyard handy from now on.
I stayed with the fish, footballs up to 28" tonight, bottom bouncing Strike King Zulus because there are still blues around, nothing on top-water, but dang, that was a little more excitement than I hoped for!
I went out to the bridge in my jon boat tonight for a few minutes of fishing before dark. It was a little windy, but not too bad. I found some fish on the jig north of the bridge. I drifted off the spot and started the engine to reposition. There was a very strong outgoing which had some crab pot floats pulled almost under. When I made the turn, I hooked one which wound around the prop and killed the engine. No problem, I'll just reach out and pull it off. This is where things started heading south.
The line was wound around the prop too tightly, so I needed a knife. I could barely reach back to the prop, and wouldn't you know it, I dropped my knife on the first try. I looked around and the only thing I had to cut with now was my braid scissors. I don't know if the current got stronger or the waves got higher, but the crab trap was holding fast and this time when I reached out to try and cut the line I took water over the stern. I tried again, thinking I could maybe saw the line into before taking too much water. The water came rushing in so fast I had to stop right away. Worse still, the extra water in the boat had lowered the transom now so that waves were starting to splash over. ****.
This was quickly turning into a survival issue. I got up on the bow with Crockett, pulled out my flares and put on my life jacket then started going over my options. Even sitting on the bow I was getting a little water over on bigger waves and I knew my little bilge pump wouldn't keep up. Figured I had about 20 minutes. I made a survival plan when - thank god - another little boat came chugging up from the bridge.
After I flagged them down and got cut loose, I started wondering what I could've done differently. Of course, the primary thing would've been stay away from the crab pot, but I honestly didn't see it. That boat is too little to be out in anything but dead calm, so I guess that was a mistake since things change so quickly. You can bet I'll always have a back-up filet knife with a lanyard handy from now on.
I stayed with the fish, footballs up to 28" tonight, bottom bouncing Strike King Zulus because there are still blues around, nothing on top-water, but dang, that was a little more excitement than I hoped for!
