MIBowhunter
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Caution should be the name of the game for all anglers
By Herb Boldt / Associated Press
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Just when you think the ice is gone from the lakes and rivers and winter is over, something happens to make you think again.
A friend, anxious to get the boating season started, reports that he trailered his boat to the Au Sable River at the Cooke Dam site to fish for bluegills.
He smiled when he saw the water backed up behind the dam rippling across the fairly large lake behind the dam. There were no other cars there, and he patiently went through his checklist before launching his 14-foot boat.
He smiled some more when the motor fired up on the third pull, and he let it warm up a few minutes before pulling away from the dock.
Jack (I’ll leave the rest of his name out for this writing) motored to a location where he and I have taken bluegills in the 11- to 12-inch range in years gone by.
He told me he had several bluegill bites and caught a number of 6-inchers.
“I was catching a fish now and then and for the first trip out I was really enjoying myself,” he told me. “But like you, I pay attention to what is going on around me, and I glanced up river every once in a while.
“That’s when I noticed a large -- no huge -- chunk of ice coming down the river, and I began measuring the distance between it and me. Ten minutes later, I pulled anchor and headed for the launch site.
“By the time I got to the dock, the ice was coming around the corner, and I yanked the boat out when the ice was about 50 yards from shore.”
He told me he took his time readying the boat on the trailer and while he was doing that two other boaters arrived.
“I told them how long it took to go around the corner to the dock and advised them they should forget fishing for another day.
“Ten minutes later they launched their boat and began motoring upstream. The last I saw of them they were heading around the corner and breaking ice with their oars.”
My friend said he checked on the second guy who decided to launch his boat below the dam and met him as he was pulling his boat out the water at the access site below the dam.
“The guy told me it was too shallow to launch and retrieve his boat by himself. I helped him load his boat on the trailer and went home -- fishless.”
Why do I relate my friend’s account of his recent fishing trip?
The answer is simple: By retelling what he told me I hope to make anglers more cautious and possibly have a little something to do with saving some fishermen who act without thinking of possible circumstances.
Because I do what I do, I’m frequently out in the woods or on the water alone. If I make a misstep, there is no one to come to my aid. It’s the type of life that makes one think before acting.
Here are a few safety tips to file away in your head.
I’ll start with the morel mushroom picking season which will be upon us in no time.
Whenever possible go with a friend who can help in any emergency.
Even if you are going to pick the succulent morsels from land you are familiar with, take a compass and check the direction you to have to travel in to come out on the road where you left your vehicle.
Maps of many areas are available in sports stores around the state. Buy one for the area you will be hunting, checking morels or whatever.
Every section in any forest may have changed since the last time you visited the area. Trees get uprooted, a small creek dries up or there’s been some construction or new motor trails made since your last visit.
I also carry a cell telephone with me so that I can summon help if I get lost, break a leg or get stuck in some heavy muck.
I always wear a life vest when I’m alone in a boat. I never stand in a small boat because if you lose your balance, you may be in the water as quick as the wink of an eye. And remember there’s a shock to your system when you enter cold water.
That’s enough safety for now.
More later.
By Herb Boldt / Associated Press
Comment on this story
Send this story to a friend
Get Home Delivery
Just when you think the ice is gone from the lakes and rivers and winter is over, something happens to make you think again.
A friend, anxious to get the boating season started, reports that he trailered his boat to the Au Sable River at the Cooke Dam site to fish for bluegills.
He smiled when he saw the water backed up behind the dam rippling across the fairly large lake behind the dam. There were no other cars there, and he patiently went through his checklist before launching his 14-foot boat.
He smiled some more when the motor fired up on the third pull, and he let it warm up a few minutes before pulling away from the dock.
Jack (I’ll leave the rest of his name out for this writing) motored to a location where he and I have taken bluegills in the 11- to 12-inch range in years gone by.
He told me he had several bluegill bites and caught a number of 6-inchers.
“I was catching a fish now and then and for the first trip out I was really enjoying myself,” he told me. “But like you, I pay attention to what is going on around me, and I glanced up river every once in a while.
“That’s when I noticed a large -- no huge -- chunk of ice coming down the river, and I began measuring the distance between it and me. Ten minutes later, I pulled anchor and headed for the launch site.
“By the time I got to the dock, the ice was coming around the corner, and I yanked the boat out when the ice was about 50 yards from shore.”
He told me he took his time readying the boat on the trailer and while he was doing that two other boaters arrived.
“I told them how long it took to go around the corner to the dock and advised them they should forget fishing for another day.
“Ten minutes later they launched their boat and began motoring upstream. The last I saw of them they were heading around the corner and breaking ice with their oars.”
My friend said he checked on the second guy who decided to launch his boat below the dam and met him as he was pulling his boat out the water at the access site below the dam.
“The guy told me it was too shallow to launch and retrieve his boat by himself. I helped him load his boat on the trailer and went home -- fishless.”
Why do I relate my friend’s account of his recent fishing trip?
The answer is simple: By retelling what he told me I hope to make anglers more cautious and possibly have a little something to do with saving some fishermen who act without thinking of possible circumstances.
Because I do what I do, I’m frequently out in the woods or on the water alone. If I make a misstep, there is no one to come to my aid. It’s the type of life that makes one think before acting.
Here are a few safety tips to file away in your head.
I’ll start with the morel mushroom picking season which will be upon us in no time.
Whenever possible go with a friend who can help in any emergency.
Even if you are going to pick the succulent morsels from land you are familiar with, take a compass and check the direction you to have to travel in to come out on the road where you left your vehicle.
Maps of many areas are available in sports stores around the state. Buy one for the area you will be hunting, checking morels or whatever.
Every section in any forest may have changed since the last time you visited the area. Trees get uprooted, a small creek dries up or there’s been some construction or new motor trails made since your last visit.
I also carry a cell telephone with me so that I can summon help if I get lost, break a leg or get stuck in some heavy muck.
I always wear a life vest when I’m alone in a boat. I never stand in a small boat because if you lose your balance, you may be in the water as quick as the wink of an eye. And remember there’s a shock to your system when you enter cold water.
That’s enough safety for now.
More later.
