Getting Older

[Ghostshad]

I was wondering last summer i finally fell out of my boat, i have bad knees & they finally gave way on me. i bought a Auto LifeVest & now i wear it all the time. I'll be 63 in 9 days & i was wondering if other people my age was not as steady in the boat as they once was. I know i'm gonna be a lot more cautious than i have been , maybe not as many rods under my feet & hold on a lot more. I wanta Thank God He took care of me one more time . Getting Old Sucks .  GodBless & Thanks

[Way2slow]

Well, I've got a few on you, I turn 69 in Jun, but my body feels like it will be turning 109.   I've always had a bad back, just didn't know it, and the stupid stuff I did when young didn't help.  Stuff like picking up Ford and Chevy V8 motors and sitting them in and out of the bed of pickups.  Picking up the back end (the motor end, not the front end) of VW bugs showing off.  I was just a dumb country boy, built like an ox (when I turned 15, I was 6'1, weighed 185 and pure muscle) and didn't know any limits on how much I could lift.  My calves were like tree trunks and had a hard time finding pants that fit in the waist my legs would go in.  I usually had to buy larger sizes and have the waist taken up a few inches.  At 16, I had a 33" waist , a 44" chest with a well defined six pack for a stomach, not many dared mess with me in school,  definitely didn't worry about no school bullies.  Today, my back is paying me back with overtime added in.  I haven't had any surgery on it "yet" but it's looking like it won't be long.  For the past three days, I've barely been able to walk after a couple hours of picking up pecans the other day.

Throw in the arthritis in my hands, neck, back, knees and my old body is just about worn out.  I just had basal joint surgery on my left hand, and I'm left handed, where they went in a took out a bone at the base of the thumb and need to have the right hand done when I regain enough use of my left.  Cortisone in the knees has helped them some for now.   A couple of stints in the heart and loosing 60 pounds, from 215 to 165 afterwards, my skinny butt was smaller than when I was 14.  Which I have gone back to 180 now, I was about to dry up and blow away with all that healthy eating so I've added some of the junk foods back in to gain some weight back.

I've quit just jumping in the boat from the dock and started stepping over into it while being careful and holding on when there's something to hold on to.

[Catt]

65 yrs old in ten days

Ruptured discs, torn ligaments, sciatic nerve damage in the lower back.

Rheumatoid arthritis in knees, elbows, wrist, fingers & neck.

Aint slept more than 4 hrs at a time in 12 yrs, I go from laying, to sitting, to standing constantly.

Had to make adjustments in every part of my life not just fishing

But with God's grace I aint had surgery, don't plan on having surgery, & aint on pain meds!

[Goose52]

I'm 64 and I've had balance issues for several years now - it's just part of the aging process. All of us need to be aware of the changes that occur as we get older and compensate as best we can.  I still stand the entire time that I'm in my canoe, but I have to keep the back of my legs braced against the canoe thwart to stay steady. I've always worn a PFD 100% of the time that I'm on the water so I've always had that covered. I have to be careful fishing from the bank along uneven or sloped shorelines and have fallen several times doing things that were no problem when I was younger.  I just generally now try to be more careful and move slower if necessary whenever balance might be an issue.

NOW, speaking of falling out of the boat...are all of us somewhat older folks confident that we can get BACK INTO the boat if we've fallen out? As we age, upper body strength diminishes and it may be difficult to reboard,  especially since you are now wearing heavy, water-soaked clothes, and may be cold from the immersion. Everyone should think this through and have a reboarding plan - use the motor, install a boarding ladder, whatever. 

Assess, adapt, and overcome...

[Way2slow]

Catt, if I ever sleep more than I few hours without have to get up and move around some, I'll know I've done passed into the land of ever after.

As for getting back into the boat.  Five years ago, a year after having my heart stint, I tried and could get back in my boat from either side rather easily, this past summer, after being retired for six years and not a physically active as before,  the only way I could get back in it was to use the motor to lift. 

If you cold weather fish, you have to be extra careful.  I have put on my cold weather gear and dove in.  That stuff weighs a ton when it gets soaked and those thermal boots made it hard to get in, even using the motor to lift me, and that was in warm water.  I felt even it cold water, it was still doable but not something I would look forward to doing.  I have never deliberately dove into frigid water just to try getting back into the boat, and hope I never have to, but you have to figure, it's going to be a hellavalot harder than warm water.

[Yakalong]

I've thought about having a bunch of rods laying on the deck and just waiting to trip over them.  But I also know I will be mad if I don't have that one rod I need like right now at my finger tip when needed. So the question of safety or being able to grab that rod fast, right now I'm still "waiting" to fall in.

["hamma"]

Funny you should post this, I was just talking with my GF last night about this very subject.

 With 2 degenerated disc's, and a pulled muscle in my hip/butt applying constant pressure on my right legs sciatic nerve, and the discs at the same time. Im not only consistently heavily medicated,with opiods, mind altering drugs,and muscle relaxers,.(which accounts for my long winded posts I believe).. but also receiving cortisone shots regularly. (more monday am) I pretty much spend my time off my feet, in bed. Not that I mind this site to spend alot of my time on, because I actually feel grateful its there for me to divert my attention from pain, to something I truly love,....fishing. Although I do have the drugs? they only do so much

 But,... not being able to go fish by myself on the boat anymore is quite a bit more debilitating than I had anticipated. I figured that some of the younger guys that dont have a boat would be willing to get out off the shores and fish the whole lake instead of just the public accesses. But thats not the case.

 I am grateful for the 2 guys I have met on this site that I have fished with. They both not only offered me a chance to get out and fish. But also proved to me that there truly is still some "real" people out there. With morals, decentcey, and integrity.,.. I see my kids, and my girfriends kids, and wonder where this world is headed, But I digress.

 Im ten years the op's junior and definately dont have the sea legs I once had, I dont cover my decks with rods as I once did, I sit nowadays when just a couple years ago I'd stand and run my trolling motor. And worse of all is I can't just decide to fish and go. My basshunter sits in the yard collecting leaves as I cant  be lifting its bow into the truck anymore. And to fish off the tracker I "need" another person with me as I cant climb over the bow after getting it back on its trailer., to pull the truck and trailer out of the water

 With the injuries I have, I actually "HAD" to re-power the boats manual steer, and trim, tiller motor,.. to a electric start, electric steer, newer, tiller motor.,... And the older power drive trolling motor? I used to manually stow and deploy? gone too,.. as the pain I endure stowing it was too much to make fishing worth while, and it was replaced with the i-pilot link minn kota ulterra, and intergrating humminbird helix 9  di si gps finder up front. I love these new "toys" but they are a requirement now as without them? I fear I wouldnt be fishing at all anymore, And thats just not a option.,..lol. The ulterra tm will deploy and stow with the touch of a button, and I can run, steer, and stop it with a remote control,.... and I have to believe the good lord, and Minn Kota,... provided me with this option as my only salvation..

 Yeah, luckily,.. things timed out for me just right, and I do believe things happen for a reason. I wasnt riding my Harley anymore, and wasnt fishing either as I couldnt physically run the boats anymore, so I sold the bike, to pay for the "upgrades" I needed to at least offer chances, to fish off my tracker,.. which worked out well.

Now,... I have spent the last year and a half in extreme pain, 95% of the time in bed. Without the options and actions taken within that time, I would be one miserable, angry, and bitter, landlocked bass angler.  But, just knowing the upgrades are now in place? Eases my outlook for future fishing ventures,...

  Bass Resource has been a huge help, in a few ways, as I can spend much of my time with my mind on my bass fishing techniques, tactics, and experiences I have acquired over the years, and share them, other than just laying here grovelling in pain. I have had the priveledge to meet the 2 guys that offered fishing ventures I would not have had otherwise. And to be honest.. being able to help some newer anglers, answer some questions, and just being able to discuss bass fishing stuff, with like minded, or even better, anglers with different views. Is an incredible opportunity for any angler to have at their fingertips.

 I cant thank you all, especially Glenn and the mods here enough. Getting older does bite, but we do have a venue here that can ease the pains of going even greyer haired, wrinkly, and bored. 

 In my mind? this site and you guys rock. Even enough to make one feel younger than we truly are.

 Now be careful and go fish as long as you can, I know I will till the day the good lord decides my time here is done. Pain and mobility may hinder, but the true bass angler looks, and rises above that, and finds a way, just like seeking our quarry, when they dont seem agreeable.

[Ghostshad]

Sounds like we aught to go fishing together & keep a eye on each other. I ve had 2 back surgery, bad knees,ive had the shots in my knees ,shots in my back & even tried stim cell shots in my knees, can't hardly bend over ,can't close either hand, I take 4 pain pills a day for my knees, and i sleep some but i take 2 prescription sleeping pills & 2 over the counter & drink 1 beer at night,i can't sleep at all without drinking 1 beer .Ive come to the point in my life that i think i'm meant to hurt. Sorry to hear were all broke down,ive always said if i was a horse they would shoot me. ive started to wonder if i should stop fishing but its all i got left,but one thing for sure i'll have that Auto Life Vest on .That Auto Life Vest is about the only thing ive bought for fishing that the wife didn't fuss about,but i did fall out of my boat & that didn't feel good.  ThankGod were all still alive . Thanks for answering 

Well i have to Admit when i got back in the boat,i also used the trim, first thing i did was count my rods & i felt a lot better they was all there, ThankGod because those things are expensive . Getting Old Sucks, The Bible says we'll get a new body,i just hope this one last that long.

[Bill B.]

I'm 62 and dealing with balance issues that came on suddenly last spring. I can no longer get into my kayaks without immediately flipping them over, and I have a terrible time trying to walk over uneven ground. I ordered a set of pontoons for my kayaks, and they got here last week. Haven't tried them out, yet.

[Scott F]

I'm 61, and just had back surgery, but compared to you other old geezers, I feel like a teenager!    I can see the limitations on my aging body so much so that I had to retire recently while I'm still relatively healthy.  If I went back to work I'd soon be only able to fish from a lawn chair. 

[Fishing Rhino]

You guys make me even more grateful.  I'm 75 and able to fish independently with either my canoe or Nitro Z-8.  Don't mind driving long distances. I've slowed down and don't have the stamina I once did, but I'm relatively pain free.  Had two knee surgeries over the past seven or eight years to trim torn menisci in both knees.

The orthopedic surgeon told me over a year ago that I have severe arthritis in my right knee, no cartilage, bone on bone.  I still walk around normally and have no pain when walking or moving.  When I lie on my side, it will sometimes bind.  Still, I can free it up by rolling onto my back or stomach.  It clunks a little when it goes back into place, but isn't painful.  Maybe it's a no sense, no feeling thing.

The doc say when it starts to bother me he'll do a cortisone injection.  When it gets to the point that doesn't help he'll replace the knee joint. 

Hamma, we'll have to get together next year.  There is one exceptional pond down here, less than five minutes from my doorstep.  There is a public launch but to get to the pond you're better off with a plastic or aluminum boat that you don't mind denting up a bit.  Canoes, and kayaks are the majority of boats that are used.  There's a couple of guys that have aluminum bass boats that manage to negotiate the winding rocky channel to the main pond.  I've only seen a jet ski on the pond once in the past five years.  Haven't seen a party barge.  No water skiers.  No wake boarders. 

Largemouth, smallmouth, pickerel, crappy yellow perch etc.  There is either structure, and or cover on every square foot of bottom, and plenty of forage.

My canoe with the trolling motor has swivel seats fore and aft with back rests. 

 

["hamma"]

 Sounds good to me Tom,.I'll send you a pm.

Hope all goes well with the knee! and when its gets to the cortizone era? you'll welcome the shots, they work wonders for me.

Heal well Scott, Ive heard many good things from back surgeries, as long as you dont overdue things right after.

Careful out there Bill, balance issues? kayaks? I get the pontoons thing and good idea, but did you ever consider a bass raider? very stable platform to fish from.

 And Ghostshad? Id have no problem fishing with you, or any other Bass Resource member. And even better? you live in Tenn. its a heck of a commute, but I just loved fishing wilson and pickwick on the TVA chain,....lol

As the posts title is "Getting Older" our bodies may be feeling the effects of the torture we put them through over the years. But our bass fishing tenacity proves that we all have one thing in common, and I believe that to be,... we may be getting older, but we aint dead yet, and Im pretty sure we all will fish, till we are,..... 

  I may be the youngest so far in this thread, and can only imagine the detrimental damages you all have put your physical well being through. As for me? heck Im surprised I still wake up every morning, and thank the lord I do, for I didnt expect to live past 45 or 50 considering the lifestyle I dragged my vessel through. But it will be a cold day in hell, when a doc tells me I cant fish anymore and I heed his warning. And although my girlfriend would never tell me I cant fish,(yet another reason I love her so) even her or my kids aint gunna deter me from doing so, cuz they know what my answer will be,.

.Id rather croak while out fishing then be prohibited from it!

 Someone once said to me "Motorcycles are dangerous, you can die riding one of those things" my reply? "Then I'll die doing what I love!"

[Way2slow]

Shoot, at age 60, I still felt like a teenager.  As for the back pain and arthritis in back neck and ribs etc, I was diagnosed with ankylosing spondylitis when I was 28, so I learned to live with that.  I didn't even start needing glasses, and that was only for reading, until I was 56.   I retired from the military at 50 and was still running five miles a day, three days a week.  I spent most of my time in special duty assignments, playing GI Joe big time.  I went through Ranger School and trained a couple of years with the Special Forces, and I was Air Force, but was also heavily involved with a mobile nuclear missile program they had. 

After retiring from the AF, I worked on industrial equipment until 2011, Then I got my heart stint for a birthday present and retired a couple months after that.  That's when my body starting paying me back for all the h^^l I've put it through up to then.  Five kidney stones, two stints and one angioplasty gallbladder remove, lower hernia's on both sides repair, three spots on my lugs, cataract surgery in my right eye, deaf for any frequencies above 5Khz, and some hearing loss below that.  Arthritis in my hands so bad, the left is almost useless, nerve damage in my legs so bad I can't even tell when my shoe comes off at times, and can keep on listing.

However, as bad as body is getting, I still think getting old is better than not getting older.

[Catt]

@Way2slow kidney stone hurt me worst than anything!

Ain't as good as I once was, gone are the days of fishing 14-16 hr a day.

Put entry fees or bragging rights on the line & I'm as good once as I ever was!

@Way2slow

Edited December 10, 2016 by Catt
Operator error

[Fishes in trees]

When I first got my current boat (2002), it occurred to me that I fished alone a lot and I could fall out of the boat.    So I practiced one day in a shallow cove, jumping out of the boat and getting back into it.   I recommend this as a mid-summer activity.   Fast forward 6 years later and I was fishing in March in 42 degree water and it was windy and just for a moment I turned and was off balance and at that instance the wind blew harder and sent my boat sideways into a stump and over the side I went.

It was pretty clear water and looking up and seeing the bottom of your boat over your head is a strange experience.  At that point adrenaline kicked in, legs started working and in a moment I was hanging on the side of the boat.   A couple of minutes later I was back in the boat, the practice getting back into the boat paid off.  Half an hour later, I was back at the ramp, changed into clean warm dry clothes and I could think about how close a call I'd just had.

Point of this story is about how important preparation is.   I'd considered that I might fall out of the boat and had a plan on how to get back into it.   (I used the tilt/trim to lift me up and then I rolled onto the back deck).  Just as important I had spare weather appropriate clothes to change into back in the truck.   Driving my boat back to the ramp (which took 20 minutes or so) was a little chilly, to say the least.  I keep a couple of space blankets in the boat bins now,  at the time, that would have stopped the wind quite a bit.   I was shivering quite a bit before I got the cold wet clothes off of me and the clean dry clothes on.  10 minutes after the dry clothes were on, I was warm and fine.

[Way2slow]

Fishes in trees, I make the plunge every few years.  Also, going by your screen name, when you make a cast like that in my boat, you can expect a comment like "I thought we were fishing, not squirrel hunting" or be asked if you are squirrel hunting.

[Skeeter Dan]

On ‎12‎/‎9‎/‎2016 at 2:06 PM, Ghostshad said:

I was wondering last summer i finally fell out of my boat, i have bad knees & they finally gave way on me. i bought a Auto LifeVest & now i wear it all the time. I'll be 63 in 9 days & i was wondering if other people my age was not as steady in the boat as they once was. I know i'm gonna be a lot more cautious than i have been , maybe not as many rods under my feet & hold on a lot more. I wanta Thank God He took care of me one more time . Getting Old Sucks .  GodBless & Thanks

You are not alone. I'll be 63 in may.  I had neck surgery back in May 2010 .  since then I have no balance. I've had to quit riding my motor cycle. WHY  ? NO BALANCE !  I bought my want a be Bass boat in 2013. I have  always been sure footed in a boat. Hell I was raised in a boat. I water skied since I was 6. Played all kinds of sports. I had Great Balance !!!  but now days stepping off a dock in to my boat or walking from the seat up to the front and lowering the trolling I feel like I might fall in. So I'm waiting for that day to happen.  When it does happen I just hope the water temp isn't lower than 50 % F .

On ‎12‎/‎10‎/‎2016 at 5:23 AM, Goose52 said:

I'm 64 and I've had balance issues for several years now - it's just part of the aging process. All of us need to be aware of the changes that occur as we get older and compensate as best we can.  I still stand the entire time that I'm in my canoe, but I have to keep the back of my legs braced against the canoe thwart to stay steady. I've always worn a PFD 100% of the time that I'm on the water so I've always had that covered. I have to be careful fishing from the bank along uneven or sloped shorelines and have fallen several times doing things that were no problem when I was younger.  I just generally now try to be more careful and move slower if necessary whenever balance might be an issue.

NOW, speaking of falling out of the boat...are all of us somewhat older folks confident that we can get BACK INTO the boat if we've fallen out? As we age, upper body strength diminishes and it may be difficult to reboard,  especially since you are now wearing heavy, water-soaked clothes, and may be cold from the immersion. Everyone should think this through and have a reboarding plan - use the motor, install a boarding ladder, whatever. 

Assess, adapt, and overcome...

My fat a## will have to use the motor and trim button .

[hunterPRO1]

is it possible to mount a seat on the front ? 

[Ghostshad]

Sounds like we aught to go fishing together & keep a eye on each other. I ve had 2 back surgery, bad knees,ive had the shots in my knees ,shots in my back & even tried stim cell shots in my knees, can't hardly bend over ,can't close either hand, I take 4 pain pills a day for my knees, and i sleep some but i take 2 prescription sleeping pills & 2 over the counter & drink 1 beer at night,i can't sleep at all without drinking 1 beer .Ive come to the point in my life that i think i'm meant to hurt. Sorry to hear were all broke down,ive always said if i was a horse they would shoot me. ive started to wonder if i should stop fishing but its all i got left,but one thing for sure i'll have that Auto Life Vest on .That Auto Life Vest is about the only thing ive bought for fishing that the wife didn't fuss about,but i did fall out of my boat & that didn't feel good.  ThankGod were all still alive . Thanks for answering 

[Ghostshad]

A friend of mine told me about using the trim on the big motor , i never would of thought of it , but i never forgot it. And yes falling in & sinking & having to swim back up to the top of the water is Very Scary ,Thank God i kelp my train of thought on what to do. And this is a great Forum to talk about this , I hope this topic will help someone else when they fall in.  GodBless & keep Your Loving Hands around us & keep us safe & free from Harm.  Thank You Lord

[WRB]

This thread sounds like the organ recital I hear every time friends drop in to visit.

Getting old isn't for sissies and doesn't get better with time, but is a state of mind.

Boating safety is critical and everyone should be prepared for emergencies like falling overboard.

Cold weather slows you down especially as you get older and easy to trip or loose your balance, so be careful. 

Having fallen into cold winter water due to trolling motor error on my part I know from experience how difficult it is to get back into the boat. What I do is use a dock tie rope with loops on both ends and leave it on a rear cleat. The tie down rope makes a good step with both ends attached to the cleat use the rope loop as a stirrup step to get back into the boat. You can also use the rope along with the big engine cavitation plate. When you are wet in heavy clothing it's very difficult to get back into a boat alone! Think ahead and be prepared.

I am 73 walk 3 miles every other day, trailer my boat and fish alone or with a partner often. You got to keep moving and stretch everyday to keep the joints working. I feel good, my bones not so good with several surgeries from spinal fusion,both shoulders repaired and bad hips...you can't let limitations stop what you like to do.

Tom

 

[Wayne P.]

Getting back in the boat was discussed on another forum about adding a ladder.

You need something to PULL you onto the deck no matter what method you use to elevate yourself.

 

[A-Jay]

 

I fish alone a lot.  My Lund has a built in ladder that pulls out of the hull.

Hope I never have to use it.

A-Jay

[WRB]

Triton boats, some models, have or had a similar biult in ladder step at the transom.

Someday when it's warm and you have a passenger to help try falling out of the boat and getting back in with clothing and shoes, could save your life.

Tom

[A-Jay]

11 minutes ago, WRB said:

Triton boats, some models, have or had a similar biult in ladder step at the transom.

Someday when it's warm and you have a passenger to help try falling out of the boat and getting back in with clothing and shoes, could save your life.

Tom

I will Tom - Probably should have done it already.  During a "warm water period" I'll do a video of an in water re-entry & post it.

Should be interesting.  Fortunately,  I'm still in at least average physical condition for my age so we'll see how it goes.

On the other hand, my Metal condition has been in question for some time now . . . .

A-Jay