Most embarrassing moments

[JediAmoeba]

What are yinz most embarrassing moments fishing?  

 

1st - Trout fishing some years ago I was using a brand new small inline bucktail.  The trout were slamming it...and I kept losing them.  I lost at least 15...a few times they would hit it, I would continue reeling and they would hit it again.  Frustrated, I snipped it off and grabbed it...I noticed I didnt feel any hooks and looked at it.  It didnt have one.  It had a split ring but no hook.  I put a hook on but the feeding frenzy had died down and I only caught one.

 

2nd - About 15 years ago I bought a new spinner bait and it had long skirt that covered the hook, which seemed pretty cool to me at the time.  I consider myself a pretty good spinnerbait fisherman and have great confidence with them.  I was fishing with a friend and we were throwing around pads and thick stuff.  My second cast I had a huge hit and tried to set the hook and it came flying out of its mouth and smacked the side of the aluminum boat.  I figured the bass must have engulfed the blades. A few casts later and I missed another one.  Over the next 30 minutes or so I missed 5 more as my frustration level and use of creative metaphors increased.  I wasn't using a trailer hook because of the thick vegetation but decided I needed to anyway...reached into the tackle bag and grabbed one. As I went to put it on the hook i discovered the hook had a clear plastic tube covering the hook point.  My friend never let me live that down.  

[Jermination]

I've thrown AT MINIMUM 3 pair of pliers into the lake while holding the unhooked fish in my other hand

[gim]

Launching the boat without putting the drain plug in seems to be a fairly common experience shared by most at some point.  I did it and went a couple miles out onto the lake before realizing it once.  My friend said there was some water in the bottom of the boat and it was a sunny day out so I realized what I had done.  I started the bilge, and it took probably 20 minutes before almost all the water got pumped out.  After I was done loading back up, the rest drained out when I removed the plug at the ramp.

 

Luckily I could reach around to the outside bottom of the transom to put the plug in while on the water because I have long arms.  Otherwise I would have continued taking on water and the outcome could have been much worse.

[sschrad]

Or you could have put the plug in from the inside of the boat!  ??

[TnRiver46]

2 hours ago, gimruis said:

Launching the boat without putting the drain plug in seems to be a fairly common experience shared by most at some point.  I did it and went a couple miles out onto the lake before realizing it once.  My friend said there was some water in the bottom of the boat and it was a sunny day out so I realized what I had done.  I started the bilge, and it took probably 20 minutes before almost all the water got pumped out.  After I was done loading back up, the rest drained out when I removed the plug at the ramp.

 

Luckily I could reach around to the outside bottom of the transom to put the plug in while on the water because I have long arms.  Otherwise I would have continued taking on water and the outcome could have been much worse.

 

2 hours ago, sschrad said:

Or you could have put the plug in from the inside of the boat!  ??

Nah, all you gotta do is hammer down on the throttle and it’ll run out the back! Just make sure to have a plan when you come off pad

[haggard]

* Pulled up the anchor to move to another spot, got up to speed and it felt sluggish, turned around to see anchor skipping across the lake chasing behind me. Apparently forgot to pull up the anchor.

 

* Tossed GoPro overboard to record whatever was at the bottom of the lake. Pulled up the GoPro to move to another spot. Motor wouldn't start. Windy day, got pushed into shore, climbed out of the boat to find GoPro tether wrapped around the prop. Apparently forgot to pull up the GoPro.

 

* Left rods in rod holders on the way back to camp, angled up and out over the transom. One of themå snagged a tree branch and took drag for about 300 ft. I didn't realize what had happened until I backed the boat up into the site and removed the rod. Followed the line under the trailer, the truck, down the driveway, along the road until I recovered the lure stuck in the tree. In the dark and pouring rain.

 

* Drain plug. You know the drill.

 

* Motored around a point to get into a cove, not at a ridiculous speed but well over headway speed. Knew the point was shallow so gave what I thought was adequate distance from shore. Yakking with my passenger who was sitting forward of the center console. I glance at the finder and see the bottom coming up... then coming up much faster. Realized this was Not Good and what was about to happen so throttled down fast while simultaneously tilting the motor up and trying to not throw passenger over the bow. The boat stopped just as some part of the underside barely kissed the bottom. Backed out of the area and then saw the shallow water marker and realized I was between it and the shore. Shame on me but a good lesson in distracted boating.

 

[Michigander]

When I started fishing tournaments, I didn't quite understand how to measure the fish and probably threw twenty or so keepers back before I was corrected. My fishing partner wasn't thrilled by this revelation, lol.

[GTN-NY]

I fished tournaments with a small club. For two years I won every tournament -12. I joined a bigger club for more competition. I got asked by a non-boater to be his partner at the old club. I was very cocky that morning at the boat launch. 
I got My butt handed to me. Big bag weights were coming in and all I had was 2 small bass. 

[Bluebasser86]

Flipping my kayak in front of a bunch of people during trout opener is up there pretty high.

 

This one is up there too.

 

[TnRiver46]

7 hours ago, Bluebasser86 said:

Flipping my kayak in front of a bunch of people during trout opener is up there pretty high.

 

This one is up there too.

 

Hahahah! Still caught him though 

[DanielG]

Belly ornament...

Out about a hour from home, I live on the lake and have electric motors. I pulled up a smallish bass and am holding him rather close while trying to get a rear treble hook out. He flips and the forward treble hook stabs me in the belly. I'm wearing a tshirt. The barb is in, no blood, no pain. I can't pull it out. I can't get it out of him at that angle. The fish is periodically flopping around. 

I have to stand to mosey home. I arrive with a bass hanging and flopping about on my belly. I've poured water on him to keep him alive. Don't ask me why, I just figured it's not his fault. But, if he died he'd stop moving. Eventually we come to an understanding. I need him to stop moving, he needs to live, so he calms down a bit and waits looking up at me with that big eye, curling his tail once and awhile. He's probably near death right.

At home I manage to yank the hook out without going to the ER (not fun), the fish dies. I bury him (her?) in the flower bed. He's destined to become a petunia.The wife still chuckles about it sometime. She says she has pictures. She blackmails me once and awhile.  Sigh.....

 

I've also hooked a new dobyns pole with a carudo reel in the middle ferrule while casting and javelined it over my head in what was a very good cast. Luckily the hook stayed hooked and I reeled it in. It's so weird to see that pole shoot out over the water though. It kinda happens in slow motion giving you time to have that 'sinking feeling'. Ya, pun intended....

[gim]

16 hours ago, sschrad said:

Or you could have put the plug in from the inside of the boat!  ??

 

It doesn't work that way.  Only screws in from the outside.

[Hawkeye21]

I flipped my kayak in the last hour of a tourney last year.  Not only was it embarrassing because it happened next to a young couple but I also had a bunch of my gear sink to the bottom of the lake.  Spent that last hour of the tourney trying to fish out as much gear as I could.

[PourMyOwn]

When I was 17 I was fishing in Southeastern Ohio with my cousin, throwing jigs to wood hidden near the bank. I lost a 5+ right at the boat when my line broke. I proceeded to unleash a tirade of the foulest words I could manage in a pretty loud voice. We hadn't seen a boat all day, so I felt like we were alone.

 

As we came around the corner, a Mennonite or Amish family was fishing the same bank. They heard every word. 

 

Now I rarely talk over a whisper while on the water, and I don't cuss much either.

[Spankey]

Falling out of the boat while acting like a fool was probably the worse. All was good, didn't break any of my stuff. Didn't loose the fish. Mid summer and was a bit refreshing but won't do that again. In about 7 feet of water. Paper stuff in my wallet get wrecked but that was the worse. 

[TnRiver46]

4 hours ago, PourMyOwn said:

When I was 17 I was fishing in Southeastern Ohio with my cousin, throwing jigs to wood hidden near the bank. I lost a 5+ right at the boat when my line broke. I proceeded to unleash a tirade of the foulest words I could manage in a pretty loud voice. We hadn't seen a boat all day, so I felt like we were alone.

 

As we came around the corner, a Mennonite or Amish family was fishing the same bank. They heard every word. 

 

Now I rarely talk over a whisper while on the water, and I don't cuss much either.

Been there done that! Fishing a marina full of houseboats and turns out there were two older ladies having coffee and cigarettes watching the sunrise sitting on the boat deck. I don’t remember what I said but it was certainly uncouth. 

[Michigander]

4 minutes ago, TnRiver46 said:

Been there done that! Fishing a marina full of houseboats and turns out there were two older ladies having coffee and cigarettes watching the sunrise sitting on the boat deck. I don’t remember what I said but it was certainly uncouth. 

Muttering to oneself is underrated. 

[N Florida Mike]

• Coming in last in a tournament on one of the lakes I knew better than most , if not all of the other fishermen.

• Any time I get hung in a tree with people around( which is the only time it ever seems to happen! )

• Hooking a trot line and thinking it was a big bass.

• Not putting the plug in the boat once and almost sinking.

• Losing a huge bass and then seeing folks on the bank watching intently  after hearing me yell in frustration.

• And once going bream fishing in the st Johns river with a friend and his dad. Before we had got far I knocked the cricket container over. You can imagine the outcome. Every few minutes would come another reminder. All day ?

Thats about it I think.?

[The Bassman]

Looking up at the back of a house and talking with a lady about her friendly St. Bernard as I walked into the pond.

[JediAmoeba]

22 hours ago, Michigander said:

When I started fishing tournaments, I didn't quite understand how to measure the fish and probably threw twenty or so keepers back before I was corrected. My fishing partner wasn't thrilled by this revelation, lol.

How were you measuring them?

[Michigander]

4 minutes ago, JediAmoeba said:

How were you measuring them?

I thought you had to hold them straight with the tail fanned out. Turns out you can collapse the tail!

[Sam]

Left the house at 3 AM to go to the Rappahannock River for a club tournament and while sitting in line with other boaters waiting to hit the ramp one of the other boaters walked up to me and said, "Sir, you are dragging something behind your boat."

 

When I walked to the back of the boat there was my orange extension cord that I used to charge the batteries. It had been torn in half. I had forgotten to unplug it from the boat and I dragged it 25 miles to the ramp. I keep it wrapped around the rear cleat when parked and charging the batteries so there was no damage to the Ranger.

 

When I got home I looked for damage to my garage door and house but nothing I could see other than the remaining part of the orange extension cord in the driveway.

 

Felt like a real dummy but now I always unplug the extension cord when I leave home.

[volzfan59]

As a little boy, my dad taught me to never brag.

 

Fast forward over 50 years, my old boss at Bass Pro Shops in Kodak, TN (Sevierville) quit to become a trout guide in the Smokey Mountains. He invited me to go on a trip. Johnny warned me about how slick the rocks were. I replied "I've been wading for trout and smallies for over 40 years and I've never fell in!" I promptly took about two steps and decided to lay down in the river!

 

Dad, I'm done bragging, lesson learned.

[DitchPanda]

I've done the while get to my spot grab my tackle bag out of my back seat...walk around open my tailgate... oh God forgot my rods at home

Don't know how embarrassing this is but painful for sure... Was reaching down to land a bass rod straining in one hand stretching down with the other one...fish shakes head throws bait and I get a spinnerbait hook under my thumb nail...had only been dating my girlfriend for a few months at that time and she got to see the real me..yeah so that was a good time

[Michigander]

12 minutes ago, DitchPanda said:

Don't know how embarrassing this is but painful for sure... Was reaching down to land a bass rod straining in one hand stretching down with the other one...fish shakes head throws bait and I get a spinnerbait hook under my thumb nail...had only been dating my girlfriend for a few months at that time and she got to see the real me..yeah so that was a good time

That's ok, when I started pitching jigs for the first time, one came flying back at me like a bullet, time slowed down, and I reached out and caught it. That was a fair amount of blood and shame.