Boating fear has ruined fishing

[Daniel Blakeman]

To preface this, I have been wanting / saving on and off for nearly two decades to finally reward myself with a bass boat of my own.  I was raised fishing on a small canoe, then a 12" aluminum deep V by my older brother who I lost a few years ago to a car accident.  Thousands of hours at all hours of the night and day fishing largemouth.  To honor his memory, I bought a boat two weeks ago, named it in his memory, and have made a few trips out onto the central Florida lakes (Newnans, Orange).

I have spent more time trying to manage the boat and being afraid of it drifting into weeds that I can't get out of than fishing.  I took my wife and son out with me and helped them try to fish and the whole thing was miserable.  I'm now on my 5th outing, multiple hours, and not a fish in the boat.

 

I am starting to feel disinterested in even taking it out.  I'm more afraid of damaging the boat or making a rookie mistake like those posted here and on Youtube and becoming the brunt of someone else's humor.  I'm not made of money and the boat represents a monster investment for me but the dream and hope of getting one is feeling smashed and I'm starting to feel like a completely fraudulent bass fisherman.  

I post this to hope that someone has some encouragement or something else to share to help me want to go back out.

[paleus]

It's gonna get scratched no matter how much you baby it. It's a tool to catch fish. I'm not saying just run it into everything, but maybe worry a little less about getting it a little scratched. 

 

Fish into the wind so the wind blows you off the bank instead of into it. 

 

It just takes practice, just like anything else, to get good at managing the boat and fishing at the same time.  You'll figure it out. 

 

Find a spot and put your anchor out and fish and not worry about the boat. 

 

Fish on days with little or no wind. 

 

You should have an anchor and line on board always, in case you lose power. 

[schplurg]

Sounds like you need an anchor. Power Poles would be nifty, but a good ol' anchor works well.

 

Cool boat. Hey also some things just take a little time to get used to. First time I casted a baitcaster wasn't fun. But now I'm sort of okay with one hehe.

 

Give it more time. And get an anchor.

[slonezp]

Use it like you stole it. Lost my brother almost 20 years ago. Hasn't stopped me.

[Maggiesmaster]

Don’t worry about scratches or dings! I fish with two guys who are like that.  Their boats are immaculate, but they’re always worrying.....my boat has scratches, but I have fun!

[Jaderose]

First thing you do?  Relax.  It's gonna get dinged and scratched and beat up.  It's called using it!  Others mentioned an anchor.  Use one.  You'll get the hang of it and look back at this and laugh. 

 

 

and btw...no one is laughing at you.  We've all been there.  We've all forgotten plugs or didn't charge batteries or gotten good and hung up on a stump.  Life happens.  You learn from it and move on 

 

Ok...I've been thinking about this......Couple of things to try.  1.)  Ditch the wife and kids..lol.  I don't mean literally, of course, but instead of the fam take out a buddy that is proficient with a boat.  Go out with the idea of working the boat.  2.)  Go out and work the boat.  Plan a day with NO fishing.  Just boat handling.  Again, without the wife and kids.

 

[Daniel Blakeman]

Maybe to clarify - I think I'm more afraid of getting stuck in a weed bed and unable to propel out of it or otherwise disabling the boat and stranding me and/or my family in some random corner of a 12,000 acre lake.  I know the boat will get dinged up, I expect that.  

 

It's a largely irrational fear, but did anyone else experience this?

[Jaderose]

2 minutes ago, Daniel Blakeman said:

Maybe to clarify - I think I'm more afraid of getting stuck in a weed bed and unable to propel out of it or otherwise disabling the boat and stranding me and/or my family in some random corner of a 12,000 acre lake.  I know the boat will get dinged up, I expect that.  

 

It's a largely irrational fear, but did anyone else experience this?

You're not going to get stuck.  You WILL get out of any weedbed.  I managed to get myself caught up in ridiculous hydrilla just today in a bass raider with 30 lb TM and I managed.  You WILL be fine

 

[A-Jay]

1 hour ago, Daniel Blakeman said:

To preface this, I have been wanting / saving on and off for nearly two decades to finally reward myself with a bass boat of my own.  I was raised fishing on a small canoe, then a 12" aluminum deep V by my older brother who I lost a few years ago to a car accident.  Thousands of hours at all hours of the night and day fishing largemouth.  To honor his memory, I bought a boat two weeks ago, named it in his memory, and have made a few trips out onto the central Florida lakes (Newnans, Orange).

I have spent more time trying to manage the boat and being afraid of it drifting into weeds that I can't get out of than fishing.  I took my wife and son out with me and helped them try to fish and the whole thing was miserable.  I'm now on my 5th outing, multiple hours, and not a fish in the boat.

 

I am starting to feel disinterested in even taking it out.  I'm more afraid of damaging the boat or making a rookie mistake like those posted here and on Youtube and becoming the brunt of someone else's humor.  I'm not made of money and the boat represents a monster investment for me but the dream and hope of getting one is feeling smashed and I'm starting to feel like a completely fraudulent bass fisherman.  

I post this to hope that someone has some encouragement or something else to share to help me want to go back out.

19 minutes ago, Daniel Blakeman said:

Maybe to clarify - I think I'm more afraid of getting stuck in a weed bed and unable to propel out of it or otherwise disabling the boat and stranding me and/or my family in some random corner of a 12,000 acre lake.  I know the boat will get dinged up, I expect that.  

 

It's a largely irrational fear, but did anyone else experience this?

 

Hello Daniel and Welcome to Bass Resource ~

Interesting first post.

Perhaps investing in something like this could help.

 

https://thesuperstick.com/

 

I use one and do find it to be quite an effective way to move my rig around 

in super skinny water. 

Fish Hard

A-Jay

 

[Way2slow]

As long as you don't ground it, it's not going to get stuck in weeds.  If they are extremely thick, you might have to pull the tm up so it's just skimming the top of the water to keep it from getting imbedded and clocking up but it should still pull you out.  It's going to make a bunch of ruckus and throwing water like crazy but it usually pull you through.   I used to fish the St. Johns river a lot for copper head bream, and kept a long pole in the boat to push my way though large patches of lily pads to get to open holes in the middle of them.  Even in a big, heavy, 20' glass boat, never once got stuck.   Might have lost a little religion cursing the dang things, but getting stuck was never a concern.

I purchase things to use them, boats are for fishing, not a lot of fish stay out in the middle of the lake, so I go into the place they want to stay in.  If it gets scratched, so be it, that's what I bought if for.  

That's like the people that buy the fancy four wheel drive trucks and Jeeps, then won't even drive through a mud hole because they are scared of getting it dirty.   

[mcipinkie]

Golf !!!

[Michigander]

Get a push pole if you're turbo worried about getting stuck. You'll be fine, sometimes it takes some work but you can get a boat out of some stupid situations with a little horsepower and a lot of determination. ?

[Deephaven]

1 hour ago, Way2slow said:

As long as you don't ground it, it's not going to get stuck in weeds.  If they are extremely thick, you might have to pull the tm up so it's just skimming the top of the water to keep it from getting imbedded and clocking up but it should still pull you out....

 

....Even in a big, heavy, 20' glass boat, never once got stuck.   

That was exactly me today.  Got too shallow, but the trolling motor shimmy got me out.

[paleus]

That would have to be a heck of a weed bed to get a boat stuck in. You can always get out and push. 

 

I have gotten my trolling motor stuck in the middle of a hollowed out stump. Like stuck stuck. Had to take my trolling motor out of the bracket so I could wiggle it loose. Was not fun. 

[E-rude dude]

Trim the big motor up and let it fly.

[Bubba 460]

This guy has some good advice...

 

 

[desmobob]

I bought a Tracker Pro170 very much like your new boat back in 2014.  It's been a pleasure to own.

 

I use it on Lake Champlain, "the sixth Great Lake," between NY and VT.  The lake is 120 miles long and the south end, where I'm at, is shallow with a mucky clay bottom and full of weeds.  In going on seven years, I've never been stuck in the weeds or mud and have never seen anyone else stuck in the weeds or mud (other than a sailboat with a deep keel who drifted out of a channel in one spot, but it wouldn't have happened with a modified V-hull).

 

It might ease your mind to carry a push pole, but the trolling motor will get you out of any shallow situation you could to get into.  You just may have to lift it a bit as mentioned by Way2slow.  

 

And if it's shallow enough to get stuck on the bottom or in the weeds, remember, as a last resort, you can always get out and push!

 

Take Jaderose's advice and spend a day or two on the water with an experienced boater to get some extra confidence.  Then, get out, catch some bass and have fun with your family!

 

 

[Way2slow]

Yea, if I took you a couple of times, you would either take me back to the ramp fairly quickly or show you how get around in most anything you can imagine.

A number of years back, Lake Falcon in south Texas had been down so long, heavy, tall brush had grown up in the back of several channels.  Then they had enough rain to actually raise it above full pool.  A couple of people had told me the bass had moved back into that stuff but you couldn't get your boat in there to fish it.   They were right about the bass having moved back into it, but they were wrong about not being able to get your boat back in there to fish it, I did.   The boat looked like my truck after a bird hunting trip after all the brush scratches down the sides, but that was some of the best fishing I have ever had.

[roadwarrior]

10 hours ago, slonezp said:

Use it like you stole it. 

[TnRiver46]

Every boat should have a paddle. If you get stuck in the muck or weeds, use the paddle to push out. 

[VolFan]

^ He’s right. I’m also a newer boat owner with the same anxiety. There’s nothing you can get it stuck in you can’t get it out of. You can clear weeds from your TM and outboard. If it beaches just get out and push it. Appropriate thrust vectors and linguistic encouragement will fix just about any boating situation within normal reason.

[BBuck]

11 hours ago, Daniel Blakeman said:

 honor his memory, I bought a boat two weeks ago, named it in his memory,

I believe your brother would want you to enjoy something that reminds you of him, not fear it. Honor your brother by enjoying your boat and don't worry about the rest. Nothing lasts forever, so do your best to take care of it and just have fun. Good luck!

[scaleface]

If the lakes are scaring you stay off large rivers . Those things are treacherous even if you know what you are doing . 

[Bolar]

10 hours ago, Daniel Blakeman said:

Maybe to clarify - I think I'm more afraid of getting stuck in a weed bed and unable to propel out of it or otherwise disabling the boat and stranding me and/or my family in some random corner of a 12,000 acre lake.  I know the boat will get dinged up, I expect that.  

 

It's a largely irrational fear, but did anyone else experience this?

 

What need to do is go out and get stuck.  You need to figure out how to get out and get on with fishing. 

 

Why are you getting stuck?  You have two things hanging off the boat reaching down to stop you.  Go out and get stuck.  Once your sure your not moving anymore trim up your big motor.  Next spin your trolling motor to speed 5.  Make your way out.  If you dial anything slower your run the risk of tangling with weeds. 

 

If that doesn't work, unplug the trolling motor and pull it up.  De-weed your trolling motor, lower it back down and plug back in.  Next pull the trolling motor up again with the cord, to where the blades are just below the surface of the water.  At speed 5 holding the motor below the surface of the water, steer your way out. 

 

This also works when you get too shallow, like when you get hung up on a rock at the waters edge. 

 

[HenryPF]

1. Boating is new to you - there are no stupid questions.

2. Fisherman are usually helpful, unless it comes to sharing their favorite fishing spot.

3. Like Short Fish says, get stuck on purpose, calm down and think it through.

4. You can read all you want and watch any video but it is much easier to have someone show you.

5. Unless you are actually on plane driving the boat flat out and beach it, you can get unstuck

6. Those weeds you worry about? If they were 100 yards wide, I fish in the middle of the heaviest weeds you think there is, out of a deep v boat.

 

Really, you are new, anyone available to show you how to do stuff? If I was at the dock and you approached me, I would take you out for hours and get rid of your worries. Even talking to someone to show you what to do on dry land helps.

 

Here is a great video of your worries - notice that the big motor is tilted up and the trolling motor is set shallow, your boat is pretty much exactly like the one in the video also.. Sorry facebook link.

 

https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=1983120395236820