The Widowmakers

[Mobasser]

Some of the better things I've learned about bass fishing came from older more experienced fisherman when I was young.                       One thing I was made aware of years ago were tall, dead, and rotting trees.                                 My partner called them widowmakers, and told me that these trees could be dangerous, especially in newer lakes, where they often line the banks.                            Some of these trees were 50 to 60 ft tall, and with the base of these trees either submerged or in and out of water during high water times, the base of the trunk becomes soft and rots quickly.                                                           With the wind that comes with springtime in many areas, it doesn't take much to uproot or snap these trees off, sending them into the lake, or at worse case, on top of a fishing boat slowly trolling along.                                      I've seen some of the big trees waiving around in the wind, but luckily have never had one break or land in the water.                           Since my partner told me this year's ago, I've always been aware of these widowmakers. They could cause serious bodily harm, or at worse be fatal.                          If your moving along a bank where tall trees are prevelent, scan the area ahead of you, and occasionally look up to be aware of what's going on. It could save damage to your boat and gear, and possibly save your life too.

[BrianMDTX]

I’ve been up a tree bowhunting and had a nearby tree simply fall down without warning. It’s enough to scare the living crap out of you. Trees near water are prone to falling for the reasons you mentioned. Good post. 

[MGF]

You've heard of the 4 'W's of picking a camp site? Wind, Wood, Water and Widowmakers. This has been taught for a very long time and widowmakers should be a concern whenever you're near trees.

[Log Catcher]

I heard a tree fall when I was fishing several years ago. There are places where there are big Sycamore trees leaning out at a 45 degree angle and you wonder what is holding them in place. I usually go around them instead of under them when I can.

[Black Hawk Basser]

We have a lot of cottonwoods around here.  They seem to take a dive very frequently. Anyone have to deal with these terrible things?  They ruin fishing in June with all the little fuzzies on your line, getting wrapped up in your spool.

[TheBasslayer]

18 minutes ago, Pickle_Power said:

We have a lot of cottonwoods around here.  They seem to take a dive very frequently. Anyone have to deal with these terrible things?  They ruin fishing in June with all the little fuzzies on your line, getting wrapped up in your spool.

Yeah, that isn't a good feeling when you get all of that cotton stuck in your line and sometimes in your spool.

[gim]

29 minutes ago, Pickle_Power said:

We have a lot of cottonwoods around here.  They seem to take a dive very frequently. Anyone have to deal with these terrible things?  They ruin fishing in June with all the little fuzzies on your line, getting wrapped up in your spool.

We have some in my neighborhood. There aren’t any specifically on my property though. Around early June, those fuzzies are floating around so thick it’s like snow at times. They clog my AC unit too. I was advised by the service tech to clean it out twice a season so it can operate efficiently. The primary culprit are those “fuzzies.”

 

A good hard rain clears them up but when it’s dry and windy, they float around thick for days.

[Skunkmaster-k]

Last weekend I fished a large flat covered in dead trees . I never gave it a second thought , but I will now. Thanks for the heads up.

[GrumpyOlPhartte]

Related issue is that of trying to yank a misfired lure out of a dead tree.  I brought a serious limb down on my kayak and nearly soiled my pantaloons.  Was lucky that just a few of the smaller branches actually hit.  Gotta admit I dropped my rod and covered my head.  Was able to retrieve said rod by grabbing the line still attached to the tree limb.  At least I had an opportunity to use a lot of that salty sailor talk that I thought I’d forgotten.  Conclusion? Doesn’t take a whole tree to ruin your day!!

[Bluebasser86]

I've always called those Lone Ranger stumps that sit just at or worse just below water level in otherwise open water areas widowmakers. Guys might run an area 99 times but that 100th time they line that stump up that they've never seen before because it's lurking just out of sight below the surface. 

[Catt]

Back in the early 70s Toledo Bend was full of standing timber, quite often when you bumped one while running the trolling motor they came crashing down. Now they are just below the surface waiting to eat a lower unit.

 

2001 B.A.S.S Top 150 one such stump knocked a transom off a brand new Triton.

[Scott F]

I was fishing on a fly in lake in Northern Manitoba out of a 14 foot boat with a 9.9 ho motor when the wind kicked up in a very big way. It was blowing so hard, that little motor could barely push us into the wind and the waves were getting very large. For safety (?) we pulled up on the lee side of an island to wait until the winds died down. Unfortunately, this island had burned in a forest fire and all the pine trees left were just big, tall, sticks. We weren’t there very long when these tall, dead trees started blowing over and falling near us. It was one of the most dangerous situations I’ve ever been in. Do we stay and get hit by a falling tree or risk drowning when our boat sinks from the rough water? We chose the water route and eventually made it back to camp. 

[J Francho]

The stumps on Santee-Cooper are something else.  

[Dwight Hottle]

5 minutes ago, J Francho said:

The stumps on Santee-Cooper are something else.  

 

So are the stumps on Rodman. 

[livemusic]

22 hours ago, BrianMDTX said:

I’ve been up a tree bowhunting and had a nearby tree simply fall down without warning. It’s enough to scare the living crap out of you. Trees near water are prone to falling for the reasons you mentioned. Good post. 

 

This happened to a friend of mine while he was mowing his yard and hit him smack in the head and killed him. He never knew it, instant death. One of the freakiest deaths I have ever known about. Life is short and shorter for some.

[softwateronly]

6 hours ago, livemusic said:

 

This happened to a friend of mine while he was mowing his yard and hit him smack in the head and killed him. He never knew it, instant death. One of the freakiest deaths I have ever known about. Life is short and shorter for some.

 

Terrible tragedy for your friend, his family, and yourself.  My condolences. As someone who at times worked over the heads of others or was responsible for large things rigged in the air, I can't believe how easy it is to forget the dangers.  Like myself for not really considering Mobasser's original post.  This is a good thread.

 

scott

[ajschn06]

The backwaters of the Mississippi are currently filled with HUGE trees that are half eaten at the stump by beavers.  It's unnerving at times....

[TnRiver46]

here’s the one at our shop, preventing use of the circle driveway haha. My boss got several bright ideas on how to get in down and it never moved a millimeter. Finally on his last suggestion one of my coworkers said “do you want us to put that on your tombstone?” And I think he finally got the point and called a tree service. They’ve had a few weeks to come get it down and it’s still there today , I don’t think they are excited about it either

[J Francho]

Hit it with with a Tacoma!

[Michigander]

Was down at Kentucky Lake for the Triton Boat Owners tournament a few years ago, and after a totally awful practice day (flat tire, needed emergency engine killswitch, blew half the oil lines on the motor, rough water, etc,) went back to the cabin we rented and we're greeted by this. Thankfully, after a moment of horror, we realized that this was the one next ours and not actually the one we were staying in. Property owner said that local trees just fall over sometimes due to poor soil or something.

[TnRiver46]

44 minutes ago, J Francho said:

Hit it with with a Tacoma!

He tied a rope to it and pulled with a tundra, I’m sure you can guess how that turned out 

35 minutes ago, Michigander said:

Was down at Kentucky Lake for the Triton Boat Owners tournament a few years ago, and after a totally awful practice day (flat tire, needed emergency engine killswitch, blew half the oil lines on the motor, rough water, etc,) went back to the cabin we rented and we're greeted by this. Thankfully, after a moment of horror, we realized that this was the one next ours and not actually the one we were staying in. Property owner said that local trees just fall over sometimes due to poor soil or something.

I remember that tournament with the rough water, there was some controversy with all the released fish floating for days . 

[J Francho]

6 minutes ago, TnRiver46 said:

He tied a rope to it and pulled with a tundra, I’m sure you can guess how that turned out 

Ran out of gas, lol.

[TnRiver46]

22 minutes ago, J Francho said:

Ran out of gas, lol.

Hahahahahahahahahah. Yea he bought that without really researching the fuel economy so it’s a truck that basically never gets driven. 
 

but yea, the rope broke just like we told him it would. It seems rare for a rope to be stronger than a big oak tree 

[Michigander]

24 minutes ago, TnRiver46 said:

 

I remember that tournament with the rough water, there was some controversy with all the released fish floating for days . 

I hadn't heard there was a lot of floaters. Maybe had something to do with how deep the majority of the fish were. We weren't set up for ledge fishing out there in those conditions at all so we went Michigan style and turned in a bunch of smallmouth that were hanging out in ten feet, lol.

[WVU-SCPA]

In my younger days I used to plan short trips around summer thunderstorms when chasing trout with the fly rod.  The pre and post storm bite was an exciting time.

 

One evening I was in the prime time of wind picking up and fish slurping when Sycamore decided to come down.  The outer branches hit my Fenwick and the wall of water that hit me left me drenched. 

 

Glad to have grown past those days.