My Nightmare Came True Today

[Grey Wolf]

Sorry you lost your stuff but the real important part of this mishap is you and your son are OK.

[flechero]

Glad you guys are ok!

If you do the stringer or any snagging hook trick from shore you'll probably just hang it as well. You should at least get a cheap 'regular' PFD from wal-mart to use for today or tomorrow to get your stuff back. Then keep it as a spare or loaner. (I'd actually get a vest instead of a coast guard type, so if you ever have to use it, it's comfortable)

Got any friends that are divers?

edited to add:  don't forget to send your reels straight to ReelMech, after asking him if there is any immediate treatment required.

[Paul Naj]

Ron,

What an awful experience. I'm happy to hear that you and J are OK.

A buddy of mine had a rod go over and he made a drag rig out of a piece of chain and some big trebble hooks tied to a line and he was able to snag it.

I agree with flechero, it needs to be done from a boat. You can borrow my vest if you need one.

P

[rondef]

I do have some of the cheap orange PFDs that the dealer gave me with my bass boat, I guess I could use those.  My buddy and I are going out this afternoon and we will attempt to retrieve them.

[MattStrykul]

Take this time to learn to use your baitcaster. Once you learn, you will never want to go back. They're great, especially for heavy cover and the frog fishing that you do.

[Paul Roberts]

I do have one rod left a baitcaster I bought this year but haven't used much because I hate dealing with the backlashes.  It is a good rod (same model as what I lost) and it has a good reel, a KVD Signature Series baitcaster.  I guess now is the time to put in the necessary hours to learn how to use it properly.

A blessing in disguise??

[rondef]

Matt I am going to take the time to learn it now that this has happened but I still want to get my rods and reels out of the water if I can. I like my spinning rods and reels because I can cover more water with them due to the the difference in the distance I can cast them.

[JCrzy4Bass]

Dad, I know I seemed real upset for a while yesterday after stuff happend. Most importantly I was just worried about Steph going in to labor prematurely and not having a way to contact us. But after we got a hold of her at home and I got my cell replaced (thank god you gave me your old one as I did not have to spend money on one) I was ok. I think I was just kinda more upset after that that you wouldn't take me up on my offer.

I know you like your rods and reels but I'm gonna be bummed I'm not out there nearly as much as you. I'd love for my equipment at least to be getting used. I know you like the actions on yours but I guarantee you even if you use my cranking rod you won't want to go back. And it's a nice setup. The reel especially, if no immediate damage was done to it.

I did manage to make a few wise cracks to friends at work today about the mishap. I figure better to joke about it and get over it than keep getting ticked about it. I'm sorry we couldn't get all your equipment back. I wish you the best of luck today and hope you snag at least one, though the other should be right next to it. As Ike says, never give up. But yea, I was calling us Gilligan and Skipper at work today and was just kind of shrugging it off. I'm not mad at you, it was an accident. I'm glad we are both ok and thanks for helping make sure everything was cool with me immediately after the tip.

At least we saved what we could, got your oar back too. Good thing you had cell insurance. That's great. Like my dad said the most important thing is we are both ok and that we learned a lesson. Had those vests not been on we would have either lost a lot more or possibly could have been trapped under the boat if injured when flipping or something. Wear your pfds guys, even on ponds. They may have saved lives yesterday. Never knowing what might happen. No matter how nice the boat.

[rondef]

I just found a scuba diving club that is close to my house.  They have stated that they will go with me and get the rods for $100 an hour.  They further stated that if I know where we tipped over which I do  they should be able to retrieve them in less than an hour.  I am going to have them go out with me to the pond this afternoon and see if they can find them.  They told me they do stuff like this all the time for people.

[thetr20one]

That sux bad. Like everybody said I am glad to here you were not hurt physically. I broke a BPS Extreme rod a couple weeks ago taking it out of the rod locker and about went nuts. I can't imagine losing so much stuff. Sorry for your loss!

[SimonSays]

good luck on getting your gear back ron!

I would have never thought of getting a scuba club to help get them back, good thinking!

[rondef]

I just heard from the dive club, they stated they will do it tomorrow afternoon. That means I have one shot trying to recover the gear on my own this afternoon and early evening by dragging some stringers over the area where we tipped.  Hopefully I can find them today rather than paying them $100 for an hour tomorrow.  

[shorefisher]

I was sorry to hear about this Rondef so it's great you have a local dive club. They will find it guaranteed. I'm a certified diver and would do it for you for the cost of a tank of air and a hot meal but I'm 800 miles away.

[jrhennecke]

Glad you are both ok.  Hope you get your stuff back.

[JShrock07]

d**n,

$100.00 an hour thats crazy!!! LOL Well good luck Ron!!!

[dallas0996]

Glad you guys are both safe.

....If I were you and had that dollar value of gear on that silty bottom, I would just leave it and let the divers do the work...It's gonna cost a hundred bucks- but you may bury or scatter some of the gear by dragging the bottom...making it less likely they will find all or most of your gear... 2 cents...

[rondef]

Well the scuba diving club called and they need a permission to dive for the gear and they do not expect to get that any sooner than tomorrow afternoon.  He recommended that I drag the bottom and try and snag them until he can obtain a permit for this location.

[fishinfiend]

Sounds like they might be able to help. I hope you get your gear back and I am glad to hear that you guys are safe.

I fell out of the boat this summer and once I  got back in the boat and laughed it off I realized how much different things could have been if I was by myself and it was in the middle of winter. Before I buy any more gear, I am going to buy a nice PFD that can be worn at all times that is not a hassle to wear.

[Mepps]

I did this years ago, fishing the Ashburn Village lakes. We were out in the middle and lost it all. It was kind of scary at the time, but we got through it and are alive and well, and thats all that counts. On the other hand like Jason said, its a good laugh.

My buddy and I still laugh out loud about it whenever we go out.  ;D

[rondef]

Well the first attempt at dragging the bottom was a bust.  I lost two stringers and pulled in a lot of large sticks.  Attempt number two will be tomorrow afternoon.  Hopefully the divers can get the permit situation squared away.  They sounded a bit concerned aout being able to obtain one for this location.

Now one thing that caught my eye late tonight was a good size shiny object on top of the beaver dam but it was to late to check it out.  Could a beaver have picked up one of the rods and placed it on top of his dam?  This may sound silly to some and I don't know if they would or not.  What do you guys think?  I am checking out the dam first thing when I get there tomorrow.

[firefightn15]

Rondef, if the beaver did, remember possession is 9/10ths of the law.  Be sneaky when you retreive.  He may dig in and put up a fight!

[rondef]

I am going out to buy a retrieving magnet from Harbor Freight after work and will try that to recover my gear. I like the description they have. I will also check the beaver dam to see what is on top of it, It looked like it could have been one of my fishing reels but I could get close enough to see. That beaver will be in for one heck of a fight if he has my fishing rod.

Retrieving Magnet, 250 Lb. Pull

Retrieve lost fishing gear, separate scrap iron from waste, clear your garage of nails, screws and sharp metal after your next project.

[Movarus]

Wow, I know I'm a little behind, but that is terrible.  Again like everyone said, it's good to hear that you guys are ok.  I'm actually just getting into using small crafts on lakes/ponds and I know that is always a fear.

Good luck with getting all the stuff back!  I'll keep my fingers crossed for you.

[Zel]

This thread is sure intriguing. I keep tuning back to see what happens next. Good luck, I hope you get your gear back.  Be careful of them dam beavers.

I tried helping Muddy find a rod and reel that he lost in the lake. We used my underwater camera system to no avail. Saw some good structure and bass swimming around, but alas no rod and reel (but it was about a week after it happened, and the spot was in casting distance from the shore so we figured someone hooked into it).

[rondef]

For those of you that have been following this saga the good lord has answered my prayers.  This afternoon my buddy and I went dragging magnets on the bottom of the pond and I felt something hit the magnet however the magnet could not pull up what it attached to.  I dropped the magnet a second time and then had my buddy use an old rod with a hook on it reach it down into the same spot and he felt the hook catch something.  When he pulled up the hook we saw some line and then all of a sudden the tip of one of my rods.  I immediately grabbed the rod and pulled it into the boat and noticed the line from the second rod tangled on it.  I started pulling this line in by hand for what seemed like an eternity.  All of a suddenthe second rod tip surfaced and I immediately grabbed it and pulled the second rod into the boat as well.  The saga is finally over as I got the two expensive items back and I have no problem writing off the tackle as lost.  

Thank you to all of my Bass Resource family members for your kind words and offers, you guys are the best.