First Time For Everything

[SoFlaBassAddict]

Well, there is definitely a first time for everything. First time in the 30 years I've been fishing that I hooked myself. Had just beached the boat and was grabbing a rod to unload my gear and my hand slipped right into a crankbait. The old braid trick just wasn't working. Apparently I cut the hook shank a bit short and the braid was just slipping off. Not fun. Needless to say a quick trip to see the doctor was needed. Good bit of lidocaine and some tugging and pulling and it's out. The stinkin local shots hurt more than the hook going in did. I now understand how much getting hooked really sucks.

As much as I fish by myself, I'm definitely considering de-barbing a bunch of hooks. That could have been a problem if it happened while I was out in the middle of the lake or something.

[Bluebasser86]

If the hook is in the right place you can always go with the push it the rest of the way through and pinch down the barb option. It hurts a little more but it's not hard to do. I don't think barbless hooks loose that many more fish. I think it's mainly giving fish slack line that gives them the chance to shake loose. Your right about those shots, they suck!

[JaxBasser]

Luckily I've never had one go in past the barb...yet. It's bound to happen eventually though.

I've thought about going the barbless hook route. Seems safer for me and the fish.

[scrutch]

I was unfortunate enough to witness the aftermath of a really bad "hook into the thumb of a co-angler while casting". I wasn't in the boat, but saw them after the (several hour) emergency room visit. It happened at the Roadtrip 2011 and it would have a trip ender for me. The "victim" was pretty darn tough and had a great attitude. It was easily the most miserable experience on a fishing trip I've ever seen.

[Grey Wolf]

If you fish long enough it will happen. It's happened twice to me , one resulted in a trip to the ER and the other one I was able to push through and cut the hook off.

[Hooked_On_Bass]

Yep, I've had to push one through my thumb to cut the barb off. Not fun.

[bilgerat]

Happened to me last year for the first time. Walked by another guy's rig that was sticking out of a pond prowler, got a Gammy EWG worm hook through my calf. Fortunately he had a pair of dykes in his truck and I get a tetanus shot every ten years. The guy who owned the prowler was mortified and couldn't apologize enough...he was more upset than me. I told him it was no big deal, kind of poetic justice for all the fish I've stuck over the years

[Scorcher214]

I 've been crushing barbs on hooks this year, mainly on my worm hooks. Haven't lost a fish due to it yet.

[Nitrofreak]

I have never had it happen...yet nor would I want it to but I still carry a hook removal emergency kit on the boat anyway.

S F B A Im glad it wasn't more serious than that even though that was bad enough and that you and the rest of the group here that share your pain are still out there fishing with us.

Good luck guy's and be safe!!!

[BrianSnat]

Happened to me a few years ago. Got it in the hand. I completed the evening of fishing and hid it from my wife when I got home. Took a look at it and realized that there was no way I could do it, but didn't want to wake my wife up and tell her I was going to the ER so I taped the Jitterbug to my hand so it didn't flop around and catch on the blankets and went to bed.

Went to the ER the next day. Doc took it out easily with a local anesthetic.

[islandbass]

Ouch! At least you weren't this guy:

[Jigfishn10]

Oh man, islandbass, I was reading thru all the posts and before I go to yours, all I could remember was how many times I had a lure whizzing by my head on a missed hookset. I had one hit my sunglasses one day and can only imagine the damage. Now I see. Time to make a saftey change to my fishing.

SOFLA, it's never happened to me, but I know darn well how close I came. To be honest, I've worked with table saws since I was 12 and back then there were no saw guards. Well, about 10 years ago, I had a piece of wood kick on me and pulled my finger into the blade. Thankfully, I lost a couple of layers of skin, that was it. But now it's safety guards and saftey glasses all the way. So if it's barbless hooks with you, I say go for it.

[SoFlaBassAddict]

God, I feel for the guy in that picture. That had to suck.

Jigfishn, I know the feeling about the table saw. I'm excessively careful with mine. I've seen people remove body parts with them. That is one two that I just don't mess around with. You got lucky as hell with your mishap.

[Jigfishn10]

God, I feel for the guy in that picture. That had to suck.

Jigfishn, I know the feeling about the table saw. I'm excessively careful with mine. I've seen people remove body parts with them. That is one two that I just don't mess around with. You got lucky as hell with your mishap.

Well, there are a lot of young peeps out there piercing their noses, tongues and genital parts. He just may be onto the next generation of piercing... ...JK of course, that doesn't look good at all.

[NBR]

I smash the barbs on every thing. I went to Canada to a boat in resort for many years and expanded my barb smassing to 100% there.I can't prove it but I don't think I loose aqny more fish with debarbed hooks than with barbed ones. I get the fish released faster, get the hooks out of clothes faster and it sure is easier to slip that smashed barb hook out of body parts.

[JaxBasser]

After seeing that picture I will never fish without glasses on again...ever.

[kms399]

when I was probably 10 I was dropping the anchor in my grandpas boat, well I didn't know there was a lure stuck in the rope so as the rope slid through my hands I got hooked pretty good. I don't even remember how we got it out but I sure remember it happening.

[boystcroix]

One of my fishing friends just had it happen two weeks ago on my boat. He caught a pickeral on a crank and as he was trying to unhook it , it thrashed around and hooked the back of one of his fingers. The hook went all the way thru so we just cut the barb end off and pushed it back through. It didn't ruin our day of fishing but the next day I assembled a small first aid kit to keep in the boat. I didn't even have a bandaid for him.

[Shad_Master]

As dangerous as the hooks are, weights can be dangerous, too. A couple of years ago, a guy near here was fishing a drop shot on the dam when he got hung in the rocks - pulling to break the line the rig came loose and flew back hitting him in the eye - he actually lost site in that eye. A good idea to wear good quality sunglasses when fishing.