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Subject: What's your WORST boating story?" Author: JD [ Next Thread | Previous Thread | Next Message | Previous Message ] Date Posted: 9:09pm What's your WORST boating story?" And what did you LEARN from it? On my own boats I've not had that much trouble: here's a few that stuck with me: Back in maybe 90 I lived on a 27 ft Atkins Canoe Yawl which I sailed almost every day. Great boat but old 1950 and wood. One day I took it out of my slip Redondo for an afternoon sail and got caught in a high wind condition off PV. Not outragous but a solid thirty with gust to forty. All day the wind had been out of the west a good stiff breeze but with the increase it changed to North. So I was now down hill in high wind with a cross slop. Since I didn't have a motor I had to tack back up. Took maybe 8 hours. When I finally got even with the breakwall it was too windy with a North wind to sail into my slip. Ended up tacking back and forth outside all night till the wind died. Could of anchored but just kept sailing back and forth, just too tired to pull down the sails and set a hook. Probaly most tired I've ever been on a boat and that is saying something. Back in 95 I was off Magu in 26 Hydra sport Cuddy with twin 200 Johnsons. Got caught in a very bad wind event with very high winds gusts maybe to 60+. Freak event, got news coverage. On the water it was unreal, huge waves 12 to 15 plus+ white foam everywhere. The owner got all weird and hid in the cabin, and I had to drive. He kept yelling up: "Just drive it up on the beach". I spent all afternoon throttling up waves, turning at the crest and throttling back for the surf down the back side. Wore my arms out. Scary at first but after a while kinda fun. Lost one engine to a clogged fuel line and barely made it in to CIH on fumes. Once we got in it was hard to beleive it happened. Waves breaking right over the breakwall. A few years ago I was fishing my 14/16 CC just outside the 371 for yellowfin. I'd been catching them for weeks but only at dusk and grey light. I first found them on the 9 mile bank but each trip they were further south and farther out. I was out about as far out as I could go. Had two thirty pound+ fish in the hold and several Dorado. Found them right at sunset and took three more thirty pound+ YFT for my limit. Some days off Loma it blows a little then dies at dusk sometimes it blows harder. I was hoping for the former but got the latter. The wind just grew and strength and swung to the North. I was almost forty miles out in a small skiff with an uphill battle. Usually I cruise at night around 15 knots. Started back at twelve went down to ten then finally off plane down to six or seven. It was slow wet and miserable. When your out in a boat that small at six knots in slop it litterely feels like your not moving. A long slow ride. I had my dog with me and she became just incredibly sick. Ever see a dog dry heave? Not pretty!! On top of it she got Hypothermia: She was soaked and shivering uncontrollably. Faced with what looked like the death of my dog I took off my slicker and wrapped her up in it. Now I was the one shivering, man did I get cold. Everything got so soaked that I started having elctrical problems. My GPS was going on and off and one engine started grounding out. Shut everything down but the lee engine and rode it out using my compass for heading. It maybe took six hours to get in, but I suffered through it. To the big boat guys six hours is nothing but in a small open skiff it's a long trip to be sure. A lot of time to think. A great day of fishing but it definately brought in question how far is too far. Also the dog. To me right then taking her looked like abuse. I've never had her offshore since. At any rate I made it in. A good trip just a cold ride home. One of my favorite sayings is: A able seaman can take a skiff across and ocean and a fool can pile up his sportfisher on the breakwall. I don't now if I could take my skiff across a ocean but here's my breakwall story Probably my single closest call came on a flat night with perfect conditions after I'd entered the harbor. I'd been Halibut fishing all day in the north bay. I'd just entered the harbor and was storing gear etc. when my dog tangled in a line and sunk a trap hook into her leg. She was jumping around yelping as she tried to get herself loose. I grabbed her and started trying to get the hook out, the boat was still in gear throttling up the right side traffic lane. I don't know why but something caught my eye and I looked up only to see that the boat had turned and I was headed straight toward the breakwall. Maybe five feet away, traveling at eight knots, I grabbed the wheel swung around hard. There was boom at the stern and one of my outboards tilted completely out of the water but no damage. A few seconds more and I'd of hit dead on at speed. Would of totaled my skiff. Man I lucked out!!! Leasons I learned...LOL Watch the weather and check the reports through the day. If at all possible fish North of the harbor or at least keep your return coarse in excess of 30 degrees. You always want to be upwind if the wind comes up. That leason has saved a lot of aggravation over the years. Rough conditions take a physical toll on gear as well as your person. Fuel tanks slosh and stir up junk. Connections get wet and loose contact. Things that are a mild irritation on a good day are big trouble on a bad one. Basicly now I do a lot of maintenence checks. Any day can go bad "keep your boat up to it" kind of thing. Dogs and small boats don't mix. She still wants to go but I don't take her any more. Stow gear etc. before you go in. When traveling between the breakwall and ramp concentrate on driving!!! Tight lines, Jim [ Next Thread | Previous Thread | Next Message | Previous Message ]