Respect the River!

Respect the River!

With 4″ of rain overnite and a hex hatch, i knew today’s bite would be tough. Guys wanted pike. Since pike are primarily sight feeders–now swimming in chocolate milk–trying something different proved to be a wise move. Put a couple of good ‘eyes in the boat in the hour remaining in the trip, with just a couple of minutes to try one more spot. Positioned Lund above an “L” shaped closing dam and got ready to fish.

Stranded boaters changed our plans. their heavy boat was hung up on rocks at one of the most treacherous spots on pool 9, where swirling currents go from inches to 40+’ in just a couple boat lengths.

Tried to pull them free X2. No good. Just too darn dangerous. Took the clients back to the dock and called Lansing F.D. They showed up in minutes.

A lifetime on the River and career as a professional firefighter have provided the wisdom of knowing your limits. My arms are far too short to box with the Mighty Mississippi!

Lansing F.D. arrived on scene. Briefed the I. C. on the situation and offered my suggestions on how to mitigate it. Plan required securing to a point on shore with 100′ of line and using a come-along to pull the heavy boat off the rocks. Worked like a charm!

On the River, mistakes must be paid for immediately. Sometimes in full. In a future blog i’ll tell you all about using the Alabama rig for Miss. R. walleyes and pike. Right now I’m whupped and just thankful nobody got hurt–or worse–tight lines.


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