Lost Gear Stories

[Jeremy]

Yesterday I dropped my Curado 200E7/Crucial Casting combo in the lake...

Anyhow, I figured I'm not the first to lose gear so please share your stories!!

[keithdog]

My brother did the same thing last saturday. I'm planning to head out this comming sunday and hope to retrieve it. A few years ago I lost my Garcia Revo combo when a water skier decided he needed to run right up along side my 12 foot jon boat while he had nearly 600 acres of open water. I was within an easy cast from shore. The wave from this lout almost flipped my boat and out flew the combo. I spent an hour trying to dredge it up to no avail. All I can say is that the water skier is lucky I didn't have a loaded 30-06 in the boat!!!

[bassinbob]

While casting in my little 14ft boat I hooked and flung overboard a combo two or three times. Was lucky and fished them up with a little effort. Mainly in water around 5 or 6 ft deep. Not clear water mind you. Never droped one in though. Almost had one ripped from my hand trolling and getting snagged.

[MIbasser]

Last year in a tournament I was fishing solo and made a cast wth a trap and hooked a rod. I ended up with 3 in the water and came back with 2. At one point I had a lot of money in the water!! I ended up losing a Quantum PT Super Light and a Pflueger President sprinning reel. Oh, I also broke my trolling motor while trying to dredge the bottom to pick up my rod..... which really sucked BUT, I won the tournament!!

[LVSKEETER]

About 6 years ago I was fishing a buddy tourney with my dad and I was using the back deck, so when we moved i just kinda held my rods as i drove since we were just moving up the lake a tad and just barely on plane. It was farely windy that day and well we hit a few waves, so not thinkin I let go of them to get a better grip on the wheel and a wave came up and caught the tip of one which in turn threw all 6 I had on the deck overboard. Somehow 2 of them floated but the other 4 went straight down and never seen again. Needless to say I didn't do much fishing the rest of the tourney

[nofearengineer]

Back when I was a younger man, some buddies of mine bought a cheap boat and a 25hp outboard. They proceeded to take it out on the Ohio river, and upon hitting a another boat's wake exactly wrong, the outboard jumped off the transom and went straight to the bottom.

Being the foolish rednecks they were, they got someone else to help them look for it. They spent hours diving for it, with a rope tied around their waist, hoping to attach it to the motor should they locate it. They never did, but they should count themselves lucky they are still alive, diving in a treacherous, muddy river like the Ohio with their own noose.

[islandbass]

Dang! I would have jumped in for it! Seriously!

I devised this when my daughter was 6.5 and learned to use a casting reel. The thought of her dropping a curado into the lake scared me.


Take these items


Put them together like this


Place the leash on your casting hand. It doesn't get in the way of casting.


She's putting it to good use here, jigging for salmon.

Unfortunately, I've forgotten to bring it a few times fishing with my son and he's lost a spiderman, superman, and batman fishing rod.

[CamG]

My freshman year in college, I was driving home from the lake and got a flat tire. The tire, my fishing rods (3), my tackle boxes (2) and my backpack for school were all in the way of the tire. So, I sat them along side the road (dark out) so that I could get the tire out of the back. I got it on, through the flat in the back and headed back to town.

The next morning I woke up and took the tire in to get fixed. After getting to the tire shop, I realized that my gear and backpack were not in the back. Realizing what an idiot I was, I drove back to the spot that I had the flat...no gear.

Sad, sad day. I didn't fish again until the following year when I could afford to buy new stuff.

[MississippiBoy]

Originally Posted by CamG

My freshman year in college, I was driving home from the lake and got a flat tire. The tire, my fishing rods (3), my tackle boxes (2) and my backpack for school were all in the way of the tire. So, I sat them along side the road (dark out) so that I could get the tire out of the back. I got it on, through the flat in the back and headed back to town.

The next morning I woke up and took the tire in to get fixed. After getting to the tire shop, I realized that my gear and backpack were not in the back. Realizing what an idiot I was, I drove back to the spot that I had the flat...no gear.

Sad, sad day. I didn't fish again until the following year when I could afford to buy new stuff.

Ladies and gentlemen, we have a winner....
Man, that sucks....

[nabass]

i just got back from a 18 month tour without my family. took my son out fishing he was 12. i just bought a boron rod and ambassadoer 5500 series reel. he ask if he couild use it, i showed him how it work and let him sit in front of boat. he made 3 cast with out a problem. 4th cast he forgot to release the spool. rod and reel went flying in to40 foot of water. i just said hope you can hold your breath that long. the look on his face was priceless.

[TN_Bassin]

Last year I got a bad backlash and I got it out with the good ole tight drag and thumb trick, needless to say I forgot to set the drag back, and proceeded to spray my bait with some scent. Well got the scent all over my hands and next 5 minutes I spotted a fish boil on some baitfish. Made the cast, got bit, set the hook, turned the fish, then rod flew out of my hand. Brand new flippin stick with a revo premier on it. Took one look at my cousin and he said what are you waiting for... go get it. Jumped in and found it, thankfully.

I've seen several times where someone will change their brakes and lose the sideplate in the depths.

[Bassboss]

Originally Posted by islandbass

Dang! I would have jumped in for it! Seriously!

I devised this when my daughter was 6.5 and learned to use a casting reel. The thought of her dropping a curado into the lake scared me.

She's putting it to good use here, jigging for salmon.

Unfortunately, I've forgotten to bring it a few times fishing with my son and he's lost a spiderman, superman, and batman fishing rod.

Alex the handy man strikes again! lol Good idea for real though!

[bluebasser86]

I was fishing out of my little pond hopper when I was probably 14 or 15 and decided to anchor because it was windy. Tossed the anchor without much thought and watch 3 combos that were wrapped up in the anchor rope go overboard. I dove in and managed to get all 3 back but one was broken, guessing the anchor landed on it. I think the worst gear lose was not actually lost but stolen. I had all my fishing tackle stolen on one occasion and then my boat stolen on another. Both times it just made me sick to my stomach and made me wish so badly I knew who had done it.

[wallywallace]

nothing too bad, well i didn't have a job then, so it was terrible at the time, wasn't a big bass fisherman. but was banking it with 3 rods, as before not big into bassing but they were 3- 33 platinums, on about 40 buck walmart rods, ugly stik.old lightning rod and a quatinum of some kind, so at 15 no car so dad comes back to pick me up, so excited i caught some bass off of artifical bait go to tell him and we left. late late that night i relized and before school next day went by and saw a man fishing with one my combos. well i told him and he looked at me and swore up and down they were his. well i have no evidence, but umm ok.. not to judge but he didn't look they type to have thta rod, when the rest of his poles looke astray and were well you know not like he went fo any fish in mind... oh well, learned my lession

[Top Tiger]

I was fishing with a friend a couple of years ago on Ky. Lake. About sundown, my friend decided to take a nap on the rear deck. He'd had a few too many "adult beverages" that day. Fine with me. So, I'm pitching into some weeds just as it's getting dark and hooked into a rather large fish. My buddy woke up right at the time the fish jumped right at the stern. Surprised and, I guess, startled him so much that he and his setup went over the side. Funniest damn thing that I've seen for awhile. Made him tread water till the fish was in the boat. Sobered him right up. Didn't lose anything of mine so I don't know if this counts but it was for sure funny.

[TN_Bassin]

Originally Posted by Top Tiger

I was fishing with a friend a couple of years ago on Ky. Lake. About sundown, my friend decided to take a nap on the rear deck. He'd had a few too many "adult beverages" that day. Fine with me. So, I'm pitching into some weeds just as it's getting dark and hooked into a rather large fish. My buddy woke up right at the time the fish jumped right at the stern. Surprised and, I guess, startled him so much that he and his setup went over the side. Funniest damn thing that I've seen for awhile. Made him tread water till the fish was in the boat. Sobered him right up. Didn't lose anything of mine so I don't know if this counts but it was for sure funny.

Wouldn't have happend to have been a quantum energy PT on a 7' MH Fenwick Techna AV would it... cranked one up last year around Paris?

[Jrob78]

My Dad and I lost an old Mail Jeep in the Trinity River about 15 years ago. We were running lines at night and went to trailer the boat on an old, crappy ramp. The brakes let go and the trailer and Jeep went down the ramp and into the river. I honestly don't know or remember exactly how it all happened, I was just thankful that neither of us were hurt.

My Dad managed to get a hook on the Jeep a few days later and pulled it out, trailer and all, with his dump truck. He cleaned the Jeep up, flushed everything and it started right up. It was an old beater mail Jeep that drove from the right side but it was tough as nails.

[pro reel]

For the fisrt time in all the years I have been fishing, i had a rod and reel go overboard this summer. It was one of my Falcon rods with a Revo STX. About 30 minutes before the rod went over, my hat blew off my head and sank. I tried to circle around to get the hat and Tony tried to grab at it but it went down before we could get it. A while after that I caught a fish and while I was un hooking it, the fish jerked and my rod fell from under my arm. It hit the water and in a flash i belly flopped on the deck and just barley managed to grab the rod before it was out of reach. Tony got a kick out of that and commented that i sure didn't move that fast for the hat. LOL

[WTL]

Last year on seminole my dad and I hit standing timber in 20 feet of water going about 15 mph. I heard the motor rev up, and turned around in time to see the prop come up and over and the whole motor flipped of the transom and into the drink. So thats a 1999 mariner 25 horse that is sitting on the bottom of lake seminole in 20 feet of water with an additional 5 feet of soft mud on the bottom. Paid divers to look for it, but they came up after 5 minutes and said it was hopeless.


Last month I lost my best plano box, with enough lures that it will take me 2-5 years to stock back up to where I was. Also lost the morrumsx 1600, which was my favorite combo and a hard find. Thats the second morrumsx I lost in the water, the first flew out of my hands and just drifted away in heavy current.

The water has been unkind to me.

[ted48]

Went fishing at Lake Monroe (Bloomington Indiana) several years ago in the spring. One man bass boat loaded with Johnson 2 hp gas motor (that proved to large for the boat) extra gas, fire extinguisher, trolling motor , life jacket, flotion cushion etc, along with several rods and reels and fair amount of terminal tackle.

Launched at Pine Grove ramp early in the morning. Went up in the grove and fished 3 or 4 hours. This area was protected from the wind a the ridges run at right angles to the main lake where the ramp is located.

When I returned to the ramp area there were 2 ft white caps on the main lake. At this point I knew I was in trouble. I had a hot switch (foot) on the trolling motor. I ducked back around the ridge and removed the hot switch that was on spade connectors. and tighened the damper down on the shaft so if I had to vacate the boat I could leave the trolling motor on and it would take the boat to the shore.

Tried the main lake again to make it back to the ramp. Started taking on water with every wave, felt the back end of the boat settle and looked around and water was coming in very fast. Pointed the boat toward shore which was only about 20 feet away grabbed the flotation cusion and with the life jacked I already had on went into the water.

In the process of getting out of the boat I must have kicked one rod & reel into the water.

Swimming to shore was difficult as I was wearing coverhalls and short fire boots.

Emptied the fire boots and walked about 500 yards back to the car after climbing about 100 yards to the top of the ridge.

Went to the DNR office to request assistance getting my boat out. I was told all of the personel were in training in Indianapolis that day. Returned to the ramp trying to figure out how to get my boat back.

Another boater with about a 20 ft ski boat showed up at the ramp and put his boat in only for the purpose of rescueing my boat, I will be forever indebeted, Had about $3,000 worth of gear stranded. And only lost one rod and reel valued at Less that $100.

[Skinny10]

I think reading this thread curses you.

I read this thread and the very next day I was fishing with my dad. We had the boat docked and he handed me his wallet to grab some cash to go buy some worms. I tried to open the wallet, not realizing it was upside down. All of his credit cards and other contents fell into one foot space between the dock and boat. About half of them floated but the most important ones sank about seven feet to the bottom. That made for a "fun" couple of hours.

[Tavery5]

Originally Posted by pro reel

For the fisrt time in all the years I have been fishing, i had a rod and reel go overboard this summer. It was one of my Falcon rods with a Revo STX. About 30 minutes before the rod went over, my hat blew off my head and sank. I tried to circle around to get the hat and Tony tried to grab at it but it went down before we could get it. A while after that I caught a fish and while I was un hooking it, the fish jerked and my rod fell from under my arm. It hit the water and in a flash i belly flopped on the deck and just barley managed to grab the rod before it was out of reach. Tony got a kick out of that and commented that i sure didn't move that fast for the hat. LOL

Good Times, LOL

[Tavery5]

I was fishing from the front of my boat on a small local lake in about 18 feet of water, It was smoking hot, and I was sweating like a billy goat in a pepper patch. I was pitchin and flippin like you have never seen, so good in fact that I pitched my combo right in the water, slipped through my fingers like a wet noodle. Did a great cannon ball off the front deck and managed to retrieve it. Got some great applause from some of the locals.

[Scott the fishman]

i was fishing on a paddle boat by myself and had 2 lber in my boat on the deck going to lip i hear plop though a bass nailed something on the surface after i lipped him it dawned on me it was my rod i had my white spinner bait over the edge jumps hits it and brings it over the edge it was a 70 dollar set up but i was pretty mad never found it

[AUFred]

When I was dating my future wife I took my future father-in-law fishing. We were fishing in a pond and were in about 12 feet of water when he knocked a brand new outfit overboard. He looked at me with a blank stare. We dropped anchor and I tied on a large treble hook with a weight and dredged it up for him. I think he was surprised but pleased.