Bad fishin trips

[benson78]

Has anyone ever had a really bad icefishin trip?  This year was mine.  I live in SE Nebraska and every year we go up north some where for a week of fishin then head to the Brainerd extravaganza.  This year we decided to go to Devils Lake in North Dakota.  We rented a cabin for 5 days, well we headed up there on a Sunday morning and got there by about 5:30 sunday evening one of the guys had his hip replaced 8 wks earlier but me and one other guy were gonna be doin the work so no worries. Anyway we get the trailer unpacked and the big guy we call him said he was gonna take a look at some of the spots I had marked on my gps this was 6-6:30 that night so I said see ya later.  about 4hrs later the other guy i'm with is gettin a little worried but the trailer was still on the truck and we were lookin for the keys to unhook the trailer and to no avail we couldn't find em so we just head out with trailer in tow.  Not really knowin the area we are lookin for the way to get on the lake and couldn't so we go to a different place and that wasn't it cause we got stuck for an hour before the resort owner came down and asked us what was goin on.  We told him our buddy was on his sled and had been gone for about 5 hrs at this point so he got his tractor pulled us out (4whl drive didn't want to cooperate with me).  After he pulls us out he says that there should be a search party out to look for him.  Now i'm gettin mad and worried at the same time cause he left his cell phone at the cabin.  Well the owner called the sheriff and told him what had gone on so I give the description of the big guy and the start gettin a search and rescue together after about 45min to an hour they said they had found him on the side of the road so they got the ambulance to go get him and check him out for hypothermia all is well and bring him back to the cabin.  At this point i'm really ticked and when he gets to the cabin I start rippin him up oneside and down the other I'm happy that he's ok but for cryin out loud the cell phone(thats what the wife tells me to as i'm rollin my eyes).  So he commences to appologize for the next morning all puzzled I say why he says the snowmobile is buried.  I'm like yeah whatever so we get some sleep.  I spring out of bed ready to go get the sled out at 5:30am and start fishin asap.  about an hour later the other 2 get up and we get a shovel to go get the sled I say well where is it he said up the road a ways ok I figure a couple of miles no it was about 8 miles away and he walked 6 with his new hip I was like holy crap man so we turn off Hwy 19 onto 72nd Ave (I will never forget that road as long as I live) I ask him where the sled was he said down the road aways ok after about 2 miles we look to the left and all you could see was the front end of the snowmobile barely.  Now my heart drops cause I realize this isn't gonna be quick so we walk over to the sled which was sunk in about 3.5-4 ft. of snow and froze to the ground.  So we get to shoveling and after an hour we got the sled out sort of I was on the sled hit the gas and popped out I was like sweet we are done I turned the handle bars to go to safety and it won't go and i'm getting sucked into more cattails so I let off the throttle and sink down again.  The big guy says what the hell I said it won't turn and he says lean I said good to know (I haven't ridden alot of snowmobiles in my life and the ones that I have ridden they turned with the handle bars).  Now I have to dig it out again mind you I just turned 30 and the guys i'm with are pushin 50 so the other guy i'm with is shot from the first dig now its me I dig for about 30 min. and give it a try this time i'm only standing on the left side of the sled cause he said lean ok.  The sled leaps and I mean leaps out of the snow my legs are flailingoff the side and i'm sayin holy expletive my legs find the sled and away we go I get out of the snow and onto the field I have a big smile on my face cause I get to go fishin now and its still pretty early we spent about 2 hrs gettin the sled and its only 9 i'm ready so we get to the cabin I ran into town to get grub for when we get back that evening and head back to the cabin.  Get back its about 11 now and got the ice house hooked up to the sled and away we go.  Here is where I get really freakin mad hes followin his gps and start to head to a fishin spot well he couldn't figure out why his gps was tellin him to go somewhere and things werent there I told him it was flooded and there will be backwater and trees and all that stuff so stay on the main part and we would find where we need to go.  It was like he didn't hear me or it didn't register it took 3 hrs to finally reach the spot so I unhook my portable and now hes gonna get the other portable and our buddy and come back right.  So I start setting up my icehouse I get it flipped over and I said to myself man it smells like beer in here and I could use one so I look in my sled for the 18 pack I had brought with and it was empty and beer cans crushed and beer slush all over the bottom of my icehouse now i'm really mad not only did it take FOREVER to get there but now I can't have a beer steam is rollin.  I start throwin things around and all ticked off and I can't even fish cause the auger is in the other ice house.  At this time I hear a snowmobile screamin back at me I look and its the big guy he says he can't find his way back and I should to with him and we could both learn the lake.  I said man how bout I go get him and come back cause I got a great idea of how the lake is.  He says lets just both go I said only if you listen to me as far as which way to go he says ok so we get goin and I tap him on the shoulder and point to the left he nods and keeps goin straight I tap harder and he goes straight I closed fist hit him on the shoulder and point to the left he goes straight at this point on the back of the sled I throw my arms up and say f*&% it he aint gonna listen so we get to an actual road with rock up the side and snow on the rock he come to a stop and said what the hell I said what happened to listening to me (if you've seen a pic of devils lake there is a big island and ppl farm it well there is a road to it and we are on the wrong side of the road to speak and to go around would have added 20 miles to our trek) I tell him this and add if you would have listed to me.  Well we go up and over and down to the right side of the road and get back to the cabin (I've all but burst into flames at this point).  The big guy asks are you ready after I chug a beer and smoke I said the only way i'm goin back out there is if i'm driving he said ok we take off and 45 min later we are there alot less than 3hrs.  So they start setting up the other portable and want to hook up heat so I put the hose on the big buddy heater and he puts the hose on the 20# tank well he has a problem getting it lit like always and we are all sayin it smells like propane man he shrugs it off so I go back to my house and getting the vex and stuff in then I hear someone yell its on fire turn it off steve your tents on fire turn it off he said it was but the fire was still goin they got it all put out and propane off now there is about a 1.5 ft hole in his house so we were set up and fishin by 3:30 or 4pm and by 6:30 we were packin up to go back to the cabin cause its along way back and dark and -15 temp I reluctantly agree and pack up to go cause we still haven't caught a fish and this was day one but we had 4 more days and things could only get better.  Well the rest of the week they didn't want to go that far and well a high pressure front moved in and the fish went deep and I was forced to fish in only 15 to 25 fow needless to say for the five days there was only 3 fish caught.  Man what a bad trip.

[viciouscircle]

i'm sure this is a good story, however, after 30 seconds i had a headache.....try using paragraphs

[benson78]

Yeah sorry bout that after I hit post I looked at it and said nobodies gonna read this.

[RealityCheck]

I like fishing with my friends.  But if they don't listen to me on important stuff.....they get a good old fashion Ass whipping.  After that we re negotiate the whole "friend" thing.  You are a better man than I am.

[basskiller46]

that sucks you should have pulled the kill switch so that guy would listen when you told him to turn

[Icer for life]

Best lunch time read I've had in a long time.  LMAO.

I love fishing alone......now more than ever.

[benson78]

You know I thought about doin alot of things but when I stopped to think about it hes 6'4 and about 325# granted he had his hip replaced about 8 wks earlier but hes a big guy hence the name

[Bucketman]

Thank the lord u guys were alright .It sucks u guys only caught 3 fish. It could of been worse ,it bets the hell out working so remember one thing a bad day of fishing is still better than a good day of work!!!!!!! bucketman..

[beeverfishing]

Sorry to hear about your trip. 
I normally fish alone.  But tonight I took a friend/coworker out with me.   Not again...   It is nice to have someone to help drill holes, shoot the bull with, etc. ...  But we are there for about an hour and he is ready to go !!   I wouldn't have minded so much, but we took my truck as he was afraid to get his car stuck.  So, I also had to leave.   We spent just as much time setting up / tearing down as we did fishing.  For now on, he will drive his vehicle, I will take mine and he can leave any time he wishes...  or he can stay at home.

[tightline3]

One of my worst was in the summer months. A good buddy and I went out on a small impoundment(part of NYC land)in Putnam. After a few beers,I had to go bad.We had to go to shore and do our thing and all was good until I sat back down in the boat. I suddenlly got a stabbing pain in my lower back. The pain was relentless. After a while(15m.)of not being sure what was going on, I could no longer stand it.The pain was so severe I started to vomit over the side. This paniced my buddy and he didn't know what to do. I had to bite the bullet and try to gather all the gear up while he made a mad dash back to the put-in spot.No motor mind you only rowing.We might have fished for about an hr.That was it.It was horrible trying to get everything back in the car and get the boat locked up. Needless to say I was not of much help,just trying to get through the pain. Later,we got back to my house and I was shot.My wife said "Looks like another kidney stone" and she was right. Later that night it passed. When I told my buddy what had happend the next day,he laughed and said "Well at least I did't have to be air-lifted off the lake".

[icefisher-45]

Thats why I started fishing alone or just with my kids. Was going with a coworker and he was annoying. Sorry you had a bad trip 

[rockmonster2007]

kidney stones are the worst pan i have ever felt, i too had uncontol vomiting, i had pull over on side of rode  one on way home  from work n call 911.. cop gets ther  , how we doin tonite  not good  an i puked all over him.. lol  guess he believed me..

[benson78]

Well needless to say I think I will be goin back to ND to do some fishing next year but I will be goin to see my brother and he lives up there so he knows where to go to get on some fish.

[bart]

tightlines3, I had a kidney stone one time, it floored me!  6-1/2 hours of pure agony, with a morphine drip!


benson78, I prefer icefishing alone most of the time, being retired I can come and go anytime. When I go with anyone I get a go read on them on what kinda person/fisherman they are first, then work out the expectations/itinerary. Also I am honest with everyone up front my own limitations/expectations, I never want to be the "big guy".

[pikeking]

I went out fishing last year with someone that I met on iceshanty. It was to be our first meeting and first time fishing together. We met at his house and took his truck as it's bigger than mine so we could put all the gear in one truck and save gas. We got to the lake pulled everything out on the ice and started drilling holes. After getting the holes done I was pulling my sled to a hole to set up my tip-up, as the wind blew, the snow covered a hole and I didn't see it. Needles to say I stepped in the 10" hole and went in right up to my hip. I felt like a fool for stepping in my own hole. Thank dog for gore-tex pants. I didn't get wet, but I did hurt my knee. I didn't want to say anything about getting hurt so I just kept on fishing. I waited to get home before I went and had my knee checked out. Come to find out I messed up my knee and had to have the fluid drained out of it. A few weeks later fishing the same spot I was with a different guy and he did the same thing, but he was wearing jeans so he got soaked. Glad we brought my shanty and heater so he was able to warm up and dry out, because that was the day I got a 39" pike. And I had a dry day.

[brokenline]

man thats a bad day right there!! i liked your story

[panfishman13]

always get to know your fishin' or adventurin' buddies before hand, i know some people whom i hope and pray will never see me at the lake again and decide to tag along, not only are they annoying, telling you what they think about stuff that you already told what you thought of, when you catch a fish they say "hey, let me try there!" and proceed to take your hole.

personally i prefer to fish with family or people i have fished with before, because then i know what they're like on the water.

good story by the way, yes i have had one of those times.