botlguy
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One more story and picture. Thanks for listening, no one else does.
I was setting up to launch my boat on Lake Pend Oreille (pronounced Ponderay), again here in the Panhandle of Idaho, to fish for Lake Trout A.K.A. Mackinaw and Kamloops or Girard Strain Rainbow trout. I was in the boat arranging gear, picked up my rod, which had this Rapala lure attached, when it caught on my seat cover. The rod was bent double wedged between the gunwale and steering wheel. After unsuccessfully trying to unhook it, too much pressure, I reached for my knife, cut the cloth which released the lure allowing the following hook (the one shown cut) to bury itself in the top of my right index finger securely under a tendon. I dropped the knife, struggled for the long nosed pliers & tried to cut the large shank of the treble hook, left handed, (I’m right handed) which was a real effort in that situation with what I had at hand. As I cut the hook shank, the Rapala flung upward like a released arrow, but I was free of this bow tight line. On the way up the tail treble hook snatched the brim of my hat as it flew by like it had been cast. I was a little shaky by then. Figuring I would just push the point of the hook through the skin and remove the remainder of the hook, and not being able to do that with a treble hook, I cut the single shank in the only place I could, too close to the skin. When I cut through the hook the end disappeared into the now swelling flesh of my finger. I tried to retrieve the hook to no avail; it was out of sight but not out of mind.
All this time my 3 fishing companions were looking on from outside the boat, one about to heave, the other two paralyzed in fear (or something). This entire scene took no more than a minute or two. At this point my hand was swelling badly, bleeding all over the place and hurting like heck. I told the others to get ready to launch which we did. While still tied up to the dock, the others talked me into going to the Emergency Room. After reluctantly agreeing I insisted that they go ahead fishing and I would return.
The first place I went (15 miles from the launch site) was to one of those afterhours clinics which was closed. It was 7:30 A.M. The second place I went was similar but they were open. The Doctor on duty harangued me the entire time he was searching for the hook for not coming in with the entire lure, or at least the entire hook, attached so he could see it. Well,,, he hadn't been there & I didn't try to explain. He was NOT successful at removing the remnants of the hook so he sewed me back up and told me to go away.
After leaving there I drove back to the launch site, called my fishing partner and met them at the dock. After an entire day of fishing we had caught only three trout and a BIG DUMMY. The next Monday, we had been fishing on a Friday, I visited my long time family physician who, after he stopped laughing, suggested I go to a hand specialist as he believed this was serious. It turns out it was, as the surgery revealed that the hook had embedded itself under a tendon and nerve and if I had even nicked those with the barb I would have been in BIG trouble. 3 weeks of recovery.
This picture shows the lure with the cut seat cover attached to the leading hook, the second hook that was cut and I removed the tail hook so I can display the lure and regale the throng of people who gather constantly and continually to hear this amazing tale. The piece of the hook taken from my figure resides in a place of honor, in a plastic bag next to the lure which caught a 250 pound Stupid Fish.
I was setting up to launch my boat on Lake Pend Oreille (pronounced Ponderay), again here in the Panhandle of Idaho, to fish for Lake Trout A.K.A. Mackinaw and Kamloops or Girard Strain Rainbow trout. I was in the boat arranging gear, picked up my rod, which had this Rapala lure attached, when it caught on my seat cover. The rod was bent double wedged between the gunwale and steering wheel. After unsuccessfully trying to unhook it, too much pressure, I reached for my knife, cut the cloth which released the lure allowing the following hook (the one shown cut) to bury itself in the top of my right index finger securely under a tendon. I dropped the knife, struggled for the long nosed pliers & tried to cut the large shank of the treble hook, left handed, (I’m right handed) which was a real effort in that situation with what I had at hand. As I cut the hook shank, the Rapala flung upward like a released arrow, but I was free of this bow tight line. On the way up the tail treble hook snatched the brim of my hat as it flew by like it had been cast. I was a little shaky by then. Figuring I would just push the point of the hook through the skin and remove the remainder of the hook, and not being able to do that with a treble hook, I cut the single shank in the only place I could, too close to the skin. When I cut through the hook the end disappeared into the now swelling flesh of my finger. I tried to retrieve the hook to no avail; it was out of sight but not out of mind.
All this time my 3 fishing companions were looking on from outside the boat, one about to heave, the other two paralyzed in fear (or something). This entire scene took no more than a minute or two. At this point my hand was swelling badly, bleeding all over the place and hurting like heck. I told the others to get ready to launch which we did. While still tied up to the dock, the others talked me into going to the Emergency Room. After reluctantly agreeing I insisted that they go ahead fishing and I would return.
The first place I went (15 miles from the launch site) was to one of those afterhours clinics which was closed. It was 7:30 A.M. The second place I went was similar but they were open. The Doctor on duty harangued me the entire time he was searching for the hook for not coming in with the entire lure, or at least the entire hook, attached so he could see it. Well,,, he hadn't been there & I didn't try to explain. He was NOT successful at removing the remnants of the hook so he sewed me back up and told me to go away.
After leaving there I drove back to the launch site, called my fishing partner and met them at the dock. After an entire day of fishing we had caught only three trout and a BIG DUMMY. The next Monday, we had been fishing on a Friday, I visited my long time family physician who, after he stopped laughing, suggested I go to a hand specialist as he believed this was serious. It turns out it was, as the surgery revealed that the hook had embedded itself under a tendon and nerve and if I had even nicked those with the barb I would have been in BIG trouble. 3 weeks of recovery.
This picture shows the lure with the cut seat cover attached to the leading hook, the second hook that was cut and I removed the tail hook so I can display the lure and regale the throng of people who gather constantly and continually to hear this amazing tale. The piece of the hook taken from my figure resides in a place of honor, in a plastic bag next to the lure which caught a 250 pound Stupid Fish.
