Ran aground in the middle of the Lake

[KDAVID1]

Well just got back home (testing WOT RPM and speed on GPS) 57.8mph at 5500 RPM (perfect but would I would like a bit more speed) anyway--started to fish, had the trolling motor down (didn't have the depth alarm set)-just hooked a fish and noticed the boat was acting a little funny. Looked at the fish finder and it said 1.4 for the depth.
Of course I continued to real in my fish (a small white bass). Got it in, unhooked, thrown back, then tried to figure out how to get unstuck. The first thing that came to mind was oh well it's only 1ft so I can just get out and push (if all else fails). So I pulled the trolling motor up, cranked the ol 150hp Black Max and tried to go forward--stalled the motor. Started her up again put in reverse and back she went--I probably had to back up about 200 yards to get to 5ft of water. Now keep in mind I was 500 yards from shore! I later remembered I was stuck on an island that I saw on the map when the water was low. What fun. This is what I don't like about fishing in the fall on Arkabutla Lake in MS because this time of year they draw down the lake so much for the winter. I hope everyone gets a good laugh:facepalm:

 

[jim765]

Re: Ran aground in the middle of the Lake

been ,done that here lol

Well just got back home (testing WOT RPM and speed on GPS) 57.8mph at 5500 RPM (perfect but would I would like a bit more speed) anyway--started to fish, had the trolling motor down (didn't have the depth alarm set)-just hooked a fish and noticed the boat was acting a little funny. Looked at the fish finder and it said 1.4 for the depth.
Of course I continued to real in my fish (a small white bass). Got it in, unhooked, thrown back, then tried to figure out how to get unstuck. The first thing that came to mind was oh well it's only 1ft so I can just get out and push (if all else fails). So I pulled the trolling motor up, cranked the ol 150hp Black Max and tried to go forward--stalled the motor. Started her up again put in reverse and back she went--I probably had to back up about 200 yards to get to 5ft of water. Now keep in mind I was 500 yards from shore! I later remembered I was stuck on an island that I saw on the map when the water was low. What fun. This is what I don't like about fishing in the fall on Arkabutla Lake in MS because this time of year they draw down the lake so much for the winter. I hope everyone gets a good laugh:facepalm:

 

[KDAVID1]

Re: Ran aground in the middle of the Lake

Then I don't feel so bad
Although I failed to mention when I pulled the trolling motor up in a hurry I turned it the wrong way and cut my Transducer wire--had to fish from the back the rest of the time.

 

[Home Cookin']

Re: Ran aground in the middle of the Lake

for future reference, backing in shallow water is not a good idea. The prop is not protected, you wind up all kinds of grass and stuff, and your muddy water runs through the engine. Use your paddle/oar/shove pole to turn around if you can.

 

[kahuna123]

Re: Ran aground in the middle of the Lake

Cranked up the OOOLLDDD 150. Not for long.

 

[southkogs]

Re: Ran aground in the middle of the Lake

I sort-of did the same thing this weekend - 'cept I chewed up the prop on a rock.

 

[KDAVID1]

Re: Ran aground in the middle of the Lake

for future reference, backing in shallow water is not a good idea. The prop is not protected, you wind up all kinds of grass and stuff, and your muddy water runs through the engine. Use your paddle/oar/shove pole to turn around if you can.

Thanks for the info---this was the first time for this to happen so I didn't have a clue. Next time I'll row it out.

 

[KDAVID1]

Re: Ran aground in the middle of the Lake

I sort-of did the same thing this weekend - 'cept I chewed up the prop on a rock.

Ouch. Luckily this lake is nothing but sand and mud--no rocks, no weeds-so no prop damage. I'll have to keep an eye on things (per Home Cookin's post) to make sure no problems. I will be changing the water pump next season so I've got that covered. Water pressure after the incident was still very good so no immediate issues--but we will see.

 

[kahuna123]

Re: Ran aground in the middle of the Lake

Your from N Miss. and you called your boat a "her" you cranked up the "ol" 150. You backed "her" up in shallow water. "HER" draws no water but in a foot and half you were grounded. The trolling motor was down but never hit. Backed two football fields in reverse. The boat was acting "funny". Was it laughing. Was it grounded in 1.4 ft but the trolling motor wasn't?? You were grounded but you ran the outboard in reverse for 200 yards.


I call BS on this post.

 

[KDAVID1]

Re: Ran aground in the middle of the Lake

Your from N Miss. and you called your boat a "her" you cranked up the "ol" 150. You backed "her" up in shallow water. "HER" draws no water but in a foot and half you were grounded. The trolling motor was down but never hit. Backed two football fields in reverse. The boat was acting "funny". Was it laughing. Was it grounded in 1.4 ft but the trolling motor wasn't?? You were grounded but you ran the outboard in reverse for 200 yards.


I call BS on this post.

Trolling motor was grounded--that's when I noticed the boat was acting funny(wave action pushing the boat forward but the boat not moving forward but springing back a little) Her, it, whatever. I wouldn't waist my time to post it if it wasn't true. I don't have much of imagination. As well i called it grounded--but maybe that isn't the proper term--

 

[j_martin]

Re: Ran aground in the middle of the Lake

Your from N Miss. and you called your boat a "her" you cranked up the "ol" 150. You backed "her" up in shallow water. "HER" draws no water but in a foot and half you were grounded. The trolling motor was down but never hit. Backed two football fields in reverse. The boat was acting "funny". Was it laughing. Was it grounded in 1.4 ft but the trolling motor wasn't?? You were grounded but you ran the outboard in reverse for 200 yards.




I call BS on this post.

You have no idea what kind of deep doo-doo you can get into with a bass boat when the fish are biting.

It's really a bummer when you take out a chunk of skeg with an old fence post driven by a $600 prop. Don't ask how I know.

 

[MrBigStuff]

Re: Ran aground in the middle of the Lake

It's amazing the number of people I've come across who naively think that the lake is like a bowl and the shallow water is only by the shoreline.

It's common practice for me to pull up and hold the trolling motor suspended slightly below the surface to get out of skinny water. No way I'd start my gas engine and risk damaging it or sucking mud into the cooling passages. If it's too skinny or too far then troller gets pulled and push pole comes out.

 

[Home Cookin']

Re: Ran aground in the middle of the Lake

I don't see any BS in the post. This guy ran aground b/c he was drifting with his motor all the way down. His hull didn't run aground; the skeg did, which explain aground but floating in 1.5 feet. As OP admitted, he lacks experience, which is why he posted what is an everyday occurence where I boat in the seaside marshes. I know the duck hunters and other swamp rats here know the same. We also know the techniques for dealing with it.
With experience you can run a motor tilted up for a low speed extraction; you can run on a plane and know by sound/feel that you are an inch off the bottom and your water pressure is keeping you up. You can use a stern wake to lift over a bar. You can use shallow water to get on a plane. Stirring mud you leave behind does your motor no harm. Pulling muddy water through the engine does no harm as long as you give it a good run in clear water before it settles in. You can chop mud but not hard sand and you have to be able to read the bottom to know which is down there. If you know how to read guts, you can keep your prop in the 2' wide "channel" while the rest of your 19' boat runs over 8 inches of water. You can turn your boat around in a gut that is as wide as your boat is long. Even a SS prop will get worn down to a nub--but won't break. Your shove pole is essential equipment. the tides rule and wait for no man.

 

[Ned L]

Re: Ran aground in the middle of the Lake

The correct reference for a boat is actually "her", so KDAVID1 is correct there.

 

[kahuna123]

Re: Ran aground in the middle of the Lake

No the correct reference for a boat in N Miss or the South is "it". Unless you live up North then anything that floats is acceptable to be called a she. In the South a three masted schooner is called a she. A 300ft tanker is called a she. A 63 ft Hatteras is called a she. A bass boat is called a boat or an it. Rednecks don't call boats that fit on trailers a she. Truth be said most Southern rednecks don't put a name on a boat that still will fit on a trailer. Not all but most. My first name on a boat was my Luhrs but it was documented and have to have a name.

Not good not bad, just different. I still call bs backing a 150 two football fields. So you were 600ft in shallow water before you knew it? The boat acted funny. Was it getting scared??

I am not trying to be mean. But from your post you need to find some locals who will help you and teach you. If I wanted to fish up North the first thing I would do was find someone who knew what they were doing an offer to pay for the gas.

 

[Home Cookin']

Re: Ran aground in the middle of the Lake

not everyone from the South is a redneck, just like not everyone from Florida is a Southerner, or knows the ways of the South.

 

[kahuna123]

Re: Ran aground in the middle of the Lake

agreed that was not the point. He needs some help and its OK to ask for it. And if I moved up North I would be the first to ask for help. I knew enough the first time I tried to snow ski to take lessons. First time I drove on snow I had someone right next to me who was experienced. It was not the point of him not using the right dialect. It was the point of all the out points of the post. Which leads one to believe he was very much out of his comfort zone. Which in a point backing down a 150 for 200 yards doesn't sound very safe or should have happened. My concern is people like this think they know. They are 10 times more likely to get hurt than someone who knows they don't. Just ask.

But I will disagree with you. You are born here or not. Period.

 

[KDAVID1]

Re: Ran aground in the middle of the Lake

I don't see any BS in the post. This guy ran aground b/c he was drifting with his motor all the way down. His hull didn't run aground; the skeg did, which explain aground but floating in 1.5 feet. As OP admitted, he lacks experience, which is why he posted what is an everyday occurence where I boat in the seaside marshes. I know the duck hunters and other swamp rats here know the same. We also know the techniques for dealing with it.
With experience you can run a motor tilted up for a low speed extraction; you can run on a plane and know by sound/feel that you are an inch off the bottom and your water pressure is keeping you up. You can use a stern wake to lift over a bar. You can use shallow water to get on a plane. Stirring mud you leave behind does your motor no harm. Pulling muddy water through the engine does no harm as long as you give it a good run in clear water before it settles in. You can chop mud but not hard sand and you have to be able to read the bottom to know which is down there. If you know how to read guts, you can keep your prop in the 2' wide "channel" while the rest of your 19' boat runs over 8 inches of water. You can turn your boat around in a gut that is as wide as your boat is long. Even a SS prop will get worn down to a nub--but won't break. Your shove pole is essential equipment. the tides rule and wait for no man.

Thanks--this was very helpful. I did back out with the motor trimmed up and ran the boat full out for a couple of miles after. I'll be getting a push poll for the next time I get in the sand.

 

[KDAVID1]

Re: Ran aground in the middle of the Lake

not everyone from the South is a redneck, just like not everyone from Florida is a Southerner, or knows the ways of the South.

Ahmen.

 

[southkogs]

Re: Ran aground in the middle of the Lake

not everyone from the South is a redneck, just like not everyone from Florida is a Southerner, or knows the ways of the South.

I think Virginia is in the south, or did y'all move it Home Cookin'?

I'm in the south ... I call nearly ANY boat a "she" ... and my boat on a trailer has a name printed on the back. Can I stay?