A spooky day on the water

[SDbowhunter]

My girlfriend and I went fishing this last weekend. The weather was a little gloomy but i didnt think much of it. I tossed my line out and started trolling as she put on a different lure. Once she was finished tying on she grabbed her rod and said "Ouch it's Shocking Me!" I grabbed her rod to see what she meant and sure enough there was so much static electricity building up from the cold front coming our way the rod would continually shock us as if i had been sticking my tounge to a 9v battery. I looked over at her and her hair started to stand up on end. Seconds later we heard thunder of in the distance. We high tailed it out of there after that. That was the shortest day of fishing I have ever had. But I wasnt about to let her berkley lightning rod have a chance to proove its name. Has anyone else expirenced a day like this?

[trackerbrent]

Wow, I never experienced that before. Here is what happened to me and a couple buddies about 5 years back at opener on Woman Lake. We were bobber fishing and it was looking gloomy as you described. We noticed our line starting to arc up from the bobber to the rod tip. I am sure this has happened to others. Very scary, we could not reel up fast enough. Started to hear rumbling as we were headed in.

[Lund4Fish]

Had pretty much the same experience you described "SDBowhunter" on a reservoir we were fishing in Wyoming and like you we couldn't get off fast enough either as the storm came rolling in quickly. Spooky stuff that gets your attention in a hurry!

[LMITOUT]

One time out fishing with another guy we had this happen also. We got to our spot and he moved to the front of the boat to take care of something and I grabbed one of the rods to start getting ready to fish. I had to lift the rod tip in the air and heard some buzzing but didn't think I was sure of what I heard so I lifted it back up and it did it again. Told my buddy to listen and we packed up and headed back to shore. There was a storm a long ways off on the horizon and it was pretty much sunny where we were at, but there was static in the air for sure!

Another time I was out, knowing a storm was on it's way, but continued to fish because not much was happening where I was at. The mono just floated in the air above the water and took a lot longer to fall. That was pretty neat too. Wasn't much longer and I heard the thunder and that was the end of that trip.

[jquittum]

One evening last summer I was bobber fishing for Walleye and noticed some rain clouds in the distance. A few moments later I heard this clicking sound from somewhere in the boat. After looking around a few seconds I found the source of the noise. There was a spark jumping from my fishing line to my rod about six inches up from the reel. Really freaked me out, and I left for shore in a hurry.

[tunrevir]

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One time out fishing with another guy we had this happen also. We got to our spot and he moved to the front of the boat to take care of something and I grabbed one of the rods to start getting ready to fish. I had to lift the rod tip in the air and heard some buzzing but didn't think I was sure of what I heard so I lifted it back up and it did it again. Told my buddy to listen and we packed up and headed back to shore. There was a storm a long ways off on the horizon and it was pretty much sunny where we were at, but there was static in the air for sure!

Another time I was out, knowing a storm was on it's way, but continued to fish because not much was happening where I was at. The mono just floated in the air above the water and took a lot longer to fall. That was pretty neat too.

Wasn't much longer and I heard the thunder and that was the end of that trip.

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I had an experience exactly like yours, scary but true!

Tunrevir~

[The Grebe]

As much as I have fished and been caught out on the lake in foul weather, I have never had one of those experiences?

I'm glad I haven't, because it's a sign that something much more lethal is close at hand!

I might miss such a sign, as electricity or not, my hair couldn't stand up very far anyways and I might mistake it for something else and take a bolt from the blue, right through the kanoggin!

The closest I came to anything like that, I was fishing the river, sitting on the bank and some dark clouds came over and a bolt of lightning came down and hit a lone Cottonwood, on a little river islet about 50 yards in front of me....when my vision cleared up and I realized I wasn't being bombed, I reeled in that line so fast, the water was humming!

I had all my gear rounded up and I was up in the truck in about 1 second and I got the hey out of there.

[Daze Off]

Stories like these and my own experiences of being caught out in storms made me decide to sign up for that ESPN Fishing Forecast for my cell phone. I can get nearly instant radar images and a map of lightening strikes for any location I choose. So far it has brought me off the water once where I avoided at least a good soaking. Also helps to know just how long it might rain - should I wait this one out under a bridge, in a tunnel, etc. or should I get off the water as it will be awhile....

Daze Off

[Da Beak]

A couple of years ago, I bought a pager sized unit called "Strike Alert." It detects lightning strikes up to 40 miles away. The darn thing works pretty good. I've used it fishing and golfing. It even tells you if the lightning is moving toward you or away from you.

[UMDSportsman]

When i was little on a family vacation at Cass i had the rod shocking me, wierd because it didn't happen to my dad two feet away from me. A storm was rolling in a ways away, packed up and headed in.

Da Beak- I like your signature. just a question, did you see it on mine, or elsewhere? I found mine in an email.

[Da Beak]

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Da Beak- I like your signature. just a question, did you see it on mine, or elsewhere? I found mine in an email.

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I got it in an e-mail also. A couple of years ago. Made me laugh, so I kinda hung on to it. Great minds I guess.

[vitalshot5]

The electricity through the fishing rod to me seems a little far fetched to me...static electricity would not be constant on your rod....it would snap like rubbing your feet on a carpet and touching something metal....

[311Hemi]

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The electricity through the fishing rod to me seems a little far fetched to me...static electricity would not be constant on your rod....it would snap like rubbing your feet on a carpet and touching something metal....

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Graphite is a conductor of electricity and it is not recomended to fish during a storm with a graphite rod.

[Duffman]

July 4th 1999 in the BWCA, those rod tips buzzed very loudly when raised in the air. We had reached the fishing spot, canoemate picked his rod up to bait it, just then I was swatting at an imaginary horsefly that was buzzin 'round my head. Then it hit me, that's no horsefly, I picked my rod up, BZZZZZZZ. It was time to head back to camp and watch an historic storm blow thru.

[The_Duckslayer]

On the saturday before mothers day of this year the Lil Mrs and I were out fishing. She got zapped when she raised her rod in the air to cast! Time to head back to the dock. By the time we got there we were soaked! Heard rumbles but we thought that they were further away than they were. Will head off the lake from here on out when I hear the rumbles. No fish is worth staying out in that again! Have a good one and N Joy the Hunt././Jimbo

[Joel Taylor]

I have had this several times in my life. The rod does not have to be graphite by any means, the most extreme case I have been in was on Lake Michigan salmon fishing, when you put the butt of the Ugly Stick against your upper thigh it would send an uncomfortable pulse into your hip along with the loud buzzing. Another time I was fishing with a buddy that had those telescoping trolling rods, you could see the arc traveling from one section of the rod to the other, looked like the spark on a spark plug!

I can think of worse ways to go than instant death by lightning when I'm out on the water doin what I love to do....

Bring it on! ZZZZZZZZaaaaaappppppppppppp!!!!!!

[tunrevir]

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The electricity through the fishing rod to me seems a little far fetched to me...static electricity would not be constant on your rod....it would snap like rubbing your feet on a carpet and touching something metal....

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Listen to these guys, they aren't telling fish tales and if you are unlucky enough to have this happen to you, I hope you make the right decision to get out of dodge fastbecause in an instant..................it could be all over. Clear blue skies with a storm approaching isn't safe either because the static electricity builds before the storm as it approaches and can be just as deadly as if you stayed out and fished through the thunder and the lightening! Guess what group of people is most likely to die from a lightening strike? Males 20-40. Don't let it be you because you haven't experienced it for yourself. It does happen! Sorry for the soapbox but this could be a life or death decision that needs to be made as soon as you realize whats going on.

Tunrevir~

[Kyle Sandberg]

I had the line stand up on me today. Wright county tornado storm was not ten minutes away and not a cloud in the sky when my lines started coming off the water. Got off the lake fast and driving home I got poured on. big hail too.

[Ebiz]

Just got back from booking it off of Johanna in Roseville. Thought I might get an hour in before the storm came through. Barely got my bait in the water and there was lighting all around. Needless to say I fired it up and headed for the landing.

[Andrew Erickson]

that happened to me in canada but it didnt shock me.My rod tip was just buzzing but that was pretty scary

[SDbowhunter]

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The electricity through the fishing rod to me seems a little far fetched to me...static electricity would not be constant on your rod....it would snap like rubbing your feet on a carpet and touching something metal....

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If it would have only been a snap here or a snap of electricity there I would probably have kept fishing. But then again I am one of those people who will go ice fishing on 4 inches of ice. I saw a video one time were some people were standing on land and thier hair was standing on end, they were laughing and making fun of the situation then ZAP! That made an impression on me. I knew to get of the lake right away. It was one of the strangest thing I have ever experienced. I would periodically check the rod on my way back, 3 miles across the lake, and it did not stop shocking me until we were right by the landing. I guess i don’t blame you for being skeptical, I probably wouldn’t believe it unless it had happened to me.

[eyepatrol]

I had this same experience this year, opening day. When a storm front was nearly upon us, we started packing up gear and putting things away. When I grabbed my second rod I had lying on the floor, I felt a shock.

That's the last time I ever pushing fishing that far. There aint a fish in this world worth dying for.

[Scott K]

With this happening to all of you, and none of you died, it must be safe . I didnt know this was that comon.

[SDbowhunter]

Well so far no one has really said they rode out the storm. So either they all got zapped or all fishermen are are smart enough to leave. I am guessing the its not the latter.

[gvt]

I experienced this serveral years ago on Osakis. We were trolling shad raps as a storm was approaching. Our rods were buzzing, but the fish were really biting so we kept fishing. It was dead calm and the sky had that spooky greenish tint. Finally my buddy cast his shad rap out after catching a fish, but it wouldn't dive! The line was making a big arc up in the air with tail hook on the shad rap was just skipping along the surface of the water. Needless to say at that point we made an expedited trip to shore! I guess I must learn a little slower than most, but the fish were really hiting!!! I wouldn't believe it if I hadn't experienced it. Since then others have told they couldn't get lines in the water due to the arc in the line.

[snapcrackpop]

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With this happening to all of you, and none of you died, it must be safe

. I didnt know this was that comon.

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The ones that died... can't post !

Striking Statistics

Americans are twice as likely to die from lightning than from a hurricane, tornado or flood.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) estimates there are 200 deaths and 750 severe injuries from lightning each year in the U.S.

20% of all lightning victims die from the strike.

70% of survivors will suffer serious long-term effects.

Annually, there are more than 10,000 forest fires caused by lightning.

Who's at Risk?

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85% of lightning victims are children and young men aged 10-35 engaged in outdoor recreation and work activities outside.

70% of all lightning injuries and fatalities occur in the afternoon.

Most lightning deaths involve people working outdoors and outdoor recreationists

Lightning in remote terrain creates dangerous conditions. Hikers, campers, backpackers, skiers, fishermen, and hunters are especially vulnerable when they're participating in these activities.

Many survivors of lightning strikes report that immediately before being struck their hair was standing on end and they had a metallic taste in their mouth.

Long-term injuries from a lightning strike can include memory & attention loss, chronic numbness, muscle spasms & stiffness, depression, hearing loss, and sleep disturbance.

[SDbowhunter]

I wonder what the odds of being struck by lightening when putting yourself in that situation. I mean with only 950 being struck out of 300 million people your odds seem pretty good. Calculating your number out farther that 85% would roughtly be 25% of the population so more like 1/100,000. I guess no fish is worth being struck by lightning but "knowing" you could really hook into them would make me think about risking it with in reason. I always look for days were it is bright and sun shiney knowing a storm is coming. The incoming cold front can really turn on the bite.

On a side note I'm kinda proud of starting a flaming thread on only my 8th post or so since joining. Looking forward to contributing more.

[tunrevir]

I'd say more "striking post" rather then flaming!

Good for us all to think about though, especially with the storm season upon us! Look foreward to the deer photoes this fall!

Tunrevir~

[SDbowhunter]

Yeah the deer photos havn't been very good for me beside my first trophy a spikebuck. I usally see lots of deer but not much luck, usually a last minute bambi. Been trying my best to get a wall hanger but the big ones slip by me. My younger brother on the other hand has three of them on the wall. Lucky punk.

[fishinJohn]

I have never had a buzzing line, sounds like enough to get me off any lake. I once worked at a fruit and veggie farm and we were laying aluminum irrigation pipes on a normal, sunny day. Some clouds came in but nothing major until a bolt of lightning struck the pipe about ten feet from where we were standing. Sparks flew and so did we but that was the only bolt we saw before the clouds really came in.