Bannas...Bad luck or myth?

[Bobberdown]

Wow this is going to sound weird but I have a friend that is terrified of having bananas in the boat while we are fishing. He claims that there are many fishermen that will not allow bananas in the boat. I have always laughed at this but I must say on trips where I have snuck a banana aboard. We have not caught any fish while having them on board. There has been days that after he got off my boat we landed salmon but he was not there so I could say SEE ITS ALL IN YOUR MIND now shut up and fish! Do you have any friends that have similar superstitions? Lets hear them.

[Bobberdown]

heck it helps if you spell bananas right! [img]images/icons/rolleyes.gif[/img]

Did you mean to spell bananas, `baman's, or Roy?

[Killertraylor]

There must be something to this myth - I've heard it all the way from Cabo San Lucas Mexico to Bristol Bay, Alaska. I personally don't care for bananas and don't ever bring them on the boat - others do and we still catch fish. I have a friend who simply won't allow them on the boat. I was anchored next to him about 6 years ago springer fishing and we had put a fish in the boat that day and he hadn't. A guy he brought along pulled out his sack lunch and you guessed it, a banana. My friend grabbed it and hucked it in the river, chewing the guys arse real good. I swear to god - not less than a minute later they had a fish on. Now you'll never convince him that this superstition isn't true...
Almost fogot - I watched an episode of that Hot Tamale fishing show earlier this year - I think it was on the clack with Dave Johnson and they rubbed a banana on one of the jigs and later cought a steelhead on the jig. I think they hooked 6 fish that trip.

[ 06-18-2001: Message edited by: Killertraylor ]

[Fish Hunter]

Bananas are good luck, don't leave home without them! [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img]


Dare to defy superstition. [img]images/icons/wink.gif[/img]

[Phish_on]

My dad ate a lot of bananas, and caught a lot of salmon.

Biggest fish I ever caught in the Columbia was hooked while eating banana bread.

[img]images/icons/confused.gif[/img]

[THE REEL HEY_YALL]

Don't ask what happens to you when you bring a banana fishing back home. Let's just say I brought a banana once.... [img]images/icons/shocked.gif[/img]

[THE REEL HEY_YALL]

Hey Phish, how big was that bass again? [img]images/icons/tongue.gif[/img] [img]images/icons/tongue.gif[/img] [img]images/icons/tongue.gif[/img]

:

[ 07-02-2001: Message edited by: ****** ]

[Mr. Fisherman]

******,

You've got that right.

I personally confisacted that contraban prior to departure with Pilar. Say that three times fast... At 3:00 am.... before coffee [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

No yeller fellers.

Roy, would you be kind enough to share yer story again. We're bored and waiting to go kill Silvers.... Tell us the one about the spiders and the nanners.... [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

[Richter]

Banana's NO NO NO NO NO!!!

Banana's should be left at home at all times. Ok, if you need one that badly you can have it on the way home, in the truck, but no Banana's in the boat.

[Tanner]

I have no problem catching fish and bananas are almost always my fruit of choice. I had two of them in my driftboat on Saturday and we got two nice steelhead. Maybe I should have brought 4 bananas that way we could have got 4 steelhead. I also had a small loaf of banana bread that my wife had baked the night before (They were for the church bake sale but I stole one [img]images/icons/shocked.gif[/img] [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img] ).

I believe that if you are confident in whatever it is you are doing, chances are you will be successful, bananas or no bananas)

[fishbait]

Bannanas, shammanas........ It's funny how this has spread over time.....
Anyone who can't catch fish with a bananna on board shouldn't be fishing (sorry ******) I have tested this from Alaska to S.Oregon, and it absolutely makes no diff......None what so ever....Still catch lots of fish... But it is fun having fun with the people that believe they are bad luck..

[Phish_on]

That would be a Chinook bass around 40 lbs.
Tasted like salmon.

Hey I think that was a "personal attack" YOU MUST BE BANNED

[ 06-18-2001: Message edited by: Phish_on ]

[Stz ll]

The more bananas in the boat usually means more fish. My partner usually puts a banana peel across her rod while we are fishing in the hog line. This for some reason assures her of catching a fish. A good friend and excellent fisherperson who unfortunatly passed away a few years ago would never let a banana on his boat. One day he was fishing with some people he worked with. They were fishing out of Chinook Landing for summer steelhead. It was the best day they had ever had on the Columbia for steelhead. They limited the boat that day. As they were getting prepared to leave one of the ladies on board pulled out a banana and started to eat it. My friend said you can't have bananas on my boat as it is bad luck, and you can't catch fish. Then he realized it was 11:30 in the morning and they were going home with 6 fish. From that time on he made sure everyone who went fishing with him had a banana in their lunch box. He continued to catch fish like always. This person would fill his tag almost every year.

[WheresMyBobber]

I know you guys must be kidding. I catch several nooks a year trolling a banana just like a cut plug herring. You have to use a plug cutter, but cut it like normal, inject it with sardine oil, and hook it up just like a herring (don't forget the trailing hook for short bites).

Works like a charm, especially in off colored water, and remember they will troll a lot longer if you use them before they start to turn black.

My next experiment is to use them like a K16 Kwikfish - they've got a similar shape, I think it will just take a little experiementing and fine tuning.

You gotta think outside the box!! [img]images/icons/cool.gif[/img]

[ 06-18-2001: Message edited by: WheresMyBobber ]

[Fish Hunter]

Stz II I'm with you. My boat is definitely not a banana free zone. I think we need to help the banana-phobic folks confront and conquer their fears. One of my buddys is this way. He has participated in some banana throwing in the past. It's great to have a successful day on his boat, then eat a banana at the very end of the day. He freaks out some, but he's coming around.

Wow W. M. Bobber you really push the envelope [img]images/icons/shocked.gif[/img]

[DF]

Banana bread... yyyyyyuuuuuuummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm [img]images/icons/tongue.gif[/img]

[Fish Hunter]

Oh yeah, another great treatment for the banana-phobic is to leave some of the fruit on board their boat in a less then obvious place. [img]images/icons/tongue.gif[/img]

[Trick]

The less than obvious place would be under the seat right next to the three day old tub of sandshrimp you left as a prank two days earlier. [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

[Smily]

Definately a myth,
I haven't told anyone but Phunybonz can also testify the fact I landed a 30" steelhead and I did have a Banana in the boat. This was the time of floatilla 2nd trip. it was put there unconcienceiously(sp?) But we did put a fish in the boat that he catapulted from the river!!!
[img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img] Smily [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

[Pilar]

I almost left one of my Halibut fishers on the beach over this offensive fruit. I found it in his sack lunch as I put the bag in the cooler. But he didn't know any better and as soon as I explained it to him the banana went to its home in the blackberry bushes.

All was forgiven and we limited the boat with a triple on the second drift.

Even dry banana chips carry the jinx. It has to do with tarantulas on sailing ships carrying bananas. I think BaitOfEggs splained this to us once.

[blast and cast]

Maybe it is a jinx for some species of fish, but we limited my boat out for 5 people each day of the Halibut season and everyone on the boat at bananas. Total- 20 Halibut and probably 25 bananas.

[FishinMission]

I think it has to do with "mindset". If bananas are in the boat, and you don't know it...it's not a problem. But heck....if you don't end up catching any fish....and there's bananas in the boat...you can blame it on the 'naners!! [img]images/icons/shocked.gif[/img]

[Bobberdown]

Wow! I cant believe how many people have this problem with bananas

[birdhunter]

Ahhhhhh! Nannners! I've been know to throw more than a fit when I find bananas in the boat. It doesn't seem to matter for some fish, as I was wearing a banana republic shirt while crappie fishing, but it does seem to matter to salmon and steelhead.

There was a post on this topic back in February and I said I've had really bad experiences with bananas in the boat before. Here are two of the better examples:

I was fishing near the mouth of the Kalama in late August for upriver brights and we'd had great success. We went three successive days. Caught two fish the first day. The next day we caught 4 fish, including a 45 lber. The third day I brought along a friend who has yet to catch a salmon. I've taken him out many times, in ideal conditions, and never touched a fish. So I thought this was a done deal. Exponentially speaking we should hook 16 fish and keep the best 6. No problem getting this guy into a fish, right? Wrong. Never touched a fish all day. Same lures, same spot, same condions, same everything. Boats on either side of us caught loads of fish. I couldn't understand it. About noon, by buddy opens gets out his lunch and what do you think is the first thing he pulled out of that paper bag? The ugliest, putrid yellow-black banana I'd ever seen. My mouth hit the floor and I immediately told him to toss the fruit over or he and the plantaine would be taking a long wet trip to Astoria. Needless to say he complied, but the damage was already done. We never touched a fish that day while the boats on either side of us limited out and left.

This January, during the peek of winter steelheading in the Clack I had been doing exceptionally well. One day we hooked 5 fish and landed 3. The next day we hooked another 3 and kept 2. The very next day I decided to try to take this same friend out again. We couldn't miss with steelhead, right? Wrong again. After waiting an extra hour at the boat ramp for him to show up, I should have realized the omen I was getting. When he finally arrived I inspected his lunch to make sure that he didn't have any contraband. Lo and behold once again he had a road-killed banana tucked away. I made him dispose of it at Carver and hoped that the skunk would not follow us downriver. Well it did. Never touched a single fish that day.

I still don't know if it is that friend or the bananas. Perhaps it is both. I have made it my personal mission to catch him his first steelhead or salmon. Maybe we have to perform some sort of Indian purifying ritual first. I don't know. All I can say is that I'm not going to take any chances. If you plan on coming in the boat with me you had best leave the fruit at home. Bottom line is that I don't catch enough salmon or steelhead to risk breaking the banana rule. I'd rather have a fish than fruit any day.

[wapiti]

i had two cleints on the quinault one day and we fished half a day with no fish in the boat. one of the guy's said "time to change our luck and started to eat a banana, he was half way done with it when his plug rod went down. we lost that fish and moved down to the next hole below letty potter and hooked 6 fish then went to the last drift below the boat launch at the end of the day and landed and released a 24 pound chrome bright buck steelhead. bring bananas anytime you want.

[SteelieSteve]

Why anger the Fish Gods and bring bad juju to the boat... No bananas. [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

[birdhunter]

I agree with SteelieSteve. There are three kinds of juju out there. Good juju, bad juju and banana juju. I don't want anything to do with the last two. Nothing banana is to go in the boat while I'm fishing. That means no bananas, no banana boat sun tan lotion, no banana republic shirts, no banana bread, no banana flavored yogurt, no anything banana related. Even no yellow rain slickers. I'm just not willing to risk it.

BTW: You think bananas are bad for salmon/steelies you should see what spam does to the sturgeon!

[ 07-02-2001: Message edited by: ****** ]

[Stz ll]

With Friday the 13th coming up in July I am sure there are a lot of you that won't get out of bed that day. [img]images/icons/tongue.gif[/img] [img]images/icons/wink.gif[/img]

[Denali]

Told to me be a guide in the Florida Keys. Boats traveling across the ocean in the 1700's carrying goods and supplies also including a good stash of bannanas had huge losses of crew members due to some strange illness. The common denominator on these ships were bannanas. After years of horrible losses of crew due to illness the bannana became the culprit. What they did not know but found out later was that it was actually a spider that was biting people causing them to get sick and die. The spider lived on/in the piles of bannanas. True or not? That was this guides version of the history of the bannana myth and boats.

[SteelieSteve]

Banana Republic Shirts? I'm not sure that would qualify as the evil banana juju. Who needs rain coats it's going to be 85 and higher for 3 months. [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

[Fishbone]

Back in the days of the transatlantic crossings by wooden sailing ships many hazards would befall the captains, crew and passengers. Disease, pirates, shipwrecks, storms, etc., claimed the lives of a good percentage of the captains, crew and passengers attempting the dangerous voyage. Needless to say, a transatlantic crossing in the 17th and 18th centuries was a very risky endeavor. Often the vessels would stop along the way in tropical islands to gather provisions such as food and water. There the passengers and crew would often purchase wooden crates of bananas from the locals and bring them aboard the ship. These crates would have all manner of critters in them such as bugs, spiders, vermin and snakes.

These critters would make their way into the bilges of the ships, multiply, and then find their way into the captain's quarters. The captains circulated the rumor that bananas were bad luck in an attempt to keep the critters off the ship and out of their cabin. The crew and
passengers were more than eager to follow suit because of the inherent risk of the crossing. So, if the captain announced prior to the voyage that bananas were bad luck and not allowed aboard the vessel, everyone complied. You must remember that these were the days of burning witches and the like, so superstitions were taken very seriously.

[Master Baiter]

STUPERSTITIONS ONLY AFFECT THOSE THAT BELIEVE!

[smilesforu]

RT tells me his secret banana wrapped Kwikfish are awesome. He recommends the skins in place of herring fillets because of the bait shortage. You wouldn't doubt RT would you? [img]images/icons/tongue.gif[/img]

[ 07-02-2001: Message edited by: ****** ]

I thought I recognized you from back in the day on the Trask, Rick. Yes that was me that slammed a slew of 'Nooks while everyone was staring at their bobbers float with no bites. I posted that trick a few months ago, and that you better be an accurtate caster to place them between bobbers or you are in for more sheeyat than just getting the low brow! It is killer - either use a 1 oz. "banana" sinker and 40" leader to the Kwiky or cast it w/o weight and do a slow retrieve with your rodtip down into the water about 3 or 4 feet - kind of a poor man's downrigger. It works! Bigtime. In addition to the banana sinker I do indeed occasionally use banana peel Kwiky wraps as Marty mentioned, flesh side out just as with sardine filets - skin against the Kwiky belly. Outdoor writer Ed McQuary is partly responsible for this astounding success because in his column he wrote that he cold pressed out enough oil from a bunch of bananas to get a quality oil from them, and he did great on springers with the banana oil! I'm not suprised either because bananas contain potassium, sugar, and oil - all things 'nooks like. Does anyone really believe in a true banana jinx? Naah, couldn't be - but if so you would be on the edge of your seat watching the WWF to see who wins. [img]images/icons/wink.gif[/img] Bananas rule!

RT

[img]images/icons/wink.gif[/img]

[Stz ll]

******, No cartoon?? [img]images/icons/confused.gif[/img]