Just another day at the Cowlitz mouth...

Hogmaster · 08-09-2002, 02:53 PM

The following is a true story. It is also way too long for some of you. For others, has this happened to you? Happened actually awhile ago...

The short story here is that the day's fishing was good. I came home with about a 30 pound chrome bright Chinook and my friend Bruce caught one about half that size. We had more action too, but the other fish stayed in the river. The wind came up in the afternoon though, and everyone seemed to leave all at once so the ramp was a long wait. I was a bit late for dinner at the in-laws.

The real story is what happened the next day. Based on the recent successes, I got up early and met another buddy, Steve, at the boat ramp in Rainier. He drove separately since he lives in Vancouver, Wa. and likes to come up I-5 to Longview and then cross the bridge there. I came up the Oregon side.

I had the feeling it was going to be a special day as I came up Highway 30 through the town of St. Helens. I had gotten started a few minutes late so I was being a bit liberal with the gas pedal while traveling through town. I was a bit concerned and highly aware because most times while passing through this burgh the local constable sits on one end of town or the other waiting for dudes just like me.

Well, despite my throwing caution to the wind I was saved when a guy in a pickup passed by in the center of town going just a tad faster. He made the last light and I didn't. I swear the signals are timed to make everyone stop on the highway, even at 5:30 am on a Saturday morning. Sure enough, as I rolled out of the community the town's finest had already pulled the unfortunate perpetrator over and was writing him a reminder of his venture though one of America's last great remaining speed traps. Surely this was a good omen for me!

We started fishing at first light and the action was surprisingly slow. There were about as many boats as have been there all season, but hardly anyone was getting any fish.

The day started as a trolling show because the tide was incoming, but by about 9:30 AM the jockeying for anchor positions was in full swing. This is always a challenge during slack tide as the boats tend to float erratically and the wrong way from where they will be once the current starts. People will set their anchors where they think they should then run their motors in reverse, holding the boat downstream until the river starts doing the work for them. Another variable in the equation is the wind. Depending on the severity the wind will push the boats to one side (or even upstream if the current isn't running hard). So it is difficult to know exactly where the boat will be once the tide is in full swing, and with the bottom so uneven guessing a little bit wrong can make the difference in being in 11 to 50 or so feet of water. The fish definitely follow certain underwater channels, and the chances of catching them are greatly improved when one is in about 30' of water.

I was looking for a particular spot that would be in that range and was simply amazed when we settled in and the tide started running out. Somehow I had picked a hogline spot that was 30-32' deep (depending on how much the wind was blowing us sideways). OK, Steve will make me admit we had to lift and drop the anchor a couple of times and since he is less than one month from an appendectomy and is not supposed to be lifting anything it was a joint effort. (Usually my buddies chastise me heavily for wanting them to pull anchor while I control the boat with the motor, but hey, somebody has to do it). The only concern was that there was a hogline that had formed immediately below the one we were in, and they had not left the usual amount of space between our lures and their anchor lines. This is not a good combination when one hooks a fish. Several people in the line we had chosen grumbled about it but there wasn't much we could do about it so we all just started fishing. Everyone knew that if you hooked a fish you had to drop out of the hogline quickly and motor off to one side or the other as soon as possible to be sure not to lose a fish to an anchor.

The action slowly started picking up. First we saw a couple of fish hooked in the line below us. Then in our line - A fish a few boats to the left, a fish a few boats to the right. I knew it would be a matter of time.

I was using a lure which is known to be the hottest thing for this type of salmon fishing for the last few years. Until last year my friends and I had pooh poohed it because it is nothing more than a piece of bent metal with a hook on it designed to wobble in the water. The issue is that it costs $10 (US)! Well last year I broke down and bought one and immediately caught some very nice Chinook Salmon with it. It converted several of us soon after that. The price is ludicrous, but the effectiveness is indisputable. Like any lure however, some are, for whatever reason, more effective than others of the same type. The one I was using was the one I had been using since last summer. It worked wondrously well, often getting action when no one else's offerings were.

Shortly after the second fish in our line was hooked, my rod slammed down with the most vicious strike I have ever seen in all my years of salmon fishing! Even though the drag on the reel was set very tight, line was peeling off it like it was attached to a dragster at the SummerNationals! I grabbed the rod, set the hook and tried to put my thumb down on the spool to slow the fish that was making a beeline to those dreaded anchor lines downstream. The only thing the thumbing of the spool accomplished however was some severe burns to my thumb. I put my other hand on the reel in a feeble attempt to use both on the spool, but that just caused the palm of my other hand to start smoking.

While all this was going on the crowd in my hogline was oohing and ahing because it was very apparent this was a monster fish. My friend Steve was reeling up his lure as fast as he could in preparation of releasing the boat and trying to help me get some control of the fish before it got into the mess below.

Then it happened. While trying to tightened the drag system even tighter on the reel, I momentarily loosened the grip on the rod. Just like that the rod shot out of my hands and out the back of the boat! It reminded me of the guy who gets launched out of the cannon at Barnum and Bailey's. It landed about 20' downstream and then looked as though it were water skiing behind a submarine.

I could hear the crowd groan as I yelled to Steve to throw the anchor line over. In swift fashion I started the big motor, slammed it in reverse and scooted after the rod in the same downstream trajectory it was last seen disappearing in.

Except it was gone. There was simply no trace of it nor the fish. We motored around the area for quite some time since often a salmon with a lure in it's mouth will come to the surface and porpoise. We motored below the next hogline as well as above it but finally had to admit defeat.

It was really embarrassing to pull back into our hogline. No one said a thing to me about it, but I broke a cardinal rule of fishing - NEVER LET GO OF THE ROD!!! The guys in the boats on both sides, as well as Steve, simply said "(We) sure would have liked to have seen that one".

Needless to say I was depressed. Not only did I lose what was likely to be a wall hanger class fish, but my special lure was gone too. Oh, and the rod and reel that I bought just last spring for almost $200 and was my favorite outfit.

I put out another lure on another rod but suddenly the bite shut down again. I knew Steve wanted to go by about noon or so, but we were hoping that the fish got off the lure and the line on the rod might have drooped over someone's anchor line downstream. It was a long shot, but if they pulled anchor there was a chance my gear could yet get recovered.

By about 12:30, one of the boats directly below us did pull up. but no evidence of my rod came up with their anchor. So I told Steve we might as well chalk it up to experience and take off. We lifted our anchor and motored back to the ramp. Steve stayed with the dog and boat while I went to get the truck. Well, I thought I would get the truck.

It turns out the place I had chosen to park the truck and trailer was impossibly boxed in. I had backed up to an ivy wall, and now there were rigs stacked on three sides around me.

I walked back to the dock and told Steve of my predicament. He was ready to go, and since he had his own rig anyway, I bid him ado and decided to go back out to do some more fishing. It was a beautiful afternoon, and since I wasn't going anywhere I decided to make the most of it.

I motored back to the same spot I was in before and actually got the boat properly positioned on the first try dropping the anchor. I settled in, even remembering to put the net together (something one does not want to do by oneself while fighting a fish).

I didn't have much confidence in my alternate lure, but I figured I'd keep watching those boats below as they pulled up after their day's fishing. Who could say, my stuff still might show up.

The bite did not return. For the next three hours there were hardly any fish on the fish finder, and even fewer were caught. It was an exercise in frustration as I rolled the play over and over again in my mind. The woulda coulda shouldas were driving me nuts. And no one was leaving. They all must of figured the day was nice enough that they might as well wait it out. I had no way of knowing what boats were associated with the rigs that were pinning mine in, and given the effort required to lift anchor it hardly seemed worth it to leave until a large percentage of the boats had done so before me. Even though I really wasn't into fishing.

Finally at about 4 PM the tide started petering out, the wind kicked up considerably and boats started pulling out of the lines to return to the ramp. I watched intently as boats out of the next two downstream hoglines pulled in their anchors. I was talking to myself now. "Is that guy messing with something? No, it is just his anchor. Is that kid unwrapping some line from the rope? Man I can't see that far!"

I still hadn't seen any evidence of my gear, and now enough boats have left that it seemed reasonable that my vehicle was no longer likely to be blocked in. However, there was one boat directly below me that was a prime prospect for the gear around the anchor rope theory. So I decided to get out some reading and pass a bit more time. Surely he would pull up soon and there would be my gear, if not my salmon.

The wind was picking up fiercely by now though, and I had trouble keep the pages of the document from blowing away. The boat was starting to drift up stream and the fishing was pretty much a joke. I kept one eye one the boat below occasionally, but otherwise devoted much of my attention to the reading material.

I noticed that my line was drifting off to the left of the boat. Since the freshening winds were blowing the boat all kittywampas, I paid little attention. Then I noticed it looked like the rig was hung up on the bottom. Great, now I'll lose another $10 lure to the river. I picked up the rod and tried to jerk it off the bottom when low and behold, the bottom moved. Not really that much, almost like it was dragging something. Could it be?! No, it is starting to move more now. That's right, while I was totally ignoring the situation, the backup offering had convinced Mr. Chinook to strike and I hadn't even noticed.

I released from my anchor, which turned out to be a mistake because the boat was blown back upstream into the anchor line (which was still coming downstream with the current). After several pratfalls and near net-fouls a small, about 9 pound, salmon was boated.

If you thought that somehow I was getting my rod reel and lure back when my rod got stuck as described above, well, you were as optimistic as I. But it was not to be.

About the time I got back on my anchor line and started bleeding the fish, my last likely prospect finally decided to pull anchor. I watched closely as they pulled the rope, stopped, pulled some more, stopped, and then lifted it in. Their anchor that is. My line was not on it.

So it was time to go. The wind was blowing upstream at about 20 knots now. When a west wind blows up the mighty Columbia, dangerous conditions are a very real situation. Rolling, choppy 6' waves were now blowing across the channel I had to cross. Although my 18' jet sled has a 100 horsepower motor, it could not be taken advantage of. Spray from the bow chop made for a very wet, slow and rough ride for the almost mile trip in treacherous waters. The dog and I both looked as though we had been through a car wash in a convertible by the time we made it back to the dock. Checking the watch, I noticed it was 4:30.

I put the dog on her leash and walked up the ramp to the truck and trailer. You can imagine what I said under my breath as I reached the truck only to find that I was STILL blocked in! One of the rigs had left only to be replaced by another one! I stood there with the boat unattended as people madly scrambled in from the rough conditions to load their boats and head for home. After an eternity or so it seemed a little old guy walked out of the dock area, up the ramp and into one of the vehicles blocking mine. He took off, so now I could load the boat and go. Except all those other guys who were coming up from the docks while I was hoping to not have to spend the night in Rainier were now dutifully lined up with their trailers waiting to get their boats out of the water. And I was at the end of that line.

My trailer is known as a bunk trailer. It is extremely easy to launch and trailer the boat because the boat is flat bottomed and all I have to do is drive the sled up onto the carpeted flat bottom "bunks" and I am done. The other common type of trailer is known as a roller trailer. Roller trailers are common for boats with deeper "V" style hulls, and are usually used with fiberglass boats. Roller trailers are much less forgiving - The boat must be carefully centered on the trailer or it will not be properly set as it comes out of the water. Loading a boat in a river that has current in the wind can be a royal pain in the behind.

I mention all of this because - you guessed it - there were about thirty trailers waiting to load boats and it seems almost all of them were of the roller variety. I waited and waited and waited as people would try to coax their boats onto the trailers. They would back in deeper. They would pull the trailer up. They would start crosswise and dry. They would invariably end up wet, with the boat not well centered when they would finally give up.

I finally got my chance to back the trailer down the ramp. It took me about thirty seconds to hop out of the rig, hop into the boat, start the big motor, drive it onto the trailer, get back into the truck and start up the ramp. I checked the watch. It was 6 PM. I planned to be home by 1 and I still had an hour and 1/2 to go. That's fishing.

I looked in the back of the boat thinking that someone surely found and returned my rod out of the goodness of their heart during the 1 1/2 hours the boat was unattended. That was not to be either. The good news was at least no one had taken liberties with any of the rest of my gear while it was invitingly accessible.

Anyway, I couldn't sleep all night last night thinking about the error of my ways. It must be how a pro wide receiver would feel if he were catching a touchdown pass in overtime of the Super Bowl but somehow had it go through his arms only to land in some linebacker's big mitts and then have the humiliation of watching him waltz untouched in front of the crowd to the opposite end zone.

By the time the sun came up however the perspective returned. You see, after all, the officer should have pegged me in the morning, and the fine would have been near $200. I looked in the morning paper and saw the rod and reel advertised on sale for a total of $140. I replaced them and got a new $10 lure today. Fine reduced.

I can only hope the new lure will be as good as the old one...

With sore thumbs,

Hogmaster

Lepper · 08-09-2002, 03:11 PM

do I laugh? do I cry? i'm so confused!!!!!!

Hogmaster · 08-09-2002, 03:16 PM

You actually read all that, Lepper? Thanks.

I cried, sighed and wanted to die. But to this day I miss the Alvin the most! That sucker really worked!

PS - Is it smoky in Bandon?

[ 08-09-2002, 04:17 PM: Message edited by: Hogmaster ]

Miss B Haven · 08-09-2002, 03:20 PM

Hogmaster - You get the Novel of the day award. Good tale for us "stuck home babysitting the Farm" guys who should be headed for the Salt. Ya - and the weeds are still waiting, but it's hot out there!

24 on/ 48 off · 08-09-2002, 03:27 PM

Thanks for the Rod!!

**Just kiddin'** :smile: :tongue:

--spud-- :smile:

HOGTIDE · 08-09-2002, 04:23 PM

I've built my own rod in less time than it took to read that :shocked: :shocked: :grin:

Hogmaster · 08-09-2002, 04:36 PM

24 - I'd be happy knowin' someone got it!

Hogtide -

Ahh, but you read it! :grin:

Thanks.

Now can you make an Alvin?

[ 08-09-2002, 05:38 PM: Message edited by: Hogmaster ]

Lured In · 08-09-2002, 04:45 PM

Hogmaster...(perhaps you need to revisit that moniker

)...there is something quite inexplicable about those moments. Although I cannot say, I have been there, done that, I have seen enough of that movie to know what it feels like. Look at it this way...it is better to have hooked and lossed than to never hooked at all! :grin:

There will be more! Thanks for sharing a great story and you quite the accomplished story teller.

wetaline · 08-09-2002, 05:00 PM

Can you buy a synopsis at the local book store? I got about 4 paragraphs in and realized i hadn't left the start line yet.... and then remembered i'm getting up in the morning.... would like to know how it end though.....and what happend in the middle.......

Rusty · 08-09-2002, 05:52 PM

I don't care how long Hogmaster's story was. It was highly entertaining, well written and somewhat suspenseful! Now, if we could get him a job with the Oregonian to replace what we currently have with regards to Outdoor writing in Oregon, we would really have something to brag about.

Hogmaster, I'll keep an eye out for your Mr. Big!

Rusty

Get Bit · 08-09-2002, 06:14 PM

HM,

Nice story !

Get Bit

Wild Bill · 08-09-2002, 06:29 PM

Good story!

Tilla · 08-09-2002, 06:30 PM

What a wonderfully written story! One of the best I've read.

:smile:

jawbreaker · 08-09-2002, 06:39 PM

That actually happened to me.......I never got my rod back either.

luguando · 08-09-2002, 06:43 PM

Hey Hog,

How long did it take you to write that? Great story. You must have composed that story while you were waiting for that ever elusive take down that happens while anchor fishing. I'll keep a lookout for any chinookies carrying expensive baggage. Maybe you can turn it in to an I-Fish tournament - kind like the coho derbies that get put on in the Sound. Best of luck with your new set up. You have to lose the cherry on that one.

One other speed trap of note for all you not familiar with Highway 30. WHATEVER you do, go the speed limit in Clatskanie. When you are westbound you come down a grade in to town and a 35 MPH speed zone is right at the base of that hill. The local cop sits there like a Moray eel waiting for his dinner.

Get Bent · 08-09-2002, 07:09 PM

Let me know when it comes out on video.

Uncle Roman · 08-09-2002, 07:43 PM

:smile: That was a great story, I really like how you justified the cost of the setup vs. the tax you could have had from Johnny Law. I personally wouldn't have thought that much into it, I woulda got mad......Nice work with the easy going attitude!

TheRogue · 08-09-2002, 07:44 PM

Wow, what a great story!!! Well to read anyway, not to live it!!

Thanks for posting it

k

Hogmaster · 08-09-2002, 08:05 PM

Thanks all who have had such nice things to say!

I would rather fish than write, but I'd rather write than weed in the heat, right Miss B?! (Mel)

lugando, it didn't really take all that long to write (no I didn't on the boat though), it just kinda flowed once I came to peace with the "bigger picture" so to speak. If I could actually type it would come out alot faster. :grin:

Anyway, If anyone comes across a Berkly IM7 with a Garcia reel and a really productive silver Alvin, Please let me know! Maybe the court can still rescind the fine totally. :grin:

[ 08-10-2002, 10:22 PM: Message edited by: Hogmaster ]

Miss B Haven · 08-09-2002, 08:13 PM

Hog - never did get the dang weeds eaten (matter a fact I'm real hungry). Just too hot out there to do anything but fish. I actually got inspired by your mini series and wrote a short one of my own. It's true, I swear, I got two witnesses

periwinkle · 08-09-2002, 10:19 PM

Very well done young man-------- that was about 3 hours typing for me....... If you aren't a professional writer you should look into it. :grin:

Fishalot · 08-10-2002, 09:27 AM

I wish your story had a better ending, however I loved every word of it. Thank you for writing it and I give you a A+ . I hope your new Alvin works out because we know it is the lure not the pole that the fish bits

.

Fisalot

[ 08-10-2002, 10:28 AM: Message edited by: Fishalot ]

Snapset · 08-10-2002, 09:38 AM

Good story, Hog. I enjoyed reading it.

fishisabonus · 08-10-2002, 09:50 AM

Hey! Great story. You should write a book about funny fish stories. At least it was an accident that the rod went over. I have seen some people get so frustrated that they have thrown theres in.

THE KIWANDA KID · 08-10-2002, 10:03 AM

Hog that was an entrtaining story and I hope the Oregonion is looking for an outdoor writer. As for the comments made by Wetaline no one here in oregon is surprised to know that a WSC STUDENT/GRAD CAN'T READ MORE THAN A PARAGRAPH WITHOUT LOSING HIS CONCENTRATION. :grin: Just kidding wetaline but really . did your diploma come from a cracker jack box? GO BEAVS!!!! :grin:

steelheadslayer · 08-10-2002, 05:45 PM

Hog, you had me wishing up to the very end that somehow you'd get the rod back with the fish still attached. Sorry to hear about your loss! Keep up the entertaining writing, you've got a knack.

rags · 08-10-2002, 10:35 PM

Great story. I was hoping the ending would be better but you won't forget that day. Next time hold on!

NEUTRON · 08-11-2002, 06:32 AM

I think that's why Hog posted, he is till looking for that happy ending... great story...

UPI news flash... Astoria fisherman hooks and
lands world record 70lb TULE fall chinook salmon with rod/reel and shiny alvin attached
adding to total weight. Fish is a monster and locals are refering to it as BLACK BART for being a alvin bandit.

Actually, a friend of mine let a rod go in tide
water once...I can still visualize it hitting the water, like a water skiier dock starting but sinking....sinking feeling. I got mine back when
a lucky angler hooked the whole setup.

Hog...thanks for sharing. At least you didn't loose your sense of humor. Very well written.

[ 08-11-2002, 07:33 AM: Message edited by: NEUTRON ]

BUGLEMAN · 08-11-2002, 10:38 AM

Excellent story Hogmaster!

It is amazing how fast a salmon can make a rod fly out of the boat. Had the priviledge of watching one fly on the Willamette up at the grinders hole. The guy anchored next door was tying a spinner with his rod sitting next to the motor and the but cap resting on the deck. Obviously he didn't have enough rod holders. So the rod studders and instantainiously leaps out of the boat. The guy, Rick is his name, dives in with out hesitation. Some of you may be familiar with the area, it is just below Willamette falls where the 2 heavy currents come together. So, Rick comes up with the rod and it is bent and shaking. Wow! He still has the fish and is trying to fight the current and fish. The thing is, he had another rod in his hands when he dove in and that went in the drink too. So Rick comes up with line laying on his arm and looks back at us, now 40 yards away, with a troubled expression. He thinks the hooks are coming. I could tell though, that the line is from the rod that followed him overboard. The amazing thing is that though, there was ample opportunity for this event to end badly with swirling currents, standing waves, no life jacket, a web of hooks, lead and line Rick was picked up and fought the fish, landed the loose rod and then the clipped bright Spring Chinook was brought aboard. It was truely was an amazing scene.

I don't recommend anyone trying to do that and $200 isn't bad considering the alternatives. You will get a chance at Mr. Big again. :smile:

Navigator · 08-11-2002, 01:00 PM

Great story Hogmaster. Talk about making lemonaid out of a lemon of a event. Thanks.

Hogmaster · 08-11-2002, 09:45 PM

I really like Neutron's ending better than mine. Dang truth hurts sometimes! Maybe there will have to be a re-write for the movie... :smile:

Really do appreciate the positive feedback from those of you who took the time to plow through the morass of words that were laid down.

Who knows, maybe that couple hundred buck loss represents an investment in a new writing career! [img]graemlins/program.gif[/img]

But the Oregonian seems a bit ambitious, doncha' think? Maybe something more like the Amboy Monthly Gazette would be a place to start, eh?

Tellya all what, there are many more true adventures of the Hogmaster, but I'll see if I can make a post that is a bit more condensed for the time or generally reading impaired next time ...

Hogmaster

Sturgeon 42 · 08-12-2002, 06:57 AM

Nice story ummm. How big was that fish.....

:grin:

Killertraylor · 08-12-2002, 08:54 AM

Nice story. A good friend of mine dove off the back of his boat into the ocean to get his rod back when it was ripped out of the rod holder. He lost the fish, but not for lack of effort. It must have been a large Chinook because every time it took a run it pulled him under water. His wife told him if he ever jumped out of the boat again leaving her as the only occupant, she'd just leave him out there. It really freaked her out.