[Born to be Wild]

Folks please don't try this at home!

Uh Skipper, this is not looking good.

Think I'll ride on the stern.

But my GPS said I was heading EAST?

Think I can miss that rock?

Piece a cake!

What's that guy doing on the bow?

The first three pic's were of two different charter boats entering Depoe Bay. The boats might appear small due to the size of the surf but in fact are 43' delta's. The other two boats were respectable size commercial boats. All are exempt from bar closures.

I did not take these pic's but have one I took of a different charter in some big seas that was predicted to be 17' the day of the picture and posted it on ifish back in February. I do have plenty mind blowing video I have shot with my camcorder over the years before I got my first digital camera however and have seen other video's shot of the charters in Newport. This is just a small sample of what’s available on stills and video.

Sometimes (often times) the money factor has a tendency to make for poor judgment of "when to go, and when not to go".

There are some charters that don't consider fishing these kinds of conditions and hopefully none of them will in the future. I have been out spoken on this for many years now.

Dan

 

[Born to Fish]

Dan, some incredible and unsettling photos.

First word that came to mind was - SUICIDAL.

Thanks for sharing.

Dean

 

[tipndwater]

Thanks for the post Dan! :shocked:
That is the reason why I am not a salty dog!
I could look at pics like that all day long!
tip

 

[[email protected]]

I'm still in the weenie dog class!

WOW!!!! :shocked: :shocked:

I am nearly speechless!

Why do they allow this???

You have to wear seat belts, but this is legal?

Jen

 

[[email protected]]

Dan, and other people who post a lot of pictures on the upload...

There are pictures, such as these, that I hate to erase, when I do my every two month deletion.

I sure wish that you would post these somewhere where they will be available in the archives.

These are keepers.

I am just certain that you have free space with your account. I am available to teach you how to do that, if you only ask.

I just hate to not have these in the archives, and there is no way I can look at each pic before I delete them. I am on dial up and it would take days!

Jen

 

[Ray S.]

WOW !!!
Dan if you have more post em please. I love it
GRRRRRReat pics
Ray

 

[Born to be Wild]

Good morning Jen.

I have been thinking about attempting to change my web page from my school reunion (30 years - Wo!) to fishing pic's for ifish postings and for friends both as my reunion was last year and don't need it anymore. I've been thinking about it a lot because I do post a lot of pic's.

Trouble is my brother built me a cool website that as you mentioned is free but I only have a couple years experience with PC's and dealing with front page and the site is possibly a little intense for me. But I will look into it.

I'm also moving to Longview real soon and I won't be paying actionnet too much longer. I will continue my service there for at least another month though and I believe I can just basically move my website to whatever provider I get up in Longview? Copy/Paste?

I did come across a website accidentally the other night that appears to offer free picture uploading? http://daily.webshots.com/ So I will look into that possibility also.

I do have a couple hundred pic's of salmon fishing the last two years up in SW Washington of which I would like to share quite a few with ifisher's seeing how that season is just now getting under way. And I will be taking a lot more up there in the very near future. So I will see what I can do.

I'll email you the web address to see what you think.

PS> I'll try and cut the charters some slack now but this and the wild coho handling issues have really bothered me for quite a few years now and I guess I finally got it off my chest. I do want to make it clear though that there are some really good charters out there, but there is a pretty good percentage of them that aren't doing the responsible thing.

Thanks,

Dan

 

[Jignfloat]

I'm calling that the things nightmares are made out of......scares me to death to think this actually happens. If you know the out come of this adventure....that would also be very interesting. I'm sure it includes at least some serious vessel damage. (and soiled under wear).
:shocked: Russ

 

[Straydog]

Originally posted by DepoeBayDan:

What's that guy doing on the bow?

<font size="2" face="verdana,arial,helvetica">Praying, would be my guess......... :grin:

Awesome photo's, and I thought I had been in some hairy situations running the lower Rogue! Wrong!

 

[[email protected]]

Hi Dan--
You don't need to have a web page, or any html to just upload pictures. No need for Front page, or anything.
You just upload the picture, and then find it on your space by typing it in... anyway... it's really easy.
I'll write a tutorial and post it soon.
Jen

 

[freespool]

Dan,great pic's my friend,really sobering to look at. Here's some advice my dad gave me,when he was training me on the do's and don'ts of the high seas. He said son,there are bold fisherman,and there are old fisherman,but very few old, bold fisherman.

 

[rob allen]

Dan

I know nothing about the ocean but to me that looks like absolutely careless boatsmanship.
Looks to me to be totally irresponsible. Is money really that important to these charter captains that they will risk the lived of their customers and crew? if this kind of thing is typical I will never under any circumstances go out on a charter boat..

 

[[email protected]]

Do you really have more of these kinds of pics?
And... are there REALLY customers aboard that?

No, I don't think this is what you expect on just ANY charter!

These are classic mistake charters!

Jen

 

[Born to be Wild]

Yes Jennie, the first two pic's and the third one were of two different charter boats and they had customers on board. In picture number two which is the same boat moments apart from picture number one you can see a couple customers on the back deck. Remember in picture number one the deckhand was wearing orange Grundens and up on the bow of the boat. The boat in picture number one and two slid up on the rocks and there is a picture of that also that I didn’t post. The boat in picture #3 (sideways) is a different boat that looks like the other one and if I remember right he kissed the rocks. You don't think they would go out for a pleasure cruise in those conditions do you. Not being sarcastic at all but the truth of the matter is if it weren't for 15 customers plus or minus paying $50-$55 a piece they would have never considered going out in those conditions.

This is why I posted that pic of a charter out in very hazardous conditions back in February on ifish basically stating it was an accident waiting to happen. And then it did just a few months later in Garibaldi.

Yes I and others have more pictures of the same and other boats but most of what I have is on video. I have a video I shot of a charter coming as close to capsizing as you possibly can right in front of the channel. It put a tear in my eye instantaneous of filming the video and it can be heard in my voice on the video that I was momentarily choked. I thought the boat went over. The Coast Guard heard about the video and requested a copy of it from me for their investigation. I think this case was more a mistake in human error than a very hazardous ocean. It gives you chills watching it.

Now, before this gets too carried away I want to make something very clear again. Not all charters go out in these conditions. I believe most of the local ones do and believe I have almost all of them on video when the trip should have been canceled in my opinion and many other folks also.

I'm not putting a plug in for Dockside Charters but I have always had respect for them because there is not one of their skippers that will even consider turning a wheel when conditions are as such. They are down at "chicken point" watching along with me and sometimes maybe up to a hundred spectators in awe. I've seen them even cancel many times over the years when conditions are not hazardous but just the “beat you up” kind of conditions that will get the average novice sick. I don't enjoy those types of days and avoid going out on them and that was the biggest factors of my decision not to deckhand on a regular basis and get a charter boat license. I had plenty experience and sea time back then.

A good percentage of the local captains have hit the rocks at one time or another coming in on a rough bar. There has been some serious damage to a few of the boats from these impacts. One charter boat was written off as a loss shortly after I moved here.

There is a saying here in Depoe Bay that there is two kinds of skippers here in Depoe Bay. The ones that have hit the rocks and the ones that will.

There is some truth to that statement but I doubt any of the Dockside crews have hit the rocks and likely will not as they choose to not negotiate rough seas.

Don't know of any serious injuries from such encounters except for one individual that suffered some broken ribs from an impact. Did see or hear of a couple banged up fishermen years ago.

Their record has been pretty good over the years but the Garibaldi incident is proof that if you push the envelope long enough it can catch up with you.

I suppose I have pretty much ended my relations with some of these charter guys with this post and have sensed a little coldness around some of them lately probably because of some of my post regarding rough bar crossings and handling of wild coho out there in the salt. I know that I have got a few of them reading ifish over the last several months hoping they would learn something about wild fish and come to realize that they are in the minority and most fishermen don’t agree with them that there is no such thing as a wild fish. I’m not going to loose any sleep over the small amount of business I do with them these days anyway. I’ve basically got out of the business.

I’m sure a lot of them will be upset with me but I feel there are some problems there and I speak the truth. I did bring this one particular issue up in February on ifish and have though about posting these pic’s for quite some time. It was only after it appeared to me that some were making excuses for the Taki-Too placing part of the blame on unreliable weather forecasting that I chose to post these pic’s. Maybe I miss interpreted the replies on the thread but it is obvious and has been since the accident to me and others where the problem lie.

These rough bar crossings take place in Garibaldi as well (not by Siggi-G or Kerri Linn Charters) and also in Newport. Mike (Albacore Tuna Captain) posted after the Garibaldi accident that he doesn’t join some of the other charters in the rough bar crossings there in Newport.

I have my doubts that Bill at Betty Kay Charters in Charleston would put himself in that type of situation either.

Freespool,

I have heard that same saying down here at the coast a lot over the years and there is some truth to it.

Rob,

I think I answered your statement and there are those that avoid those conditions. Unfortunately some folks don’t know any better and feel safe with any captain and place their trust there. As was in the Taki-Too tragedy a customer who’s boat had cancelled due to rough and hazardous seas went over and booked the ill fated Taki-Too.

It would be my liking to see both commercial and charters not exempt from closed bars in the future. There is just too much incentive to push the envelope when there is that kind of money at stake.

Dan

 

[Wang]

I work with the Brother in Law of the guy who got on the Taki-Too after his primary boat cancelled. He's the guy from Green Bay Wisc. He was here for his nieces High school graduation in Salem and they were all in Manzanita at the time of the accident. He wanted someone to go with him but they all declined. I guess he loved the ocean tremendously!!! I also hear it wasnt his first time in a boat that went down either. From what I was told by his Brother in Law (my boss),that he was on a boat in Florida that went down and spent a couple days on an island until found. Dont know much about that story to go any further so...

I remember going out of Depoe Bay a few years ago in what I thought was conditions that were way too rough. Went with Tradewinds and had a miserable day fishing. Yes we caught a few fish but... From what I remember it was almost impossible to stand and fish for about 1/2 the trip. It was almost impossible to get a drift and even stay near the bottom. When and if I do a charter again I WILL make the call if I get on the boat and go. I WONT go because the boat is going.

 

[Wang]

BTW, Thanks for those eye opening pictures of the charter boats. Commercial guys, its there choice, Charter guys Im not too sure about them anymore.

Thanks again Dan, Really enjoying your posts

 

[Uglygreen]

Rob, your welcome to go with me. The above pic is more my speed... :grin:

UG

 

[Ivana Fishalot]

HOLY SHISTERS!!!!
I've been out on the boat in the first three pics MORE than once. Never in stuff that rough. I have to admit that I really have never questioned the skippers judgement on a charter. I've only experienced one rough crossing for all that matter and it was big but not breaking and across the columbia bar out of Ilwaco. I'm somewhat speechless because I've been on a boat that had a captain with questionable judgement and really don't know what to say.

Any Ifishers want to start taking me out? I'm not a chummer and am always more than willing to pay my share of gas and bait plus some. Don't even really care if I catch fish. I just fell in love with the ocean working in AK and enjoy every minute out on big blue.

Thank you to Dan for that eye opening pictorial. It still leaves me wondering because I've been out of Depoe numerous times on charters and can't imagine the person who would get on a boat seeing a breaking bar in front of them and say "let's go". I would've walked of that dock with a quickness. I understand that conditions change in a moments notice but from a crossable bar to that? How fast can it change from what Ifishers would consider crossable to that pictured above?

 

[Gun Rod Bow]

Just remember folks, even airline pilots and brain surgons have a bad day. The skippers are salty, but make your own call.

Know when to say when, if in doubt, drink beer and watch fishing on tv.

Thanks Dan!