When Grace Fails

[ness]

I guess I've managed to get through things so far without a gun or trying to prove I'm a bad axx. It's working out pretty good for me. Good luck to the rest of you🤪

[Al Agnew]

I've been fairly fortunate to not run into too many "river dicks" over the years.  Perhaps it's because I shy away from places and times that might be crowded.  The one time that stands out still, after probably 20 years...I was fishing below Tan Vat.  In a nice run below a riffle, smooth water, 3 feet deep, a whole pod of nice trout were rising to a sparse caddis hatch.  I had caught the first two I casted to, and was looking forward to picking off a few more, including one a bit farther upstream that looked to be a fairly big brown.  And then these two youngish guys, decked out in Orvis's finest from head to toe, came walking up the far bank, and splashed into the water right in front of me, wading on up right through the middle of where all those fish were rising, never even glancing at me.  Maybe they were simply clueless and didn't see either me fishing or those rising fish.  But it smacked more of, "I'm jealous of that guy for sitting there fishing for those risers, so let's screw up his fishing."  It wasn't even easy for them to wade up that 3 foot deep fast water; they could have walked another 50 feet up the bank and crossed at the riffle.

[fishinwrench]

I've had numerous altercations, including one where I was actually shot at, while bass fishing here on the lake.   But only one while flyfishing.....and I still laugh every time I recall it.  So since I'm already smiling I gotta share it......

So a couple buddies and I were fishing at Bennett, and we'd gathered around the tailgate of the truck to munch on some sausage, cheese, and crackers.  A scruffy looking farm hand in some baggy oversized vinyl waders came walking by, he had a rope stringer tied to him with one fish on it, and as he walked he had his rod tucked under one arm, was digging around in a fly box, and the stringer was swinging around down by his feet.   I nodded in his direction and casually said  "That dude is fixin' to bust his..." 

I didn't even get the entire sentence out before the stringer whipped around his feet and he face-planted HARD !   Rod, fly box, and gear yard sale.    I couldn't help from spitting out a mouthful of food and I started laughing out loud 😂 

He got back up, collected his self, looked at me all mean, and yelled "You think it's funny @$$hole?" and came walking BRISKLY towards me like he was gonna throw down for real.   I started to attempt an apology, while still laughing, but both of my buddies and I got the impression that he wasn't gonna wait to hear anything before he started swinging.  

I threw my food down and kinda prepared to scrap.  He was a pretty buff dude, he was highly pissed, and to be honest I was concerned that he was more than I was gonna be able to handle. 

About 3 steps from being face to face (or face to fist) with him.... IT HAPPENED AGAIN 😂😂😂 That stringer whipped around his feet and DOWN HE WENT, a second time !    Giving me an opportunity to pin him down long enough to explain myself and calm him down.  

Once he chilled out we shared some deer sausage with him, laughed TOGETHER, and parted friendly.  😉 

 

 

 

NOW, ya wanna hear about me getting shot at ?   😲

[rps]

Never been shot at, but had one pointed at me when I a vehemently explained cutting my trolling line was bad form. Boats are entirely too shallow.

Best story: Shortly after "A River Runs Through It" came out, a craze for fly fishing occurred. Gentlemen came to the White River with Orvis or Bean waders, birch net, hats, and clippers on retractable spools on their vests. In those days Rim Shoals, our favorite area to fish with rental boats, was not C and R. We would fish Redbud Shoals and then head down to Rim and below. If the water was down, in those days there was no minimum flow, the channel was very narrow.  The same gentlemen would be standing in the channel flailing with their wands. We would shout, "Coming through", and then suffer the slings and arrows of scorn. When they fell over trying to get out of our way and filled their waders, we would call out, "sorry."

 

[jdmidwest]

I can recall being shot at several times.  Never knew if it was locals trying to run me off the stream or road hunters.  A few quick rounds in the air from mine let them know someone was downrange and it was over.  But bullets whizzing thru trees above has a distinct sound.

I do remember a spot on lower Norfork where the sign hung in a tree at the stream bank stating it was a firing range. I walked by it a few times.  Never met the owner, but was told he felt the need to display property ownership into the river a few times.  With a gun.

[WestCentralFisher]

I had someone shoot in my general direction one time many years ago (well, technically twice, I guess) and it was not even in the type of circumstance where it would be on my radar. 

I was fishing a large Ozark float stream big enough that it's used considerably more often in this stretch by jet boats than canoes/kayaks. In other words, it was well outside of any gray area like may occur on smaller streams. I was paddling my kayak up from an official, marked public access, and fishing my way back down. The fishing was real good that day. 

I was in the process of reeling in a pretty decent largemouth from a pretty bluff-hole when I heard a shot ring out. It was over my head and not THAT close, but right in my direction. I assumed someone on the property up above the bluff was just recreationally shooting, and didn't note my presence, so in my infinite wisdom, I yelled "Howdy neighbor, there's a guy fishing down here" or something similar. 

There was no answer, but a couple seconds later, there was another shot. Still over my head, and still did not seem to be all that close, but just noticeably closer. 

I decided that I would go check out another access on the next river over at that point. I'm still not completely certain that it was intentional, but shooting down from a high point across a large river with tons of boat traffic, and no backstop in the general vicinity is so reckless anyway that it hardly matters to me.

I've had a lot of other times fishing/hunting/etc on public land where I've walked up on people doing things that they didn't want seen, usually involving various substances, and they have initially reacted aggressively to my presence. In those scenarios, I turn into the most naive, clueless guy you've ever seen who only talks about the weather and how nice it is to be out there and doesn't notice a danged thing. It's probably easier than it should be for me to pull this off, and thus far, it has a 100% success rate on defusing weird situations, knock on wood. 

[fishinwrench]

Back when I was in my late 20's I was on a backend of cove bite, and was irritated that I had to idle 200-300 yards to get to the very backs of the coves I wanted to fish.   I came ripping into a cove and chopped the throttle just barely inside the No Wake bouys🙄.   I had idled past the first dock, and as I idled past the second one I hear "ZZZT- POW ZZZT-POW" and see bullets hitting the water 2 feet from the starboard side of my boat just in front of the console.     I looked over and saw a dude on his deck with a .22 rifle in his hands yelling something.  

I killed the motor and yelled "HEY MFer What the hell? ".    He started reading me the riot act about blowing through the No Wake bouys, saying that he had my numbers and was going to report me to Water Patrol.   I encouraged him to do so, ensuring him that me blowing through the bouys was a way lesser crime than him shooting at me with a firearm. 

Nothing ever become of it, but that incident permanently slowed me down to this day.  I ALWAYS shut down OUTSIDE of No Wake bouys now.  😅  

[jdmidwest]

One of these nights we should all sit around a campfire and bring this up as a topic of discussion.

There was a homo that came up next to me at the Bayou access one time holding his rod against his privates "because they were sensitive and could feel better".  I let him know that my belt held 5 rounds that did not shoot blanks....

Same access, I rolled up on a couple of fellers keeping alot of trout, and just wanted them to leave.  I pointed to the bluff above and told him the Ark Game and Fish were watching when I drove by.

The conversation with an undercover MDC agent about trout in the trophy area below Baptist access on Current and he did not recognize me from the town he lives in and shops in my store.  He had to drag his rule book out and learn something that day.  Only after I was making fun of a bunch of kids that spotted a game warden and he better watch out so he did not get caught man handling all of the freshly stocked 8" trout he was catching on a spin lure.

Sitting in the back of the boat listening to my buddy trying to educate a guy with a family about rolling in to a area we were bass fishing with his pontoon load of family and actually tossing over my buddies line and lure reeling in from a cast about ethics.  I was just standing by with my mouth shut as they were butting heads with Karen wifey recording it all.  But when he said "even your buddy knows you are wrong".  I had to respond, "No, I have to avoid confrontations, I conceal carry and can only respond to a deadly threat".

I just wish I had more time to fish so I can have more of the "good times".

[Flysmallie]

2 hours ago, fishinwrench said:

I ALWAYS shut down OUTSIDE of No Wake bouys now

I was handed a ticket by the water patrol while carrying a bag of fish to weigh in for the same thing. It was a great moment that the whole crowd got to witness. Luckily we won and had big bass. But I never ran right up on one again. 

[fishinwrench]

1 hour ago, Flysmallie said:

I was handed a ticket by the water patrol while carrying a bag of fish to weigh in for the same thing. It was a great moment that the whole crowd got to witness. Luckily we won and had big bass. But I never ran right up on one again. 

 

You squeaked that one past 👍 

Getting any kind of ticket during a derby TODAY will get you DQed in a heartbeat.