I was wandering back to one of my "secret" holes, one I’d discovered as a teenager and had never, ever seen another angler or trace of another human at since the early 1980s. Posted on 09/23/2019 5:16:40 AM PDT by w1n1
I was wandering back to one of my "secret" holes, one I’d discovered as a teenager and had never, ever seen another angler or trace of another human at since the early 1980s.
I was 20 minutes into the usual 30-minute hike on animal trails when a person appeared from nowhere. I literally almost jumped out of my waders.
The dude, who looked strung out and definitely not a fellow fisherman, asked, "Hey, you got some smokes?"
"Nope, I don't smoke," I said.
"Do you have any money?"
"Nope, I'm fishing."
"I need some money!"
"Sorry, I can't help you."
"Dude, you don’t understand, I need money."
"Sorry, can't help you,” I said, and walked by him.
Was I scared? Yes, sh*tless!
I reached my fishing hole but couldn't get the thought that he was stalking me out of my mind, or that I would meet up with him again on the way back to my vehicle. Neither scenario materialized, but afterwards I drove straight to a gun shop and purchased my first self-defense weapon. Now, if I’d been packing and ran into the guy, would I have drawn my weapon? No – I did not feel my life was threatened.
Would I have felt more comfortable? Hell, yes! Should my life have become threatened, I would have had the tools and knowledge available to use them. From that point on I realized that the outdoors aren’t just filled with friendly fellow anglers and hunters.
Here's another one - Once, while on the Calawah River in Forks, I’d been fishing with a buddy and we decided to split up. I fished from the mouth up, while he went from the ponds down. Only about a quarter mile up the river I watched two anglers drift fishing a hole. To me, the hole was meant for a float and jig. I watched and conversed with the pair for about 10 minutes, then decided to ask if I could throw my float out.
First cast and it was “Fish on!” The dude who had been fishing the hardest was pissed off, to say the least.
"WTF … You SOB, come into my hole and steal my fish! I oughta kick your ass!"
Not wanting to cause any problems, I told the guy to take my rod. "Here, you reel it in," I said. The guy was furious, though his buddy was cracking up, saying, "Dude, you got freaking schooled!" Read the rest of armed while fishing.
Homeless person’s camp. They had a couple of tents and then they used what ever they could find to enclose it. Plywood was mostly what I saw. This pond was pretty much smack in the middle of Virginia Beach, so it was prime property for these guys. Only one path in... They weren’t about to let it go and they were not happy to see me. I got cussed at and told to never come back. So I didn’t. Not worth the hassle and I figured it kept two folks who really shouldn’t be in the population and removed them to a secluded area where they could be left alone, which is most likely what they wanted. I did keep an ear out for months afterwards for unsolved crimes in that area though...
Thanks
I have one of those. My former employer had them on Black Friday. Never even took it out of the box. Just something cool to have, because I remember the commercials.
I caught a 7 pound Silver right off the beach yesterday with a pink buzz bomb. At first I didn’t like the Dept. Of fish and game telling me I had to use “barb less” hooks. I thought fish would slip off to often but now I have the hang of it. I’m catch and release anyway and I feel better not tearing up the little shakers even if they swallow it. I take a walking stick wherever I go. I have many of them and they are sturdy and bad ass. I call them my two man, four man, five, ect sticks... denoting how many people I feel I can take out if accosted. My favorite right now is an eight man stick. I walked it into the store yesterday getting groceries and even the meth head pan handlers were scurrying away from me.
I know what you are talking about. We have on that is half Corgi and half Jack Russell. Talk about attitude!!
Fredo now knows that Al Neri carries when he goes fishing.
In western Oregon, if there’s a river, there’s a road of some sort next to it. And if there isn’t a river, there are woods from which people can extract a hard dollar picking mushrooms or any number of other forest products, legally, or not. Some unsavory folks can be found just about anywhere.
Attitude? They have a special name for attitude for some dogs ..Nothing beats a westie for "westitude""
Good idea. As more and more Democratic controlled state decriminalize crime, the more and more crime occurs. What a surprise.
I never thought of a fishing rod as a weapon before, but if you're a fish I guess it's true.
-PJ
I live in bear country. So yes.
YEP. - A Model 65 S&W hanging on a “cup hook” & under the console.
Fwiw, my EDC is a Sig-Sauer P225 & on my belt except when I’m in a bathing suit.
Yours, TMN78247
Most bums are not colons. Most people breaking the law by illegally harvesting stuff, or poaching, are not going to shoot someone.
I understand being prepared in the woods; but the worst I’ve seen is a sick raccoon.
To each his own.
I've fished the Stanislaus River in CA and rafter the white waters of the American River in CA.
But the druggies are using them as their toilet.
So, yeah, I go armed when I fish, but I sure wouldn't fish a river lined with addicts.
What have your instructors recommended?
“Do you have any money?”
No, just a fully-loaded 9MM.
Where I usually fish you have copperheads infesting one side of the lake and rattlers the other, so I stay in the boat unless absolutely necessary to get out and like you these bastages sometimes try to get in the boat.
So I carry either a snub nose .38spl with a couple of snake loads or a .357 with a couple of snake loads. The other rounds are JHP’s for the 2 legged predators. Sometimes we leave the lake at 3:00am after doing some night fishing and having that revolver on my hip is comforting as there is only one house in the vicinity of where we fish if any miscreants should be about and if you call the police you are looking at a minimum of 10-15 minutes before they arrive.
I thought so as well. But in Yellowstone back country, it is the bears.
he needs schooling on how to pack a 1911. It’s not hammer down. Proper way is cocked and locked...
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We each have our own tried and true methods. I would never carry “cocked and loaded”. I carry. I carry a double action only weapon, I think it is the only safe way for me to carry. I don’t want to have to be fumbling with a safety before I shoot. With a double action only weapon you can carry chambered safely, the trigger pull is hard, several pounds and therefore no danger in accidental trigger pull.
Double action only requires a little more practice but safety is a good thing.
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