Dock Skipping 101: Do Not Do This!

Dock skipping 101: don’t get too close to your target! Stole this pic from “handling rough water” post but one of the scarier pictures I’ve seen. Lake Guntersville dam. Sure there’s more to the photo than just what I see but based on the limited view I’ve got I wouldn’t even want to be in the boat taking the picture!

What's even crazier is the fact they even let people get that close. Sometimes you have to protect people from themselves

The Tennessee River dams are notorious for their rough water. There are signs that warn people not to get too close and a siren goes off when they are getting ready to start moving water. However, people ignore those warning signs. Striper fisherman often run up really close to the dam. I used to see it all the time on Pickwick Lake. Every now and then you'd hear a story about someone getting pulled under the rough water. Doesn't matter if you have a life vest on or not. If you go under that water, you're toast. If you don't drown the turbines will cut you up.

Scary stuff for sure.

Not speculating on the pic because there is probably more to that story. You start trying to protect people and they will view it as taking away some "right". In reality the only thing taken away is the right to make a bad decision. I do agree with you though sometimes we need to be protected from ourselves.

Hope he bought the 112 with spot-lock

Ok the turbines are actually inside the dam u can not make it to them form them to cut u up but nice to speculate i guess to make the conversation a little more interesting

I like to get pretty close to docks when I'm skipping docks

I'm not sure what they're exactly called, so I said "turbines". If you got sucked under, something cuts you up. I'm not exaggerating. I know this because I grew up on the lake. There are stories about these incidents. I will restrain from commenting any further.

Carry on

Not to stir this too much, but there are plenty of stories of people being sucked under at the dam and surviving (found by a quick google search, including eye witness accounts), if there were "blades" or anything down there to cut you up idk how they would have survived.

Back to original picture, thats some scary chit

Not sure about the structure pictured but I've been inside Rayburns dam. You get sucked under you will be pressed against the wicking gates which is terrible enough as it is. Be a terrible way to die. Only way to survive that kind of dam is if it has an overflow for flooding with no gates to squeeze through.

This is true, there are also large stop bars at the intake and such to stop any debris, logs, or you from getting to the turbines...not that knowing this makes falling in any less horrible.

The wicked looking thing in this pic is that giant whirlpool just out from the boat. No dam expert but looks like a lot of water going down to somewhere! Looks ominous to me.

True or not, I like the turbine story. I figure there’s some sort of suction screen on them all but eventually you go through. Whether in pieces, rotted flesh, or whatever it serves as a good reminder to just DON’T be that stoopid. Plus it kinda scares the heck outta me.

Proof I’m not a dam expert. This is actually BELOW the dam so the scary whirlpool is the current not a suck hole to hades. Still looks like a precarious place to be!

Always figured you'd get eaten by a catfish as big as a Volkswagen long before the turbines got you....

He under there getting his $25 megabass back!

Always heard those stories about PK when they had to drain the lake to fix the dam “catfish as big as Volkswagens”. Heck it’s so deep by the dam I’d believe it...

Heck I would be scared to be the guy in the boat that took that pic. Im out to many fish in places not so dangerous!