I think we would all have some interesting stories of what some of the funniest or mind boggling things you have in your history of fishing experiences that would be a hoot to share with the other fishermen.

I can start it, with my experiences as a 12 year old at Lake Stamford when the hot water outlet still worked. I had a minnow under one of those old huge red/white bobbers floating out in the ripples at the outlet. Fishing was slow and I wasn't paying close attention to the bobber, but something almost pulled the rod out of the old boat. I grabbed the rod and worked and worked to get the fish under control, when out of the corner of my eye I spotted several coots out in the water. Well, to make a long story short, the harder I pulled on that rod the less I was spooling up line. Suddenly, I began to notice that when I pulled really hard those dang coots would go diving for food. To end the story, a coot had dove down while I was not paying attention and swallowed the minnow under the bobber, as it got closer and closer to the boat multiple boats were watching playing the fish thinking it was a huge catfish, but in the end the coot eventually came to the boat. You have not lived until you try to take a hook out of a coots bill and keep all you fingers and hands intact. My Dad was laughing so hard he would not help, but that coot beat the living H*** out of me flogging me like crazy, but the hook eventually came out.

Let's hear it, I am willing to bet everyone has a story or two. I have so many about snakes it is not funny.

Thanks for your contributions,

Good Fishing,
Mud-Dabber

I was tube fishing at Lake Graham one day. Hot summertime afternoon. The lake had dropped for a few years and filled back up. So there were willows in about 3-4 feet of water. Still green and providing shade for fish. I was pitching a red metalflake worm rigged Texas style into the shade of the green willows and hammering the bass. I was moving real slow and quiet and at times was sitting motionless. I was touching bottom so I went to spin and a Texas water snake was about 6inches from crawling up on my tube. I don't know who was scared worse the snake or me. We both did several diversionary tactics to get away from the other one. I hope he checked his shorts cause I know I did. Needless to say I had to ease down to the next set of willows. That set was ruined.

This happened to one of my buds, who was fishing the Dupont outfall canal, on the Sabine river in Orange. Lots of gators at the entrance feeding on mullet. Another fisherman across the way with a yapping little dog in the boat. Can you guess the rest of the story? Dog jumped in the water and swims toward my bud's boat. The guy starts hollering, get my dog, I lost one here last week and can't lose another one.. The dog swims to my friend. He reaches down to get the dog. The water explodes just inches from his hand and the dog is gone. How would you like to go back home and tell your wife you lost one dog to the gators much less 2 dogs?!!

Met Mr. Ray Hubbard last month. He pulled right by my boat twice. There were three more piles fairly close that I'd marked real quick for others in the past I'd just met. So I asked him if he needed help finding a spot. He was passing back and forth right by my boat. He said @#$@ no I don't need help finding My pile cause your on it as he headed straight for my boat. I will say I seeded that spot and thought hell I'll leave but only after I said it was nice to meet you Mr. Hubbard. He called me every name in the book and circled my rig. Here comes the funny part. I warned him several times to move away from my boat. He says I'm boarding your boat. He comes up right behind my outboard when he received one last warning. He was hot guys. I mean steaming. So I trimmed up the outboard, hit the hot foot and almost blew him off his deck. I shut down the outboard and asked him if he was cooled down now! Soaking wet!

Funny ... hmmm, not at the time. I had taken my boat off the trailer to wire the trailer and paint it. After it dried I put the boat back on and then the 20hp Johnson on the transom. I had a funny lock I wanted to put on the outboard screws so I hand tightened the motor, until I could find the lock. That weekend my buddy and I camped at Cochiti lake and went fishing with the boat. The day/night fishing was awesome catching fish every where we went. I went around a point kind of fast and because of the angle and torque the motor came off the back of the boat and went straight to the bottom of the lake still running, prop turning - which was 70 fow. We sadly used the trolling motor to go back to the boat ramp after staring at the place where the motor went in for quite some time. I did not have any money to replace it for many years, messed up my fishing for sure. I still have a hard laughing at that, but my brothers think it was hilarious.

my bud did that same thing last year with a brand new rental up north ....
I just cried when he told me the story ....
said they didn't tighten the new motor down and it came off at full throttle
last he seen of it the fuel line he was teathering it by as it ran amuck broke off at the motor
needless to say the
and after 30 plus years a going there ...
they informed him this year he aint invited back this year due to his bad housekeeping at the cabin
and its actually a sad thing at the same time ...
as I know the gent well and he for sure didn't do them any intentional wrong

I could tell stories on this subject for a month and still have lots left to tell. But there are a couple that have stood the test of time. I will share one of them.

When I was five years old, I went brim fishing with my Great Uncle Clarence on an old water works lake in East Texas. Uncle Clarence had a new flat bottom boat with a 25hp tiller steer, pull start motor that was kind of hard to start. We were using crickets under the red round plastic corks and fishing on the outside edge of the lily pads. Towards the end of the day we were in the back of a cove on the shallow end of the lake near a pipeline that was supported on piers above the water.

The fishing was slow, at best, and Uncle Clarence had dozed off for a bit (after a few pulls on his half pint which he kept in the tackle box), while I was fishing. I tossed my rig to a new spot toward the back side of the boat (where Uncle Clarence was dozing). Well I got hung up. Not wanting to wake Uncle Clarence, I tried every trick I knew (hey I was 5, so how many tricks could I know) which consisted of pulling as hard as I could to un hook my stuck line. To my surprise, I raised a log as long as the boat! But I could not get the hook off the log. Every time I would let go of the rod with one hand the log would go under the water. Finally, in desperation, I woke Uncle Clarence and asked him to reach down and grab my hook out of the log while I held it up within his reach. Sleepily, Uncle Clarence reached over the boat grumbling about me waking him up. Suddenly, Uncle Clarence with eyes big as silver dollars, shouted throw the rod in the lake!

Now, this was no ordinary rod. It was a vintage stainless steel version with period correct level wind reel spooled with that super strong braid (in camo) that he told me he was going to give me when I was "big enough". As I started to protest, Uncle Clarence (in one smooth motion) grabbed the rod from my hand, tossed it in the lake, grabbed the starter rope, started the motor (first pull) and rocketed away JUST as that LOG (GATOR) WAS REACHING OVER THE SIDE OF THE BOAT GRABBING FOR HIS TACKLE BOX!

Man, that was the fastest ride I had ever taken in a boat, so I was hooting and hollering all the way across the lake. Back at the ramp, Uncle Clarence was still visibly shaken and accordingly had to finish the rest of his tackle box medicine before he mustered the courage to load the boat. I will never forget it was the ONLY time he did not make me help him load the boat. Come to think of it, it was the only time he didn't take 30 minutes to get everything tied down and put away "just right". After we pulled away from the ramp he was uncharacteristically quiet. Finally, he directed me to get his medicine bottle from under the seat. After taking a stiff pull, he offered me a swig (which was always a big deal for me) and I happily obliged. Then Uncle Clarence got his serious tone going and said, Whatever you say, you keep that last part between us. Yes sir, Uncle Clarence, I said. But why, I asked? Because son, we don't want your Aunt Ester to worry about us when we are having adventures do we? No Sir, I responded! Uncle Clarence, I like adventures! When are we gonna have another one, I asked. Not real sure son, but I hope we NEVER have another one quite like that one!

Guess its about time to walk over to the fireplace and pick up the replacement rod/reel that Uncle Clarence gave me the next day. I keep it and another one leaning up against the fireplace. Funny thing, last year, for some inspired reason, I tied on the bubblegum thump buddy on that rig after I retired it with 70 or so fish to its credit...like that rod/reel some things are just built to last...and deserve a cherished place in my heart and in my home. Thank you Uncle Clarence for the memories and thank you Lane for the baits.

I once caught an old Antique Kerosene Lantern and it was still lit....

I caught a 20lb. bluegill one time.