I used to fish with a guy that had went through Navy seal training, he was pretty comfortable in the water. I saw him swim probably close to 1/4 mile in a pair of wranglers to get a heron bird free of a trotline. Then he swam back to the boat.

thats bad a

I only do I when shark fishing, ya know rigs in the gulf!!

I can relate to that

And then on Wednesday I had to remove a snake from the Chicken Coop
Derek would be proud as I just relocated him about 10 miles to the West

I think you just wanted to get in the water😁. Nice bass btw

Similar story at Toledo Bend, early 80's, me and two buddies were fishing in the Sabine River channel close to the Pendleton bridge for Stripers with live goldfish.
One buddy hung a big Striper on his bass rod and fought the fish for probably 30 mins with 12lb test.
Me and the other buddy finished off a six pack of Moosehead beer while we watched him he just hang on to the big fish.
Finally after all that time he got it close to the top and then it got hung up in a old tall pine tree about 10 feet down.
My other bud jumped in and swam down and pulled it free, swam all the way up with it. We were amazed and shocked by the size of the fish.
When we got in that night the marina was closed but weighed it outside at Holly Park Marina, it was 19lbs. Wish I could find the old picture.

I did the same at Ray Roberts for a smaller fish. I didn't worry about doing it until I saw a couple BIG gators close by. Never again for sure.

Good catch! So they're suspended in the cedars at RR. Nice info!

Yes they are

Maybe 5 foot if it is warm. I couldn’t hold my breath long enough to go 10 and back!

I have done this a lot. My wife’s chickens are snake magnets. Good snakes get relocated. Rattlers lose their head!

Never been scared of water. Every time I get offshore, I go swimming. Wading in the bays, I'm in. Get me in the water, I like it.

However, I have a phobia about fresh water lakes that I developed about 15 years ago or so. One time we were anchored up in 40 foot of water where we jumped off the boat and swam for years. I had graphed that area enough to know there wasn't anything in the water there for 100's of feet away, it was our swimming hole. I was the first to slide off into the water. Hanging off the back waiting for everyone else to get in, all of a sudden, something very slimy, very stinky, and very stiff, slid up the inside of my left leg from my ankle to my crotch. Like an Asian Carp, I flew out of the water as fast as a fat boy can.

Look down into the water and there is the top of an old 2 inch PVC buoy they use to mark something in the lake. Top of it had a prop scar and it must have been floating about 5 feet under the surface and I guess my foot moved it enough it thought it wanted to float that day. I couldn't get back in the water. My legs want to crawfish back into my body. Still haven't gotten over that, probably why I don't fresh water fish anymore.

yep but only about 5 feet deep