re: Duck hunters had to be rescued

1983

Closest I’ve come to death. We overstayed our time in the Du and had to pull ourselves several hundred yards across a mudflat by heaving the mushroom anchor and pulling the boat after the roaring North wind pulled the plug on the marsh. If we had spent the night, we wouldn’t have made it. Twenty year old guys think they are invincible, when really, we just don’t have good judgement.

I think I read somewhere that these extreme adventurers that have to end up being plucked off the side of a mountain have to pay some sort of restitution for the rescue, I wouldn’t have a problem with that. To be fair to the dudes stuck in the Wax, not sure that Sea Tow operates in that area. And you sure as Hell aren’t getting out and walking in that mud.

And we didn’t have weather apps showing things in real-time. We had Mike Graham or Pat Shingleton on the 10:00 news the night before. It was a breakthrough when you could call a telephone recording of the Coastal Marine forecast (irrc only updated 4 times per day). Between some of those marsh adventures, riding to the second spillway out of Venice in a Duracraft bass tracker with a 50 HP Merc dodging tankers, to going offshore in my first big boat with possibly the worst outboard ever made (a single 235 HP Evinrude), I really marvel that I’m still here.

FTR, the only time I’ve needed rescuing was when one of Charlie Hardison’s boats towed in that dead Evinrude POS from 30 miles offshore. He was a tough, gruff old SOB, but if you got in with him, he’d do anything to help you.

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I guess after the next hurricane, the national guard should start collecting the names and addresses of everyone who goes to one of those water and MRE distribution sites so the government can send those people a bill for emergency food and water since they didn't heed evacuation warnings.

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I think there's a huge difference between someone requiring assistance after riding out a hurricane in their primary residence v/s riding out the storm in a fricking john boat in the middle of the GOM

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I think there's a huge difference between someone requiring assistance after riding out a hurricane in their primary residence v/s riding out the storm in a fricking john boat in the middle of the GOM

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Yeah, you can't turn on a TV or radio without hearing government officials and newscasters telling people to evacuate for a hurricane. And if someone is trapped in a house that's collapsing or flooding and rescuers have to go out in hurricane conditions, that's a lot more dangerous than what we had on Tuesday.

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a fricking john boat in the middle of the GOM

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Nobody was in the Gulf in a jon boat. The group whose motor wouldn't start was in Henderson Lake (Atchafalaya basin near I-10). The one that ran out of gas and the group in the boat that started taking on water were both in the Atchafalaya Delta WMA. Neither area requires crossing any big open water.

And its GOA

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Ok that is a bit more info. SW Louisiana. Did their motor die on them? Where they even in a boat? Was the rescue need for a reason totally unrelated to the weather?

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There were 7 hunters in 3 separate groups, all in boats.

One guy was hunting on Atchafalaya Delta WMA and his boat ran out of gas on the way back in, so he called LDWF and they went to rescue him.

The group that was on Henderson Lake had engine trouble. They were finishing their hunt and their motor wouldn't start when they were trying to leave.

The other group was also at Atchafalaya Delta WMA and from what LDWF reported, their boat started to take on water as they were heading back in. So they beached the boat in the marsh and called for help. Nothing I saw reported said the reason the boat started taking on water, so unless someone here knows one of those guys then I don't think we'll find out

Thanks. So nothing weather related. Just another day of work. Those things happen every day.

This is like the stupid local homeland security blocking launches on the Ms River saying "The water being up makes the river just too dangerous" SOB when is the river not dangerous. I just launched off the levee. Screw them

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I’m not familiar with LDWF but I know the state of Georgia can send a bill specifically EMS can at least and it ain’t cheap

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We pay property tax for decades for these dudes to wait on the call.

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And we didn’t have weather apps showing things in real-time. We had Mike Graham or Pat Shingleton on the 10:00 news the night before. It was a breakthrough when you could call a telephone recording of the Coastal Marine forecast (irrc only updated 4 times per day). Between some of those marsh adventures, riding to the second spillway out of Venice in a Duracraft bass tracker with a 50 HP Merc dodging tankers, to going offshore in my first big boat with possibly the worst outboard ever made (a single 235 HP Evinrude), I really marvel that I’m still here.

FTR, the only time I’ve needed rescuing was when one of Charlie Hardison’s boats towed in that dead Evinrude POS from 30 miles offshore. He was a tough, gruff old SOB, but if you got in with him, he’d do anything to help you.

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yeah I hunted and fished the morning of 83 freeze - with altered plans

hunted the day the 89 front came through - snowy sleety ride home through NOLA was scary. got off I-10 to back streets as i saw a cluster frick develop at top of high rise...

I stayed my butt home last week but did do a polar plunge

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Good point, but when you need rescuing don't go calling them.

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I don't plan too. Those idiots wouldn't know how to run the river anyways.