Fun With Lightning and Bad Storms on the Water.

[Bowcatz]

Several years ago a bunch of us metal boaters were fishing below the Ross Barnett spillway when a huge summer thunderstorm brewed up west of us. The fishing had been particularly good that afternoon and there was a silent mutual agreement that no one wanted to leave.

We all noticed that the cluster of storm clouds rotated towards south of Jackson with only a few dark clouds directly overhead. Watching the sheet lightning inside the mountain high billowy cream colored clouds was a beautiful thing to behold. Thick, crooked bands of lightning passed from cloud to cloud as they moved quickly on the horizon southward. It was majestic to watch the awesome power of nature. But, we all pretty much agreed amongst ourselves that the storm was passing away from us and had nothing to fear. Besides, most of the clouds were only a little stormy colored (dark and ominous.) The worst clouds, the dark stormy ones, were even further away and appeared to be moving south towards Terry.

I nodded my head to myself that the storm was "way over there" and I would be okay only because it was moving away from me. So I thought. I had not no sooner thought that silly idea when I looked down river where it bends and saw a bolt of lightning hit a tall pile of wood stacked up on the bank against a dead tree. "YOWCH!" I remarked outloud as the lightning flashed bright white just a football's field in length away from me. I grabbed anchors and the metal fishbasket and tossed them into the boat with a clunk. I made for the boat landing below the Madison county side in record time for someone using a paddle. Had a bunch of guys in their boats right behind me, too.

I had the boat loaded, tied down, and was leaving when a classic example of a torrential rainstorm began to pour on my truck. It pounded the roof so hard I could hardly hear the CB radio on the WX channel warn of dangerous late afternoon summer thunderstorms. ("No, kidding," I'm thinking.) The last guys out of the river were soaked in minutes.

Storm gusts like wind demons picked up something fierce as I drove slowly down the spillway and back towards Ridgeland. The old Dodge was pushed hard by the fury of the storm winds that seemed to appear out of nowhere. It's like the wind would let up for a bit and then come back just as mean as ever. I was praying hard the whole time while on the spillway road as clouds as black as asphalt rolled overhead pushed by winds that came in hard punches. Those winds felt strong enough to push my truck right off the road and into the reservoir.

Stopped at the Shell Station on Pear Orchard and waited out the storm.

Lesson Learned: When I see a storm approaching, I just go on and get out of the water and get the boat loaded. I don't ever want to go through that again. Yeah, I was skeered.

[Crappie Reaper]

You said you wuz skeered, but, now you iz smart! There are many of us who at one time or another, got caught in somethin we or't not shoulda been in the first place. Glad you made it out OK, that was a cheap lesson for you. Others have lost their lives learning what you did.

[ThrillSeeker]

Glad you made it out okay. BTW, you have great writing skills.

[Bowcatz]

Thank you, ThrillSeeker.

I love to hunt and fish and write about it, too.

[Chris in Ct]

Good story. I learned my lesson when I was in my teens fishing from a dock when the storm started I said Naw! the fish are bitting so I'm staying. No more than a minute went by when a huge bolt of lighting hit the ground a couple hundred feet away from me. I could taste the electricity on my tounge it was that close. Now if there is even the slightest rumble of thunder or lighting far off I'm off the lake and sit it out in the truck. There isn't a fish swimming worth dying for.

[KCBH]

One time while fishing out of a 2 man plastic boat a summer storm hit me. The only thing I could do was head for shore, within minutes it was hailing quarter size chunks of ice. I flipped over the boat and used it as a shield. Is only lasted 10 minutes start to finshing and being the trooper that I am, I went back to fishing.

Lesson learned - Pay attention to the weather around you at all times.

[shadow]

Bowcatz, I am glad you got out ok. I have had my share of experiences with the weather also. I don't mind fishing in the rain but as soon as I see lighting it is time to head in.
It seems like we lose at least 1 kid every year (in my area) due to lighting while they are fishing.
Shadow

[Chris Schulz]

Have any of you guy's heard your Rods start to make a whining sound when you hold them while fishing in a storm?

One time while fishing next to a set of railroad tracks a bolt of lighting struck about a mile away just as a guy next to me was picking something off the tracks. He got a small shock! it is pretty cool to watch the power of mother nature!

[butterball]

This didn't happen to me but to three friends of mine. They were out running trotlines in an aluminum boat one day when a summer storm sprang up. These storms come across with a lot of fury and noise but usually last only 20 to 30 mins. It began to hail so my friends decided to take cover. They watched lightning strike a couple of trees on the banks, but were afraid to be in the middle of the river in a metal boat. They decided to pull up to the bank on the bluff-side of the river, thinking the bluff would serve as a lightning rod. They were all standing in the front of the boat pulled up on shore when they saw a flash of light. Next thing they know one guy is laying in the back of the boat, one is sprawled on the bank, and the other is piled up against the tree they were under. They were aware, but couldn't get their muscles to respond for over 5 minutes. They were lucky no one got thrown into the water. My friend who got thrown against the tree ended up with ten staples in his head. He also had minor burn marks from his button and zipper of his pants. Ouch. The boat only had what looked like 3 cigarette burns in the carpet of the boat.
The next summer we planned a float trip and got two separate groups of 10 or so people together. On the bus ride to the put in site, we were joking about being with 3 lightning struck unlucky guys, when 3 guys from the other group said the same thing had happened to them. So we had a bus of about 20 people and almost a third had been struck by lightning.

[sccamper]

I was sitting at the landing of a mountain lake( only one on the lake) when a storm blew across. I watched everyone raceing across the lake to get to the double ramp or the docks. To many boats with nowhere to go so people where tying off to the rocks along the bank and running for cover. Several high end boats left bounceing on the rocks. No one was hurt and nothing sunk. It was a site to see.