be careful out there, stranded

C

Charlie D

Active member
Seabright NJ, December 15 2016

A hunter and his dog were briefly marooned on a small island in the Shrewsbury River Thursday when high winds blew his boat away, a former Office of Emergency Management Coordinator confirmed.

Sea Bright Fire Rescue and Monmouth Beach first-responders were among the agencies that were called around 5 p.m. after the man was observed frantically waving his arms and screaming for help, said Reed Murphy, whose son assisted in the rescue.

When firefighters approached the island in boats, the man entered the water, where he was aided by rescue swimmers, Murphy said. He and his dog were brought ashore around 7:15 p.m.

Murphy was unsure if the man had a cell phone or if he had lost it when the boat floated off.

Both the man and his dog were "no worse for wear" following the ordeal, Murphy also said.
 
"....the man entered the water...."

It doesn't say how long he was out there, but given the evening dun and winter temps, "no worse for wear" might be equivalent to mild hypothermia....

..,.or the stranded forgot Rule #1~Don't panic.

It's always easy to think I have the answers when I arm chair quarterback other's decisions, but I've been close enough to a couple similar events that some patterns emerge.

Guessing the stranded was worse for wear, but timing of the rescue interrupted continued worsening if his condition.
 
First off - Thank God he made it out. Secondly - I hope he and the dog recover quickly and are able to gun some more this season.

Bought myself a PLB, Personal Locator Beacon. last year for when I'm deer hunting alone in the mountains and for duck hunting. When I'm gunning alone in the boat, I try to always wear it, usually on my off shoulder, but I especially wear it when putting out and retrieving decoys while wading.
What really brought this idea home to me to get one was when a friend told me about the time he and another friend were walking the meadows jump shooting and he hit a soft spot sunk and to his waist. He could not get out and our other friend was on the other side of the meadow and upwind and unable to hear him. it took our other friend 25 minutes to find him, still up to his waist in mud, because every time he made an attempt to pull himself out the mud would suck him back in. I'm not saying that he would not have made it out but like the man on TV says " Hey you never know".
Considering all the money we spend on our gear,guns, ammo, decoys, calls, boats, etc. this is cheap insurance that I'll be around to use them. Also beats waving my arms and yelling particularly if I'm in a spot where nobody can hear or see me.

In case anyone is interested this is the one I have


https://www.acrartex.com/products/c...or-beacons/resqlinkplus/#sthash.XkfEhtpK.dpbs
 
Well, I usually post this on Christmas Day, but this is a good prompt.

"The Ledge" is a famous short story, based on real events, about three Maine eider hunters who lost their boat while hunting a half-tide ledge and were drowned when the tide came in on a Christmas Day hunt.

http://www.bowdoin.edu/magazine/features/2009/the-ledge.shtml

Scroll down a page or so at the link and there is an audio file of the author reading the story. Warning--do not allow spouses or other family to listen if you value your cold weather hunting.
 
I had that happed once... It is life changing to watch your boat float away. Well, mine didn't really float away, but it was scary to see. I was hunting away from the boat and had the boat down a gut between 2 islands. My partner and I had a string of bad luck requiring me to go out several times to retrieve the birds sailed too far out for the dog. On the second or third time back in I anchored the stern coming in and walked the bow anchor to the shore and dropped it on the rocks. A freak wind came up with a maybe 40 mile per hour gust and from a hundred yards away I could hear clink-clink-clink of the anchor bouncing down the cobble shore and the boar whipped on the stern anchor. and by this point the bow anchor set too I swam out to the boat. This was January on the Sound. Never any real danger, but changed my perspective on setting both anchors every time and my perspective on hunting away from the boat - I still do it, but I pick my spots.
 
Been stranded myself. This was in the 90's before everyone had cell phones. It was about 15 degrees. The plan was myself and 2 friends would launch a canoe and paddle out a tidal creek to an small island in Youngs Bay, a tidal bay in Downeast Maine. The third member of our party was a mature gentleman, George, and while loading the canoe fell into a puddle and got wet. So change in plans. Two of us would go out he would take the truck and find a laundry mat and dry his clothes. The two of us paddled out, set up, hunted for an hour plus, then my buddy took the canoe and headed back for George. Now the tide was down, but still flowing out, so the paddle was much harder. about 3/4 of the way back he discovered a tidal falls that was covered on the way out. It was only about a foot so he landed the canoe planning to pull the canoe over the falls. Again the plan went awry. The canoe tipped and he got soaked and exhausted getting. Back into the canoe and back to the truck. Luckily George was back. So into a warm truck and back to the laundry mat. Mean while I am on the island alone and it is getting even colder and the wind picked up a bit. I did shoot a duck thinking it would drift to wading distance or we could pick it up with the canoe when they got back. The tide had other plans. I had to stop hunting because I could no longer retrieve shot ducks. The downed duck drifted away and was retrieved by what I think was a seal.
A few hours went by with the island getting smaller and me getting colder. This island was connected to the main land at low tide but the path was across seaweed covered rocks then a stretch of what I guessed was mud flat. Not something I felt I could do in the dark during the next low tide, then make the 2 to 3 mile bush whack through the woods back to the road and hopefully a truck.
Meanwhile my buddy got dry but did not feel he could safely get back and get me. So he called the game wardens; response "Sorry that's tidal we are not responsible for anything tidal, call the Marine Patrol". So they called the clam cops; response "sorry we have no boats in the water". They then called the Coast Guard response; "Are you sure the island stays above water? 'yes' How much do you like this guy?" They did go on to explain that if need be they would dispatch cutter from Rockland and they could then launch an inflatable to come get me. Probably 4 plus hours. So my buddies started searching for local lobstermen or scallop divers that might be able to get to me. During the search they did meet up with two marine patrol officers and they looked over the situation and decided that they could use the row boat we also brought to get me. They rowed the half mile across the bay, picked me, my gear and the decoys up and rowed me out. Thank you Marine Patrol Officers!!!. No longer will I call them "Clam Cops"
While I never felt I was going to die, I absolutely new I was going to have to fight for my life, and knew I would be damn miserable before I got back to warmth. Fortunately, I had some spare clothes, some nasty "pea soup" (survival food only), a couple of candy bars, a thermos of hot water and cocoa packets all in a big dry bag. So I figured I could climb into the dry bag and between the neoprene waders I had on and the dry bag my lower half would be ok, they spare cloths would be used to keep my top half warm enough through the night. Daytime slog across the seaweed and mud flat, then a 3 mile stroll through the wood back to Route 1, I had a survival plan but it was not going to be easy. and damn glad I did not have to use it.
Not something I ever want to repeat.
 
we have a newspaper clipping saved in our family- fishing not duck hunting - but fits here

I grew up in a small town- real small back then- no traffic light- the main intersection was just a T (guess the town could not afford one more road)

as it was in those days every one knew everyone- My Dad was the volunteer fire chief (his dad was the town's part time cop)

one spring when the river was full of itself, someone ran into the place Dad worked and told him there was a fisherman stranded on a island in the rising water. Seems his boat had overturned and washed away. Dad grabbed someone to help and some rescue gear. Knowing everyone, the two also knew were the boats were on the river and went upstream enough to gain the current to the island. They put in and with the two rowing the "borrowed" boat, managed to get the upstream point of the island. And much to Dad's surprise, there was the fisherman, his own bedraggled and soaking wet brother.

that happened in the early 1950's - My father just passed, my uncle is failing fast - but at almost every family gathering - over all those passing years - the happy ending was laughed about and the story passed to children, then grandchildren and then great grandchildren. Some one, much to my Dad's amusement and my uncle's embarrassment, told a reporter in the nearby "city" and it made print as a human interest story. The article still hang's on the wall at my parent's lake house, still in the family.
 
Oh yes Jeff Don't let them read it all. Heading out in the morning to hunt our favorite island, southerly blowing all night them gusting to 25 in the morning makes the big lake nasty.
 
Very easy to have happen in the high wind situations we typically find ourselves in. I like to keep my phone in a zippered pocket just in case, though if it got wet you'd be SOL too. This is a big reason why I have a canvas that can be dropped flat on my sneakbox, reduces the windage and it won't 'sail' on you as quickly when picking up decoys.
 
I think I've told mine here before. I came into a boat launch in my canoe on an icy day. Pulled the canoe up above the high tide line, grabbed my decoy bag and and walked up to the truck. I think the water on the bottom of the canoe flash froze. Anyway, something changed, and when I turned around my boat was sliding down the ramp and out into the water, where a gentle breeze pushed it across the bay.

I grabbed a canoe that was on the shore in front of a nearby summer house and was able to retrieve it, but if the same thing happened out on the island instead at the launch, I'd have been in a mess.
 
It was windy and cold the day this happened. Worst part was reading the comments section below the story ,, we have our share of anti's

mike91163pt2 2 days ago
Co-worker of mine had the best comment just now:
"They should've rescued the dog, and let the idiot figure out how to get home."

Pingo 2 days ago
It was cold out yesterday too. Definitely dangerous conditions. Why the negative commenting about hunters?

Servus_II 2 days ago
@Pingo Because people are welcome to their opinions.

Capt Ron 2 days ago
@Servus_II yes they are, and you know the old saying, opinions are like _ _ _holes, everyone has one. And that's my opinion.

essexl 2 days ago
Hunter? Seriously? He should consider doing his future "hunting" at Shop-Rite or Acme.

Pound-Salt 2 days ago
Glad the dog was OK.

PatrickJames.JC 2 days ago
The dog would have never put its master is such jeopardy.

Servus_II 2 days ago
@Pound-Salt Yes, maybe the dog can teach his nitwit master about ropes and tying things off.

PatrickJames.JC 2 days ago
The question is, would the owner have the intellectual capacity to learn from the dog. I hope they checked the dog out because this story seems odd.
 
Well, I usually post this on Christmas Day, but this is a good prompt.

"The Ledge" is a famous short story, based on real events, about three Maine eider hunters who lost their boat while hunting a half-tide ledge and were drowned when the tide came in on a Christmas Day hunt.

http://www.bowdoin.edu/magazine/features/2009/the-ledge.shtml

Scroll down a page or so at the link and there is an audio file of the author reading the story. Warning--do not allow spouses or other family to listen if you value your cold weather hunting.
Click to expand...

I looked up the story and also came across this article about the original tragedy that inspired Hall's story, plus some more about the author.
http://www.regionalmagazines.org/downloads/competition/DE-2012-ctgy2-Historical.pdf
 
Thanks for posting that Jeff, that kind of story is always at the back of my mind when hunting in the winter. It's important to be on your toes at all times!
 
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