beautiful day, terrible for fishing. This day was my dedicated worm, creature bait day. Threw 4 in rage menace looked awesome in the water, green pumpkin and dipped the tails in yellow garlic on a 4/0 hook will downsize to 3/0 next time, didnt catch a darn thing.

Threw the red 8in kingtail texas and neko, nothin. So i put on a senko texas rigged, super lookin action on a 4/0 hook with 1/8 oz pegged weight, finally caught a coupe dinks.

 

No more action on senko so i put the waders on and went to explore new water away from main culvert and threw spinners around pads, through pads, on top of pads....caught pike only, ok i can live catching pike for fun and then i got wet, naw it didnt start raining that came later at night.

 

I stepped into the abyss, just wading stomach belly button deep and stepped where no man wants to go and i was under water, my rod held tightly in my right hand and my waders filling up like a super gulp at the 7-11 i started to jump off the bottom lunging to move forward untill i got my feet on firm footing and walked to the shoreline, sat on a rock, took of waders and dumped them out.

Put them back on and continued fishing. As i sat on the rock i noticed an old  broken up wooden boat lift on the shore line and i think this old lift used to be out where i sunk.

 

Got out of the water and went to my car and changed into dry clothes, feels good after all your lower extremities, feet especially are all water logged and shriveled up. Wife was sunnie fishing and caught 46 combined crappie and sunnies. She, known as the bass slayer threw some senkos and hard baits for bass but nothin. The bite all day was dead but for a few dinks.

 

I went back to the worms but nothing at 7-830 pm, top waters, nope, jerks, square bills, storm swim baits got me nothin, not even a pike grrrrr now i want a pike, i want 1 more fish to end the day so i go to old faithfull, the froggg, the black pad crasher.

Its gettin dark as a storm is commin our way so i toss the frogg into the shallow pad covered corner of the lake where its so shallow a grasshopper coud stand up in it and not get his knees wet.

I pull it through a handfull of times and whoosh it gets hit and i give it 4 seconds before i didnt even set the hook because i had really slack line from just given it a pull and by the time i got the slack out he was pulling hard.

I started to reel in and i landed him, i tell ya that guy weighed in at say 1.5 lbs, but at least my frogg came through for me and i had a nice drive home in the rain.

wife caught this fat guy sunday on her usual gulp minnow

 

 

3 hours ago, throttleplate said:

wife caught this fat guy sunday on her usual gulp minnow

 

 

 

ate that sunnie for dinner tonite, thick meat like a 1/4 lb hamburger.

15 hours ago, throttleplate said:

I stepped into the abyss, just wading stomach belly button deep and stepped where no man wants to go and i was under water, my rod held tightly in my right hand and my waders filling up like a super gulp at the 7-11 i started to jump off the bottom lunging to move forward untill i got my feet on firm footing and walked to the shoreline, sat on a rock, took of waders and dumped them out.

 

I've stepped in over neoprene chest waders once before too.  Only it happened to me in late October when I was duck hunting and the water was much colder.  It was very scary.  I was walking around in depth that was just a few inches from the top and must have stepped into a hole.  The water came rushing in quickly and almost pulled me under like an anchor.  I managed to get back to shore, dump out the water, get into my truck, blast the heat, and dry off.  Needless to say the duck hunt was over that day.  From that point forward, I do not wade in anything deeper than waist deep now because if I step into another hole the water will still be below the top of the waders.  I think wearing a PFD would also a good idea if I could find a camo or dark green one.

1 hour ago, gimruis said:

 

I've stepped in over neoprene chest waders once before too.  Only it happened to me in late October when I was duck hunting and the water was much colder.  It was very scary.  I was walking around in depth that was just a few inches from the top and must have stepped into a hole.  The water came rushing in quickly and almost pulled me under like an anchor. 

That is irrational fear.  Water weighs the same as... water.  You have pretty much the same buoyancy with your waders full or empty (a little less due to whatever trapped air there might be inside them).  Water in your waders won't sink you.  Neoprene waders are actually very buoyant and will float you! 

 

Take your neoprene waders down to the water and try to sink them.  Full or empty, they'll float just the same.

When I fly fished I had stocking foot 5mm neoprene waders and wading boots with felt soles.  I was hard core and fished winter/summer and many times had ice chunks bouncing off me in the water.  I fished the south fork of the Shenandoah river between Luray and Front Royal and there are some major deep holes.  I can guarantee you they are buoyant enough to keep you afloat if you get “swept”.   I tested the theory many times!  You just have to stay upright until you can get a foothold.   My buddy one summer went out with “tuna boat” style chest waders and had a full blown panic attack when he got swept.  Once his waders filled, the current kept trying to pull him under.  

51 minutes ago, desmobob said:

That is irrational fear.  Water weighs the same as... water.  You have pretty much the same buoyancy with your waders full or empty (a little less due to whatever trapped air there might be inside them).  Water in your waders won't sink you.

 

It was extremely problematic at the time because it was late October and the water was very cold (in the 40's most likely).  Filling those things with water that cold was very dangerous even if it isn't going to sink me because of hypothermia.  That's the sort of thing that doesn't make you think rationally when it happens.

10 hours ago, gimruis said:

I do not wade in anything deeper than waist deep now

 

When i am in the water i always wanna go just a couple more feet out and push it and then if all is well i will push it again untill its to late or a boat comes by and then its back up or get swamped.

 

Im goin to play it safer now and be belly button depth.

9 hours ago, desmobob said:

That is irrational fear.  Water weighs the same as... water.  You have pretty much the same buoyancy with your waders full or empty (a little less due to whatever trapped air there might be inside them).  Water in your waders won't sink you.  Neoprene waders are actually very buoyant and will float you! 

 

Take your neoprene waders down to the water and try to sink them.  Full or empty, they'll float just the same.

 

does this apply to pvc waders also?  pvc is what i was wearing. I was also wearing a pack strapped to my body like a bandalier of bullets which was full of tackle.

When my face went into the water the whole episode was me trying to bounce off the bottom and dog paddle trying to keep my face from going back into the water.

Why i didnt drop my pole i cant answer, i didnt even think about it but if i did drop it i doubt i would have found it as this water was black looking into that depression.

9 hours ago, throttleplate said:

does this apply to pvc waders also? 

I don't know if PVC floats... I don't think I've ever owned any PVC waders.

 

Over a lifetime of trout fishing, I've crossed the fine line between wading and swimming plenty of times, usually in moving water, wearing everything from old-school Hodgeman waders to modern breathables.  The point is, water filling your waders isn't going to suddenly "pull you under like an anchor."

 

If something weighs less than the water it displaces, it will float.  If it weighs more than the water it displaces, it will sink.  If your waders fill up with water, it won't have much affect at all on your buoyancy.  Don't panic if it happens; that won't help you.  

Get a telescopic lure retriever.  Extend it out and probe the bottom as you are wading. You'll find the holes before you step in them.

4 hours ago, Bankbeater said:

Get a telescopic lure retriever.  Extend it out and probe the bottom as you are wading. You'll find the holes before you step in them.

when i am wading i am on the move, i am walking and casting at the same time letting my feet tell me whats ahead with my next step.

Every now and then i will look down to check the bottom ahead of me. This isnt the first hole i stepped in, but its the first one that dunked my head in the water.

 

Whats just as scary is stepping into a hole thats waist deep and you sink into the bottom muck and cannot pull your feet out as you work yourself deeper like quicksand.

Last time this happened to me it took me a good while to work my way loose thinkng i may have to drop the waders and swim away.

Those who wade learn very quickly how to read water and currents to tell where ledges or holes are.  It becomes second nature.  There are a lot of do’s and dont’s when wading big rivers.  Not usually a problem with small shallow trout streams, but bigger rivers and squeeze chutes of rocky gorges are a whole different story.  I have never wade fished a lake.  I’ve had plenty of clients in the guide service break out their fly rod in my boat.  I’ve also gone out into the Chesapeake bay and fly fished striper with a 9wt fly rod.  As for rubber waders sinking, they do.  I can guarantee it.  Even if they are neutral buoyant the human inside, usually with filled pockets, gear, etc., is not and if you add current, you will sink.  

Like a rock.  
Use the right gear for the conditions.  

That's a whopper for sure.

 

Getting submerged with waders on sounds scary ?   I

On 7/2/2021 at 11:51 AM, TOXIC said:

 Even if they are neutral buoyant the human inside, usually with filled pockets, gear, etc., is not and if you add current, you will sink.  

Like a rock.  

Only time I’ve ever worn waders in a lake I stepped in a hole. Empty pockets and my head was only inch under but it scared me to death. I easily slipped out of the waders, and they were serious effort to get back out of the water with no danger, but man. I’ve never even tried it since. I imagine it’s what “concrete shoes” feels like.