Lightning detector (and lightning stories)

[Slyster]

I bought a fairly inexpensive lightning detector on hsolist.. I got one called the "Strike Alert 2" and it's really great! Shows lightning strike distance.. with audio tone each detected strike.. and tells you if it is coming or going. Very accurate today with the storms that rolled in. Thought this would be a great thing fishing.

Anyone have any crazy lightning stories?

My worst was canoeing up in the BWCA around 10 years ago. We saw very dark clouds coming in as we tried to make the far shore.. big mistake... 5 or 10 minutes to go and the lightning really picked up.. those strong ground strikes.. as we sped along lightning struck the water WAY too close to us.. light and sound instantly hit us... I swear I felt something in my feet.. and I could not believe it didn't strike our aluminum canoe probably only a hundred feet away.

[tunrevir]

I was on the water one time fishing from a pontoon boat. Real muggy, hot day. I coulds see a thunderhead way off in the distance, no visible lightning, and I didn't hear any thunder so I figured I'd move closer to my parents house just in case the weather started to get bad. I cast out and heard a buzzing sound, and thought it was odd that my line kind of floated in the air a bit longer then usual. I started to reel up and everytime I would raise the rod tip slightly there would be a buzzing sound and then it began to crackle a little. I realized what was happening, chucked the rod to the floor squatted down on a life jacket hit the starter and booted it into shore. It was still clear and pretty sunny but 10 minutes later all heck broke loose.

Tunrevir~

[DTro]

When I was younger, I was working at a resort up on Vermilion. We were waiting for a storm to approach, and we were all sitting in the gift shop and they had these goofy balls that made laughing and giggling sounds when to touched to metal contacts with your fingers.

So we are sitting there and all the sudden, every one of the toys started laughting and giggling, and then we all start laughing then........BOOM!.....lighting strikes an old tree right outside the store

[Remy]

About 10 years ago I was at my family's cabin in Wisconsin and we were cruising around on the pontoon when we saw a storm coming so we headed in. It started pouring right as we got to the dock so we all we went into the beach house to wait out the storm. We had an old fridge in there and my uncle opened it up to grab a cold one and right as he was closing it lighting hit the beach house and went right to the fridge. He got a pretty good shock out of that one but he was fine after a minute or so and we all got a laugh that we went into the beach house to get out of the storm and the lighting decided to hit that instead of the tall trees around us or one of the flag poles. The fridge still sits there but hasn't worked since.

[metrojoe]

I had one of those "line raising" experiences a few years ago. The strangest thing I've ever seen. The line from the tip of my rod was slowly raising up into the air creating a large arch in the line. It was lifting it right out of the water. If I would have let it keep going, I think it would have lifted the line right out to my bobber. When we realized it was static electricity building around the boat we reeled in and raced for shore.

[softballfisherguy]

Remy - must be something with Fridge's -- I know of a lightning strike that somehow came through a fridge in an attached garage - started on fire too - so I don't know what - but there must be something in the appliance to attract it maybe?? Weird.

[Gus]

A friend of mine in college was struck by lightning. She was in a pop up camper and the camper was struck. She was apparently too close to the canvas side as the lighting struck her and passed through. She is fine now. Had a few scars on her back.

My now brother in law was also almost struck out on a pontoon. Like the line raising experiences they were out fishing, except his hair suddenly stood straight out on end. They took off for shore as fast as possible and minutes later a huge bolt struck right where they had been.

[The Grebe]

I've got a couple of them.....once, years ago, I was heading back into the cities from a fishing trip to Osakis. I was one of the only cars on the road, a stretch of I-94....I don't even think it was called I-94 at the time? Wasn't as much traffic then as there is now.

Anyhow, I was driving an old 64 Ford station wagon, comming through some rough weather. All of a sudden there was a blinding flash and a he11 of a noise, a bolt had hit the highway right in front of me....I locked em up, I really didn't know what had happened? Blinded, I had to feel my way off the road, onto the shoulder. I'm sure I sat there for at least 5 minutes before my sight started to come back!

Thats pretty close!

Another time, I had my wife and kids in the car and we were comming home from a relatives place and the "Toonder and Lightnin" came. It was hittting all over the place and close! A big flash and "Boom" almost instant thunder!

We made it home, I parked the car at the curb, came around to usher everyone into the house and "Pow" a bolt hit a telephone pole right across the street! Man, that gets your attention!

Lastly, me and one of the fellas that works for us, were in the truck, heading in because of an ongoing storm. We were over in St. Paul and we were comming down this narrow street between two buildings.

All of a sudden, instantly, there was a huge noise, flash of light, and pressure, amplified by us being between those two buildings...and debris from the roof of the building rained down on the truck! Why we didn't smash up the truck, or get into an accident, I don't know?

Al ended up on the floor under the dashboard and I was half way on the floor, under the steering wheel with my legs all contorted, but still had a partial foot on the brake. My ears were ringing for 10 minutes after it happened.

[B@ssmaster]

Years ago my folks had a lake place with approx. 120' of dock. It was a project weekend and we were just finishing up work for the day when my father, myself and my brother decided to take a dip in the lake before the impending storm got too close. My brother's girlfriend was with us, she had very long (18” or more), very lightweight blond hair. The two of them took a bit longer to get out on the dock than my Dad and I. We were wading back into shore when they passed us on the dock headed out to the end. By this time the storm was very near. I looked up to see my brother's girlfriend's hair all standing up, it was quite a sight. I yelled “get off the dock NOW!” but my brother, trying to act cool in front of his girlfriend, took a look at her hair but decided to take his time getting off the dock regardless of the sight. Of course, she's panicking wondering what I saw and why I was yelling. She started running, my brother decided speed was of the essence as well at that point. They just cleared the dock when the bolt hit the water about 25’-50' away. Way too close for comfort.

Another story: When my brother and I were very young fishermen (8-10 years old I think) Dad took us out fishing on a new lake (to us). Storm got closer faster than he expected, so long story short that led to a full throttle boat ride through a boulder field with lightning strikes happening all around us. Not sure how we managed to avoid taking out a lower unit or getting BBQ’d. I don’t recall the name of the lake or how the fishing was, but I do remember the boat ride! As a 10 year old, I was thinking this fishing is pretty exciting stuff!

BWCA story. We were camping on a nice open site overlooking the lake. Storm comes through in the middle of the night. Three of us in the tent, my Dad, myself and my buddy. I wake up lying on my back and my corner of the tent lying on my face. I shout for the other two to wake up, they can’t hear me over the roar of the storm. I stood up in the dark and felt my way along the tent pole above me to find it had snapped. I then grabbed the broken upper portion and braced it against the wind to prevent the fabric from ripping; at this point we were still dry at least. I yelled again, again the two of them couldn’t hear me (in the same tent!). I ended up kicking my Dad who woke up and then he kicked my buddy to get him up. The three of us ended up standing there in the dark, in our underwear, holding the tent together for 45 minutes waiting for the howling wind to subside. Since we couldn’t hear each other, we were left alone to our thoughts. I kept thinking to myself, “Does it sound like a train?” wondering if a tornado was just outside. I could see in the eyes of my tentmates during the lightning flashes that they too were thinking the same thing. Luckily no tornado showed up. Some equipment was trashed and/or blown into the lake, but no one got hurt. We find out the next morning that the rest of our crew in the second tent had peaked out and via the light from the lightning flashes could see our dilemma of a collapsed tent, but they decided that we were on our own until the storm passed. We still joke about possible obituary had things gone sour. “3 men found dead in their underwear, still wrapped in the remains of their tent. The three apparently drowned because they could not swim while encumbered with the tent and all its contents when they were blown into Trout Lake at 2am last Friday.”

[Black_Bay]

Last April lightning hit the satelite dish at our cabin and traveled up the coax right into the cabin causing a fire. By the time the fire department got there it was nothing but 4 walls and a fireplace. It was a total loss. In the same storm lightning hit near another cabin. When the owner got there he noticed wires burning also. He was able to put the wires out before they really got going.

[Ely Lake Expert]

Slyster,

How much does something like this cost?

[Bobby Bass]

I have been within 100 yards of lightning strikes numerous times. Each time close enough to rock your teeth in your mouth. My favorite one was my friend and I were bird hunting and buried our truck deep in the woods as we were trying to figure out what to do next we both watched each others hair start to stand on end. Together we yelled duck and hit the ground just as a tree about 30yards away literally exploded after being hit. How we didn't get hit laying in a ditch with water I will never understand but I sure do keep an eye out.. I always keep the am radio on in the boat, works good as a fore caster of lightning as you can hear the static.

[Slyster]

Outdoors people... I highly recommend a lightning detector after reading these stories!

I got mine for $60. if you google "lightning detector" you can find much better (and more expensive) detectors.. some are amazing and I'd love to buy.. but approach $500.

[eelpout#1]

Several times I've been out fishing before a storm and had the line float above the water. Once on Ottertail Lake on Memorial day weekend a few years back, we were fishing in about 8 feet of water pitching 1/8 oz jigs with shiners for walleyes. The fish were just committing suicide. About 10 A.M. it started to get really hot and sticky. My oldest son who was with me always laughed at me when I told him about the fishing line floating above the water before a lightning strike or a big storm. He went to cast and his jig never hit the water. His cast traveled probably 60 feet and never hit the water. He said "What the xxxx" I looked up and there was his jig hanging in mid-air about 8-10 inches above the water. I reeled up my line hit the starter and we were gone. Back at the access I reached for my rod to put it away and sparks literally flew from my fingertips. The only funny thing about the whole deal was that I was fishing with "Lightning Rods".

[DEADhead]

Sly, I picked up a couple of these last year for my crew when we're out working. They work great, and the price is small compared to the benefit of some advance warning.

[bigmanmusky]

Nothing like holding a graphite rod in that situation. We were out on the lake and you could see a storm rolling in - one more cast we took - when my buddy threw out his small jig the line looked like a rainbow AFTER the jig hit the water - never saw anything like that. No more " last casts ".