stranded hunters on pelican

[iceking]

i heard there was a couple hunters rescued on thur. nite anybody else hear anything? are they ok?

[jeepguy]

We are fine, we went out about noon, and at around 4:30ish called it a day. Picked up and started motoring in. The motor iced up and eventually quit. We attempted to row ourselves in but could not buck the wind. We realized we were going to hit shore eventually but got caught on an island. We tried calling other people who had boats but had no luck. We decided at that point that we needed help. I know Pelican Lake quite well and know it can be a gnarly lake when the conditions are right. Combine wind, darkness, a little snow, ice, and cold temps and you have a recipe for disaster. Fortunately we were dressed appropraitely with waders, and warm duck hunting gear, not to mention life jackets. We are very thankful to the guys from the St. Michael Fire Department.

[fishhawk1750]

well now that we know that you are safe...did you shoot anything?

[jeepguy]

Yes we did, there were a ton of birds out there. As we got towed in the firefighter's spotlight shined on a few mallards and the just sat there, they jokingly asked us if we wanted to get our guns out and get a few more.

[iceking]

thats great news your ok!! if you wanted to try that again what you do different? just wondering.

[jeepguy]

Different, well I am not sure. Now that I have learned my lesson the hard way I have learned that there is not a duck, goose, fish, ect. in the world worth risking your well being over. I am pretty sure I will not venture out onto the lake when there is ice. I do know 1 thing foresure is that without cell phones we would have been seriously screwed. Last year I saw some guys on the news that capsized on the Mississippi near LaCrosse and they went on and on about how having a cell phone in a dry area (i.e. plastic bag) is what saved them. From then on I never have ventured out anywhere without a cell phone fully charged. The important thing is that we are both fine, humbled and a little embarrassed, but fine. We are done hunting the water for the season, but looking forward to next season, with a new look on safety.

[jigginjim]

I have been fishing in Dec. - _Feb. have never had my motors freeze-up. Was it the cold to the water pump?

[just_havin_fun]

Everyone gets into a sticky situation sometime in their life, sounds like you guys kept your wits about you. Good job on using your head and not letting the situation escalate!!

[jeepguy]

I have been fishing in Dec. - _Feb. have never had my motors freeze-up. Was it the cold to the water pump?

I am pretty sure, the motor stopped "peeing" shortly before it shut down. I am pretty sure that ice got in the pump or something like that. The boat is now in my shop thawing out, yesterday when it was in the shop it started up just fine. It sounds like the pump got too cold, not sure all I know is the [PoorWordUsage] thing did not start the other night and was not about to. You should have seen the boat when we got in, it was seriously an ice cube.

[ZEEK1223]

I used to use an old 70's outboard, and constantly had issues. Then I bought a 5hp air cooled 4 cycle. It is loud as $%^&, and doesnt perform as well as an outbord. But is very nice when is comes to thick mud, and freezing conditions.

[jeepguy]

yeah it is an 87 mercury 25 horse, I have never had a problem with it before.

[tealitup]

Jeepguy,

Thanks for posting here - glad everything worked out. It goes to show you - everyone can have an issue while out hunting.

Your problems are not your problems --the solutions you use are your real problems.

Meaning, you did exactly what you were supposed to do

[jeepguy]

Thanks, at first we thought that calling the Fire Department was a little over the top, but when the sun went down as fast as it did we saw that we could have really gotten into some serious trouble if we had tried to make it off the lake ourselves.

[Scott M]

Thanks for sharing your experience jeepguy. We can all learn a lesson. You did the right thing no matter what. It's humbling to get stuck, be stranded, have mechanical troubles, etc., but you used a clear head and did the right thing.

[BoxMN]

Glad you're okay jeepguy, and glad you were smart enough to call fire dept.

[masterpuppet]

Glad to hear that you guys are safe. I have always taken my phone with and the other kids bust my chops for it but now i can show them this letter and they might understand why I do it. They thing it is so i call my wife and she to call me but for safety it is a must.

[jeepguy]

I always have the cell on, no matter what we are doing. Especially on the water. I was taling to a freind of mine about this and he was reminded of a few years back when he and a group of guys were fishing om MilleLacs in december and the ice the were fishing on broke off and they drifted about a mile out into the middle of the lake and had to be rescued by boat. What would one do if they had no way of communication and they were floating in the middle of Mille Lacs.