Very near miss on the water today "Campbell River"

[GLG]

Well I almost got killed today fishing in CR.
A guide boat from a large near by lodge nearly T-boned our boat at 10:30 this morning.
We were trolling along nothing special and I looked up and saw him coming at us at WOT. I thought he would turn of slow down or stop but he just keep coming.
There were 3 guys on our boat and the one at the back was preparing to dive off the back.
I was closest to the impact and had nowhere to go but hunker down near the seat. The driver and I yelled and screamed at the guide boat and finally he saw/heard what was about to happen. He turned and stopped his boat not more than 20 feet from us.
We were trolling at 2 miles per hour he was running at 30 mile per hour. I think we would have lost in that collision.
What the He11 was he doing. I know that there setup has the driver behind 2 clients. That has to be a pi$$ poor setup for driving blind out in the ocean. I’m so angry I might have to get someone fired. GLG

 

[haverodwilltravel]

I'd be mad too. Yahoos.

 

[Charter Tofino]

If its the main lodge up there a few guides need to be fired. I have been out with them twice. One was top notch one was a complete joke! I wouldnt let something that serious slide

 

[Gill]

If there's time,honk your horn to get his attention,not making excuses for the guide

 

[GLG]

It happened so fast we didn’t have time to pull out the safety, compressed air bottle of horn. I would have to guess that it was all over in 10 seconds. Me thinks a new hard mount electric push button horn should be installed this week.
Kelly you are right about not letting this slide. I just finished supper with my 70-year-old uncle who flew out to fish with me. He said something that hit home. His comment was that was the closest he has ever come to being involved in a fatality accident. No bull$hit guys, it was close. I quote my uncle now “ I have never experienced in my life time an eminent disaster of mayhem and lose of life.” The “guide” did say sorry and explained that the clients were in his blind spot. No harm no foul ? GLG

 

[Cuba Libre]

I would not accept that lame excuse. Report him to the lodge before he pulls the same stunt again.... Too many cowboys out there...

20ft Alumaweld Intruder

 

[salmonkiller01]

I hope you reported him, he most likely wouldn't get canned but atleast the lodge will have a safety meeting regarding this. I would think that it is not in the best interest of the lodge to have their clients lives put at risk, let alone the lives of other fisherman.

 

[Nimo]

Are the lodge guides subject to the same TC rules? I'm kind of surprised that they would still be able to use whalers if that's the case. It would be interesting that a guide in a custom built 24' welded aluminum full-on ocean going vessel would be looked at and not a 17' whaler with a rooky guide.

I can tell you from experience that the tillers are a very dangerous set-up. The choice for the guide is to stand balanced by one hand on the tiller or risk hitting someone. Not good.

With that said, with all of the hours put in over the years by the CR fleet there's been relatively few, although I'm sure some very serious, accidents.

Regarding reporting the incident, I believe it's a management issue and a report to an authority (TC or police) regarding the overall dangerousness of the set up would do just as much good. The guide would simply be replaced by another, perhaps less experienced one and the danger continues.

 

[SeaWolf]

Always carry a bucket of good sized throwing rocks.

 

[Charter Tofino]

I was told by a guide at the lodge there has been some serious accidents already. One of them got to close to a tug and its load and either hit the cable between the two or it hit a cable that was behind the load. Flipped the whaler and pulled it under with clients in it. I think they are just hiring inexperienced guides. The guy we had couldnt have been over 20 and pulls up with his hat on backwards at mach ten into the dock. Slams it in reverse to leave taking water over the transom and his fishing skills were about the same. I bet their having a hard time filling up the boats with guides.I know if i was a guide i wouldnt want to be doing it in Campbell river with the state of the fishing.

 

[Nimo]

The tug issue happens every year - although, it's not too aften that they actually get into that much trouble. I hope everyone was OK. The rooky's don't seem to understand that if there's a tug and a barge, there must be a line between them.

This speaks directly to inadequate training and poor management. The clients don't seem to know that they are actually putting their very lives in the boys' hands. It's too bad, because it taints the industry and there are many very experienced and capable professional guides up there.

 

[snagger]

there is a trailing line behind most barges, some have a bouy, some don't, if the main line breaks, the metal line will be under the barge, then the tug would go to the back of the barge to hook up on the trailing line, this trailing line is what the whaler prop grabbed onto in the last incident.

cheers

 

[Cuba Libre]

Not only BETWEEN the tug and Barge, but often one trailing BEHIND the tow. Most will be dragging a Scotchsman bouy, but some may not-- give them a WIDE berth.




20ft Alumaweld Intruder

 

[GLG]

Back from CR today and saw most guides standing when on the run. The guide yesterday was sitting. I did email the management this morning before I left. My wife got a call first thing this morning from the operations manager requesting me for more details. He seemed very concerned, as he should. I will contact him with the details and I hope that some changes will occur. I will repeat here that this incident was one very close call.
GLG

 

[Nimo]

It is great to follow that up. Ask the manager what he may be prepared to do to ensure the danger is mitigated. Ask him about the guides standing in the boats (the manager is likely a veteran guide and will be aware of this issue.) A call to an authority could still be considered - this has been going on for years!

The whalers were considered pretty much a necessity back when it was all a back-eddy show and the guides typically had 10+ years of experience, but most of the good fishing is now done trolling or a quasi-drift/mooch (ie The Hump) where they are not necessary. A 17'-18' centre console aluminum would do the job better these days, would be much safer from an operational point, and would catch just as many fish - IMO.

 

[bradgfish]

hey kelly what,s wrong with guiding in C.R. Probably better then guiding in nanaimo.

 

[salmon9]

I used to operate a 17 ft whaler on a tiller and sure visability can be problematic when blocked by guests and getting on a plane and at times running. This becomes a concern when the guide/boater is less experienced and does not know how to keep an eye out. I have almost been run over by boaters in Seaswirls, Seasports, Campions, etc. Doesn't take much for an inexperienced boater not to keep an eye out and run someone over, particularly when lots of boats around like around Trap shack or in front of Brown's Bay when the fish are in. A few years ago a Seasport going full trottle past Church Rock almost ran me over. Now it's almost common afair out there around Beechy boats running full trottle near other boats fishing. In the good old days if you tried that you would get an 8 oz weight through your wind shield - not that I agree with it but it seemed like there was greater appreciation for safety and respect of others on the water.

 

[bradgfish]

I agree salmon9 it doesn't matter what you fish out of or who you work for there's idiots in every crowd.

 

[Nimo]

Point taken Salmon9, the issue is certainly the operator more than the boat style; however, traveling in CR at 25 - 30 K standing up on a tiller or sitting down blind is unsafe at best. I did it for years and probably had a few close calls myself.

I recall very nearly being runover by a long time guide (20years + at the time) sitting down in his boat. He ran towards me in Duncan Bay, clear blue sky, no water, noone else around. Very very close call. I reported it to my manager at the time and he said, " you've never been run over by *** before now? You haven't been guiding very long if you haven't been run over by *** (name excluded because he is actually a very prominent guide up there.)

The fact is that times and accountability have changed.

I think my issue is more around the fact that private operators with years of experience and clearly superior vessels (people that I would in fact hope to have looking for me if I was in trouble out there) appear to be subjected to much higher scrutiny than lodge operators with inexperienced guides. Or is this not true?

 

[bradgfish]

Hey nimo what's your real handle? Haven't been guiding around here for very long but grew up fishing with my dad back in the good times of C.R. I know what you mean of the set ups of the boats not being ideal but thats been the standard of C.R. guide boats since Whisky point and the north bluff used to pro
duce fish.