Pain and lessons learned the hard way

[mikeandronda]

Well Im not sure if this a fishing post, a SHT post or a discussion for dockside. Last night I was fishing with my brother in law and we were catching lots of salt cats. Freakin cockroachs of the sea is my opinion. I had caught about a 10 incher and thrown it on the ground next to me to use as bait for a crab trap I had??.Well it was dark I wasn?t paying attention and I stepped right on him with a full force step as I went for some more bait. His spine/fin went through my shoe and went about ? inch or more into my flesh (it hit bone in the arch of my foot). Well after the shock of what I just did set in, ( He was completely all the way stuck up to his body and still moving) I yanked him out. I must say it was not the worst pain I have felt but for about a ? second ( As the ridges or barbs on the fin came out) it was quite intense??. Then no pain??.I knew better so I waited and about a min after I pried his thrashing body from the o?so tender arch of my foot, it began to really??.really ??..really hurt.

Now I was mad and of course said catfish paid the ultimate price for my grievous injury??..OK well the ironic thing is we were talking about our kids and how pain and suffering tends to build character and until you get hurt in life you don?t know what you can take and how pain tends to be a great teacher ( most smart people only do things that hurt once) ??.It was long conversation that we in a manly macho way were bragging about past injuries, fights and mishaps????.Well it wasn?t to much longer after that I got to add another story to mine.

I have to chalk it up to a lesson learned. I am very new to salt water fishing and Im not used to having to be so carefull with what you catch for fear of bites, poison and stab wounds from things you catch??..Lesson learned pay more attention to staying safe less on baiting the hook Anyways it?s a bit swollen and sore but it seems ok. Walking sucks a bit today.

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: Pain and lessons learned the hard way

i think you got lucky, that the shoe absorb the majority of the wound.

 

[wildmaninal]

Re: Pain and lessons learned the hard way

OUCH!!!!! Well my brother's first time fishing on the salt water, he caught a salt cat and got stabbed in the thumb it went pretty deep. He ended up going to the doctor after he got back from his vacation in Florida, his thumb was infected pretty bad, and he said the pain was unreal.

Hope you recover quickly.

 

[gonefishie]

Re: Pain and lessons learned the hard way

So Mike, how's FL working out for ya? The last of your post that could remember were you talking about moving from MO to FL.

 

[mikeandronda]

Re: Pain and lessons learned the hard way

Oh man TD you have no clue how glad I was that the shoe sole was thick enough to keep me from real injury.....I was afraid when I pulled it out it may have broke off........by the way, me pulling it out happend by instinct....adrenaline kicked in and I just yanked......not sure I could do that again knowing how it felt.........Nah, I would rip another one out just as fast. Truth is after first stab and the pulling out it got to about a 7 on a scale of 1 to 10. I know pain is relative but I figue it was not as bad as a toothache or migrane so a solid 7 went to 8 as I walked........The worst part of the whole night was.............No keeper fish.

 

[mikeandronda]

Re: Pain and lessons learned the hard way

Gonefishie, Well Florida turned out to be a tough move for us.......Its a whole differnt world down here and for the first time in my life I experienced culture shock.....I have learned to like Florida but I really hate Gainesville.( There is very littele good water to fish close by.....I mean come on this is Florida and I move to the least amount of water to fish in the whole state At some point we plan to move to the east coast of Fl. (Palm coast area) Real nice there and much cheaper for a nicer home.......and the fishing seems pretty awesome.......Except last night.

 

[chiefalen]

Re: Pain and lessons learned the hard way

Whats a sea cat? It like a sea robbin what we have here in nj.

 

[mikeandronda]

Re: Pain and lessons learned the hard way

I think they are just called fathead catfish.....look like channel cats to me.......

 

[Bob_VT]

Re: Pain and lessons learned the hard way

Nothing like a Sea Robbin more like a regular catfish.

 

[JB]

Re: Pain and lessons learned the hard way

AUGH!!

You just awakened memories of the most intense pain I ever had (including 3rd degree burn).

While snorkeling at Kwajalein in the 50s I grabbed a fish locally known as a sculpin and got his dorsal spine between my thumb and first finger. That fish must be related to the deadly stonefish because my arm was paralyzed for hours.

Nothing ever hurt anywhere near as much. It hurt so bad I couldn't scream.

I am now sooooo glad I didn't step on that beast.

Glad you are okay, Mike. I feel your pain.

 

[jay_merrill]

Re: Pain and lessons learned the hard way

Been there, done that, have the t-shirt, the bumper sticker, and the bad memories!

Don't you just hate a fish that fights back?!!!!!!

 

[LadyFish]

Re: Pain and lessons learned the hard way

Ahhhh the nasty ole "hardhead" as we call them here. It hurts like a sonofagun, I always cut the line and won't even mess with them.

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: Pain and lessons learned the hard way

we have not heard from him this morning. Mike watch if for infection.

 

[i386]

Re: Pain and lessons learned the hard way

Ouch! I know that's gotta be sore today. I think you should see a Dr. to be safe. I've handled lots of fresh and salt water cats. I've been fortunate to have never been stuck by one, but I know plenty of folks who have. You're right about the salt water creatures. Extra caution is always a good idea.

 

[xxturbowesxx]

Re: Pain and lessons learned the hard way

Sailcats are a little different than hardheads. Most of the time they are twice as big and their spines are larger as well. Ive been stabbed a few times and i know what you were feeling. When i was a kid i was fishing alone and caught one by myself so i steped on his back to take the hook out with my shoes one and watched as the barb came out the top of my shoe. Learned a hard lesson about catfish that day on the way to the hospital. They are nasty bastids like tash said keep an eye out for infection.

 

[J. Mark]

Re: Pain and lessons learned the hard way

Sorry to hear that. Spent a summer in florida back in the 80's working construction. Caught a bunch of those, but found that the crabs didn't even like them.

Watch the wound for any sign of infection and if it isn't improving go into the emergency room or your doctor.

The heads are so hard on those fish that a knife blade will generally bounce off of them.

I too learned to just cut the line.

 

[mikeandronda]

Re: Pain and lessons learned the hard way

Hey guys, wound looks good and there is very little pain......really thought this would be much worse but for one I think most of the poison and nasty fish stuff would have come off on the shoe before it entered me so I think it may have made it easier/less painful and so far no sign of infection........Bad thing is, spent 3-4 hours on my feet today so it was better earlier.

 

[jay_merrill]

Re: Pain and lessons learned the hard way

I use ichthammol "drawing salve" for this sort of thing. The last time I was "stuck" by a hardhead was close to 20 years ago, but that's what I used and I had no problems with infection.

 

[triumphrick]

Re: Pain and lessons learned the hard way

Not born here, but raised here. Fished all over this place as a kid. My worst fishing pain episode came from me kicking a sail cat to get him over the side of a bridge I was fishing on. Yep...stuck me right in the middle of my big toe. Hurt for a loooong time..
Also was fishing down at Haulover Pier in Miami and a tourist caught and grabbed a cat. He was last seen leaving the pier with all three barbs poking out or at the webbing between his fingers.....I don't even want to know how that felt.
Also from Gainsville you aren't that far of a drive to Cedar Key and the big bend area. I am just a little south of there and have some really good days fishing around here. I can't imagine how you get so many cats...what are your baits and techniques??
If looking for some spots off the Homosassa, Crystal River or Bayport area, give me a PM! Rick