Author Topic: Missing Boater  (Read 5577 times)

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Offline ChrisOlson

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Missing Boater
« on: April 09, 2012, 07:37:17 pm »
The 2012 game fish season isn't even underway yet and we already got a boater killed on a local lake.  This dude launched his boat on Cedar and was going to make the run from the landing to his private dock at his cabin.  He never made it.  They been searching for him since last Friday:
http://www.weau.com/home/headlines/Breaking_News_Sheriffs_Dept_searching_for_missing_boater_146502325.html

Searching for a dead dude in that lake is like looking for the proverbial needle in a haystack.  It's big, deep, cold and one of our favorite local walleye lakes.  Unless the guy floats up on to the shore someplace the crawfish are already chewing on him.  And it's unlikely that he'll show up floating by somebody's dock because the water temp is barely 40 degrees.
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Offline ghurd

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Re: Missing Boater
« Reply #1 on: April 10, 2012, 08:11:12 pm »
They'll find him.
The local walleye lake is about 4 or 5 times larger (depending on who you ask), and I don't think they ever lost a body in recent times.

Good reminder though.
A 50 YO guy who lives on, or was apperently very familiar with the lake, had something happen.
I mostly fish boonie lakes I am not familiar with, and I have not put on a life jacket in 20 years, unless it was for warmth.
I should wear it at least while underway.
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Offline ChrisOlson

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Re: Missing Boater
« Reply #2 on: April 10, 2012, 11:13:07 pm »
I heard on the radio tonight that they searched all day and still didn't find him.  From what one of the local residents said, he launched his boat at the landing at the County Park and his cabin is 6 miles across the lake on the Narrows where the lake switches from Cedar to Balsam Lake.  They found his boat run aground only 2 1/2 miles from the landing so they've been concentrating the search over that couple miles of water from the landing to where they found his boat.  They been using side scan sonar and divers.

But there's strong currents in that lake because of the Red Cedar River and those currents can carry a dead or unconscious dude a long ways before he gets deposited on the bottom.  The guy I talked to said there was whitecaps on the lake that day so he figures he lost control of the boat and probably got thrown overboard.

To further complicate things, the bottom of that lake has LOTS of structure and the bottom littered with logs and other stuff.  The old Stout Logging Company used the lake back in the late 1800's to move logs to the Red Cedar River and hundreds of those logs soaked up water and sunk.  I know from experience fishing that lake that you could not tell the difference between a human on the bottom and a log in 50 feet of water with sonar.

The visibility in the lake is pretty good for divers, and probably about 10 feet this time of year.  But still, when you can only see for 10 feet around you, that's a lot of area to search.  They been searching for five days now and in a couple more days if nothing turns up they're going to call it off.
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Offline Watt

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Re: Missing Boater
« Reply #3 on: April 10, 2012, 11:26:05 pm »
I sure wish the best for the family.  They need to find him, for closure.  RIP.
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Offline ChrisOlson

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Re: Missing Boater
« Reply #4 on: April 12, 2012, 12:21:14 am »
Yes.  His wife took the truck and trailer from the landing, around the lake, to their cabin.  She make it fine.  Her husband did not.  They said on the news that they did not find him today.  Today was the sixth day of searching.  They will search for him tomorrow and if they don't find him they are calling it off.  From that point it will be up to the family to hire private people or company to continue the search.
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Offline Bryan1

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Re: Missing Boater
« Reply #5 on: April 12, 2012, 02:00:33 am »
Yea over here in Oz last week a boat went over on the west coast, one young guy swam to shore to raise the alarm, another that was clinging onto the boat died on the way to hospital and the third guy was never found. Whats the bet with that third guy he was lunch for a great white but no one will ever know as the other guy who died of a heart attack @ 22 was out like a light from the time they picked him up. Now for a 22 yr old guy to die of a heart attack whats the bet it was a great coming in for a feed and that 22 yr did a bit more than fill his jocks. It was said as the sea was so rough not to go out but young kids of today think they are bullet proof well they might be but not shark proof......

Offline Wolvenar

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Re: Missing Boater
« Reply #6 on: April 12, 2012, 02:36:01 am »
Impressive that one swam in though.
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Offline ChrisOlson

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Re: Missing Boater
« Reply #7 on: April 12, 2012, 09:26:35 pm »
I heard this evening on the radio that the missing boater was not found and authorities have officially ceased all search efforts.  Private searching will continue and they're hoping maybe he will just wash up on the shore someplace and be found.  But I think that is highly unlikely given the nature and structure of the lake.
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