Taking a hook out of your buddy...

[peregrines]

Hi all-

Saw a recent post on another thread about a hook that was accidentally embedded in someone's foot. So here's an old technique for removing a hook in the field. Many of the folks on this board have already seen it elsewhere and probably have used it over the years, but I thought I'd pass it along for newbies and others that might have friends that drop their backcasts on occassion....

FIRST A DISCLAIMER: I'm not a Doctor. I don't even play one on TV. Please use your judgement and common sense--- I WOULD NOT use this to remove a hook near an eye, an artery, or anywhere on my mother-in-law.

I've had luck removing hooks by "snatching"... doubling and looping a heavy piece of tippet around the shank, (or fly line for saltwater hooks), slipping it down to the bend, and yanking the doubled line with one hand while pressing down on the top of the shank with the thumb of the other hand.

The hook backs out of the hole it went in, and pressing down on the shank helps the barb stay in the original "wound channel". So far it's worked very well about 10 times over the years, yanking hooks out of arms, bellies, legs, feet, and one ear (don't ask...).

Usually, I say I'm going to count to THREE and yank, but then snatch it out after ONE (before they tense up). It seems to come out easily and often the person doesn't even realize it's out before it's all over.

It beats leaving the water for a hospital waiting room....especially if it's only in your buddy and the fish are biting.

It also works on yourself, but don't ask me how I know this.

Good luck and I hope you never have to use it.

peregrines

[ducksterman]

I would agree...though I've only used it once and it worked very well.

There are some other choices...

You can just rotate the hook point right on out...did that once to a friend and he didn't feel a thing...I clipped off the eye and some of the shank of the hook first...you could rotate the barb and then cut it off....if I read that other thread correctly the hook was too strong to cut...need a good cutter.

[Gringo]

I researched and wrote an article on hook removal methods for "Go Fishing" magazine in Australia, if anybody wants to see it I can oblige.

[ducksterman]

Sure , do you have a link?

[rizeye]

I agree with peregrines method, had to use it last spring. however, I?ll relate a story, I was fishing with 2 friends on a fly-in trip to northern Ontario, we were fishing for BIG pike. at the time 2 of us, tim and me, were in 1 boat trolling large crankbaits( I know should of been using a fly) and tim snagged a branch. he pulled the branch up to the surface, so I reached down to grab it and the lure shot off the snag and lodged in my ear. it embedded to the bend, in the top half of my ear, into the cartilage where it meets the scalp, but did not penetrate all the way through. on its way the hook bounced of my sunglasses, cut my cheek then into the ear, thank God I was wearing sunglasses, that's it for my public service message for protective eyewear. couldn't push it through so back to the cabin. the cabin manager asked if I wanted to call for a plane, I would lose the rest of that day and the next, so I said no. so we, my friends and I, tried some amateur surgery. To prep I drank 5 shots of tequila and washed my hair really well. we had butadiene, scalpel, sutures, but no dikes. cutting through cartilage is very hard, it sounded like there was a buzzsaw in my ear. But finally a hole big enough to push the barb out was made and it was cut off. Put some butterfly bandages on the cut and on my cheek and I was good as new. However I was too drunk to back out fishing so we decided to drink some more, now that I allowed my surgeon to had some. The camp manager came by to look in on me and was impressed that we did the job ourselves. I guess he did not expect a few soft american, cityslickers to be able to handle it.

as moral is always be prepared when away from help, but it's better to avoid troubles than to have to deal with them.

[peregrines]

riz- ouch. Reminds me of a t-shirt I saw: "One Tequila, Two Tequila, Three Tequila, Floor." Hope you caught fish, it makes the pain go away.

gringo- your article sounds interesting, and your offer to share is appreciated.

Thanks.

peregrines

[rizeye]

the fishing was great. had atleast 15 fish over 15 lbs and dozens in the 32" - 36" class. and lots of walleye and perch. the following trip i took my fly rod and landed several 15 - 17 lb fish.

[Gringo]

I have sent my article to Ducksterman, he offered to assist me to upload it... Hope it is of interest or use to somebody. It was published by a couple of fishing/outdoor magazines in Australia. I do a fair bit of "first aid" type writing for this sort of mag. Thanks for being interested anyway.

[darrell]

CAUTION - included link not for the faint at heart (or those seein hook imbedded in skull).

Anyhow - as you can guess - here's an incident locally that caused a few ewwws and ahhhhs - in all the wrong ways

http://www.looneybeaver.com/forum/vi...ighlight=musky


I still cringe .....

[peregrines]

Homer Simpson goes musky fishing: "Stand back Flanders and watch this cast.... Doh!"

Yikes! And no tequila either.

Those fish were worth it though, but still.... ewww!

peregrines