I’m headed off to 5-6 acre pond today to do some float tube fishing. It’s heavily overcast and raining off and on. 5-10 mph winds. No lightening so far, and the temp is 65 F.
Would you consider this too dangerous for fishing out in open water. My concern is getting struck by lightening. Is the humidity a good indicator (I don’t have this number yet, but I can find it)?
Please don’t consider this permission but I’d fish as long as I didn’t hear thunder. If you can hear it it can hit you. I’m not bothered by rain and overcast, sometimes these are ideal, if not perfect conditions for fishing. But with that said I can’t think of too many placed I rather not be than out on a lake when there is a chance of lightning. I came to grips with my mortality a long time ago and would rather fish another day than have this one be my last day.
Good luck, be smart and safe.
I agree. If I hear thunder. I quit fishing.
Lightening can strike 35 miles from the storm. Belly deep in water, waving a lightening rod …nope, not a good idea! alra195 is right. If you can hear the thunder, you can be struck. Leave the water.
Thank you, gentlemen, and lady. It’s all good advice. This means a change in plans is in order. I think I’ll take a nap in the car since the cool damp breeze feels real good. Maybe, tie up some more long leaders later at the nearby picnic shelter, and hopefully before I have to leave for home the clouds break.
65 degrees, wow, that sounds nice. It’s about 30 degrees hotter here, with overcast and off and on rain and 65-70% humidity. Yuch.
I wouldn’t let cool temps, clouds and light rain stop me if I really wanted to fish. However, like others have said, if it’s thungering, or a storm is approaching, I leave the water, go home and play my guitars.
No need to become a human lightning rod if you can avoid it.
Jeff
I’ve had a couple of close calls by lightning, and lightning is one of the things in the world that I’m truly frightened by. It’s uncontrollable, and you just never know. A friend and I used to spend a lot of time wading warmwater creeks for smallies, and I had a graphite spinning stick hit by lightning once. Luckily, it was leaning against a tree at the time. Do you know how many graphite fibers are in a rod? It’s truly amazing what’s left after the epoxy is melted out.
Would the advice be different for fishing a river? I have been told that being on a river during a thunderstorm is a relatively safe place to be, since rivers run through the lowest point of an area. Lightning would strike the trees (etc) before it would ever get to a person.
Think that’s legit?
Squatch:
Do the people who gave you that advice like you; 
because I wouldn’t take that chance.
I am pretty sure MANY, MANY people who have been hit by lightning; HAVEN’T been the highest thing around. I know quite a few golfers who have been clobbered in spots where there were an abundance of higher trees.
Lightning USUALLY takes the shortest path but not EXCLUSIVELY.
Lightning strikes are about as predictable as…
…winning lottery numbers.
I for one head for safety QUICKLY if I see or hear indications of an impending thunderstorm and that includes gusty winds and extremely darkening skies.
When fishing with my buddies we use walkie-talkies and whistles to signal each other to get back to the safety of the vehicles when a storm is approaching. It usually means a few beers and some BS while we wait out the storm. In the worst cases; we have sat an hour or so before the storm passed which is a small price to pay to play it safe.
It just isn’t worth it to me.
I was told that by a river guide whilst on a whitewater trip. A little storm was blowing through and he assured our boat that we would be better off in the raft because we were at the lowest point. Yikes.
Yeah I can understand that if you are in a very very steep canyon though to tell you the truth I dont really want to test that out. I have been chased off the Lower Mad once by thunder/lightning and also off of Island Lake on the Beartooth Highway for the same reason. Once I hear thunder, its off the water for me.
I won’t fish in any high energy storm.
BTW, it’s the thunder you don’t hear that’s cause for real concern :shock: