Yes, I haven't been on here in a while. I've moved several times from out of state, across Tx, etc the last few years. I've lost close family members, including my wife and brother the last few years. It has been hard for sure but that is another story.
I've been sick w/Covid the last week and but finally responded to an old hunting buddy today who has tried to call me several times recently. Turns out he had more bad news. His brother in-law, and also one of my best friends whom I've hunted with for many years., and was a member of my wedding party yrs ago.. had an accident recently in Bastrop Bayou.

Mind you, that we have been hunting the back bayous of Sabine Lake to Port Lavaca for years while in a boat. Many other places in between with and without a boat. We've seen our fair share of scary [censored] with foggy weather and barges seemingly just showing up off your bow on the intercoastal. Buttheads in airboats whizzing by as we all stand up waiving Q-beams in the darkness. Guys going too fast in the twisty blind bayous at night! People running even without lights in the dark, ETC, etc, etc...
Then, that day comes....when seemingly the odds catch up to you or just whatever... and an accident.

https://thefacts.com/news/article_e0a88b9a-bd00-5f9f-9ed3-4fa22c500281.html

Kyle, was killed instantly by the center console running over his smaller boat. James, the other passenger in Kyle's boat, has survived. James, has a broken back and crushed legs and a broken jaw amongst other injuries according to my close friend. With a heavy heavy heart I got to call him tonight. This happened almost 2 weeks ago and I feel like crap for just finding out. Sigh,,,

Please.....just don't be THAT GUY who ignores safety completely. Accidents can, and will happen. Do the best you can out there with your vehicle, gun, boat, dogs, whatever. GL

****Sorry Mods, just had to get this off my chest here today

Dang. Had a rough go it seems. Bad deal about the accident.

Terrible news…

Horrible….prayers

Prayers Up. Just too many idiots running boats nowadays with no regard to anyone else.

Prayers sent for you, sir. You've had a rough time and I'm sorry to hear about your losses. God bless and take care.

Those bayou's are so dangerous, I had a friend and 2 of his passengers killed about 18 months ago. Boat too boat accidents occur way to often!

So sorry about you buddies

Oh no, I heard about this right after it happened from my buddy over at the Rescue Squad. Sad deal. Life is precious. Our boating requirements need to be more strict. I know that won't fix stupid, but it's a start. We all have to hunters ED, but the boaters ed requirements need to be just as strict.

I’ve personally witnessed jackwad tournament bass fishermen bust off from the boat ramp “to their spot” in fog so thick you couldn’t see much past the bow relying on their electronics to “guide” them. Amazed no one ran over another boat. This was on Fairfield Lake….in the winter

That’s crazy. I hate the fog, I go out a lot in the fog at dark 30 in the morning, I just go real slow, I like it when there are stumps because I can see them and know there is some visibility. When there are no stumps, that is even more scary because you do not see anything and you have no idea what the visibility is.

I spent six years in the Coast Guard and ran cases like this more often than I would like to remember. It's strange, folks get on boats and tend to let their guard down a little bit and over time they get a false sense of security or overinflated sense of skill. And then, boom. accident.

The first casualty case I ran was a boat full of teenagers that was playing chicken with another boat full of teenagers on lake Michigan. The bigger boat went over top when they hit, and the prop basically cut a girl in two, right in front of her friends. Running that case and interviewing those kids taught me just how dangerous boating can be. It haunts me 23 years later.

I wish people would get in the habit of getting hyper aware when they step on a boat rather than leave their common sense at the dock.

I'm sorry to hear about your friend. It is truly senseless and avoidable.

That's terrible. Sorry for your losses, too.

I've learned to stay off big water in fog. 15 years ago we launched in the main lake and started to head our way to the spot. Fog was so thick, way worse than was forecasted, that you couldn't see more than 5 to 10 feet in front of the boat. Lights only made it worse. It didn't help that it was before GPS was all that great so we were looping our way back. You couldn't even tell we weren't going straight even tho we were just idling our way. About half way there we hear a boat in the distance going full speed ahead. Louder, louder, then we know it's gonna be close. We're flashing all our lights and honking the horn, but no luck. A big arse boat came whizzing by about 10 feet off our bow easily going 40 knots. Never again.

Like Guy said I'll take a short run in skinny water, but nowhere that can happen.

One thing I have learned, if you are on the wind perfected shore line, close to the shore, fog is not as bad, or no fog.

Correction... James has 6 broken ribs, not a broken jaw. I couldn't see him this past weekend but will soon. His wife suggested that I wait a bit longer since he is having another surgery and I just got over Covid.
This happened in the morning with daylight coming around a tight bend in the marsh as they were out scouting. The bigger G3 ran over the top of Kyle's johnboat. James, maybe making light of the situation over the phone, excitedly described the spot and how the birds were working and how they had planned to set up. That definitely made the mood of our conversation lighter. ***....I've always told my friends that waterfowl hunters are "cut from another cloth."

Sad to hear. I fish bastrop a lot, but after moving to lake Jackson several years ago and seeing the sh!tshow around that area winter fishing for trout I refused to hunt the marsh there. Too many idiots these days.