Rain gear manufacturers have made significant strides in their products over the years. It used to be that a raincoat was only good for about an hour and then the water began to soak through. But today’s gear can literally keep you dry all day long, with only maybe a seam or two allow moisture through. I have yet to find ANY rain gear that is totally dry – even the high end stuff you see on the Deadliest Catch series!
But our rain gear that day was made many years ago, and it was literally porous after about 30 minutes. And in a winter time rain, even if it’s not really cold, that wetness combined with no sun and a little wind will make you colder than you could ever imagine.
Prune hands – that’s what we call them. Our hands stayed so wet that in just an hour or so our finger tips looked like the skin of a prune. They turned a nice bluish color after a while, and things became hard to handle. Ahhh, fishing in the rain! But hey – it was fishing, and after a week at work we looked forward to our one day of fishing – even if it was raining.
It was 1959. We left the house pulling the boat –
a 17 foot Squall King runabout - in a drizzle. The rain was supposed to come down all day, but with no lightning, we felt safe. So we launched in the rain, ran in the rain, and fished in the rain.
Our fishing was not really that different in the rain. We were fishing in Everglades National Park out of Flamingo. To avoid some of the wind, we headed up into Whitewater Bay and fished the cuts, and creeks around the myriad mangrove islands. We caught mangrove snapper, a couple of snook, and a lot of saltwater catfish. It seems like these catfish bite better in the rain than any other time. So, in addition to being miserably wet, we had to take care not to get finned.
Our boat had a windshield on the covered bow with a Bimini top attached to it. You could not stand up under the top, but you could sit in the driver or passenger seat and get some relief from the wet. The two lawn chairs we used to fish from would almost make it back under the top – but not quite all the way. So if you sat facing the stern and tried to scoot under the top, you would be left with water dripping down off the edge of the top, right into your lap. If you kept your head back it would stay dry.
The canvas tops of the day were just that – a light canvas treated with some type of oil. They kept the water out – but only for a while. If you ever touched the inside of the wet top, a drip would instantly form from the water that was soaking through. Woe be unto the person that touched the inside of the top. Invariably, there were several places that got touched. The resulting drips invaded our dry space, and nothing could be done to stop it!
But, you know what? We had a ball! It was wet; it was damp; it was cold; in fact, it was miserable. But we were fishing, and we caught fish.
It’s raining as I write this, and I would not be caught out in a boat in weather like this! Too many years under the belt, and a comfortable, dry home! And, I just saw my neighbor leave for the boat ramp with his boat in tow. Wow…
