Holy crap! That had to be a scary ride!

 

It happens every year, someone runs up on the rocks.....

 

they couldnt see the peir ?

 

Here is another one from 2014 . You can't set your GPS waypoint in the channel . It should always be set a quarter mile or so out from the mouth of the channel . This is critical when navigating in fog or at night.

 

I usually set two for going in. First one right at channel second one about like you mentioned 1/4 mile out from channel.

 

luckily, he did not run into another boat in the channel. that would have been worse. should not use autopilot in fog.

 

This was sent to me from a friend this morning view from the other side out on the lake in Muskegon

 

This is not the result of auto piolet it's operator error. This happens a lot in Manistee, Ludington and other citys with large piers into lake Michigan.

The light houses between the opening in the pier is not easy to see when returning in the dark. many people set the "home" way point at the ramp or marina. When you hit home and return in teh dark its a straight line over the harbor wall. The lights from the city and bright and do not back cast the wall very well and people look past it when returning.

It can be down right hard to find the pier entrance at night even with your electronics .

Again Operator error. Sad it happens so often. Hope nobody got hurt.

 

AND most operators lose their night vision by staring at the nav screen!!

Jay

 

On new harbors - I always set a red trail going out and save it, then follow it back in - even in the day time... Just my method.

 

I set my waypoints at the buoys outside of a harbor.

 

Great tips guys, I was almost a victim of fog and darkness following my plotter. If it wasn't for some awsome bank/pier fishermen in manistee I would have had my lund on the rocks, I like my margaritas like that not my boat.....

 

Stupid is as Stupid does............

Ignorance is bliss........

 

Some people have more $ then brains......

 

Was thinkin the same

 

I will never insult someone who does this kind of thing. You can plan as much as you want, someday Murphy's law happens. It could be me who has the accident.

 

The guy was drunk, guess he will be charged

 

If you can't avoid a pier, it makes you wonder how many boats they missed seeing as well.

I came into Ludington Saturday night in the dark for the first time ever. Was kind of confusing. So I:

1. Slowed down. Way down.
2. Followed another boat.

Not that hard...

 

Yep back on 7/21/17 went out on my boat on Lake Michigan out of Muskegon. Caught 3 nice kings 1 laker 1 8 lb coho 1 8 pound steelhead. We came in just after dark fished 6:15 till 9:15 & I was very nervous & very tentative. Took my time & even had a huge cruise ship coming up from behind in the channel really fast because they can go faster without making a wake. I got all the way over to the right in the channel let them pass then continued on. Did not like not knowing where I was in the complete dark. It also had a bit of fog that day. I always say you can be safe & go to slow as many times as you want but only go to fast 1 time.

 

I came in many times both Lake Michigan and Huron in the dark. Sometimes from 10 miles out. It just black out there you cannot see waves or nothing. As you get near the harbor you feel the larger boats will run your down. One needs to make sure your boat is well lit up. Withh all the boat traffic rushing in at dark it gets very choppy. I found it best to either come in early and miss the peak bit, or come in well after dark

 

Usually this time of year the piers are marked by the arcs of pier guys throwing glow spoons. Looks pretty cool from a distance.

 

kingfisher 11 - This was no accident. Operator error or incompetence.

 

Sure it was, but I won't pile on someone because I think karma can catch up to someone.
I have over 40 years in fishing the great lakes. I do everything I can so I don't make a mistake. Knock on wood nothing has ever happened.
The accident was a dumb mistake, possible a guy told his wife, here drive while I put things away. Go to the way point on the chart!
With all the gps technical stuff a person should never do what the OP posted.
Now if he was a democrat.....then I would pile on them

 

You all have the right to laugh at me when I hit a pier.

You'll probably die before that happens. This was not a mistake, it was a gross negligence in judgment, and it could have easily been some guy (me) in my 14' (properly lit up) slowing down to come into the channel that he ran over. My kids don't need college money, but if that was the case I'm sure my wife's lawyer would make sure they all ended up with nice down payments for their houses.

@#$@# happens out there. Motors break down, weather changes, logs are hard to see (remember all the decks and sea walls washed into the lake in the spring of 1987?). But this, just stupid.

 

The guy was drunk, guess he will be charged

Now there is a real surprise!

 

I have seen this happen in Alpena. Nothing to this extent though. It's the guys that rely on their autopilot to return to the docks. Gps doesn't account for break walls.

 

no one should drive so fast near the pier at dark. there are so many small aluminum boats with a dim light fishing the harbor or maybe their lights went out. this guy probably did not have a spot light either. I have seen so many boaters going out of the harbor at dark wide open and coming back from 5 miles away wide open. I just cannot do it without a spot light. and when I do it I just plane the boat not wide open. I do not know these guys are brave or just stupid.

 

You all have the right to laugh at me when I hit a pier.

You'll probably die before that happens. This was not a mistake, it was a gross negligence in judgment, and it could have easily been some guy (me) in my 14' (properly lit up) slowing down to come into the channel that he ran over. My kids don't need college money, but if that was the case I'm sure my wife's lawyer would make sure they all ended up with nice down payments for their houses.

@#$@# happens out there. Motors break down, weather changes, logs are hard to see (remember all the decks and sea walls washed into the lake in the spring of 1987?). But this, just stupid.

when you said logs this was on the river a week ago. Imagine running into this in the dark going over 25 mph.

 

Ive learned from the D in the spring...Dont drive faster than you want to hit anything!

I remember my first time in Lville coming in from the North...Its a little goofy for sure.

Thank god for chart plotters now! Dont know how I ever fished without one....

 

The guy was drunk, guess he will be charged

That explains it

Everytime I we pull in to load the boat in Frankfort the launch site is full of drunks. I think to myself I hope they live close. I don't stick around to see if they jump in the drivers seat. Its more common than some want to admit.

 

Went out of ludington one year and my captains were on top of,their game the whole way in. That harbor is no joke in the dark.

 

The guy was drunk, guess he will be charged

Sad. A little faster and he would have cleared it.

 

Here, hold my beer!