Erie Can Be Eerie...Just Ask Wayne Hayes

Some years ago, he fished a major tournament on Lake Erie as a boater, and one of the things he remembers most about the experience to this day is the fact it took him just 15 minutes to reach his chosen fishing hole in calm water that morning. The return trip, however, could best be described as a nightmare.

It took him 3 long...and yes, agonizing...hours. Why? Because, as he explained, "I was fighting 7-foot seas the whole time." And that says nothing about the 30 or so boats that didn't even get back.

"What was I to do?" asked Wayne. "I had no choice..." but to hang on and ride 'em cowboy, in a manner of speaking.

Conditions like that are nothing unusual for anyone fishing the Great Lakes. Someone who also knows those waters all too well is Michigan native Joe Balog, who was born and raised on the Great Lakes, where he earned a living as a charter-boat captain, pro bass angler, and outdoor communicator.

As explained by award-winning writer and photographer Mark Hicks, Balog, too, has been caught in 7-foot seas, where just one miscalculation can leave you swimming to save your hide.

Soon after Balog won the 2001 EverStart Series Championship on Pickwick Lake, he did something he had been longing to do for years: He switched to a Ranger boat. Prior to his first Ranger, Balog went through five different boats in as many years. Every one of them suffered damage due to pounding water, and none had storage compartments that could keep his gear dry.

"Every time I fished a tournament on the Great Lakes," he said, "the guys who were consistently passing me were running Rangers. Their boats held up, and their compartments stayed drier."

A foot throttle is Balog's first priority when he rigs a boat for rough water. This device lets him keep both hands on the steering wheel at all times and is more responsive than a hand throttle. Instant throttle adjustments are critical if you are to stay out of trouble in big waves.

"If your boat didn't come equipped with trim controls on or near the steering wheel, have them installed so you don't have to reach for the shift lever while you're driving," Balog said.

Next on Balog's list is a four- or five-bladed outboard propeller. In his opinion, such props usually sacrifice some top-end speed but are less likely to lose their grip at low speeds than a three-bladed model. Anytime your boat slowly labors up a wave, it's essentially performing a hole shot. If the prop blows out at this critical moment, you could be in trouble.

Wayne agrees with the theory behind using a four- or five-bladed prop but also noted that the three-bladed model he had on his Skeeter on Erie worked just fine.

Because the stern of a boat doesn't bounce as much as its bow, Balog stores heavy objects in the bilge area or rear compartments. If a heavy object is placed in a forward compartment, it lurches about and may cause damage.

"Everything has to be battened down," he said, "including the trolling motor. Make sure your battery boxes are bolted in place and that the batteries are strapped down."

Balog always fills his gas tank to full capacity before venturing onto big water, even when he only plans to go a short distance.

"Running in big waves consumes two to three times as much gas as when you're zipping over flat water," he noted.

While a lot of guys don't think of an anchor as a safety device, Balog always has one (an 18-pound Richter claw anchor, with 200 feet of rope) in his boat.

"If your boat breaks down in 5-foot waves," he explained, "an electric motor is useless. If you don't have a capable anchor and a long rope, your boat may wind up getting smashed to bits on a rocky shoreline."

No matter how well you drive, your boat is going to take on water (boat spray at a minimum) when waves get much bigger than 3 feet, and if your bilge pumps fail, you're in trouble. For that reason, Balog also carries spare bilge-pump cartridges and a spare bilge pump rigged with 6-foot wires connected to alligator clamps, plus a 6-foot hose. In a pinch, he can connect the spare bilge pump directly to one of his batteries and hang the hose over the side of the boat.

Any experienced tournament fisherman further knows that he/she never should leave the dock without sturdy, capable rain gear. Even on sunny days, boat spray can soak you to the bone if you try to run rough water without this essential apparel.

The first rule for driving on rough water is to tuck in the outboard's lower unit. This forces the bow to stay down and slice through waves, rather than lift over them. Balog trims his outboard all the way down, or nearly so, whenever waves threaten.

"You can generally run on plane in waves up to about 2 feet, as long as you slow down to 40 or 50 mph to keep the prop from blowing out of the water," Balog said. "In waves taller than 2 feet, you must slow down even more and negotiate every wave. If you look away for an instant, you're asking to take one over the bow.

"When running against the waves, you have to throttle up them and let off coming down," continued Balog. "If you're going with the waves, you have to throttle way back even more when you drop down, or you'll nose the next wave."

If he has to navigate into waves much higher than 4 feet, Balog quarters them by running a zigzag course. For example, if his destination lies to the south, and the waves are coming directly from the south, he alternately runs southeast for about a half-mile, then southwest the same distance. This prevents the hull from taking on the full force of the waves.

"Running straight into big waves is inviting disaster," according to Balog. "If a big, rogue wave crests above your bow, it will push you back down and stuff your outboard back into the previous wave," he said. "It can flood out the motor and swamp the boat. That's how 90 percent of boats break down on big water.

"When big rollers run perpendicular to your destination," he added, "you often can run the troughs on plane and make good time on relatively smooth water. For example, if the waves are coming from the south, and your destination lies due west, running west in the troughs is the way to go. To avoid being pushed off course, you must slide sideways up and down the waves as they pass under the boat. Be aware, though.

"If the wave is higher than the width of your boat, it could crest and flip you," Balog said. "Given the wide beams of modern bass boats, that usually isn't an issue, but something you need to be aware of."

Because running on rough water is hard on bass, Balog takes every precaution to ensure his fish stay healthy. Before making a long run, he plugs the overflow valves in the livewells to make sure the water doesn't drain out while running, especially when climbing waves. He also adds ice to slow the metabolism of the bass, as well as a livewell treatment that calms the fish. And finally, he keeps the recirc pumps running continuously.

Last but not least, Balog goes fishing from October through May with a complete set of wool clothes, including gloves and a coat, in a plastic bag sealed with duct tape.

"If you do go overboard in 30-degree weather," he said, "getting back into your boat doesn't end the dilemma. If you're 30 minutes or more from shore, you might not make it back before hypothermia sets in," he added.

Should an unexpected drenching occur, Balog can strip off his wet garments, don the dry wool clothing, and suffer little more than embarrassment.