Put Your Cellphone Away and Fish

I know of very few anglers today who don't carry a cellphone with them every time they're on the water. After all, it's nice to have a way to call for help in an emergency, check on someone who may be under the weather at home, or to use the phone's camera to snap a shot of a big fish you just landed. That's some of the pros...or blessings, if you will...for taking a cellphone with you when you go fishing.

However, there's another side to this discussion...a curse, if you will. Cellphones have become one of the most powerful distractions we face today. Phone addiction is a real thing. Look around pretty much anywhere in public, and you'll see the powerful pull this device has, with many people taking every spare second to check the latest notifications or to read their latest email.

My personal biggest complaint is with those drivers who pull up to a stoplight and start paying more attention to their cellphone than their driving. That's why I rest one hand on my horn at every stoplight. If you're not off and running when the light goes green, I'm laying on my horn 'til you move.

But let's get back to the fishing aspect. As one angler I read about online learned, it pays to keep a tight grip on the cellphone if you do take it on the water. Better yet, keep it in your tackle box or bag. Here's why.

One sunny and mild December day, a die-hard jerkbait angler and his fishing buddy, a dedicated plastic-worm fisherman, had joined up for a trip to their favorite local lake. On this particular day, a miracle of sorts happened: The jerkbait angler finally was able to cajole his worm friend into trying a jerkbait...a Smithwick Rogue, to be exact...to start the day.

These two anglers were more or less made for each other. As the jerkbait fisherman explained, "My buddy has those positive fish ions that cancel out my anti-fish magnetic field. We always do well when we get together...way better than when I'm fishing solo."

Seems those positive fish ions were having the desired effect this day. Both were catching spotted and largemouth bass. When the worm buddy would start battling another fish, the jerkbait stalwart would whip out his cellphone to document the fight. Each time then, the buddy would toss the fish back into the lake.

Then came the moment, though, when the worm angler got hooked up with a bass, and the jerkbait angler simply sat his rod on the deck to whip out his phone once more to snap another picture. Unfortunately, at the same instant, a bass grabbed the jerkbait fisherman's line and started pulling his fishing rod into the water, causing him to drop his phone like a hot potato. He managed to grab the rod, but when he looked around, the cellphone was nowhere to be found.

Said the jerkbait fisherman, "We checked behind the seats and in every nook and cranny...but nothing. Evidently, I'd knocked it overboard during the rod rescue. Visions of visiting the cellphone store were dancing through my head, as I saw a young clerk who would laugh and say, 'Oh, how we love fishermen!'"

On a whim, though, the fishing buddy suggested checking under the deck, down by the battery and bilge pump.

"There, friends and neighbors," said the jerkbait fisherman, "lay my beloved cellphone. The wave of relief was like a tsunami washing over me. 'Yesss!' I hollered when I picked it up and showed it to by buddy.

"When I dived for my rod, my knee must have sent the phone sailing across the back deck and down into the bilge.

"That was the last picture I shot with my phone," assured the jerkbait angler. "Next fishing trip, I'll bring a regular camera...a waterproof one at that...with a big float attached."