Well 2024 continues its bad mojo for me. I went fishing this morning at Watts Bar. I was there at day break and launched but that's not where this story starts. Of course it's Saturday and spring break time, so everybody has been out fishing this week. I came back to the ramp about 1 to load up and go home. When I got back to leave, there wasn't a single place you could have fit another truck and trailer in the parking lot. I actually had to wait a little bit on other boats that were ahead of me leaving...and in between those, there were people getting there to launch that were taking the parking places of the ones that were leaving. I wait my turn...pull to the dock and go to get my truck. And that's when I see it. Everybody was parked well that had trucks/trailers....side by side, straight, etc. But some dummy that DIDN'T have a trailer, was parked about a truck length behind my trailer. I couldn't pull forward because there's just woods there, and I had other trucks and trailers on either side of me too. The only way to get out, is to back out and turn. I couldn't go anywhere. Why on earth they decided to park where they did, is beyond me. They had two of us blocked in. I looked around and saw some people fishing on the bank and assumed it might be the people in the truck without a trailer. I politely go ask if it was them that was parked there...they said no, but that it was some guys that had just launched a few mins before with kayaks. So off I go back to my boat...go out looking for these guys on kayaks. I found em about a half mile from the ramp and told them they were going to have to paddle back to the ramp and move their truck because they had me blocked in. That didn't make them happy and I wasn't happy either. But they should have known better than to park right behind somebody.
I finally get loaded up and on the way home. Pull up to a red light and started to smell anti freeze real strong while I was sitting there. I look down and my temp gauge is really high. Hmm. Light turns green and take off....and up the road, is a steep grade hill that goes up for a good ways. I kinda got on it to get momentum to go up the hill and that's when the smoke started boiling out from the hood and the temp gauge was pegged. Dang it. I pull over and pop the hood. Anti freeze was blown everywhere under the hood. I happened to have half a jug of it in my truck and poured some in the reservoir to hopefully limp me back home so I can see what the issue is. Get home, unhook the boat and let the truck cool down. I was hoping maybe it was just a busted hose but it was actually the radiator itself that more the less, just came apart. A trip to the auto part store and $200 later, I have a new radiator and new hoses....COULD have been worse I guess but in all fairness, the truck is 22 years old so stuff is gonna happen. Oh and top it all off...I didn't catch nury a fish. Heck I threw a Road Runner with bubble tail grub along docks, stumps, etc just hoping to catch Anything.
I finally get loaded up and on the way home. Pull up to a red light and started to smell anti freeze real strong while I was sitting there. I look down and my temp gauge is really high. Hmm. Light turns green and take off....and up the road, is a steep grade hill that goes up for a good ways. I kinda got on it to get momentum to go up the hill and that's when the smoke started boiling out from the hood and the temp gauge was pegged. Dang it. I pull over and pop the hood. Anti freeze was blown everywhere under the hood. I happened to have half a jug of it in my truck and poured some in the reservoir to hopefully limp me back home so I can see what the issue is. Get home, unhook the boat and let the truck cool down. I was hoping maybe it was just a busted hose but it was actually the radiator itself that more the less, just came apart. A trip to the auto part store and $200 later, I have a new radiator and new hoses....COULD have been worse I guess but in all fairness, the truck is 22 years old so stuff is gonna happen. Oh and top it all off...I didn't catch nury a fish. Heck I threw a Road Runner with bubble tail grub along docks, stumps, etc just hoping to catch Anything.
