A Family Fishing Trip Takes An Unexpected Turn

The Schmelzinger family were taking a fishing trip, just like they had each year. But this trip would be different. The family adventure would take a surprising turn that would soon lead them toward a making startling discovery

Suspicious Shapes Underwater

The Canadian family was taking their annual trip to Lake Ontario. Their days were usually filled with relaxing hours looking for the occasional fish to bait. Little did they know, this would turn out to be a trip of a lifetime.

What Happened That Day

The family had always enjoyed doing wholesome activities together. They took trips often, to get outdoors, enjoy some of the joys of nature and spend some quality time as a family. They were avid fishers, who knew the waters of Lake Ontario well. That’s why it came as a surprise that the trip would turn out so unexpectedly.

They Weren’t Prepared For This

The Dad of the family is a keen and skilled fisherman. He took pride in his many catches, which he has celebrated in family photo albums and on his Facebook page. This Dad had always wanted his kids to find joy in the leisurely pastime. He was looking forward to an eventful day on the lake, eagerly anticipating what great catch he would hook.

Thousand Islands

Joe Shmelzinger loved to share his passions with his family. In August 2017, he decided to take some much-deserved time off and take a family vacation. Joe, his lovely wife Annette, and their six-year-old daughter, Alivia packed their bags and headed off to the Thousand Islands, the magnificent archipelago connects Canada and America by straddling the Saint Lawrence River.

Lake Ontario

Off the Southwest coast of the mass of land lies one of Joe’s best-loved fishing spots – the expansive and awe-inspiring Lake Ontario. The lake offered the perfect location for an idyllic day of lakeside relaxing, reading, chatting and, of course, fishing! Joe packed up his gear and they headed out to see what the day would bring.

Catch Competition

The Schmelzingers always loved a bit of healthy family competition. Each time they ventured out on a fishing trip, they would compete to see who would snag the biggest, most impressive catch. The winner would always receive an exciting prize. On that fateful day, the winning catch would be unlike something they had ever seen before.

Cruisin For A Bruisin

Joe, Annette and Alivia hopped into their speedboat and made their way down the length of the lake. Joe was looking for a particularly good spot to settle in for the day. He was eager to anchor and get down to fishing. The family was searching for their spot when they noticed a strange and unusual shape in the water. They decided to investigate.

Mystery In The Deep

There was something mysterious bobbing in the shallows of the water. From a distance, they could not make out what the object was. Joe carefully steered the boat closer and closer to the unidentified object. The weather seemed to be taking a turn for the worst as huge clouds began to roll in overhead, but they simply couldn’t turn back now.

Too Close For Comfort

The sky soon began to darken, the winds picked up and the once placid water became choppy and unpredictable, still, Joe steered the boat toward the object. Anette and Alivia, soon became scared – what if this thing was dangerous? Joe decided to stop a few feet away from the object, keeping a safe distance before they could determine exactly what the moving shape was.

Not What They Expected

After years and years of returning to the lake for family trips, nothing quite like this had ever occurred. The family was shocked to discover an object in the well-known lake that they couldn’t place. Perhaps it was the largest catch they would ever encounter? But it might be something else entirely…

Clear as Water

To their utter amazement, the object was not a fish at all, but a small baby deer. The little animal seemed to be distressed after having probably fallen off the lake’s shore. Night was closing in, who knew how long the anuimal had been out at sea. The deer was struggling to keep itself afloat and was in clear need of some assistance.

Is It A Bird Is It A Plane?

The family was truly surprised to dicover the deer in such an unexpected location. “We were driving along, and all of the sudden, my husband saw something in the water popping its head up we did not know what to expect. It was a deer just swimming in the middle of Lake Ontario,” she told WIVB in September 2017.

Deer Me

Little Alivia was particularly concerned for the deer’s safety and wellbeing. “That thing didn’t even have floaties!” she pointed out. The family watched as the deer continued to panic. The water temperature would also plummet as night would fall, the deer could easily freeze or drown.

Face The Fear

The Schmelzingers knew that something had to be done. This animal was in no condition to make it back to the safety of the shore alone. “Our first reaction was, we gotta help this deer,” Annette said. The family came up with a rescue plan, they would not allow the defenseless creature to drown before their eyes.

Dow A Deer

The deer was frantic and continued to wade further and further away from the shore. “He was definitely way out there. We were probably in 70 feet of water,” Joe claimed. “It was headed out into the lake. It was headed the wrong way.” The family had to take action soon, the deer didn’t have much time left.

Unusual Circumstances

Annette did what anyone would do, she whipped out her smartphone and began documenting the bizarre situation. The footage went completely viral. People were shocked and in awe of the situation the family had stumbled upon. The little deer was a crazy sight amidst the great waters of one of Canada’s most famous lakes.

Shaken And Stirred (Up)

Their boat edged closer and closer to the deer, the frantic animal was finally within arm’s reach. Joe carefully leaned over the side of the vessel and tried to grab the struggling animal. But the deer was terrified, he wouldn’t allow Joe to get close enough to him in order to pull him out of the water. The family needed a Plan B.

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Annette decided to research the situation on her phone. She discovered that this was not such a strange occurrence; deer often jumped into the lake when they had been frightened by something on the shore. This young animal may have taken to the water in order to avoid a predator. Regardless of what had led the deer to the water, the family knew they had to act fast.

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[post_page_title]Plan Of Action

Joe knew that the frantic animal would need to be retrieved. A friend, Guy Peterson, who had joined the family for the trip, took to the water and carefully ushered the animal closer to the boat. Eventually, Joe was able to take hold of the thrashing animal and pull him into the boat. The baby animal had finally made it to safety.

What Would Be The Outcome?

Within mere seconds, the little deer began to calm itself. It was clearly exhausted and relieved to have received some much-needed help. “Once he got up on the boat, he pretty much hopped right down on the floor and laid there,” Joe revealed. “We covered him up with a towel. It didn’t even try to run away or anything.”

Overboard

Now that they had finally managed to get the animal into their vessel, it was time to transport the little guy back to dry land, where it would hopefully return to the safety of its herd. The animal was clearly in shock. It was shaking so they covered it with a towel and waited for its heartbeat to lower to a healthier pace.

Deer Catch Of The Day

When the gang finally made it back to the shore many onlookers were waiting to see what Joe had caught. Far from the usual catch, the family had only the deer in tow. “People were yelling, ‘Did you catch anything?’ from fishing, you know,” Annette recalled. “And my husband holds it up and says, ‘Just the baby deer!’

Quite A Catch Of The Day

The family usually returned from one of these trips with a boatload of fish. Enough for many a delicious meal for friends and family. This team their catch was different. Even if they were returning without a catch, the day was certainly one they would never forget. Now that the deer had made it on to dry land, what would the family do next?

Can We Keep It?

The family was unsure of what to do with the little creature. It had calmed down and was no longer shaking. Young Alivia urged her parents to allow her to keep the animal as a pet. Despite her pleading, Joe and Annette knew the deer needed to be returned to the wild. But first, they would take it home to make sure it was healthy enough to be released.

Home Sweet Home

The deer made its way back home with the family. The wild animal took to its new surroundings with ease, it played with Alivia in the garden and even drank milk from a baby bottle. The family knew that they could not become attached, but this was still going to be a difficult goodbye.

HomeSweet Home

The time eventually came for the animal to make it back to its rightful home; the wild. They loaded the deer into the back of their truck and took to the road. With some help from a few volunteers, the family found the nearest spot to release the deer. “The first wooded area straight off the island, we set him down and let him go back into the woods,” Joe revealed.

Into The Woods

But when the family looked into the dense wood, they hesitated. Was this the best move for the helpless animal? Would the baby be able to navigate the woods and find its way back to the safety of its mother’s side? The Schmelzingers were not sure.

Bambi Set Free

After much deliberation and a few conversations with some locals, the family decided it was right to release the deer, hoping the baby would be able to rely on its own instincts. They found an open area in the forest, the baby was lowered out of the family vehicle and bounded into the wild. They knew that they had done the right thing.

Safe And Sound

The family was hesitant to leave immediately, they waited and watched. The animal at first looked overwhelmed but then confidently bounded into the forest. The locals had said that there were many deer in the area, so the animal had a good chance of finding its own kind. They had successfully pulled off the rescue mission; the deer was finally safe.

Deerest Memories

The story has become quite an anecdote, especially after going viral. “To even see a deer in the lake, you would never think that, you know?” said Guy Peterson, who was the one to retrieve the deer. “A lot of my buddies are saying to me, ‘Are you going to go hunting in the woods and find a fish?’ It is something you don’t see every day though.

Back To The Fish

It’s safe to say that the Schmelzinger family would never again have a fishing trip quite like that one. Joe might have been one of the very first fishermen to set out on a lake in search of fish and return with a deer! They would never again take to the water and not remember the fateful day that they encountered the little animal. Who would have thought that their most eventful fishing trip would not involve catching a single fish!