Yeah it was unbelievable. We had a guy with us who's from Nepal (home of Mt Everest). He had never caught a fish. He's going to think it's always like that.
That's happened to me with the HT-100s when they get wet during a good day of fishing. A while ago I started greasing them with Shimano drag grease. I have not needed to change a greased HT-100 since. After greasing they are not affected by water and are smooth like butter.