Fishing etiquette???

[f1sh1nf00l]

For me there is two different perspectives. When I am fishing for fun, I will fish where others are not, and if someone rolls up on where I'm fishin', I'll make some polite conversation and move somewhere else. I've even been known to share some info if they are polite back. I guess Im just reclusive when it comes to that. Now a tournament is a whole different ball game. Rules are always adheared to, and I will not push the limits of the distance buffer, but other than that, if a person is not on a spot at that time, it's fair game. There are no rules about where a fisherman intends to fish, just where they currently are fishing. For example, at our club tourney this last weekend, my boater and I were fishing a stretch of shore that led to a point and had got to the end of the stretch that we knew held fish, and saw another boat headed our way. Knowing that boat was headed for the same spot we were at the beginning of that stretch, we pulled the trolling moter and hammered down back to the beginning of that stretch before they could get there. Nothing illegal about what we did, and being that we were gonna make that move anyway, I dont believe that there was anything unethical about what we did. And being that we only planned on fishing it one more time we even let them know the best spots to fish before we left. But a tourney is an outlet for the competitive side thats in most of us. So it's like anything other kind of competitive sport in the sense that you play to win.
That being said, outside of tourney fishing, I'm right there with ya, the world needs more manners. Our society has become way too selfish.....dont even get me started on that....:shaking:

[rjn cajun]

I ve said this many times. Im not a fast moving person. After many stitches and back/leg problems I do not move real fast. Sorry gents,Deal with it. When Im at the launch the rudeness and uncivil actions towards me really gets to me. I buy my license,I pay for my parking of my trailer,and I pay the road taxes. People at the launches are rude people. Like some guy who thinks hes late for the bite and has no patience. Ifin y'all are launching after me ...Tough Luck.Learn patience.For me launching takes a lil extra time.Ifin youre honking at me or giving this mid aged crippled guy to hurry up,I slow it down.Im there to have a good time also. It takes me 15 minutes to launch ,park and get to my boat. Learn to deal with it. Were all after a good time and ifin were real lucky a nice limit to boot.

rac I think your situation is 100% different. Not ever seeing you except in your avitar if I seen you at the launch taking your time I`d be fine with it and maybe offer you some help. I bet when you pull down the launch your ready to launch. It just takes you a little longer. I don`t honk and yell or say anything to them just myself.

[leahcim_dahc]

I don't really mind if someone wants to leapfrog for fishing spots, just as long as they stay at a minimum of two moderate cast lengths away. If they're fishing 60 yards away...no big deal to me, there's only so many docks and so much shoreline to fish, it's inevitable that we're going to encroach on each others theoretical personal fishing space at least once throughout the day. I just deal with it, drink water and drive on.

What does piss me off is when people intentionally do things to try and cause a problem or ruin your day. A couple weeks ago I was anchored down fishing a spot on Tanwax when a couple of white trash idiots plowed right through a patch of lily pads I was fishing in their P.O.S. rental dingy, laughing the whole time saying, "No fish for him!".

I take great pride in the fact I give people their space, and do the "right thing" (i.e.- share it) anytime I'm on the water. However, these d-bags I seem to run into more and more often are about to bring it a sudden and dramatic end. There are those days I really hope someone tries to hit me in my boat, or intentionally tries to capsize it, that way I can at least claim self-defense when I blast a handful holes in the hull, or toss a lit road flare in their boat. Burning phosphorus should work over the fiberglass or aluminum fairly well.

As far as getting excited at the launch because someone is taking too long to launch or land a boat. Meh...it is what it is, I'm not usually in too big a hurry to launch. It doesn't take me but 10 seconds or so to drop the 'toon in the water and paddle away anyway. I'm out there to relax and have fun, it will do me no good to get bent before I'm even on the water.

[Fatbasstard]

One of my favorite things to do, is to fish right behind the guy in the 40k bass boat that just cut me off. The fish gods know what is right, and they reward me with fish. You can bet I will pull a Bill Dance, and make that bass tail walk back to my $100 dollar Jon boat.

['OL GREY DOG]

LORDY

[arniejl]

I am starting to think that I need a break from the local lakes. On top of that, someday I will probably post about some guy that I thought did me wrong and he will be a member here, lol, oh well, so be it.

I have two boat ramp stories and one was today:(

Last summer I took my wife to Swofford pond. We were not fishing but, instead, checking my trail cams out near Morton. Had some spare time so took her to Mossyrock to show her the pond. When we got there, at around 7:00 a.m., there was a pickup backed up on the boat ramp with a tarp to the trees. He camped on the boat ramp:-"

There was, literally, zero room to launch, if one had wanted to to. I scratched my head on that one.

OK, today I fished Lake Kapowsin. When it came time to leave, I docked and then walked up and got my truck. I backed in and then jumped in my boat to run it up on the trailer. Some guy comes whipping in to the launch and backs up part way. Basically, he was blocking the top of the boat launch with me on it, but, he left a little room to go around.

Me, being who I am, was not really happy with this guys decision. I loaded my boat, took like `1 minute. Meanwhile, this guy was unstrapping his boat and getting it ready, which I, personally, do it some place other than on the ramp itself.

I started my truck and this guy was about done and got in his truck. The passenger started walking down the ramp towards the right side of my pick up. I was kind of hopeful that the guy was going to move so I could get out, but he didn't. I pulled up a touch to meet the passenger and asked him through my open passenger window if that guy was going to move.

His reply was "He is waiting for you, you have to go around him".

I thought...

I didn't think, I put the pedal to the metal and swerved around him. I then had to cut it very hard to miss the parked rigs at the top and then not to clip the guy with my trailer as I had to negotiate a hard right turn at the top.

I never stopped until I was at the intersection of OK hiway and 304th, or whatever that road is. It is then that I strapped my boat down and all that.

I think back and I guess it was not a huge deal. He did leave me room. My initial reaction was that there was no room and he should have stopped elsewhere until I cleared the launch, like every body else that fishes does. I drive a full sized pick up and have a 17' boat, and this guy did me no favors. If he is a member here and reads this I just want to ask "Why would you park there", but whatever, it ended well.

I put a picture up for those who do not know this lake. The purple blot is where the guy pulled up to after driving through approx. two acres of blacktop that he could have waited for me on. I had to go to his left to get around and then cut a hard right. I thought about just turning left off the ramp and heading backwards up the one way road to the parking lot, but that was not gonna happen...I can become difficult, at times:)

Ugh, haha

[f1sh1nf00l]

You definitely get some goofballs(to put it politely) at that launch...I dont think I will ever go back there, it always feels like im in the twilight zone or somethin'......:shaking2:

[The Quadfather]

arniejl,

You seem to be on a streak with people at the lake. I don't know what it is about boat launches in general. It's like for so many people.... they just become completly self absorbed, and loose all control of any mannors they once had. These same people are prob. great guys in any other situation, but the desire to get on the water quickly just seems to overtake some people.
I feel sort of badly to think this way,, but when I am at a launch, I am ALWAYS sort of keenly aware and expecting some crap to go down. When I am launching with friends that don't own boats, I think they wonder why I seem stressed some times.

[rjn cajun]

arniejl I`ve launched there many times and I`m not sure how you got around him. That launch isn`t nearly big enough for two boats. Must have been real tight. It was intended for a single launch at a time. Maybe he was jealous.