fishing etiquette

[MetalFish513]

I wish people would just realize that the simple act of acknowledging somebody can make all the difference... excluding the castnet situation... If that were me I would have been in a fight! But for instance, yesterday, an older gentleman comes down to the creek and I notice him walking towards me. As he gets closer he asks how the bite is. I tell him what all I've caught and what I'm using. He never actually asked if he could fish along side of me but started to anyways. The difference was he talked to me the whole time. We shared fish stories, funny stories, and all kinds of BS. When we hadn't caught anything for a little while I even suggested he come with me to another hole I figured had some fish. We fished for about 2 hours together and at the end of the day I was glad to have met him. It would have been a completely different story had he not said anything and just started fishing my hole as I'm not very shy about letting someone know they've overstepped their boundaries with me.

[JrBassin8r]

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not sure what you were catching ...you didnt say, but if you were catching gamefish , mot only what the intruders did with the castnet was rude but it was extremely illegal....you cant castnet and keep gamefish .....wow what awesome sportsmen they are !

We were mainly just fishing for whatever was biting. Caught quite a few carp, drum, catfish, and a few hybrids. Saw sOme gar and a few spoonbill too. These guys just took everything that came into their net. We thought about saying something but neither of them spoke English or pretended not to. It just wasn't worth the hassle with all the surf it would have been dangerous just to get over to them to say something. They did give us a wide berth coming back so they wouldn't have to hear it. Haha. They fell a bunch of times and even lost a bucket to the current so I felt justice was served. If we would have kept fishing as we were before we would have hooked them in the legs though.

[Brandon__]

its always good to get about half on plane around them for a bit and make there life rough.. but what do i know, i have NEVER done this.

[flyfish]

Yeah, drives me nuts below Wolf Creek. Guys watch me drift over the island again and again catching fish, and then pull up on it and anchor. I won't go into the inefficiencies of anchoring up there, but a real pain. So I just keep running up and drifting by, still catching fish while they struggle. Fortunately most guys catch on to what I'm doing and we all get in a rotation, and we all catch.

[MetalFish513]

If we would have kept fishing as we were before we would have hooked them in the legs though.

Should've done it....

[Fishin is life]

Had a couple of guys come all the way across the pocket we were sharing to fish the point that was on the side I was fishing...They trolled over less than a full crankbait cast in front of me and started paralleling the bank as I was doing....First I threw my crankbait at their feet with no response, so I quietly put my rods down, strapped htem down, fired up the motor and set her up on pad...I didn't bother turning around to look but I'm fairly certain I washed them up on the bank, and if I didn't I dang sure aimed to...Made sure I sat down within sight of them just in case they wanted to come over and coversate about it, but they didn't

[Astrobass]

At Green earlier this year, I was fishing a bluff wall, and a crappie fisherman came by me on pad, less than 100 ft. away, only to set it down right in front of me and tie off on a limb less than 50' in front of me. So I went around him, fired up the big motor and went by him plowing with the front up in the air creating those 3 ft. waves. LOL I really didn't care if I turned him over at that point, especially after he almost washed me into the bluff wall himself. I thought about asking him if he was always and A-hole, or if today was just my lucky day. LOL

[MagikSmallie]

Having just returned from St. Clair in Michigan I can safely say that fishing etiquette in that state and Ohio for that matter are non existent, the people there just have absolutely no clue! it's like 99% of them are the jerks you see on Cumberland on a summer weekend and have no concept of what people who are fishing are trying to do, either that or they are just so rude they don't care. I've had them run 40' yachts close to enough to spit on, I've had guys troll between me and the bank when I am within flipping distance, even had guys come over to me just to see what lure I am throwing, the list just goes on and on. I consider it a treat to come back to KY where you just have to worry about people cutting you off on a point or a bank.

[artcarney_agr]

I think everyone's definition of etiquette/courtesy is different. What is considered the norm. on one body of water may be completely frowned up on the next.

I know here in Louisville on the Ohio River, there are a limited number of creeks to bass fish....so it's not uncommon to be in close quarters with another boat, or be following one along. Try and fish like that on KY Lake and you'll get yelled at.

I try to give people the benefit of the doubt as much as possible, because most rarely know that they are doing something wrong.

Check this definition out:
Etiquette is a code of behavior that delineates expectations for social behavior according to contemporary conventional norms within a society, social class, or group.

If you're not in the group or associate with the group (tournament bass anglers) then you don't know a thing about the code of behavior.....


I really like Rick Clunn's thought and approach on this subject matter, check out this from an interview he did with Bassmaster:

Bassmaster: What's it like to be fishing in the "zone"?

Clunn: Anytime I've achieved what other sports call being in the zone, everything that would have been a negative becomes a positive. A boat cuts you off. Instead of looking at it as a negative, you think, "I'm not supposed to go that way," and you immediately turn in another direction and catch a 6-pounder.

You get hung up and go over and get your lure. Then you see a log lying at a perfect angle that you wouldn't have seen if you hadn't been hung up. You make a cast down the log and catch a 5-pounder. The days that I have had the most perfect one, two, three hours, or even one whole day of being in the zone, everything that took place was showing me where the next fish was.

Although Rick is a bit eccentric, I do believe some of his stuff has merit.

http://www.bassmaster.com/news/great...and-being-zone

[Fishin is life]

The ones that kill me are the pleasure boaters that are running fairly close to you and set it down out from you to try and idle by, not realizing that by sitting it down they're creating bigger wakes that'll get thrown your direction....However, I always give these people the benefit of the doubt in that they're trying to do what they think is right...Everytime this happens I'll politely wave and speak to them because they are attempting etiquette even though it doesnt work out that way

[stripernut]

The ones that kill me are the pleasure boaters that are running fairly close to you and set it down out from you to try and idle by, not realizing that by sitting it down they're creating bigger wakes that'll get thrown your direction....However, I always give these people the benefit of the doubt in that they're trying to do what they think is right...Everytime this happens I'll politely wave and speak to them because they are attempting etiquette even though it doesnt work out that way

i guess you could say they are "killing us with kindness" eh?

like you i do appreciate the consideration....even if the result is a little "rocky"

[restornator]

We were mainly just fishing for whatever was biting. Caught quite a few carp, drum, catfish, and a few hybrids. Saw sOme gar and a few spoonbill too. These guys just took everything that came into their net. We thought about saying something but neither of them spoke English or pretended not to. It just wasn't worth the hassle with all the surf it would have been dangerous just to get over to them to say something. They did give us a wide berth coming back so they wouldn't have to hear it. Haha. They fell a bunch of times and even lost a bucket to the current so I felt justice was served. If we would have kept fishing as we were before we would have hooked them in the legs though.

Don't mess with an Asian and his carp!

Seriously i would have been peeved. That's why i carry a slingshot.