Since we are on the topic of fishing today, I'll post this question due to a scenario that happened to me and a buddy yesterday afternoon. We were fishing a 300 acre semi-private lake, meaning anyone can fish the lake, but you have to have access to launch on the lake as it is surrounded by private property. We have access through a friend. The lake has many houses and docks on the lake. As we are fishing, we find some sac-au-lait (crappie for all you yanks) under a dock. Awesome. We proceed to sit there awhile catching a nice a little mess. After about 30 minutes, the owner of the property walks down and asks what we were doing, once we explained we were just fishing, he politely told us to "get the f*** away from his dock". He proceeded to rant about how it was rude of us to fish around his property, that we were catching his fish because he dumped Christmas trees under his dock, and that we were breaking some type of "social etiquette". I tried to explain to him that we had every right to fish around his dock as long as we did not vandalize or come upon his property. He kept ranting about how we should respect his property and that the only reason the fish were there was because of his Christmas trees and that we had no right to fish there. Of course, he said all this with a few more "f***s" thrown in for fun. We also had no idea that he had placed Christmas trees under the dock. The guy even gave me the "do you know who I am" card when I told him that he had no legal authority to make us leave the area. So is there some type of etiquette while fishing docks on shared or public waterways that I do not know about? Or was this guy just a massive power tripping *******?
wow.....what a first class ****** bag that guy is!!!! I grew up on a lake fishing and have NEVER heard of such a thing. I mean there is common coutesy, if someone is fishing a dock...don't go to the same dam dock and start casting, but I've never heard that one..... I would leave some of these on his dock....
Hooker I think the guy was just a first class grade A Dbag. He had no right or authority to tell you to leave. You and your buddy were completely within your rights as anglers on a public waterway. I ran in to a similar situation while bed fishing smallies in NH. People don't understand that yes they own lakefront property but they don't own the water or the fish in it.
I personally would have fished there the rest of the day. Fish or no fish just to piss the guy off. When it comes down to it he Prolly broke some kind of law dumping those Xmas trees in the water. Sent from my ADR6300 using Tapatalk 2
Public water and free for all to fish. Or you could have been a nice guy and said you'd not intrude on his Christmas trees again. Then just for grins and giggles ask him how a big a***ole like him celebrates Christmas anyway. Or does he go out and Grinch all the trees he threw under his dock.
Agree with the above, I've never heard it. The water is public or semi-private in your case. You have access to fish the entire lake. Unless you actually went on the dock to fish, he has no way of keeping you from fishing there.
Ive been in the same situation before almost to a T, i fish this little "lake" more like a large pond but my grandma has a little boat i can take out when ever and i was going around and found a nice spot by a dock and this guy comes down out of the house all pissed because he said i was catching his fish and ruining his plants he put in there (They are not suppose to be there says the board rules) But he just kept having a ***** fit so i asked my grandma who is on the board too who takes care of this place and she said they have had problems with this happening before and not to worry about him and just fish. You were doing nothing wrong the guy is just an Dbag like the one i dealt with. I would just keep doing what you have been and if you want to fish there go ahead he cant do anything.
Like the others have said before, you were doing nothing wrong. I also agree with Swamp Stalker in the fact that the only etiquette that I know of is to not go start fishing near a dock or area that someone is already fishing. Maybe he just had sand in his vajayjay and had serious chaffing that day. Who knows.
Sounds like he's just a prick. Not that this likely applies here but I will add that I live on a "public waterway" and my dock IS on my property. My property line extends out about 20 feet past my dock. Again I can't speak for your lake, NOR would I get all worked up about someone catchin a few fish from under my dock either.
Hooker I think the etiquette is on his part. He's got no right to the waters he has his house built on anymore than he would to game in the WMA his house may be backed up to. Kind of like a person parking on a public road in front of your house. Best is to ask him nicely because he doesn't have to move.
Was he wearing cargo shorts? To your original question, if he is likely to greet you in the future with a shotgun or is a neighbor (or to your family), I'd leave him be--even though you know you're within your rights.
If he was fishing on his dock then by all means I would've never fished there. I honestly feel weird when I'm fishing close to someones dock. I usually try to stay away as far as I can from someones dock.
You were doing nothing wrong. I would be mindful though of the possibility of snapping off a lure/hook in an area that kids will most likely be swimming and climbing around.
Only time you should stay away is if he is fishing off his dock already. When I used to bass fish more I had this happen way to often. I would never say a thing and just keep fishing at the pace I was already fishing. thirty seconds later I would be on to the next dock, then the next, then the next... let them waste their breath. Always a good idea to have a camera out their with you as well.
I love fishing docks, I fish them very often. My general rules are as followed. If just fun fishing, if I see someone outside or on the dock, I skip that dock. If I am practicing for a tournament, I dont normally have a hook on, just the bait, so if someone gives me any troubles I explain I have no hook on (because normally their biggest reason for giving you issues fishing their docks here is they dont want hooks around their docks where they and their kids swim), and again I skip the dock if someone is on it. But, tournament day, its on. I fish them all for the most part, and of course with hooks. I skip docks if someone is on it most of the time, but if its one I marked in practice, Ill still hit it even if someone is on it. If they come out yelling, I try to calmly tell them Im being careful and just trying to enjoy my day. If they keep going, I normally smile and shake my head, and ignore them. I know what I am doing is legal, and wont let them get to me.
