Why Are Some Members Deathly Afraid To Say Where They Fish?

[gotmuddy]

Keep talking about it and that could change.

Think I might head down there for a weekend since you say it's so good. I'll be keeping a limit every day, too.

That's fine. Remember that the limit is one fish per day in parts of the creek.

If you need a shuttle service let me know.

Btw, the ability to catch pressured fish makes you a better fisherman than the Guy who is the only one in the creek fishing.

[eric1978]

Btw, the ability to catch pressured fish makes you a better fisherman than the Guy who is the only one in the creek fishing.

I'd rather be the guy who's the only one in the creek fishing.

[flytyer57]

I'd rather be the guy who's the only one in the creek fishing.

Greedy selfishness.

[ollie]

I fish a small stream around here all the time and there was a time when hardly anyone gave a flip about it and it gave up nice smallies. Caught my only 20" out of there. Now you are lucky to even see a 16" caught. Also see many out of state tags on vehicles that used to not be there until the net came around. I think someone said it quite well when they said you are very naive to think otherwise. Do a lot of people already know about your favorite spot? Maybe so, but look at Wayne's post. Some small streams just can't handle the increased pressure. Something has to give. Also, what does it matter where someones posts as long as they give out other details? If you need exact locations to catch your fish then you may not be the fisherman you think you are. I think the general consenses are that you know someone personally or meet with them face to face before you give out the info. That way you know WHO you are dealing with. Not everyone is ehtical on the net and how do you know unless you meet them face to face?

[Al Agnew]

Is there an element of selfishness involved? Absolutely.

The post I just made about the creek I had such good luck on is a good case in point. The fact that the creek exists is not a secret...this isn't some fantasy deal where unknown lands exist. The fact that it's a pretty creek that is floatable in the spring but difficult in the summer is known to anybody who cares, as well. Some even know that the fishing in it can be excellent.

But it's not very big, and it doesn't get a lot of fishing pressure. And that's the reason it is still good. It doesn't matter whether the fishing pressure is catch and release or catch and keep or illegal poaching. Fishing pressure equals tougher fishing. And, fishing pressure means less solitude, a quality that is getting more and more scarce these days. So yeah, I'm selfish because I know that it is POSSIBLE, though difficult, to get a canoe down much of it in the summer, and that not many people want to do so, and that if the fishing on it was touted in a magazine or on the web, a bunch of people would probably descend upon it, ruining my solitude and making the fishing tougher even if they didn't do much real harm to the fish population. And the key here is, there are a bunch of creeks like that scattered throughout the Ozarks. If those people who would flock to this one wished, they could do their own exploration and find a creek just as good. And probably most of them do. But I'd like to keep the fishing pressure scattered, not concentrate it for even a short time on one specific stream.

I HAVE seen instances where just a few catch and keep anglers pretty much decimated creeks of that size once they found out the fish were there. The thing is, they pounded the creek until the fishing deteriorated. If you have a bunch of catch and keep anglers pounding the creek for one month, it probably equals a few pounding it for one season. Either way, the fishing suffers.

So...there aren't many streams that are significantly better than the rest. On most Ozark streams of comparable size, the fishing is pretty similar. The REAL secret may be that the ones that are so small that you have to work to float them in the summer are some of the best, simply because they don't get floated and fished that often. So maybe I should shut up about THAT fact. But really, all I'm interested in is keeping the fishing pressure scattered and not concentrating it on one piece of water.

[hfdhoosier]

I think we are all forgetting about the reason we fish. Its gotten to the point of size and numbers. I am not disagreeing that some streams we fish should be kept secret but I agree thay posting about a secret stream is nothing but bragging. This is a forum to help other fishermen enjoy the sport as much as we do by posting helpful advise. I also realize that specific streams do not always have to be mentioned to give advise on tackle, lures and fishing techniques. There are a lot of groups out there today that would love to take our fishing priviledges away. We should be concentrated on teaching or helping new fishermen to be successful on the stream to make sure our priveledges continue.

I havent ever fished for smallmouth, but am a die hard trout fisher. Many people have helped me along the way and I will always be dedicated to helping others when and how I can. I have got more enjoyment through the years teaching new fishermen how to fly fish and catch a trout. If my stream is more crowded for that, then I guess I will just have to remember that a day on the stream is better than being at work. No offense intended towards anyone, there is room for differing opinions. But we all have to remember that promoting this sport is the only hope for it being around forever.

[eric1978]

I havent ever fished for smallmouth, but am a die hard trout fisher.

And that's probably why you have a more relaxed attitude about it. Blue Ribbon areas aside, the trout streams are not going to be largely impacted by an influx of new anglers. The fish they catch will be replaced in a matter of days, weeks or months. And the Blue Ribbon areas have very tight regulations to protect the fish from overharvest or other practices that are detrimental to the fish (no bait, single hooks, etc). For smallmouth anglers, an 18-20 inch fish taken from a stream means a wait of up to a decade or more for that fish to be replaced.

It's only natural to be protective of something you love. Call it selfish, I don't really care. If I found a vein of gold somewhere, I wouldn't post that location on a forum, either.

[Bman]

I work to hard to find the big fish and I'm not going to tell people on this or any forum where these spots are. I will take someone fishing and they may find out, but I am not going to put it on the web. In no time the boat ramp will be full of people and you will have to take a number to fish your favorite hole..................Eric is right, couldn't have said it better myself.

Dittos.

[Daveinozark]

I see both sides of the arguement, and don't imagine anyone's mind will change on this subject. I do, however, find it funny when people are tight lipped on the Finley and James river accesses. While I'm sure these streams may have been cleaner and produced better prior to my 2 years of living in Ozark, the fact that they run through the fastest growing county in Missouri is going to bring pressure regardless if someone is willing to tell me on here where the honey holes and access spots are.

[Bill Anderson]

Today, I fished for a couple of hours below Beaver Dam on the White, and even fished along side a couple of gents I met there. Between the three of us flyfishermen, and the several dozen bait fishermen downstream, you could hardly call it a "secret" place. I hooked 7 and landed and released four nice rainbows, so being around others sure didn't hurt the fishing. But I was a couple of hundred yards upstream from the pack of bank fishermen, so while I could see them, they obviously didn't interfere with me wade fishing, and vice versa. But I guess we are all looking for that special, little or unfished spot.