How Close Is Too Close

[Guest]

For one thing, this is not the water patrol anymore. 9 out of 10 of these guys now have not a lick of sense. They know nothing about fishing or ediquite,they are kids for the most part from the Hwy patrol that work the roads in the winter. They just don't understand and really have a lack of much to do.

They will be helpful however if there is an emergency, just got to bear with their ignorance of anything water.

On another point, you get over 100 yrds from your marker, and you are roping off a location. Not good either. If you mark a spot with either fish or structure, fish it. Don't mark it and try to expand your area, using your marker to hold the spot. Not right.

There used to be an old guy up at Shell Knob, 20 yrs. ago that would rope off a football field. He used 4 markers. I saw another local roll in on him one day and he started yelling at this guy from 200 yrds off that he had the area marked and was going to fish it. The other local pulled out his fillet knife and cut the bouy's off two of his furtherst markers and yelled back. "It's not marked now, you fish hogging SO----." You mark it, fish it. It is marked to fish not to claim.

Jerry I could not agree with you more. It has made a problem. Most of the guys fishing locations on tour, know each other and that usually is not a problem. If is when uninvited strangers roll up on a group that gets the blood pumping. Sometimes the guide boats will even tie together on the Rock. We are friends, but if someone else tries to pull in that is going to cause a problem.

We don't know the lake and werent trying to claim or hold a spot.

Simply wanted to know where the end of that point was located so we could troll past it.

So theres an unwritten rule about buoys? Didnt know that...

[denjac]

This weekend was a perfect example of crowded and close. KVD had over 200 boats Sat and Sun, Joe bass Sun, and a club tourny out of Aunts Creek that I know of. The big flats and points we all fish can handle 2 or 3 boats on them without crowded me or someone else. It all comes down to common sense and courtesy. I dont mind being pulled in on if I am fishing a big area, and I will do the same. Had an older gentleman running a conservation survey boat come up to me while I was fishing Sunday. He cut his big motor 200 yards from me to an idle and when he got to within 50 yards he shut it off and put his troller down. I thought to myself, what a nice guy. While talking to him I had my bait just hanging in the water about 10 ft deep and had a fish hit me. I pulled it up and and unhooked it and let him look at it before putting him back. He got a kick out of it.. Guess what I am trying to say is the extra boat didnt seem to bother the fish one bit, its just us humans that get or noses out of joint. I do get puffed up sometimes, but just swallow it down and go on.

[Hunter91]

Had very near the same thing happen to me and my son while fishing the KVD tourney yesterday. We were the first boat on a long run out point about 30yrds from the end of the point. Boat pointed to the pt end and working to it. A boat ran up to base of the pt and idles past us within 20 yrds and pulls in front of us on the point end within a short cast. I know because I cast all around thier boat. They just ignored us until the guy in the back of the boat told his partner he thought we were following them!! Had to take several deep breaths. Very aggravating but excellent lesson to point out to my son about fishing and boating ettiquette. We still caught fish but that does not excuse someone being rude. On a better note, I had someone cut me off one day near Aunts creek while fishing a bluff wall. I don't think he saw me, but when he did I was taking off a fish. He was close enough to ask me which way I was working and they apologized for pulling up in front of me and promptly moved off. I understand something like that but to idle right past someone and cut in close in front is beyond rude.

[dtrs5kprs]

This weekend was a perfect example of crowded and close. KVD had over 200 boats Sat and Sun, Joe bass Sun, and a club tourny out of Aunts Creek that I know of. The big flats and points we all fish can handle 2 or 3 boats on them without crowded me or someone else. It all comes down to common sense and courtesy. I dont mind being pulled in on if I am fishing a big area, and I will do the same. Had an older gentleman running a conservation survey boat come up to me while I was fishing Sunday. He cut his big motor 200 yards from me to an idle and when he got to within 50 yards he shut it off and put his troller down. I thought to myself, what a nice guy. While talking to him I had my bait just hanging in the water about 10 ft deep and had a fish hit me. I pulled it up and and unhooked it and let him look at it before putting him back. He got a kick out of it.. Guess what I am trying to say is the extra boat didnt seem to bother the fish one bit, its just us humans that get or noses out of joint. I do get puffed up sometimes, but just swallow it down and go on.

He has creel surveyed me several times over the years and has always been polite and professional about it.

Bill made a good point earlier about not running over schooling fish. Pleasure boat did that to me and another boat about halfway back in Schooner last month. Whole creek was alive with chasers for about 5 minutes. Never came up again after the boat plowed over them.

Had a lot of courtesy issues while I was on the lake last month. Folks complain about the tmt guys, but mostly the cut-offs and drive overs were from folks who either looked like they did not get out much, or obvious tourists (meaning mostly folks from up north places based on accents and tags). Worst two were while fishng the big "buoy" point in Schooner and a flat point around Mill. In Schooner, was grubbing off the bank a cast or so and had a boat fish, not run, between me and the bank, thus over the fish. Would not have bothered me as much if they had not gone down that bank flailing at it with spinnerbaits like they were mad at it on the way past. Worse yet, I actually recognized them from last spring, when they were doing more or less the same thing in the flood.

Around Mill, was fishing a brush pile way out on a flat and had a pontoon decide to shortcut across the point and over the pile. Was going to save them maybe 50 yards distance vs. going around. When they waved I politely asked if they would consider going around on the outside as there were fish right under them. Instead of going around they stopped, dropped their underpowered TM and decided to share the brush pile. Go figure.

Cutting the points off while running really bugs me. There should not be a reason to run between a boat with a TM down and the bank, unless they are way offshore fishing a hump or something. Never mind the wood you don't always know about out on those points. Guy staying by me tore an ear off a prop cutting one short this spring.

My rule is pretty basic...if someone is already on a spot, I find a different one. It is a big lake. Occasionally I may find a spot close and move there when they leave if it is a place I really had on the list to look at. If a boat has a TM down, I run to their outside and give them as much room as is safely possible given the boat traffic at the time. Also try to be careful of folks fishing the bridge pilings as I would not want to wash anyone into a piling with a wake. Obviously there are times when you may fish around a point or big dock and find someone else coming at you from the other side where neither of you could see the other. Best deal is to put your rod down and just run the TM towards open water, even if you eventually end up fishing the water they just finished. Give them some room going around and be pleasant about it.

[Champ188]

This topic comes up from time to time and I can recall saying this and having several folks agree with me a couple of years back. Not sure if it bears repeating or not but I feel like saying it again, so here goes.

There are some who just don't know any better than to pull in too close or commit other transgressions, and for the most part, you can tell who those are. As Babler said a couple of years ago, might be best to gently let them know they've crossed the line.

As for 99 percent of the others, it pretty much comes down to the fact that they just don't give a rat's azz. Whether they are a top-ranked touring pro or a weekend perch jerker in a flatbottom, you are on the spot they want to fish and by gosh they are gonna root you off of it.

Ain't happenin here.

As we discussed a couple of years ago, we've been way too nice for way too long with these yay-hoo's and where has it gotten us? Things are worse now than ever. It's the old give em an inch and they'll take a mile syndrome.

As anyone who knows me will testify, and just as most of you have always done, I give folks way more leeway than is common these days. I'm with dtrs5kprs ... if someone is on "my" spot, I can find another. It's a big lake. Been doing that since I was a teenager and won't stop til I die.

But I am done letting others cut me off or crowd me. Unless it's obvious that they are uninformed of how to behave on the water, I am going to let them know how I feel about their rudeness and that I won't sit still for it. I doubt that I am going to single-handedly modify the behavior of any appreciable population of these morons, but at least I'll sleep better knowing I didn't let them have their way with me.

This rant is complete. We now return you to our regular programming.

[bassman1308]

Good luck trying to educate these people. I usually try to politely explain the error of their ways. The most common response is. IT'S JUST AS MUCH MY LAKE AS YOURS. Well, how can you argue with that ? I've had guys pull in front of me, maybe 20 yards, and proceed to fish slow baits down the bank. I'll fish up to that point, pulled up my TM, motor about 20 yds in front on them, asked them if they were having a good evening, dropped the TM and started fishing. I really don't think they had any idea they did anything wrong b/c they we all had a nice visit with them until we left that bank.

Night fishing gives you another way to get even and have a little fun. If a boat pulls right in front of you, wait until you get to the water they've already fished. Yell, ' get the net', splash the water a bit, and loudly discuss the 7 or 8 lber you just caught in that 'used ' water. I've had um turn around and want to see it. Of course, we released the imaginary fish. One evening my wife and I were fun fishing on the drop off point across from wolf pen. I caught a bass that scaled 7 1/2 lbs. 2 guys in a bass boat came from the inside of the point, asked what I caught it on, depth, etc. After I gave them the info they both rigged up with a similar worm and started casting litterely within

inches of my bass boat. I was so shocked, I didn't know what to say. They them informed me they had a club tourney that Satr night and I was welcome to fish it. Sometimes all you can do is laugh and mark it down as a funny thing that happened on the lake..

[Ultralance12]

This being my first season with a bass boat I was wondering what the status quo was. That being said, I guess it's pretty much common sense. I will stay away from a point if someone else is on it, and always pull into a bank behind, not in front, of someone.

I do have a place I like to hit in the morning and I pretty much stay within a 50yd stretch for an hour or more. So far everyone has kept their distance but they will line up at the point across the cove from me ( I think passing the time waiting for me to leave). I wondered if it was acceptable to camp out all morning at the same point or if your expected to keep it moving. Sounds like you fish where and how you want to fish and everyone else should give you a wide berth if you were first to a spot.

I know not everyone is going to care about the proper etiquette but I'm still going to observe these simple guidelines as I appreciate not being crowded when the bite is on at my spot.

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[dtrs5kprs]

This being my first season with a bass boat I was wondering what the status quo was. That being said, I guess it's pretty much common sense. I will stay away from a point if someone else is on it, and always pull into a bank behind, not in front, of someone.

I do have a place I like to hit in the morning and I pretty much stay within a 50yd stretch for an hour or more. So far everyone has kept their distance but they will line up at the point across the cove from me ( I think passing the time waiting for me to leave). I wondered if it was acceptable to camp out all morning at the same point or if your expected to keep it moving. Sounds like you fish where and how you want to fish and everyone else should give you a wide berth if you were first to a spot.

I know not everyone is going to care about the proper etiquette but I'm still going to observe these simple guidelines as I appreciate not being crowded when the bite is on at my spot.

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I mostly fish slow to super slow, so count me with the campers. When doing that I don't mind if folks politely work around me, just not right beside me. Have spent entire days just working back and forth over a single secondary point at times.

[Guest]

I would like to comment on the use of marker bouys for anything other than fishing stucture close to your boat while you are fishing it. Placing several bouys out on different spots to "reserve" the location IMHO shows a lack of respect for other anglers and I consider it littering, BTW I pick up anything that appears to be litter and despose of it. As for the law asking about the marker bouy and doing a dounut, how far away were you from the bouy? if you were more than 50' from the bouy thats to far away according to tournament rules unless you are landing a fish. I know that most people that still use marker bouys are not tournament anglers as tournament anglers would use GPS to fish a spot instead of broadcasting to anyone near bye what they are fishing. I also realize that not everybody has GPS but if you are trolling DON'T put out a marker bouy to mark the end of a point. If you are a troller buy the equipment to do the job GPS because you are going to be way too far away from the bouy to be considerate to other anglers. Also keep in mind that littering is illegal and you can recive a ticket for littering.

Littering??? its a buoy and we were currently working back and forth past the buoy..

I wasnt showing a lack of repsect for others and nobody was fishing that area

that would be the guy who ran between us and the bank.

Im not a troller but thought we might try it for a while, hence the use of a buoy.

Its not illegal to use them, its not littering either there Mike

I wasnt holding a spot, being disrepctful, or pissing on anybodys boat.

Lighten up, will ya

l would have never posted my story, had I known that I would get thrown under the bus over it.

Honestly, Ive never had a problem using buoys but I guess some of yall take issue with that.

So be it, Im old school and like using them if it offended you, sorry.

I dont make a living fishing, I dont guide, I dont tournament fish, and I dont bother other people.

I just keep to myself.

[Stump bumper]

I guess I am just different on this, if I am on a good hole I will wave in a close boat and tell them I am on them. If they start hitting more then me I will ask what they are throwing. I have made some good friends that way and even got invited to follow them to their next spot. I would rather have another fisherman bumping my boat then a water skier 50 feet away.

If I am having a bad day I will ease up on boat, not casting and ask for advice and most of time they will invite me to fish along side of them for a while sharing a pattern.

I think if you introduce yourself, exchange names and where you are from, then people are more accepting to other people then they are boats. Sort of like cars they make me mad sometimes then I look inside and the older lady reminds me of my Mom or scared young girl reminds me of my daughter or maybe a guy my age reminds me I have senior moments on the road. A howdy neighbor wave and I don't feel upset with that "person" any longer, just have to remember these are my neighbors and friends and country men out there not robots driving cars and humans will make mistakes.

We share so much on this board, why not shake hands and share on the water.....there is more than one fish in that lake and I have as much fun watching you catch one as I do catching it myself.