Private Ponds/lakes Cheating?

[Grizzn N Bassin]

i like fishing anywhere i can i try new spots all the time but i dont have a boat. soo i shore fish i dont like fishin ponds where i can throw my line across to the other side, ha its got be aleast an acrea or two.. i live right next to the hudson river. we have had the bassmasters here before but its so hard to catch bass here its crazy!

[Avalonjohn44]

Nothing in fishing is cheating except breaking a tournament rule or a state regulation. If one's goal is just to enjoy themselves I don't quite understand how I would be cheating by catching a nice fish in a roadside ditch.

^^^THIS. Seven pages and nothing as elegantly put. Could not agree more.

[mikey5string]

I wouldn't enjoy fishing a "managed" fishing lake where the bass are bred, fed and located specifically to be caught. That's just me though I see how it would be a great experience to a person who doesn't fish much

. I see nothing wrong with fishing private lakes or ponds. If fishing unpressured waters is cheating why not leave the boat home and stand next to the row of worm tossers on the fishing dock on a Saturday afternoon? Bringing in a 5lber there would be impressive ! ; )

What about fish finders?

I have never heard of a managed bass lake in CT. If I can find a hole with 5 lb bass in it I will fish it and be pumped when I get one!

[unionman]

Sounds like a lot of the distinctions being made here are the difference between folks fishing for fun and the folks fishing to impress others. I fish for my enjoyment only, so other folks "assessments" of my skill mean diddly-squat to me

Exactly.

[Highhawk1948]

Great place to test lures and techniques.

[bayouXpress]

Not much to brag about catching a big one out of a pond. However, give me a private pond and i will fish it everyday because it is sooooo much fun! Kind of like bobber and minnow fishing. The problem comes from those who brag about their fishing skills sticking big fish in private ponds.

this is how I feel. my biggest bass came from a 1 acre pond and i refuse to mount it or classify it as my personal best. i like the fact that you do know the fish are there so you take finding fish out of the equation and can work on your skills especially under used techniques or new baits.

[xbacksideslider]

Isn't a "secret spot" where you always catch fish on a public lake similar to the easy catch of "private" waters?

 

And if you keep your spot "secret" then it's "private," right?

 

The best public waters anglers keep their methods secret; that's a form of private property too.

Should they be forced to share their methods?

 

There is a "tragedy of the commons" aspect to overpressured public waters, where fish stocks are depleted or overfished because the cost of entry is too low.  You can pay more by buying the expertise and secrets of a private party guide, who sells/hires out his private property, his secrets, to harvest a "public" asset.  

 

Like hiring a guide, private lakes are a more costly way to get a better fishing experience - more and bigger fish.  

[Felix77]

Great place to test lures and techniques.

 

Fish them to your hearts content.  As for bragging ... I always felt being modest was the best thing to do.  Take a picture with it, show it if people ask what your biggest was but never forget to mention that it was in private ponds where you caught it.  Don't boast about it per se.

 

I have a small pond which I use to test out techniques all the time.  I have caught some nice ones from there.  It's still a challenge landing them around trees and through the brush like I did for one lunker I caught.  

[Bassfishing375]

If it is to easy to catch fish, you are not learn as much as someone that has to find the fish and deal everything that happens on a public lake. I would love fishing private ponds but somethings it is fun having a challenge.

[bmlum415]

Definitely not cheating but much easier, I had one evening in the fall that I caught 9 bass that were all well over 4 lbs a piece the largest being 7lbs, they were all caught within a 30 min window, all on a super spook, gotta love Florida strain bass in Cali, oh and I've caught monster bluegill at those ponds, usually they range from 1/2-11/2 lbs but my PB there is 3lbs

[SirSnookalot]

What's cheating about having fun and catching fish?  You fish the water you available to you.  I fished Lake St. Clair for many years. had some really great days, it's anything but private and I wasn't the only one out there.

[Quillback]

Definitely not cheating but much easier, I had one evening in the fall that I caught 9 bass that were all well over 4 lbs a piece the largest being 7lbs, they were all caught within a 30 min window, all on a super spook, gotta love Florida strain bass in Cali, oh and I've caught monster bluegill at those ponds, usually they range from 1/2-11/2 lbs but my PB there is 3lbs

Man, 3 lb. bluegill is truly a monster! 

[TNBassin']

I don't think pond fishing is cheating, but catching a big one out of a pond vs.catching a big one out of a  30k+acre lake are 2 totally different things. I'd love to be able to have access to a stocked pond so I could test out different rigs/lures though. 

[PABASS]

I typically don't respond to posts that have been brought from the dead so to speak and I already posted too..   Like I said, I don’t own a boat I personally believe my PB was luck and I will never have that luck in this state again.  Since I don’t own a boat when I catch a 3,4,5# bass from a very limited shore line, using bank oriented tackle I say this takes patients and skill.  You get me on a boat and I figure out the electronics and have the time I will catch far bigger bass then I ever have. So no its not cheating if it’s all you have access to.  I am downright envious of Gene and what he has access to and do not consider what he is doing as cheating and respect that Man and what he does then most in this business, Gene thank for the videos, the knowledge it truly has made me a better angler!!!!!!

[down4ttown]

I would fish private ponds and lakes if I had some. It is much easier to catch big fish on less pressured waters. I think a big bass out of a lake or river is much more of an accomplishment, but I would fish wherever I could. 

[roadwarrior]

Isn't a "secret spot" where you always catch fish on a public lake similar to the easy catch of "private" waters?

 

And if you keep your spot "secret" then it's "private," right?

 

The best public waters anglers keep their methods secret; that's a form of private property too.

Should they be forced to share their methods?

 

There is a "tragedy of the commons" aspect to overpressured public waters, where fish stocks are depleted or overfished because the cost of entry is too low.  You can pay more by buying the expertise and secrets of a private party guide, who sells/hires out his private property, his secrets, to harvest a "public" asset.  

 

Like hiring a guide, private lakes are a more costly way to get a better fishing experience - more and bigger fish.  

 

"Back from the dead", that's clever!

 

Anyhow, I guess I don't really understand this quoted post. "Public" is never "private" although for a while you may

have some "secret spots". The public water around here has been producing both size and numbers, especially for

the last two years. We don't really compare with the big four states, but the Tennessee River excels in several special 

categories.

 

Guntersville may have the largest concentration of 6-8 lb bass in the country. Pickwick and its tailwaters (technically

Kentucky Lake) have the potential of producing the next World Record Smallmouth. There is plenty of pressure from

locals, tournaments and tourists, but the lakes are currently producing the biggest fish and best fishing experiences

in the history of the river.

 

 

[Diggy]

What are yalls thoughts on managed private lakes and ponds when it comes to bass fishing? I have been fortunate to have access to multiple professsionally managed lakes and have a hard time going back to the public honey holes. Downsides are that friends dish out a lot of heat that its not fair fishing and is cheating. Would you mount a bass that you caught from a managed lake? What are yalls view on the subject matter?

Until they are allowed to fish there regularly, all of that yappin will cease...I know Id rather fish in a pond than a puddle. My friends lakes have bigger fish on average than the one I fish in....I like to fish where they live. I consider them lucky, minus the HOA/fishing police people.

[xbacksideslider]

"Back from the dead", that's clever!

 

Anyhow, I guess I don't really understand this quoted post. "Public" is never "private" although for a while you may

have some "secret spots". The public water around here has been producing both size and numbers, especially for

the last two years. We don't really compare with the big four states, but the Tennessee River excels in several special 

categories.

 

Guntersville may have the largest concentration of 6-8 lb bass in the country. Pickwick and its tailwaters (technically

Kentucky Lake) have the potential of producing the next World Record Smallmouth. There is plenty of pressure from

locals, tournaments and tourists, but the lakes are currently producing the biggest fish and best fishing experiences

in the history of the river.

 

 

 

To attempt to clarify, without getting "political," the distinction between public and private waters really isn't one of poor and rich, or open and closed, it's really a matter of knowledge and knowledge can be just as public or as private as any kind of property.  Indeed, knowledge IS a form of property. 

 

Good anglers are rich.   They have much more knowledge about how and where and when to fish.  They earn it, they create it, they can buy it, they can get it here at bassresource.com, they can get it from books, and they can even inherit it from parents or friends.

 

So, upon reading this thread, it seemed to me that this was the real point - knowledge - not whether private water fishing was a form of cheating. 

 

I mean, knowledge is why we visit, and why we value, this forum, right? 

[jhoffman]

You people must all have a PHD in fishing with all your "Patients"

[bmlum415]

Man, 3 lb. bluegill is truly a monster! 

hell yeah it was, even better I caught him on 6 lb test and a ul rod

[Dead River]

I seriously doubt the IGFA won't recognize a record from private waters. Private waters aren't sanctuaries.

 

Here's one for you. I used to fish Ocmulgee Pfa a lot last year before it was drained by the state due to low water levels . This was a biologist managed female only trophy largemouth bass lake with a complex forage base. Was it like shooting fish in a barrell? absolutely not, the fish were stocked at a rate of 10 per acre as opposed to 100 per acre. Annually smaller supplemental stockings were added. So, the recipe was for maximum growth of fewer fish. The lake was low when I started fishing it, probably 75 acres or so, but in february of 2012 I caught 20 bass that weighed 170 lbs combined, five of them were over 10 lbs. The biggest being 12-4. Normally, at full pool the PFA was deemed a "two bite" lake. With the lower water the most I landed was 7, but usually 3-4 fish a trip. After feb the pattern changed. Additionally, I was fishing without sonar just covering water. So yes it was a pigpen but it was often difficult to get a bite. I guess it's like going to a casino that you know if it hits it will hit big... but you also run the risk of losing a lot of time and energy laboring at it. In short I am very proud of all those catches and commend the state for designing and managing such a wonderful public trophy bass fishery. A license and a wma stamp got you in.

 

Another point, what about public small water. I catch a lot of my good fish from public small water, non trophy lakes that is. Some on bed, some regular, some from the bank, some from the boat. Just because I didn't use videogames electronics to find those fish doesn't mean they don't count. As for ponds, unless you get on them during the spawn, big bass are notoriously tough to catch in ponds, esp if the water is clear as is the case with many un-managed waters. Private ponds usuallly fish easier both during the spawn and regular. The public ones, particularly those that are undermanaged represent some of the toughest bed fishing to be had. Seen two many giant sows that I couldn't even make a presentation to... 

 

AND, if people are gonna crack on private water and managed fisheries then they ought to make sure the LM bass and the trout they're gorging themselves on are indigenous to the area... if not, then that's a hypocritical argument. LM bass have obviously flourished in cali and japan by virtue of uniquely fertile situations. Managed fisheries aren't like fishing in the bathtub, esp if they're designed for maximum size as the one I described above. It's not like these biologists are hand feeding dolphins at seaworld, it's about establishing a solid forage base, the right ph, the right algal bloom to maximize productivity and the appropriate population dynamics.

 

I've got 8 bass over ten pounds. Three from old farm ponds, five from a trophy pfa.  I'm well aware that there are people on this forum that have caught hundreds of them. That observation nor the location of the catches invalidates or makes any of them any less special. A ten lber is still a ten lber.

[J Francho]

IGFA International Angling Rules: http://www.igfa.org/images/uploads/files/IGFA%20International%20Angling%20Rules_English.pdf

 

A couple of relevant passages:

 

No applications will be accepted for fish caught in hatchery waters or sanctuaries.
The catch must not be at variance with any laws or regulations governing the
species or the waters in which it was caught.

 

1. The fish must represent a valid species with a recognized scientific name.
2. The fish must be a species commonly fished for with rod and reel in the
general area where the catch is made.

 

The following acts will disqualify a catch:
1. Failure to comply with equipment or angling regulations.

[JellyMan]

As they say, "It ain't trickin if you got it!" I have had the privilege of fishing a private pond once and I have a buddy who's girlfriends father owns a lot of land with a phosphate lake on it. I have not fished it yet but soon! 

[BassAddict1911]

Wether your fishing in a 20,000 acre lake or a 2 acre pond, you still have to use brains to catch a fish...

[Fish Chris]

I'm sure I replied to this thread sometime way back.... but since its been drug back from the dead, I just want to reiterate....

 

Private ponds are all fine and good, for good numbers, of good fish. But if a person is after a truly huge fish, they would almost certainly be better off, fishing waters that get hammered hard, all the time..... and which are stocked with trout. This means fewer bass, but with a larger top end, and a fantastic food supply. You just don't have this in private ponds.

 

I have fished a good number of private ponds in CA. I believe my biggest bass from those places was about 6 lbs..... while ALL of my big fish, have come from public waters that get constantly blasted by anglers....

 

Peace,

Fish