On The Water Etiquette

[RDB]

I don’t know if any of you follow Todd Castledine but he is a great fisherman and a super nice guy.  He recently posted a video of an on the water interaction that did not go well.  It was from a Texoma tournament a little over a month ago and highlights what is too common of an occurrence on many lakes.  It is long but IMO, worth the watch as it highlights a very good learning opportunity.  It also focuses on a personal pet peeve of mine.  I would like to think I would have handled it the same way and I typically do but after a certain word was dropped (you’ll hear it), it would have been hard.  Good on Todd for sticking up for what he believes is the right way to treat fellow anglers and keeping his composure when others have little concern or respect for proper on the water etiquette.

 

 

[jbsoonerfan]

I watched it earlier today. When he said that word, I would hope I would have just left. If not, I know I would have regretted my actions. Sometimes it's just not worth it. He handled it much better than I probably would have after words were exchanged.

[CrashVector]

Kids were in the boat, so I'd hate to invite him over to the bank, but it's pretty obvious he knew what he was doing was wrong.  Hell, he came within spitting distance 

[gulfcaptain]

Well unfortunately  it happens a lot,  been cut off multiple times.  I was 50ft from the point I was going to fish and working my way that way to a dead end pocket  had a boat cut me off and start, same day think I got cut off 5 times. Broke a guide that morning, watched my son miss a 8+ on a topwater  I had tied on but he wanted to use(it was his 2nd cast). Whole morning went bad and was in a tournament.  Chalked it up and put the boat on the trailer. Just because you have the money to buy  a boat doesn't mean you have any common sense or idea how to operate one. They don't  know etiquette,  are selfish,  I've asked to come thru  areas that are narrow with guys fishing and ask if I can come thru on the trolling motor even if I was on the big one prior idling back in sloughs.  Actually told a group where I saw some fish on the livescope  when I had the trolling motor down. It's all about communication,  fished community holes with 4 boats at clear lake no issues, we all worked around one another and caught fish. The kids in that video new it was wrong. They may have even known who it was. Some parents get too wrapped up in their kids sport  and become that word he called Todd. It happens at baseball, basketball,  football, etc. Some people just don't have manners and never will.  They are just selfish hateful people. Thank goodness they are the minority.

[ironbjorn]

I'm glad he didn't display mental weakness by going at it with the guy.

[Choporoz]

This is timely. Twice this weekend I had boats pull up in front of me in my kayak, where it was clear which direction I was working. Neither time did i say anything,  but both times I let the situation get the better of me.  I kept working and cast too close...but more importantly, I let events take over my head.   Spent a LOT of time thinking about this last night.   My fishing suffered for over an hour each time and my enjoyment of fishing was sapped.  I felt like the boats were wrong each time, but I can't believe that I didn't keep my head in check.  Both boaters were a bit older and I wasn't going to 'teach' them anything.  I did think to myself bot times that had i been in a boat, theres no way they would have pulled up like that....but maybe I'm wrong about that, too.  I resolved to work harder at GMan's PMA philosophy...positive mental attitude.   I WILL be less affected by the perceived negative actions of others.  No matter how wrong he thought that coach was,I think the guy doing the video probably could benefit from a little self assessment, too.  

[KSanford33]

He handled that really well. I used to be a hothead when I was a kid, but I've learned one critical lesson as I've gotten older: I have a lot more to lose than the other guy. I have a job that requires a license that will be revoked if I'm convicted of a felony. And I'm going to throw all that away because some guy was an idiot on the water?

 

 This just happened to me on Sunday. I was on my home body of water and a fellow kayaker was working the shoreline while I was in one spot. He went around me by about 10ft. My golden rule when I go around other boaters is two cast-lengths, so this guy being within 10ft of me was way closer than I personally thought he should've been. But I said nothing. I'm not competing, I'm just out fishing. And if I chirp at the guy, what's the best case scenario? Best case, I make the guy feel like an idiot for coming too close to me, which does nothing for either of us. Worst case, things are much less friendly.

 

 I'm just trying to go out, catch a few fish, and go home. I don't want to complicate things unnecessarily.

[Bankc]

Situations like this remind me of some lines from George Herbert.

 

"Do well and right, and let the world sink."

"Living well is the best revenge." 

[Johnbt]

Catching a big bass from a spot they just left is the best revenge. 

[Woody B]

There's no way I could watch the entire 30 minute video.  I watched enough of it.  They guy making the video handled himself well.   It's tough fishing on a crowded lake.   I hate the way the "he man mines bigger than yours" tournaments make some people act.  The guys who have a habit of winning the tournaments aren't the problem.  It's the guys who have never won one, and never will that get nasty.   There's enough lakes around me I can usually plan my trips to lakes where there's no tournaments that day.  I was on Lake Wylie a month or 2 ago with a High School tournament.  All of the high school anglers I ran across were super nice and courteous.    

 

The fact is, none of us own the lake.  Wake boats aggravate me more than other anglers.  I keep telling myself "they have just as much right to be on the lake as I do".   

[Bird]

A fish is not worth a confrontation, smile and move on.

We can't control the actions of others but we can control our own.

[TOXIC]

Keeping in mind I regularly fish the Potomac river which might just be the epicenter of bad behavior on the water.  Anybody who fishes here knows that.  I watched from the beginning to when they had the interaction.  To be honest, if that happened on the Potomac, the way I saw it, he should have just fished up to and then yielded and went behind them to continue down the bank.  Now per him, they motored from the other side of the cove if I understand it, and cut him off when they saw him heading to the spot they wanted to fish for a bedded bass.  If that is the case then they were in the wrong.  I just didn’t see it in the video.  But keep in mind, I’m used to catching a fish and having someone come in on plane and set down 20 feet in front of me and start to fish.?

[N Florida Mike]

I don’t have it happen much. Of course, I’m always trying to fish water  as far away as possible from people.

My lake has been a zoo lately though. Used to have it to myself, now there’s a lot more people that fish it . Wonder why the fishing has dropped off this year??.

A couple weeks ago I had to keep riding around to stay away from other boats that were in the area I wanted to fish. The good thing is, these new people only fish through a small area, then they just leave completely. I’m like, why even get the boat wet if that’s all you’re going to do.

The next time I get out, nobody’s on the water. Great ! ( or so I think) Decided where to start, hadn’t gone but maybe 50 feet, And a bunch of new lake residents come out. We wave and speak, they watch me catch a fish. They see me fishing towards them. I wasnt going to throw towards them, but fished the other side along the island. It’s about 70 feet wide there . So I get maybe 50 feet away, and one guy pulls out something on a rope and throws it in the water. KER PLUNK !! 

So I think” There goes the fishing here”. I didnt like it but didn’t get real angry , because it was obvious they were clueless. As I went on by , one of them asked me what I caught the fish on . I simply said “soft plastics “ and kept going. 

I am fishing for fun, food, and fellowship, not for fights, which  applied to my younger years. Not worth it anymore.

[bigspirit]

Makes my blood boil. 
 

Unfortunately, bass fisherman are some of the worst I have seen. It baffles me how I can be fishing a bank with a half mile of open water behind me yet some dbag thinks it’s a good idea to buzz by at 60+ about 40 yards away. 

[gim]

I don’t see what the issue is here. I watched it until about the 16 minute mark. Just go around the boat. Heck I’d rather just keep going than creep up to another boat like that. Speed up the bow mount and keep going down the bank. The other boat is clearly stationary at this point.

[throttleplate]

I watched it and was waiting for a big conflict, didnt see one.

All i witnessed was the dude had 8 poles on the deck and what could be livescope on the bow and only caught 1 fish.

[geo g]

I too have had guys run the canals in the everglades and stop twenty yards in front of where I had been fishing and fish the same direction I was fishing.  I just filmed them and put it on a fishing web site so everyone could see these two jerks, and their boat.  The Karma was fishing behind these two, and catching bass in waters they had just worked.  I had to go Ike a little upon catching, just to rub it in.  Neither of these yahoos caught any bass, and I cleaned up dragging the bottom slow.  It was the best revenge, and I enjoyed every minute of it laughing the whole time.

 

The pro handled the situation as good as he could, considering how much money was on the line.  I think I would have just put the T/M on high and went around them.  It would have kept my mind in the game without distractions.  Seems like a great guy!

[RDB]

37 minutes ago, throttleplate said:

I watched it and was waiting for a big conflict, didnt see one.

All i witnessed was the dude had 8 poles on the deck and what could be livescope on the bow and only caught 1 fish.

Yea your right…just a silly weekend angler with a bunch of rods.

[ironbjorn]

5 hours ago, Woody B said:

There's no way I could watch the entire 30 minute video.  I watched enough of it.  They guy making the video handled himself well.   It's tough fishing on a crowded lake.   I hate the way the "he man mines bigger than yours" tournaments make some people act.  The guys who have a habit of winning the tournaments aren't the problem.  It's the guys who have never won one, and never will that get nasty.   There's enough lakes around me I can usually plan my trips to lakes where there's no tournaments that day.  I was on Lake Wylie a month or 2 ago with a High School tournament.  All of the high school anglers I ran across were super nice and courteous.    

 

The fact is, none of us own the lake.  Wake boats aggravate me more than other anglers.  I keep telling myself "they have just as much right to be on the lake as I do".   

Thank you for being reasonable about wake boats. I don't have or use one and never will, but I pleasure boat a lot, especially with my kids. We absolutely love going out on the pontoon and having a blast exploring, swimming, and relaxing. We love water. Sometimes that love of water is fishing, sometimes that love of water is pleasure boating. Too many fisherman think the water is there for them and them alone. As a fisherman I know what they're thinking, feeling, and the space they need, so we give it, and I don't really have any problems ever, but sometimes internet discussions get so stupid about these topics that people start talking about guns and fighting. To me it doesn't get any dumber.

[RDB]

18 minutes ago, ironbjorn said:

Thank you for being reasonable about wake boats. I don't have or use one and never will, but I pleasure boat a lot, especially with my kids. We absolutely love going out on the pontoon and having a blast exploring, swimming, and relaxing. We love water. Sometimes that love of water is fishing, sometimes that love of water is pleasure boating. Too many fisherman think the water is there for them and them alone. As a fisherman I know what they're thinking, feeling, and the space they need, so we give it, and I don't really have any problems ever, but sometimes internet discussions get so stupid about these topics that people start talking about guns and fighting. To me it doesn't get any dumber.

I have a Wakesetter and a bass boat and I don’t think most bass boaters think they own the water at all, especially compared to pleasure boaters.  I think the statement used by fishermen about not owning the water is likely used by those who make it a habit of cutting people off.  The reality is that the pro waited his turn to fish a bedded bass he found earlier and the guy drove across the pocket and idled 20 yards in front of him and camped on the fish.  There is a respectful way to treat others on the water and if some posters would have watched the video, they would have seen numerous examples of that looks like in the same video.  If others see nothing wrong with that, I only hope I don’t have to share water with them ?.

[CrashVector]

12 minutes ago, RDB said:

I have a Wakesetter and a bass boat and I don’t think most bass boaters think they own the water at all, especially compared to pleasure boaters.  I think the statement used by fishermen about not owning the water is likely used by those who make it a habit of cutting people off.  The reality is that the pro waited his turn to fish a bedded bass he found earlier and the guy drove across the pocket and idled 20 yards in front of him and camped on the fish.  There is a respectful way to treat others on the water and if some posters would have watched the video, they would have seen numerous examples of that looks like in the same video.  If others see nothing wrong with that, I only hope I don’t have to share water with them ?.

 

In reality, I just wouldn't have moved, and would have kept casting to the same place.

 

If the guy who tried to crowd him has a problem with it, he can move.

[Tennessee Boy]

The only rules for fishing etiquette that exist are the ones we choose for our own behavior.  You cannot expect others to live by your rules.  The higher your standards are,  the more people you will encounter that violate them.  It’s part of fishing and part of life. 

[A-Jay]

18 minutes ago, Tennessee Boy said:

The only rules for fishing etiquette that exist are the ones we choose for our own behavior.  You cannot expect others to live by your rules.  The higher your standards are,  the more people you will encounter that violate them.  It’s part of fishing and part of life. 

Well Said.

And the more people I meet, the more I Love my dogs.

A-Jay

[scaleface]

It happens . Dont like it , but often it works out for the better .

[Junk Fisherman]

Some of the worst times I have been cut off was when HS tournaments were going on and I ended up being on the water on the same day (I always try to avoid those days).  Sometimes it's inexperienced boaters not realizing what they're doing and other times I suspect the boater feels since it's kids fishing they should be cut a break.  Had a father/coach go completely unhinged a couple weeks ago in the parking lot at the launch but that is a topic for another thread.