An Open Letter to BassMaster Magazine

[llPa1nll]

Here is an Open Letter from a friend to BassMaster Magazine, in response to "Larry Smith's Future In Balance" in the Mail Call section of the Magazine. I am not to familiar with how some states work but I am familiar with how NH does things. What is becoming the norm here is Public Ramps to local lakes and ponds staying as a public launch, however the Town asked by the lake association puts up "No Parking Signs" or "Parking for Town Residents Only". These ramps are still considered public but now you have no place to park your rig. The bigger slap in the face is that since these Ramps are considered public and in turn the lake as well, the state goes ahead and stocks these lakes. This is becoming the norm here in NH with the fishermen having to travel farther and farther to find ACTUAL Public Access. This infuriates me and fellow Bass Fishermen here in NH.

I would like to respond to Larry Smith's letter regarding your article Future In The Balance.  I can't agree with him more but there is another side to this story.  In New Hampshire we have a problem with getting access to Lakes to fish.  We have plenty of State provided boat ramps but the lake associations will petition the towns and put up no parking signs.  This gives you a ramp to put your boat in but no place to park your rig.

Because of this we have very limited access to our local lakes to take ourselves or anybody else fishing.  You really need to know somebody who owns lake front property or you yourself own lake front property.  I hope that there are New Hampshire Congressman or Senators that read Bassmaster and read this letter.  The state needs to take back the control of these ramps or provide some kind of parking area that will not effect local traffic.  We often always thought that our fishing license fee's were used to pay for this.

I am a big supporter of take a kid fishing.  When my daughter is old enough I will be taking her, but where is the big question here in NH.  If we want kids to enjoy fishing we need places to take them.

Thank you

Paul, New Hampshire

[Bass Smacker]

 That just blows. Here on the Calif. Delta we are alowed to fish the river but what they have done it put up no parking sighnes every where sure you can fish here but you better have some on drop you and your gear off and come back latter..  Then have the cojones to charge us for a delta inhansment stamp to put up more friging sighnes.  

[KYbass1276]

Write letters and send emails and get as many fisherman as you can on board doing the same thing.   There is power in numbers.   Contact as many public officals as possable and don't relent.  Go to the meetings where these things are decided and voice your opinion.  Keep going full force until things get changed

[flyphisher #]

Money Talks.... Those with the most money must benefit the most from everyones elses money and work, its the american way now. If they dont restrict access they will make it where you cant afford to fish or use the lake. Then they will whine when someone has to make up the money that the fishermen they ran off were pumping into the economy.

Here the lakes are ownerd by the power co. or u.s corp of engineers, state managed. most Land owners on my home lake only live there one or 2 months out of the yr.but still complain and complain so DNR has to do something, cant tell them they shouldnt have bought a lake lot. so we fishermen pay the price. There is a group that wants tournaments banned, even sheriff and local politicians are using the lake issues for votes whether they have any power over things or not.

Get used to it, Its happening everywhere.

[TheBeast]

I would imagine that if you do some digging you will find that it is illegal for them to do this since it is state maintained then they can only restrict parking to "state" residents and not just town residents.  Otherwise they will have to take over all the maintenance and stocking.  

[Rattlinrogue]

That really is a slap in the face of fishermen.I've never heard of that being done until reading your thread.

[RobDar]

Where I am...the places to launch that you DO NOT have to pay are FAR A FEW bewtween. Public Access around here has always meant, public access+launch fee. There are a handful of places that are free to launch at, but very few...and most of those are in such bad condition or in such bad areas they are not good launches anyway. Around here I actually look for the private and/or pay ramps cause they are the only ones worth a darn.

Even the DNR places that do not charge a per launch fee require a DNR lakes and river sticker on your boat which you have to buy every year.

The lakes that have free launch and have housing and/or associations have for as long as I can remember had parking restrictions and/or other way to deter outsiders from launching. One lake...if you live there there is a nice ramp to launch on...if you do not live there you have to use the really scary twisty little ramp, usually half washed out, at the end of this really skinny one way street...

this is just the way it has always been...

you have been lucky if you live in an area where this kind of thing is not the norm.

[llPa1nll]

Well years ago the State of NH gave the ramps/launches back to the towns in which they are located. The state didnt have the resources to manage all of the ramps on every lake, pond, and river. It is the towns that have control over these accesses to local water, not the state. So in turn you have state funded stocking of trout going into lakes that the average fishermen cannot access. The state doesnt have any "Lunker Program" and just by its size limits and catch dates manages bass Naturally. We do have pay launches here too. One of them being an expensive $30 each launch, this because the town and lake association "Closed" the Public Access and put up No Trespassing Signs. I eventually foresee the state having trouble selling Fishing Lic, because the amount of water open to fish is ever shrinking.

[bassnleo]

Definately a tough and disgusting situation. Your state dosen't have the money to maintain the launch facility, turns it over to the local municpality, they in turn place some frivilous restriction on it based on the lake's "homeowners association" whining.

The sad part is that it is perfectly legal. Once the lauch facility and surrounding property is given to the local municipality, they can can enact whatever restriction they want on it. By the state turning it over to a municipality, that municipality governs what can and cannot be done there.

I would contact your local bass federation clubs and see if anything is in the works to fight this growing problem. I'm sure that the federations have contacts within your state government that would hear the comments.

[BassHunter69]

these kind of things really upset me. one of the things that i dont care for are daily permit fees now at a few lakes. where you buy the yearly licence now a daily fee, plus boat ramp fee and have to have a boating licence at times it feels like a mess me over deal especially when im on s.s.i and cant afford a whole lot