How Close is Too Close?

Josh there are people who don't read, respect or abide by that good book you
mentioned.

While combat fishing the Kenai in Alaska a Japanese-looking and talking man
and woman walked down the top of the bank and he squatted about 5 feet to
the right and 3 feet behind me on the right hand side. Since I am right
handed each cast missed his head by less than a foot. Each cast I was
getting hotter and after 3-4 casts just when I was about to lecture him, he
squeezed between me and the next bank fisherman about 15 feet to my right
and started casting over my line. His wife squeezed between him and the
next fisherman who got disgusted and left. I said "You're casting over my
line." He said "No speak English." Three casts later he hooked up my
Sockeye salmon and yelled "FISH ON!" I realized he was a jerk so I cast
over his line and jerked and then I said, "FISH OFF." He and his wife left.

Josh bass fishing is getting more and more crowded in boats and bank
fishing. Rude crude people will first cast over your line and then they'll
cast over your rod! Rude crude people won't wait in line, they'll just
barge on in. I've seen it on the Russian and Kenai in Alaska and on the
Klamath in California. Oh yeah, an Alaskan fisherman said when his neighbor
pulled a knife on him, he brandished his 45 Glock and said "Come on!" I
hope it doesn't come to this in bass fishing but it will eventually - too
many fishermen and not enough water. I hope I'm not around.

Good luck!
John




"Josh" wrote in message
...
I agree with Craig. His limits are what I use also. It absolutely never
fails to amaze me how rude some guys can be on the water. I've avoided
entire banks in a back water if I see a guy already in there working. It's
also a good idea to give bank fishermen a wide birth. The way I think of
it,
I have where ever that boat can reach . . .they have the bank they can
walk.
Best suggestion is give everyone what you'd expect to recieve. I think
there's a rule in the good book like that g.

--
God Bless America

Josh The Bad Bear

Our local tournamentsjust say one boat length. That is way to close IMO.


There is so much water to cover on the river where I fish that when I am out
for fun or taking a friend I look for bodies of water I can have to myself.

On holiday weekends during the summer that is very difficult, but not
impossible. Thats one of the reason I have been studying the backwaters so
much. A couple weeks ago I made a post about fishing backwaters where I
went through some weed covered channels. I even posted some pictures.
Since then I have gone further back in those back channels and located three
more fair size back lakes. Some of the channels I had to traverse were so
covered with growth that I didn't bother to take pictures. You would have
thought it was a bank. Amazingly the boat handled them, but I did have to
put a little throttle in the big motor a couple times.

If I am fishing a known hot spot, and somebody is already sitting on top of
it I'll look to see how they are doing and I'll sit as far away as I can and
still see the area I am interested in. This is an excellent opportunity to
fish secondary areas. On one point where I have experienced feeding
frenzies in the past I have sat and watched a guy fish over it very
carefully without catching a fish while we have fished nearby shallow weed
choked coves waiting fro him to move on. IN a recent tournament that
secondary area produced a couple keeper fish for us. Another time in that
same area there were three boats hammering the point. They finally gave up
and left. Fifteen minutes later as we passed over the area the fish turned
on and we hammered them with perhaps 20 fish in 20 minutes. Five or six
were keepers.

Basically I feel uncomfortable if I am closer than a couple hundred feet to
another boat, and I would generally prefer to have the water to myself. I
am fortunate enough that I can enjoy that luxury most of the time. I have
fished out of Fisher's Landing on day when two different clubs were having
fishing events. Yuma Bassmasters had a regualr club tournament and The Yuma
Rod and Gun Club had a kid's fishing derby. One of the largest fishing turn
outs I have seen locally. The kids and I were still able to find water were
we weren't fishing with others around us.

The only exception is where there is a limited hot area for still bait
fishing. For instance. Striper on Havasu used to very hot just off the dam
with anchovie chunks. Boats would stack up just outside of the barrier
cable. That I didn't mind too much. The hole immediate area had equally
good chances of conencting.


--
Bob La Londe
Yuma, Az
http://www.YumaBassMan.com

That is very sad. I do not understand it though. Sure in some famous hot
spots, but over all? The stats recently said fewerer people are buying
licenses nationwide.


"John Lindsey" wrote in message
...
Josh there are people who don't read, respect or abide by that good book
you
mentioned.

While combat fishing the Kenai in Alaska a Japanese-looking and talking
man
and woman walked down the top of the bank and he squatted about 5 feet to
the right and 3 feet behind me on the right hand side. Since I am right
handed each cast missed his head by less than a foot. Each cast I was
getting hotter and after 3-4 casts just when I was about to lecture him,
he
squeezed between me and the next bank fisherman about 15 feet to my right
and started casting over my line. His wife squeezed between him and the
next fisherman who got disgusted and left. I said "You're casting over my
line." He said "No speak English." Three casts later he hooked up my
Sockeye salmon and yelled "FISH ON!" I realized he was a jerk so I cast
over his line and jerked and then I said, "FISH OFF." He and his wife
left.

Josh bass fishing is getting more and more crowded in boats and bank
fishing. Rude crude people will first cast over your line and then
they'll
cast over your rod! Rude crude people won't wait in line, they'll just
barge on in. I've seen it on the Russian and Kenai in Alaska and on the
Klamath in California. Oh yeah, an Alaskan fisherman said when his
neighbor
pulled a knife on him, he brandished his 45 Glock and said "Come on!" I
hope it doesn't come to this in bass fishing but it will eventually - too
many fishermen and not enough water. I hope I'm not around.

Good luck!
John




"Josh" wrote in message
...
I agree with Craig. His limits are what I use also. It absolutely never
fails to amaze me how rude some guys can be on the water. I've avoided
entire banks in a back water if I see a guy already in there working.
It's
also a good idea to give bank fishermen a wide birth. The way I think of
it,
I have where ever that boat can reach . . .they have the bank they can
walk.
Best suggestion is give everyone what you'd expect to recieve. I think
there's a rule in the good book like that g.

--
God Bless America

Josh The Bad Bear

I like to keep about one cast length from the next person. That distance will
vary depening on where and how I'm fishing. I can tell you more horror stories
than you can imagine about about trout fishing here in Pa. Sometimes an
ignorant SOB doesn't have to cast over you or fish right next to you to ruin
your fishing. Several times I hvae fished a little run in a stream that washes
under a tree on the opposite bank. When the water is low and clear, you cant
get to close or the fish will spook, so to fish this little hole, I crouch on
the opposite bank about 10 or 15 yards downstream and cast upstream of the hole
and work my lure down through. I cant tell you how many times somebody had
walked up to that tree, bent over and looked down scattering all the fish.

-Zimmy

Chuck, you're a class act. In a tournaments or not, if I can cast on
someone or they can cast on me, we're too close. It's only money. I
can make it a more honest way. It certainly isn't worth my integrity.

Jim

Chuck Coger wrote:
Some very Sensible stuff