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Forum nameFreshwater Fishing in California
Topic subjectWhose spot is it? (Fishing spot ethics)
Topic URLhttp://www.calfishing.com/dc/dcboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=3&topic_id=18445&mesg_id=18445
18445, Whose spot is it? (Fishing spot ethics)
Posted by jigndoublewide, Tue Nov-27-12 09:26 PM
Had a few situations come up while fun fishing summer, where who had the "right" to a spot. Being summer and not caring, I gave up first rights on a spot.

Situation 1 Small lake

I am fishing a section of bank in a cove, up to a long point, I cannot see the other side which is another cove created by the point. There is grass encompassing both coves and sides of the point and the grass goes out to deeper water. This is a good spot but it is not well known or fished a lot by other anglers.

I fish up to the point, catching a few small fish and now am coming out of the cove, out onto the point and surprise, there is another fisherman coming out of the other cove fishing the same point I want to fish. We are both equal distance from the actual point. I am in a float tube, he's in a plastic pelican type boat with a trolling motor. The way the point is laid out we fished up to it with seeing or hearing the each other.

I pick up my bait and back off to where I do not move up to the point and do not cross the point, basically I go backwards but out to deep water and go fish another spot, and went back to this spot after dark.

Whose spot was that? I have no problem giving it up since I know I am going to fish for a long time today/tonight and will have another shot at it but what if it was a tournament? Call out to do odds or evens?

Situation 2 Medium sized lake

There is a stretch of bank next to a tiny cove, with a little mouth. This stretch has a ton of falling trees, brush, logs, and other wood. This is a real good but well known spot, and a lot of people fish it.

I come in from the main lake to fish it, on the other side of the stretch is a guy in a 14ft aluminum fishing the mouth of the cove but his boat is pointing to the woody stretch, he is not on the stretch and has not casted to it and his boat is slightly moving towards the stretch. I know he is planning to fish that stretch from the other side out to the main lake.

I back off again wait til he fished half way through the stretch, and approach the stretch from the cove, the same way he did. I call out if it was ok if I fished behind him, he happily said of course, I fished half way through the stretch, saw that he was really taking his time with the last bit of stretch which has a few sunken bushes next to a long log.

I do not continue along the stretch, I back off again and head off to fish a down lake spot.

Could I have fished that spot from the mainlake side? He was at one end, I was at the other, the stretch is pretty long 80ish yards.

What is interesting is in Situation 1 We fished up to each other pretty close with out knowing about the other, Now here I see the other angler but could begin fishing the stretch ith out encroaching or crowding. I would stay on one side of it and not cross the half way mark, basically splitting it with him, is that right? Also does the type of boat matter in these situations?

I know in boating right of way, wind or non power craft have right of way over powered craft, but does that apply to fishing?

I have a few more situations I might ask about but these two I think are interesting and related.