I know there are a lot of boat guys in here, but Id like to hear from shore guys also..... Is there a set distance for both boat and shore dudes to keep away from each other? Ive had quite a few times when I thought "Jeez, that boat can clearly see me fishing, but still comes back and drifts right thru where Im fishing" or worse, someone sees me catching and pretty much parks the boat on the spot in front of me. What do you consider the etiquette for these situations?

PS long time lurker, first time poster

When the metal lures start wizzing by, they wont stay long.

You should fish the Gut on the Vineyard when some boat googan anchors up 75 feet away and thinks nothing of it. That anchorage never last long, see metal lures above.

The other place is the chappy side of Edgartown Harbor when a kayaker paddles by in front of 60 or 70 people looking to hookup on the albies swimming by. Have to feel bad for the yakker if he is a first timer. But many times I have seen this occur and the yakker knows the harbor and the fishermen and could have paddled to the other side of the channel well out of the way of the shore fishermen. It must be like this in other areas as well.

Surfcasters should look at boats fishing near shore like submariners look at surface ships, they call them "targets".:btu:

I think what bugs me the most is the fact that if you have a boat you have ALL THE ACCESS IN THE WORLD. When a shore guy may end up walking an hour to claim his 50 sq. feet of real estate and up the boat guy comes....you can't tell me their aren't better places to fish in a boat.

But I Digress....most of the time its somebody that just doesn't know better.

ahhh, the age old conflict of boats too close to shore.
totally agree with TDF, I mean, these guys can fish anywhere, how sad do you have to be to use surfcasters as fish finders, isn't that what electronics are for?

Happened to me this past weekend at the Race in the early AM. We drove up on some birds working bait with one boat about 200 yards from shore. Got out and started casting, then another boat screws over and starts jigging about 100 feet from shore in 10' of water through the middle of where we were casting. He made 3 additional passes until he noticed we were casting right at him.

sometimes my fish finder says 70ft from shore and thats where the fish are sorry you sand people dont like.:deadhorse:

boaters fish areas that have structure and hold fish, surfcasters fish the same areas. There is bound to be some overlap and I think common courtesy should prevail.

don't want people to think I jump in front of people on shore I dont.I was commenting about the electronics and going anywhee response.

I think common courtesy should prevail.


There is the key phrase, right there.

When it starts raining bank sinkers, its time to move your boat.

sometimes my fish finder says 70ft from shore and thats where the fish are sorry you sand people dont like.:deadhorse:

And if they get there 1st its all thiers, I always try to find my own piece of real estate to work.....my beef is when they pull up right where I've been working for an hour and take over.....or slam right into blitzing fish and put them down....its maddening.

Youre right, RIJIMMY, common courtesy is best. I have to admit though, it blows my mind when someone stays in front of you while youre casting 2 feet to the right of their bow, they watch it go sailing by, then look at you and yell out "Wow, nice cast!" It happened to me, so I sent the next one straight for the boat. I was pretty proud of my aim, for a second, then realized I might maim them, or worse, make them lose their sight in an eye or 2. So I stopped it short, VERY short, and it dropped about a foot from the boat. He still didnt get it, and actually waved to me. It sucks having a conscience sometimes

The farthest cast you can make in a boat should land about 20 feet from the farthest cast somebody on shore could make. That's my rule on the boat or the beach.

I have seen this more times then I can count I don't know if it's stupidity or or ignorance.Most guys will move away if they see you or if you ask them for some room, which we should not have to ask though.I know if I owned a boat I wouldn't be fishing close to a shore were I knew there was people fishing.There is plenty of rock piles and other structures away from the shore to fish.

I'll say this...there's just so many fish holding spots in the great pond we call the sea...should be first come gets the spot..but people in general don't give a chitt be it by land or sea.....I've been thrown at and have thrown at them....may the best caster of a 30z. bank sinker wins......or pack a paint ball gun in your gear.

I'll tell you what you don't respect my boundries when im on the shore your going to get more then a 3 oz sinker thrown at your boat.We as shore fishing guys work way to hard at getting too our spots.Now if I get to a spot and there is a boat or another guy allready there I will respect them and leave .

4 oz. Hopkins off the hull usually gets their attention. Whoops! Sorry!:uhuh:

In my surfcasting days, i never had this happen, not once. The areas I fsih would be too dangerous for boats and I fsihed mostly at night.
WHat types of areas are you guys fishing? On the opean ocean, the wave breaks would be too dangerous to be in close in a boat?

Boats I can usually work around. It is the fcking lobster pots that piss me off.

Kayakers deserve a spot in this conversation. I've had my share of issues with them the past couple seasons. Just like with surfers, it's whoever gets there first.

a nice rip around a rocky outcropping is where i fish, and I definitely see the appeal to drift it. Most of the time, there is at least 1 or 2 boats on the rip, On the weekends, there can be as many as 15 boats going back and forth, no more that 70 or 80 ft from shore If they are there when I get there, Ill move or deal with going around them if the bite is on. As always though, the bite dies as soon as the boats power in there

there was a jack@#$ going up the canal nice and slow sunday morning at slack with rod in hand ,right where we were casting top water and he new he was screwing us.

last time at one of my fav spots was quite busy...it got burned in the projo not to long ago..anyway...I get there and the place is packed, tourist taking pics, guys fishing the whole west shoreline, Boats out front drifting in casting range...The side that usually holds fish was completely full... so I chose to be different and fish the east side. then some guys show up in wetsuits and start swimming / spearfishing infront of where im casting. I cast right at there heads only coming a few feet away to sort of let them know "hey im fishing over here" but they could care less...There were no fish to be had with all the commotion so I showed the swimmers/spearfishers they were number 1 in my book with a middle finger and went on my way.. no more sunset fishing for me at that spot for a while...night time its nice and empty just the way I like it.

RIJimmy- Boats in tight to the shore happens all the time for the sand set on the Cape. Based on your post and name I suspect you probably fish mostly the rocks on south shore in RI, so you probably don't have as much conflict as no boater in their right mind would come in close to that stuff.

As for me, I cast away directly at the boat. They get the idea. 99.9% of the boat guys know they are in closer than they should be and quickly get the idea to move along.

boaters fish areas that have structure and hold fish, surfcasters fish the same areas. There is bound to be some overlap and I think common courtesy should prevail.

Yup, that's the way I operate also, it's called respect.. I give it and I expect it.... and for the clowns who think throwing metal at someone's head is the answer..remember, metal flies both ways..:faga::rollem::faga:

Small boat charter captain parks about a half cast outside of my range and puts his client onto 12-25" bass after bass.

Put on my longest plug but still couldn't reach him. Time to put some bank sinkers in the bag! :smash:

Small boat charter captain parks about a half cast outside of my range and puts his client onto 12-25" bass after bass.

Put on my longest plug but still couldn't reach him. Time to put some bank sinkers in the bag! :smash:


But if he's not within your range I don't see the issue.

I'm talking about the clowns that zip in right where you're casts are hitting....or closer

Been on both sides of the equation. Was passing through C'town breachway one time w/my brother and people were casting right across our bow. One nearly decapitated my 6 year old niece with his braided line. We did share words but moved on.
One the flip side, I’ve had people in boats pile on top of fish we were working from shore on the cape. It sucks, but get over it.
In all honesty, only a complete a$$hole would cast an object at another person. If there’s a bad situation brewing, simply move on. No need to escalate over a lousy fish.

4 oz. Hopkins off the hull usually gets their attention. Whoops! Sorry!:uhuh:

HA! here we go...what's going to happen with all these new wet suiters swimming out to rocks that the beach guys like to throw their plugs to and around....you now become the boat...is it still ok to throw a 4 oz. hopkins at you in hopes you'll move else where? when one swims to a rock 50-100' out you have now killed that area for anyone else to fish thats on the beach.

Yup, that's the way I operate also, it's called respect.. I give it and I expect it.... and for the clowns who think throwing metal at someone's head is the answer..remember, metal flies both ways..:faga::rollem::faga:

True. But tin from a 7' boat road doesn't fly nearly as far as one from my 10.5 footer does.

Been on both sides of the equation. Was passing through C'town breachway one time w/my brother and people were casting right across our bow. One nearly decapitated my 6 year old niece with his braided line. We did share words but moved on.
One the flip side, I’ve had people in boats pile on top of fish we were working from shore on the cape. It sucks, but get over it.
In all honesty, only a complete a$$hole would cast an object at another person. If there’s a bad situation brewing, simply move on. No need to escalate over a lousy fish.

I think it is completely a matter of mobility. That surf guy may have had to deal with a few mile hike with all his gear and getting into those fish is the reward for all his effort. In order to "simply move on" for a shore fisherman, that may involve a 30 minute hike that puts him maybe a mile away and tired from lugging his gear again.
On the other hand, a boater can easily just put the boat in gear and more than likely find more fish some where else. It has been said here many times that boat fishing is easier than shore fishing and I think that's exactly the reason why the tin flies.

However, this all pertains to boaters that feel the need to roll up on a school with blatant disregard. I see no reason why they can't just work from the opposite side of the school. No disruption to the fish, and tight lines for everyone.

yeah kayakers can do that too, which is annoying because it's like, why get a kayak if you can just fish it from shore anyway? I have kayaked around some of my favorite surf spots, but I was very aware to stay clear of anyone casting, that said, it's easy to forgot too and think you're the only one around, most of the time now if I kayak it's in an area inaccesable from shore, because isn't that the point? the north shore has miles and miles of rocky coast line that is private and thus inaccesible, so you can kayak or power boat as tight as you want to shore without any issues, no need to be on top of people

However, this all pertains to boaters that feel the need to roll up on a school with blatant disregard. I see no reason why they can't just work from the opposite side of the school. No disruption to the fish, and tight lines for everyone.

In my experience, boat vs. boat or shore vs. shore conflicts are much more commom than boat vs. shore or vice versa. I rarely, if ever run into boats when surf fishing. When I boat fished alot, I rarely ran into surf men. The best thing about the loss of vehicle access on the cape was the lack of yahoos tracking you down with their headlights deep in the night. This made the fish more difficult to access, but there were fewer conflicts as you were usually alone.

Oh yes, to answer the original post.....use good judgement and if you're going to cast something at someone, use an unweighted sluggo. :)

Are boat conflicts that serious of an issue at 2 or 3 am? I could see at noon on a Jetty on a Saturday in July, but not in the middle of the night.

HA! here we go...what's going to happen with all these new wet suiters swimming out to rocks that the beach guys like to throw their plugs to and around....you now become the boat...is it still ok to throw a 4 oz. hopkins at you in hopes you'll move else where? when one swims to a rock 50-100' out you have now killed that area for anyone else to fish thats on the beach.

Grapenuts...if I am out front first then its my spot.....I can always turn around and fire back! Second option is to head towards shore and kick some a$$!

You start throwing 4oz hopkins at my boat and I start throwing 9mm rounds at your head

So before all you surfguys get your panties in a bunch, the last post was meant to show how stupid this argument is. Just give each other the same respect you expect. It's real simple.

I have fished both ways from NJ to P-Town and never had a problem in the surf with boat fishermen or in the boat with surf fishermen. Just common courtsey.:smash:

On the North Shore it tends to happen a lot during the Fall Run when birds and blitzing fish are work the shore. Guys come crashing through the blitzes while you're casting....drives me friggin nuts.

It happens to me at least once a year up here at that time.

Yup, that's the way I operate also, it's called respect.. I give it and I expect it.... and for the clowns who think throwing metal at someone's head is the answer..remember, metal flies both ways..:faga::rollem::faga:


clown-no..i wasnt really thowing at their heads.. i dropped a plastic popper in a 15-20ft radious at the guys who got to close. wasnt tryn to hurt em just give em a heads up i was there too. my earlier post came across wrong. i figured they could snorkel/spear anywhere else but they didnt seem to give a s^&*, so i walked home.

I would like to think that most folks are normal thinking.The basic rule of first come first served should apply.In NJ we have jetty's that extend off our beaches.Many have the remnants of the longer rockpile that once was.Under the water line they extend out much further than what s exposed.Good fishing off the tips.Boaters know this also..If a boater comes up on me I will fire one off to the side.Most get the idea.It kinda stinks when I am Livelining.I will swim a bunker quite a bit(100 yds) from shore sometimes.There are still times all the screaming an waving still does nothing..I have had trollers pick up my line.:cens:
Then there is the blitzing fish thing where people on both sides seem to lose there minds..:eek5::err:
Casting lures at anyone is not a good Idea.Those who claim to do it should think twice.Any lure or sinker you can reach a boat with could easily kill someone...You are ultimately responsible for your actions..If you hook a boater a kayaker or a surfer..
There are times ya might get plenty angry.No inconvience is worth the consequences..

I see divers in front of me, I'll be pissed, but I have a few reasons not to cast at them
1. I know a lot of them in RI. they are good guys and wouldn't do it on purpose
2. It just isn't right. You snag them in the head by accident, you aren't going to be too happy. I dont know how good you are with a plug, but, casting a popper or hopkins, I'm not accurate to 10ft all the time...
3. They have spear guns. I don't.

I fish 99.9% at night, after dusk and before dawn.
I have had one problem w/ a Yak, who came across the front of the rocks. I posted a rant here, and got a PM apologizing w/in a day. He didnt see me on mky rock, no lights on me or him. %$%$%$%$ happens.
The only time we've seen boats that close to where we fish is when they were on the rocks. Ask PIemma... he could have fallen out of the boat, and not hit water, as the expression goes...
You guys are further reinforcing why I dont fish open shorelines during day/dusk.... I'm sure there are a lot of stupid people out there in boats, and wetsuits, but I've met my share of goons on the rocks too...

Courtesy should be in all of our vocabularies. I like fishing alone, however, sometimes I find myself in the proximity of other boats/surf guys. I like to keep a distance that allows everyone to fan cast their stretch of rocks.

Just me...Confucious say:

Treat others as you like to be treated.
Bruce

Sign me up for the "Clown Brigade" then Dave! When some tool in a boat, who can fish anywhere he would like, feels the need to crowd my zone which I was in first, probably worked hard to get to, and spent time and gas money to get there, and they feel the need to cramp in on me......YUP! I will cast close enough to let them know that HEY!, ya might want to back off cause' you just might get hit!!! Its not like I floated into their chumline or drift line......because I can't and wouldn't! As you say Dave....I give respect and I damn well demand the same!!:)

I'll add more to this very good topic.As I said earler I fish mostly from the shore with plugs.Some times boats or kayaks or divers will be within casting distance and I will yell to get there attetion or flash my light and they will usually move most people are pretty cool about it.There have been times when some yahoo a-hole boater or whoever doesn't respect the boundries,in that case I have and will again give a warning with a cast that will usually take care of things.

I also fish in a kayak around the same areas when I see someone fishing from shore I always try to respect there boundries.I have had cast cross over my bow when I haven't seen them and got the message.What really drives me crazy is when I put the kayak in at gansett pier 5 boat ramp you dont have a big area to paddle to the open ocean,and you have to cross in front of all the guys frishing on the dock and usually one or two a-holes will play touch the kayak with the plug.If Iget hit im paddling back in and sticking a knife in your leg then going to jail or would that be self defense.

This topic is an age old war, I remember how ugly it got in the late '70s and early 80's..I remember one issue on Plum Island when a boatman and a surfman got into a heated argument from their prospective perches, some how the surfcaster figured out who, what and where and sabotaged the boatmans trailer and truck.. the matter ended up in a court room.. then during the moritorium era, you could fish anywhere you wanted... no issues... only the real die hards were left and they respected each others privacy even though he fish pool was smaller.

All this is why I fish Sunday night through Thursday night... never on weekends.

I've been on both sides of the fence, I fish from a boat until October, then I fish the surf until I quit for the season... If a group of "surfcasters" are tight on a spot I've been fishing alone for some time, they are going to have to share, and in most of my experiences over the last 40 years, it hasnt been a problem, if I havent "been there lately" I'll move on and leave them to their "discovery", if the fish are there, there are usualy some close by ion a simular"spot"... if, in the coarse of the night and I'm running the last curl of the wave( via electric power) and should come across a caster I didnt know was there, I'll do what i can to continue on, moving outside of his range until I'm out of his "jurisdiction",I'll pull my lines or hold my cast until I'm past.. there's room for everyone....I dont like fishing in a crowd, thats why i have a boat... but if I'm fired upon.. I have no problem firing back... with a 12 gauge flare gun, I'll be leaving the area anyway, I have no problem defending myself....I've done it before and I'll do it again.. there is no need for beligerant behavior from anyone.. weather they are fishing from shore or a boat.....
Kayaks are realativly new on the salt water fishing scene, and few of them could use a lesson in edicate...but thats a subject for a different thread....

Everyone needs to take a deep breath and repect the "other guy" a little curtosey goes a long way....

I disagree, This target practice you preach is where the problems begin. IMO you cross the line when you try to hurt someone or harm property.

well said the heat of the moment is not worth the aftermath you made feed into.

Its just a warning shot! Usually a big splash close by from a plug will get the message across better than yelling......"Hey! Crap for brains......get your boat out of my frickin' way!".:cool:

Larry, if you're going to throw Bigfish plugs at my boat, I'll grab em' with the boat hook and cut them off. Then I'll happily move on to another spot with my new plugs.:rotf2:

Let me turn this around a bit... this morning my friend and I were fishing the Race Point area from our boat. We were jigging as I have for years in 20-30' of water, well outside of shore casting range. No problems...

Well, I snag something on the bottom and reel in a sinker with a hi-lo rig and sand eels, attached to a rod on the beach! These guys had used their kayaks to get their baits out further and now are infringing on the boat guys turf!

Now before anyone gets upset, I respectfully waived to the guy on the beach and dropped his seaweed covered baits back in. We were careful to try and go further out, but as many of you know you don't want to be too deep. I have no problem with this method, just had not anticipated it.

Personally, I never pull my boat into an area where surf guys are catching fish. If I can't find more places to go in the areas I fish, something's wrong. Rarely when the fish are blitzing are they contained in one little area. I've been on the beach side of it enough to know that it sucks to have someone drive in on you when you're fishing.

There is one thing that always gets me riled as a boater. There always has to be the couple of guys, that no matter what tide, what time, what day I drive out, HAVE to cast in front of the boat when I exit Charlestown Breachway. They look over with a frown(as if I'm in their way) and slowly reel in their line, as I slam the boat in reverse. I couldn't care about cutting lines, but it's the possibility of the line getting into my prop and fouling the seal. Gets real interesting when the breachway gets nasty with the waves. Brother Backbeach is right, If I could have jumped out of my boat and on to the rocks the day the guy cast his braid across the bow of my boat, I'd be in prison. Sonova-B put a nice red line across my daughter's neck. A quick move with my fillet knife kept it from getting worse, thank god. I barked at the guy in every concievable foul tongue and drove into the harbor with my kid screaming. Think twice next time you think of casting at or in front of a boat, folks. Someone who doesn't deserve it could end up paying the price for someone else's ignorance.

Another thing I always do when coming back in through the breach is signal to the guys on the rocks that I'm heading in. If it's at night, I'll flash my bow light or a spot light, if it's day, I'll give a wave and circle(if the water's not too rough). I always wait if someone's hooked up. Simple courtesy is the best policy, I'd say. It'd be nice if the guys on the jetty were always as courteous.

My best interaction with a boater was earlier this year. I was on a sandbar in the early AM. I was getting fish here and there, not steady but still a good bite. I see this 18 ft P.O.S. boat idling towards me in the channel but only about 50 ft away. He cut me off from where the fish were staged so I was a bit peeved. I held my rod and just watched what he was doing so this idiot didn't drift into me. I let him know, without yelling because he was in speaking range, that he was going to run aground. Now within fifteen feet of where I was standing he said back "I know what I am doing, I have been fishing here for twenty years. " As soon as he said "years" the four guys in his boat all jerked eastward in unison.

Now I could have walked over to help push him off but it was so worth seeing him and his buddy in the water up to their waists in early April. THey headed in the direction of the ramp shortly after.

What I am getting at is that it always is those who know nothing about boating or fishing or those who think they know everything and the entire water is theirs because they are the "pros". Real fisherman seem to know what the deal is on shore or from the water.

%$%$%$%$ty situation Brian.
People dont think about that when they are firing a 'warning shot'
Internet tough guys.
How many have actually cast at a boat.
My guess is fewer than talk about doing it.

running the tourboat I was cast at a few times around Fort Adams. I never purposely cut a lineor cut off a cast, like you said, it isnt a good idea for the boat. But squeeze me between a sailboat, and the fort, and I'm going over a line. I'm sure there are lots of cases of boaters encroaching, it sucks. Is it worth hurting someone? is every cast perfect? Next time you fire one 10-20ft away as a warning, think about those muffed casts your had. take a breath.

Again.
fish at night in non-boat traffic areas. you will have zero problems.
If you are fishing the galilee channel, or another breahway, or a 'popular spot in the bay' you have to expect conflict.
Deal with it.
My guess is a lot of these '%$%$%$%$%$%$%$' boaters are in BOAT areas

I have more problems with light happy surf casters than boaters...

"This land is your land, this land is my land
From California, to the New York Island
From the redwood forest, to the gulf stream waters
This land was made for you and me?"

:laughs::claps:

:rumble::lurk: This thread is even being talked about on another board by a former member...Get over it on both sides

On the North Shore it tends to happen a lot during the Fall Run when birds and blitzing fish are work the shore. Guys come crashing through the blitzes while you're casting....drives me friggin nuts.

It happens to me at least once a year up here at that time.

DF - It seems to be getting worse at PI. Always seems to be when we have a decent bite on and it usually is some yahoo who you never saw before.

I was fishing a spot that normally has very little conflict last week. A yak fisherman decided to fish right in front of me well in my casting range, he knew he was pissing me off. I threw a pencil close to him to remind him that I was there. He ignored me and intensionaly trolled right in front again. I changed to a bucktail and picked his troll up. After he realized he didn't have a fish and saw me holding his gear he got the message and moved on.:uhuh:

%$%$%$%$ty situation Brian.
People dont think about that when they are firing a 'warning shot'
Internet tough guys.
How many have actually cast at a boat.
My guess is fewer than talk about doing it.

running the tourboat I was cast at a few times around Fort Adams. I never purposely cut a lineor cut off a cast, like you said, it isnt a good idea for the boat. But squeeze me between a sailboat, and the fort, and I'm going over a line. I'm sure there are lots of cases of boaters encroaching, it sucks. Is it worth hurting someone? is every cast perfect? Next time you fire one 10-20ft away as a warning, think about those muffed casts your had. take a breath.

Again.
fish at night in non-boat traffic areas. you will have zero problems.
If you are fishing the galilee channel, or another breahway, or a 'popular spot in the bay' you have to expect conflict.
Deal with it.
My guess is a lot of these '%$%$%$%$%$%$%$' boaters are in BOAT areas

I have more problems with light happy surf casters than boaters...

Since the stone was cast my way.....folks who have fished with me have seen me toss the warning shot......no "internet tough guy" here. COMMON COURTESY is the key but the problem seems to be there is little of that to be found anywhere.....not just in fishing!:hs:

Larry that wasn't aimed just at you specifically, it's the mentality on both sides that irks me.
I'm all for common courtesy, and I agree it sucks if some boat guy gets in your way. But BrianL's story above could have been a lot worse. Tossing a warning shot is what you intend, but think about what would happen if you missed, or the guy gooses the boat and puts it where you are landing your 'warning shot'. Some kid in the boat gets a line across his neck or a 4/0 in the head.

It is only fishing.
Some boat guy gets between you and a bluefish blitz, is not life or death.

remember that guys and we'll all be much happier.


I'm done with this topic.
going back to my rocks in the dead of night where we rarely see boats in close.

Hi Brian. I think we are all on the same page...common courtesy is sorely lacking in these cases. I would never want to or try to injure someone....thats for sure. People who know me and have fished with me know I am all about the common courtesy and that I go above and beyond in this respect. I am surely not on the water to have problems.....I am there to relax and enjoy the fishing experience. I have had my share of run ins with people who just "don't get it"!! I have also done my share of walking away. I would hate to think anyone on here would intentionally or maliciously try to injure someone with a cast. Some of my posts may come across in this way in regards to this topic but that is never my intent. As said, generally a casual toss and a splash of the lure will give most decent folk an idea that they may have their boat in just a bit closer than they thought. After that.....I yell like a wild banchee and they will generally respond in kind and leave.:jump1:

In my outings it rarely happens...I mostly fish weekdays too and late nite /early am hours, and it has only happened really a few times, hardly worth getting in a lather over it. I did once yell at a boat that set up in front of me once a couple years back...it was pre dawn and he was in my way...so I flashed my light first, then said a few choice things....well he replied..."sorry a$$hole I didnt see you there!"...then took off......looks like I was the a$$hole that morning :laugha:

If you think that crap is isolated to shore fishing think again. I can't count the number of times I've been fishing isolated structure, only to have guys come right on top of me, drop anchor and start flinging their chunks right on the structure I'm fishing. No offense to you charter guys, but I'd say in my personal experience, they are the worst offenders. Not sure why that is, maybe it's the pressure to put their clients on fish and it matters not who was on the spot first.

Its because they feel they have more of a right to it than you do Bob! Its called ignorance!

At night I think you have to give boaters the benefit of the doubt that they don't know you're there onshore, though they certainly should know the beach is nearby and be mindful of that anyway. I would never cast near a boat at night.

If the light is coming up, and they can clearly see you onshore casting into the water without any doubt and you were there first, and you're not in a heavy boat traffic area like a breachway, then I can't see how any rational human being would say the boat shouldn't stay out of your casting range. Those are the situations where I adhere to the "warning shot" methodology of making sure they see my lure hit the water right nearby. That always snaps them out of it and moves them along. The frequency with which that happens convinces me that the boaters know they were pushing the envelope too far and are out of bounds....I've never had anyone yell in at me from a boat when I splashed one down near them in daylight. In most things in life, quiet departure by one party during a disagreement means the quiet departing party knows they f'ed up.

I have hemmed and hawed about posting this cause every time I talk about it I start foaming in the mouth. will try and explain this as Politically Correct way without giving too many details or swearing.
lately I have been paying a boat to take me to fish a particuar island, drop me off to comm fish, then pick me up in the morn. it is a very, very long walk to where I fish. I then swim out to rock. now last week when I was there, using my headlght very openly, bailing fish, about 10 pm a boat comes putting in to just out of casting range with an eel, drops anchor, and starts to fish. FISH GONE. I yell at him, be the better man, swim my fish in hump em to my drop point. come back, boat is gone. swim back out, start bailing fish and along comes arsewhole again, putts in again, drops anchor again. not another fish rest of night. man was I PIZZED.
so this weekend I bring young Maximilius with me. Get out to spot, swim out, 3rd cast hook up to a decent fish, and while I am fighting fish, you can guess what happened....the same Douche Bagalow comes along, drops anchor so close to us that we had to hold our eel casts so as not to put them in the boat. I think people could hear the f' bombs from Maximilius on the main land. we moved twice more and they kept doing it. the thought of swimmin out with a bag of rocks crosses my mind.
now a couple of notes. both times I was shining my light at them and asked them politely to move. then the other night it was bright it was bright as day. I can understand that when comm fishin and $s come in to mind all courtesy goes out window. but when you have a boat you can go everywhere. why park where a shore guy is casting to, regardless if I am swimming out. if I was a boat, would they do it? probably. another note a very close friend of mine knows the guy and says that's how he operates. well, a lot of things have crossed my mind of what I am capable of and about how I am going to react when said Douche Bagalow does it to me again. hopefully it won't

I FEEL YOUR PAIN. MAYBE A KAMIKAZE MISSION, SWIM OUT AND CUT THE ANCHOR LINE.

I have hemmed and hawed about posting this cause every time I talk about it I start foaming in the mouth. will try and explain this as Politically Correct way without giving too many details or swearing.
lately I have been paying a boat to take me to fish a particuar island, drop me off to comm fish, then pick me up in the morn. it is a very, very long walk to where I fish. I then swim out to rock. now last week when I was there, using my headlght very openly, bailing fish, about 10 pm a boat comes putting in to just out of casting range with an eel, drops anchor, and starts to fish. FISH GONE. I yell at him, be the better man, swim my fish in hump em to my drop point. come back, boat is gone. swim back out, start bailing fish and along comes arsewhole again, putts in again, drops anchor again. not another fish rest of night. man was I PIZZED.
so this weekend I bring young Maximilius with me. Get out to spot, swim out, 3rd cast hook up to a decent fish, and while I am fighting fish, you can guess what happened....the same Douche Bagalow comes along, drops anchor so close to us that we had to hold our eel casts so as not to put them in the boat. I think people could hear the f' bombs from Maximilius on the main land. we moved twice more and they kept doing it. the thought of swimmin out with a bag of rocks crosses my mind.
now a couple of notes. both times I was shining my light at them and asked them politely to move. then the other night it was bright it was bright as day. I can understand that when comm fishin and $s come in to mind all courtesy goes out window. but when you have a boat you can go everywhere. why park where a shore guy is casting to, regardless if I am swimming out. if I was a boat, would they do it? probably. another note a very close friend of mine knows the guy and says that's how he operates. well, a lot of things have crossed my mind of what I am capable of and about how I am going to react when said Douche Bagalow does it to me again. hopefully it won't

Most normal people would have been fuming also
I got aggrivated just reading it:nailem:
good luck with that
if you can show restraint, you're a better man than I.
if that is his M.O. , he is just begging to learn a lesson is what it sounds like to me, that is just evil what the no class douchebag did.
As long as it's open water, that stuff will happen I guess. don't make it right but.....

Redlite....I will go with you!:btu: He will bother you no more!

Mike:
I'd be pissed too. What can you really do about it? Short of carrying a side arm and firing a couple of shots across his bow, nothing. He's a jerk and if you start throwing plugs or tins at him he will pull anchor, move out of range and wait you out. Remember he's nice and comfy in his boat and you are in the water.
So I guess the answer is to try and reason with him. Explaining that you are also commercial may help but I doubt it with this guy. If it were legal I would shoot the bastards boat a couple of times.

:smash:With all this talk about shooting people, maybe you ought to change your handle to Paulie Walnuts..

:smash:With all this talk about shooting people, maybe you ought to change your handle to Paulie Walnuts..


Brian, it the old Nam vet coming out of me...

Brian, it the old Nam vet coming out of me...

Im going nowhere freakin near you next time I see you out there!

Im going nowhere freakin near you next time I see you out there!

Jimmy, you know me better than that. I just hate reading stuff where guys like Mike (redlite), who's a good guy, get screwed with by some a*&$#le.

BTW, where you been? I have been where I see you all the time but I haven't been seeing you lately.

Jimmy, you know me better than that. I just hate reading stuff where guys like Mike (redlite), who's a good guy, get screwed with by some a*&$#le.

BTW, where you been? I have been where I see you all the time but I haven't been seeing you lately.

been fishing the east side in new and unchartered waters, just trying new areas at night with eels. Didnt do any bass fishing this weekend, just island hopping with the kids.

1st guy usually gets priority in my book surf or boat.....but I'll admit to having had "words" :fury:with guy's who stake out a popular location on a busy day and then get irate if you get remotely close ...or worse ...late comers who pull into a location and pull the same stunt. :smash: I've experienced more problems with other boats than with surfcasters and giving a guy his surfcasting space is common sense but I don't think a boat making an occasional pass by your area is out of line (especially if you're drowning a chunk in 20 ft. on the bottom) and if it's spooking all the fish how come we're still catching right behind the boat?
On a humerous note...I was part of the ultimate boat/shore guy confrontation back in my bass tournament days. We were running to the North Hero area of Lake Champlain and had to go through about 1/2 mile of 1 ft. deep sand flats that led to a bridge at the entrance to the Hero section. Now you either had to trim up and dredge bottom through this section or goose it and literally fly at 60 MPH with only a little lower unit and the pad touching the water....being bass tournament guys in mega HP rockets we all chose the goose and go method. :jump1: We had been told that you couldn't run the bridge (it was only about a 20 ft. opening) or you'd be DQ'ed so everyone opted for a Nascar style stop and go where you'd hit a deep hole at the bridge..chop the throttle..and pop back on plane in the blink of an eye before the sand grabbed you as you came out. Now unfortunately this little hole at the bridge was also a popular area for the local bait dunkers and the bridge was packed shoulder to shoulder when the flotilla of bass boats coming through at 6:30 AM took them by surprise. We were the 2nd boat through and I've never seen guys reel so fast or curse so much in my life :grins: I think the later boats took a few coffee's and sinkers but casualties were light. PS The drags on a couple of Zebco's and a Long Beach are no match for a Yammie 150 powered Ranger.:devil2:

Great story!!!

From where I'm sitting I have a nice view of lake Champlain. That spot isn't just for bait dunkers. It's a great spot to catch landlocked salmon on the fly. I'd have been throwing coffee.

And I wouldn't blame you a bit JB...hell I'd have been throwing the whole thermos. Give a BASS guy a fishing shirt with a few sponsor patches and all common sense goes out the window. :banano:

Most times it is a misunderstanding or maybe the excitement of the moment. I was fishing from shore Monday morning, had a fish on, it was breaking water, and here comes a boat guy. Now it is fine with me enough fish to go around, but the guy almost runs the breaking fish over, then stops and starts casting toward me standing knee deep in water. He starts asking about how the bite is, I land my fish and say "fishing is good, did you see me playing the fish?" He says no. Then he starts trolling tube and worm in circles maybe 30 yards from me. I just move on...yes I was in a bit of disbelief but oh well...
He got zip nothing nada...I landed one more and held it up showing him the fish...sort of saying see dummy this is how it is done.:laugha:

my two cents...

PS The drags on a couple of Zebco's and a Long Beach are no match for a Yammie 150 powered Ranger.:devil2:

LOL. The lower unit seals on a Yami 150 are no match for 8lb mono. Been there done that. $$$$

1st guy usually gets priority in my book surf or boat.....but I'll admit to having had "words" :fury:with guy's who stake out a popular location on a busy day and then get irate if you get remotely close ...or worse ...late comers who pull into a location and pull the same stunt. :smash: I've experienced more problems with other boats than with surfcasters and giving a guy his surfcasting space is common sense but I don't think a boat making an occasional pass by your area is out of line (especially if you're drowning a chunk in 20 ft. on the bottom) and if it's spooking all the fish how come we're still catching right behind the boat?
On a humerous note...I was part of the ultimate boat/shore guy confrontation back in my bass tournament days. We were running to the North Hero area of Lake Champlain and had to go through about 1/2 mile of 1 ft. deep sand flats that led to a bridge at the entrance to the Hero section. Now you either had to trim up and dredge bottom through this section or goose it and literally fly at 60 MPH with only a little lower unit and the pad touching the water....being bass tournament guys in mega HP rockets we all chose the goose and go method. :jump1: We had been told that you couldn't run the bridge (it was only about a 20 ft. opening) or you'd be DQ'ed so everyone opted for a Nascar style stop and go where you'd hit a deep hole at the bridge..chop the throttle..and pop back on plane in the blink of an eye before the sand grabbed you as you came out. Now unfortunately this little hole at the bridge was also a popular area for the local bait dunkers and the bridge was packed shoulder to shoulder when the flotilla of bass boats coming through at 6:30 AM took them by surprise. We were the 2nd boat through and I've never seen guys reel so fast or curse so much in my life :grins: I think the later boats took a few coffee's and sinkers but casualties were light. PS The drags on a couple of Zebco's and a Long Beach are no match for a Yammie 150 powered Ranger.:devil2:

North Hero area is one of the most amazing bass fisheries, isn't it? I've had three trips up there, all of them amazing. Which bridge are you talking about?