Zeno - PERFECT!!! oh the horror, the horror... a fishing magazine that tells people where to fish. And at such "secret" spots too (!!!!). Hey I know - maybe the newspapers should stop being so site specific about the Red Sox and the Patriots and then I'll be able to get tickets! I used to go when there were a lot less people and I could get tickets easily, and now those damn papers keep talking about them and all those googan fans show up....grrr...let those googans find their own teams to root for, that's what I say. I worked hard to be a fan of those teams, and now I show up at Fenway and there are all these PEOPLE. I deserve to be there way more than those googans do. And the trash, lemme tell ya. :rotfl:

I'm still waiting for my september issue.. :crying: ..

So #^&#^&#^&#^&#^&#^&..."burn the spots as long as they are not your own"..."and he has not fished them in years"....."apply what he has written and go there to catch a dream fish???" If there were dream fish there why is it your buddy does not fish there????? I recall not too long ago a certain someones spots got burned in a similar way and it was an issue for him.....well I guess take care of number 1 and screw everyone else is the moral of this story!!! :af:

You also were ripping people for helping and being generous with spots and information.....when it affected you it was a problem but since this does not...then its alright! Too funny!

The point is write about a general location as most of the writers do, but don't draw a detailed map, list parking spaces, give GPS co-ordinates......give the general area and let the dang fisherman find their own way....else how are they supposed to improve, be good at what they are doing and be the kind of fisherman you guys are always whining about???

Example.....Napatree....its a great spot to fish...go there and try your luck! :uhuh:

send them to the cape :devil: got spare

you're all a bunch of poofters

:usd: :usd:

seriously, I think the only guys upset should be the guys who call that area home and/or fish it "regularly".

All you dissenters CANCEL YOUR SUBSCRIPTION RIGHT NOW !

:jump:

I resectfully disagree with that.
We all must stick together and have each others back.

Looks like we have another Tim Coleman on our hands. So I guess there will be two people bannished to Napatree.

right on the money fa18 :humpty:

I havent even received my copy yet but just cause that one wasnt written by someone on the net . there have been and will be plenty in the future .

spots I fish are private, hopefully that answers your question

Steve, has always been helpful the few times I stop into the shop. I havent read the article, I dont subscribe. But this seems like an issue worth reading, even if its for sng's

I'm a little short on time so I can't address this the way I want to.

I have not read the article yet so I can't go into detail on that but I can assume a few things from this post. Sounds like Steve went pretty detailed on spots, that is a shame, his spots or someone else's, its a shame. Someone is going to lose access and someone is going to suffer.

But while you are trashing Steve McKenna now, I guess you need to trash everyone else that talks spots too. So let's all throw Joe Lyons and Dave Pickering under the bus, Canalman, Powers, Flaptail, looks like Zeno has some spot embers coming soon, ooops Charlie Soares has diarrhea of the mouth lately, #^&#^&#^&#^&#^&#^& did a few in 5-6 years ago, Daignault - the original mass torch, wrote a book and made $$ by coopting others to burn THEIR spots, Tim Coleman (Sbass - TC is one of the good guys), Bassmaster, Mike P, et all.

Now, when you are done, go blame the Bait and Tackle shops too. I think Captain Don's has sent more people to Q in the past few years than any other source. Ballstons - what shop does not say "Balstons"????

Now that we are done crying, maybe we should address the root of the problem? PEOPLE WANT SPOTS!!! New people, old people, where are the fish at?? This is an over-generalization but you know what makes profit for fishing maggies? Boat and boat / fishing related advertisements, you know what makes people buy the maggies so they can sell the add space? SPOTS!!!!!!

I have talked to a few people (probably not who you think) that write articles for our two heroic local SW periodicals. There are more and more encouraged to write about SPOTS. Sure, give me a How-To, but be sure to add the where-to. SPOTS SELL! Sells magazines, sells books, sells website traffic. SPOTS SELL!!!!

People follow trucks to see where they are fishing because of SPOTS. It's all about SPOTS. Some of the nicest people turn into the shrewdest scum beacause of SPOTS.

What is the negative ramification of all this spot talk? ACCESS IS FOREVER LOST!!!! When a bunch of people park at X and leave trash, make noise, talk loudly at 3 in the morning, we put undue pressure on spots. It is only worse when it is on OTW or NEF just in time for the Friday crowd. And even some of the "smart sticks" from here make more noise than a heard of holsteins with their bells on. Trash, people, noise, disrespect - these are all eroding at our access. But it gets worse when things are concentrated because of an article in the maggie, or a thread on the 'Net.

You want to do something about it? Form a Coalition to stop spot diarrhea of the mouth. Tell the maggies to stop talking spots and encouraging, or practically demanding spot info in the articles. It is the CULTURE that needs to change.

But don't be a complete hypocrate and bash when odds are you have sucked up to people for spots or waited with foaming mouth for NEF or OTW to hit your mailbox and make that magical flight up into the library. Do something about the root of the problem and tell Bourque and Harvey to be far less descriptive on publishing specific locales. Or better yet, invite Gene and Zach to a lot of these spots when the floodgates open.

OK, old guy weighing in on the topic. I guess the First Amendment gives all of us the right to say (or write) whatever we want. That's why some of us went to war and fought for our Country.
I think that the issue comes down to one of ethics. Would I do it? No. Steve McKenna is a good guy but I am shocked by the article and the detail he went into. I think, in some ways, he has let down the RI fishing community that has supported him and his employer.
Bottom line, the spots he gave up will be crowded for the Fall run, but they probably would be anyway. I don't think that there is any material harm that has been done. I do think that he has done an insurmontable amount of harm to his reputation among the guys who have know and respected him for years.
It's a damn shame.

As solely a soco fisherman, this is very disheartening. My biggest problem is that he can write this article about the places he doesn't fish and have no reguard to the rest of us that do not have private property to fish on. If he wouldn't talk about these spots ten yrs ago, then why now? Because he has nothing to lose, his spots are safe. But, I have always respected him and listened when he spoke because he is a very knowledgable "old salt", but that respect just flew out the window and he seems to be just another hero....

Well, hopefully my OTW will be there when I get home. I for one would love to see OTW do a series on how to find your own spots, A sand beach guide with pictures of various soft structure, rocky areas, esturarys and rivers. Fishing spots are not that hard to find but parking spots are and are in short and endangered supply. For me a good spot will never be the one that is over publicized and crowded, but it might be close to it or even be it at the right time of night. I fish one of those spots in Maine and you should see the crowds come a few hours too late, especially on bluebird days, I don't see them out on the bar on a foggy night though or anytime when it's good fishing weather in my view.

Nice...
 

I spend all summer learning a spot to have it "outed" since it's not fished by the author any more. great. I guess when you only fish private spots it doesn't matter to you anymore how it affects others. How would he feel if his public spots were published back in the day? I imagine he would not have been too pleased.

And to those comparing this to tackle shops burning spots... Telling (being generous here) a few hundred people "hot spots" is nothing compared to all the reader who read OTW.

I noticed a slight uptick in traffic after his seminars, now? Christ I can only imagine.

Thanks Steve I really appreciate it.

I guess the only saving grace is that after a few times getting skunked, The googans will go somewhere a little easier to get to (I hope).

I agree with Piemma's and Choggieman's take on this.


I have not read the article yet but I can only imagine what it says. My problem, as others above have said (choggieman), is the basic premise that it is OK to burn spots that you are no longer fishing for whatever reason because in your small world those spots are not worth fishing. Nebe said this, #^&#^&#^&#^&#^&#^& said this, others agreed, and it seems according to #^&#^&#^&#^&#^&#^& that it was part of Steve's mindset in writing the article. Not trying to start an argument with you guys but that thinking is very close-minded and a little bit ignorant. Don't you realize that just because you don't fish them alot of other guys do? Do you think that because you think those spots are not productive any longer there are not fish there when you are not there? Maybe the reason that you stopped fishing those spots is because they became popular & overcrowded -- which is now even worse.

Sorry, I am not trying to be an A-hole, just giving my opinion & some constructive criticism.

Now, with that said, I have talked to Steve at the shop on many occcasions & seen him with customers and my opinion is that he is just a good guy who has fished alot and really takes pleasure in putting new & seasoned fisherman on fish. I really think his sole intention is to help people. Go talk to him - he is a genuine guy.

It is just a shame that the format he chose to use this time was in OTW and will cause problems at the spots he named. Unfortunately, as Piemma said, he is taking a beating on this.

i dont blame steve he gave OTW what they wanted its all about sales for them

Choggieman hit it on the head...he gives no regard to the folks who fish there! I don't fish there.....but I have seen a few of my spots torched of late....and one of them is private #^&#^&#^&#^&#^&#^&.....torched in a magazine by the way! You guys who see nothing wrong with this....you only care about yourselves.....cause its not your spot! I don't fish Rhody but I care about the guys that fish that spot because now they have to pay for Steve McKenna's error in judgement for the rest of the season and maybe longer if the place fills up with uncaring jacka$$e$ who make alot of noise and pollute the place....loss of access!!!

Alright...I have weighed in twice on this subject and that accounts for about 620 pounds past my .02 cents worth......I got no problem with giving general areas...but keep the details quiet and let the folks earn their stripes! :btu:

right, I never heard that excuse before... You know the things someone will pay you for? I guess that makes it ok? What disturbs me the most is Steve seems like a very nice guy. Here's the way I see it:
either:
A. He REALLY needs the money (which I doubt but hey, who knows).
B. He made an error in judgement.
C. These spots were not HIS spots, so, who cares if they get overun.

(My money is on a combination of B and C)

You are castrating these "new" fisherman Eben by making it "too" easy for them...as I said give areas and let them earn their stripes....or "get balls" as you say!

look bigfish- steve is not the first person to do this. i could go out and buy Striper Hot spots and go hit the cape tomorrow

When someone burns a spot publicly (I don't mean you told your friend , I mean publishing it like internet , books , magazines , talks) its because of one of two things. ego or money (or both). Some guys its very obvious , they are chest pounders with no self control.

Some guys , its hard to figure out "why".

If someone who never displayed an ego problem is suddenly " telling all" by doing shows and writing articles , expect to see a new product coming from them , or they are doing charters or they are doing shore guiding....... Get famous , make money!!! Look for the money and you'll know "why".


The morals of it are easy. Yes , you can talk about whatever you want. However , among fisherman , burning spots is like talking about kissing your old girlfriends. Its bad form to "kiss and tell" and its bad form to "burn spots" in mass media.


Striper fishing was nearly wiped out by money as people fished commercially and the stocks disappeared. Striper fishing is now being wiped out by money as people blab to gain fame and the money that can come with it and we lose access to spots do to too much pressure.

Glad I got a boat.

My take on it. If you want to tell people about spots go ahead and do it and just ignore the bitching and lesten to all the thanks yous you'll get. If you want to keep things to yourself, then keep things to yourself. IMHO you guys who are complaining about this are just selfish, like little kids who want to keep everything for themselves.

I was totally shocked when I saw it, just shook my head and said I can't believe they burned it that bad.... Unbelievable.. :exp: :hs:

MakoMike, you just don't understand the access issues. More people (especially people who get there the easy way) means less access for everyone.Its being smart , not selfish.

I just deleted my posts above. I am friends with steve and i felt the need to defend him but i have to read the article first before i justify his actions..

Couple things - Steve was shore guiding but that was an adventure of sorts and most went because they could learn technique AND spots. But that is kind of what it has always been about if you are the angler that wants to take a shore guide. Why do people hire Stezko? To see how and WHERE he fishes. To the best of my knowledge, Steve is no longer guiding, just keeping his previous commitments. And yes, Steve is a very nice guy and yes, Steve does offer good info to people, including those that are just starting out.

The problem, as I see it, is a problem with the culture of surffishing and the media that supports it and benefits from it. That problem exists here too at times as much as we try to steer off that course. Now the other problem in fishing, is that it is SOOOOOOOO damn alluring, everyone wants to find away to make a living at it so they can do it a lot more often. Some of you aspiring PLug Builders that plan to go "Professional", how much is your dream to be able to make money commercially selling plugs? I would love to open a tackle store and make a comfortable living here on S-B, but the model doesn't really work for me (I also thnk it would further erode this community). But for me, and I'm sure for some of you aspiring plug builders. it is a combination of a labor of love and coveted McDonalds Fryolator money that keeps me going. For Steve, writing an article is MickeyD's money to support the fishing habit (he ain't rich either). I wish he did not talk spots either but he may be in a position that he either gets the coin by throwing in or writing about spots or he doesn't get published. So he is making his small slice, like many building plugs, rods, commercial fishing for bass or fluke, working in a shop, becoming a Charter Service, tying flies, having an online store, the list goes on.


As for being selfish? Partly - yeh, it's tough to figure out a spot and then see it coughed up for the world. It is far worse to see a location that can't handle any pressure get over run by hordes of people, many with no regard for the surroundings. This is FAR more a pressing issue on the surf then it is in a boat in most cases. Look what the sticker problem has been at CCNS in years of late, due to overpbulicity. Look at how many more recreational nets are in the water at the Herring Runs, look at the 16 foot boats being in places they have no sense being in because of the chance of an epic blitz. Look at the shorts and sneaker wearing individual with a trout rod out on the Avenues in Gansett because he read something in a magazine. Yes, the media around fishing (including to some extent this site), is creating excessive pressure on the sport AND access with little responsibility for what is being written. People don't buy OTW or NEF for the conservation articles - they buy buy for the methods, spots, and content. People don't buy Striper Hot Spots or the OTW Shore Guide series because of the historical significance they offer - but for spots. Look in the Fisherman and see the stuff the shops put in for reports, it's all a grab for marketm get people in the door. Whether the info is factual, current, or on a rare occasion, honest. How often do you see shops saying that there is not much happening as things are slow? How often do you see three or four different shops putting in practically the same report?

There needs to be a dose of responsibility pushed into all of the fishing media. It ain't happening. Not good for sales you see.

Sheet - I'm rambling again :doh:

Makomike- some of us complainers are as far from selfish as it gets. But we are also the guys who put in the time and effort to learn by trial and error how to and where to fish. If I bust my azz to learn a new spot, and figure out how to catch fish there, how fair is it to have some guy who is done with the spot give explicit details on the exact ways to fish it , where to park etc...to anyone who can read? I think it is a good idea to give general reports, such as " fish in soco", but an explicit report does nothing but bring in every person who is too lazy to find out how to do it the hard way.
My biggest concern is with the increased traffic in these areas, the number of numbnuts who litter and bring lanterns and make lots of noise in residential areas, not to mention the poachers who take shorts, the drinkers and all the other people who give us true fishermen bad names. I can garantee the next time I step foot in anyone of the spots mentioned the litter will be out of control, the lights will be everywhere and the beer cans will be in every corner. This leads to loss of access to these spots and for us under priveleged guys without private property to fish, not only to we take the blame, we lose the spot.

Eben - past few months you have been posting and deleting quick (as have a lot of people). I think I am going to put you in "Edit Time Out" :hihi: - a joke...

:scream2: :bsod:

this is what happens when eben is home sick for over 4 days

Being someone who writes a bit, and being someone who's been flamed for it in the past (although not publicly and I thank him for that :) ). I have to say I have not seen an increase in pressure in those spots. However, my name is not Steve mckenna so people probably don't put as much stock into my articles as they do his. I will say that the magazines DO ask for spot specific articles and I have turned down many and I probably won't do one again. But what Steve did is unforgivable, I would understand if he merely mentioned the spots with some loose instruction, but this map business and the driving/parking directions is, in my mind, Taboo. So turn the key on the locks that close a few more of our ever dwindling shore access spots and know that you'll have him to thank when this happens and it will. Reading this post has taught me something too, and that is, if you write up a spot b/c you don't fish it, you could be really hurting someone else, and opening up a sacred place to people who clean out their trucks by throwing $#!+ in the bushes. Hopefully Steve will learn that lesson, the hard way, today. ;)

-Dave

bring's to mind an old saying" damed if you do and damed if you don't..

I'm an a$$ cause I won't tell.
He's an a$$ cause he did.

this is just the start of telling all and all for the $$..name in light's..chest pounding at it best etc. etc.....it's going to get worse before it get's better.

Again it goes back to the ethics of our sport. It's not so much about what was said. IT's that it was said.

I don't mind spot burning...just not mine
 

All of you defending what was written, or implying those of us upset are "sour grapes" How would you feel if YOUR spot was burned in such graphic detail? This is the old "Not my backyard" mentality. And for whoever above reprimanded others for not talking to the author, I have a letter in the mail. I just hope it gets read.

All you guys crying on here about this , probally got another 1000 copies of this months on the water bought by people who wouldnt have ever read it.

:hihi: chef, your growing on me

Screw OTW.........I Don't Subscribe Anymore! Send a message that hits home and dump the Mag!

like u know what your doing...........