ANYONE IMPACTED BY A VIOLENT ACT WHILE FISHING?
 

I WAS CURIOUS AFTER READING FISHWEEWEES TONGUE IN CHEEK REPLY TO THE QUESTION OF HOW HE PREPARES FOR FISHING IN THE SPRING IF ANYONE HERE HAS EITHER BECOME INVOLVED IN A VIOLENT ACT AS A WITNESS OR ACTUALLY WAS A VICTIM OF AN ACT OF VIOLENCE WHILE FISHING IN NEW ENGLAND. WE ALWAYS HEAR ABOUT CONFRONTATIONS AT HERRING RUNS, BUT I AM CURIOUS IF ANYONE OF OUR BROTHER AND SISTER FISHERMEN ON THIS SITE WERE EVER VICTIMS OF A CRIME WHILE FISHING? I HOPE THIS IS THE RIGHT FORUMN, AND THIS MAY WELL SERVE AS A "WHAT-TO-LOOK-OUT-FOR-OR-WHAT-TO-AVOID-WHILE-FISHING-QUESTION." :eyes:

I was traumatized once by watching blitzing bloofish tear a school of menhaden in to pieces.

Oh the blood!

Oh the gore!

Those poor little menhanden :crying:

Long time ago - Block Island surf - fistfight over crossed lines. Handgun exposed - local police called. A very competitive group of regulars to say the least. Not the place for the timid caster.

DZ

How come you didn't mention that in your slideshow? :conf: :uhoh: :err: :eek:

I think the most violence I'd ever prepare for would be a rogue wave. It's pretty easy to avoid confrontation unless you're prone to it yourself.

-spence

Never ever had a prob with another fisherman. I will say that when I fish the canal and certain other places late night I carry my 9MM and have for a few yrs now.

I have never had trouble but the main place I fish in an area behind a bar.
2am, drunks guys hanging out, a guy walks by wearing rubber pants....might be a receipe for trouble.

Outside of the violence that occurs when a dogfish is landed, not too much

Seen a few domestic squabbles on the side of the canal, but they dont bother anyone but themselves.

I've been involved in many a violent confrontation from my commercial lobstering days, mostly from when I was younger watching some of the old timmers out of Cohasset go at it. I've seen people throw knifes, bricks, and hammers and have seen a few people have flares shot at them and such. I've heard the stories of a few boats being rammed and the time my grandfather told my dad to get up on the bow of his boat with a baitfork and before he rammed the other boat that was cutting his traps off before his eyes to lunge forward threw the other captain with the baitfork(these people didn't mess around, things are to calm these days:-)

While fishing for pleasure I've come very close to commiting violent acts a few times, but never actualy endaged in a violent act.

Here is an example, and I would have boarded them for sure. I guess this is the hot blooded portuguese in me....

Last year while wireline jigging my friend hooked in a large striper in the 35#+ pound class. While fighting the fish a boat full of googans proceeded to drive their boat across the line while we were trying to land the fish. The line became very tight and we knew they had hooked up on our line. All of a sudden my friends line became very tight and line started peeling off his rod and SNAP, the line broke. I knew the boat full of idiots that had just crossed our line trolling at about 12kts(not kidding) and snapped our line so we drove over to them to get back the jig and wire. We didnt really care about the fish but needed the wire back since we had allready used the spare spool we had brought out. When we get over to their boat guess what I see in one of the guys hands, my friends fish with my jig hanging out of its mouth! I told him we needed back the wire, and jig back and guess what - he told me to F off. When I picked up my gaff and told them I was going to board their boat and beat every single one of them within an inch of there life they had second thoughts and handed over the wire and jig, and fish(which i was going to let them keep). When he went to hand me the fish I took it and toosed it over the side, nobody was keeping that one. In this case if that guy didn't come around I would have boarded his boat, or at least wacked him upside the head with the gaff.

If my memory serves me correctly, he did. Sometimes the tales from different people blend together for me, so I might be mistaken.

Oh. I must have ducked out to go wee-wee when DZ said that. :wall:

Anyhoo, you guys are killing me.

I go fishing to get AWAY from that kind of crap. The LAST thing I would ever want is to get into a confrontation with anyone in the deep of the night.

I'm more afraid of rabid critters (skunks, racoons) than I am with two-legged bloofish.

Ever walk along the Ditch late at night and hear the screeching of 'coons? :conf:

It's about that time when I start recalling all those awful made-for-TV Peter Benchley flicks ... :err:

Thats usually when I start walkin with my knife in my hand..

Nothing but having my vehicle broken into while fishing. Hunting is another story all together. :whackin:

I've had my truck broken into twice, once at the restaurant across from the Run, the second at Monument Beach. Oddly, it's never happened to me here on Long Island :huh:

Saltheart, Scott Branco and I had a memorable encounter with a couple of basically harmless drunks at the East End a few years back--the "designated driver" was the one who did all the talking and he was only half-way coherent :doh:

There are some places along the mainland side of the Canal where I'd be careful, but to be perfectly honest, driving home among the drunks on the road in the wee hours scares me more than anything else.

I have never been involved in any acts of violence, but I have seen many threats of violence back in the day when everybody was fishing for money. Sometimes alcohol was involved, sometimes just the nature of the people.

The place I dislike the most now is the canal. The proximity to the highway makes it easy for a druggie who wants to do a drive by robbery to have easy access and fast exit. When I fish there I am usually alone and find myself looking over my shoulder a lot more than I like.

I have watched a few but never had one myself
I would probably just walk away, unless I was
sucker punched then I would crawl :wave:

Nothin ever violent, but I am astonished at how many times I have been offered to go out for a "drink" or "dinner" :eek5: They must have been really desperate!!!!!

DZ...sounds like a blatant attempt to "scare" folks from fishing "The Block"! :hidin:

Actually almost beat the snot out of some surfers on several occasions! :rocketem:

Bob Thomas and I were fishing the canal Cape side one night down behind the Christmas Tree shop. Probably 6-8 years ago now and it was early morning 2am-ish. A man walked over to us shaking saying he was just robbed at knife point while fishing. He said a group of guys walking by grabbed his wallet. Police were called. Not pretty but he was fine and a wallet can always be replaced.
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And 4-5 years ago Bob and I "assisted" a EPO at the herring run in Bourne. Several irate guys were in his face yelling at him and it was ugly. Ever since then, the EPO stops and thanks us. No big deal though because nothing happened - just words.

Nothing has personally happened to me though.

I hope you were just extracting information about structure, poser :grins:

-spence

one night I saw a knife pulled and blood was drawn big time. it was horrible.

unfortunately Spence was the only person involved in the self mortification :laughs:

That's only because every time I fish with Eben I get skunked :devil:

-spence

A good guide's mission is to put his client on fish, not catch fish :bshake:

that was the closest Ive seen....on a couple occations :uhuh:

I ran into this guy around this time last year while fishing in my back yard who was ranting and raving how he was jumped while fishing.

He was a little battered and bloody but I think it was because he took a spill.He was absolutely hammered and kinda just babbling incoherently.That and a couple of the guides on his rod were smashed up.

Last year fishing the East end of the Canal on the Cape side all alone. The tide was running East and since I was alone I was not out at the point but I was working the the area well and getting fish..Around 2am 2 guys come out with their fishing gear head lamps on and flash lights shining all around. They come out to the end and set up right on top of me. They shine there light right in the water I was working and then in my face. I was nice and asked them to give me some room and to stop shinning there lights at me or in the water....Well they started mouthing off and I could smell the booze on them..one of them was swinging his fishing rod near me to taunt me..It was either walk away or throw them in....I decided to walk, I was not mad but was just so dissapointed in the lack of fishing respect...As I walked they kept at it...but i Kept walking.....no one else was on the canal that night so when I got to the parking lot there was only two vehicles in the parking lot, my truck and their car.....I was so tempted to check there tires for them but I did not.......

[QUOTE=S-Journey]I've been involved in many a violent confrontation from my commercial lobstering days, mostly from when I was younger watching some of the old timmers out of Cohasset go at it. I've seen people throw knifes, bricks, and hammers and have seen a few people have flares shot at them and such. I've heard the stories of a few boats being rammed and the time my grandfather told my dad to get up on the bow of his boat with a baitfork and before he rammed the other boat that was cutting his traps off before his eyes to lunge forward threw the other captain with the baitfork(these people didn't mess around, things are to calm these days:-)

While fishing for pleasure I've come very close to commiting violent acts a few times, but never actualy endaged in a violent act.

Van and I witnessed one of those close to commiting a violent acts episodes Rich!!! :wave:

Last year was bad at Block. One guy had his rod tip snapped off. A guy I know had rocks put in the cup of his reel. They actually took off his spool and put rocks inside. Another guy had stuff stolen out of his vehicle. One night there I fished with a friend and we got back early in the morning and I had a flat tire. For many years I've been going there with mo problems. You could leave your rods out and your doors unlocked. Not anymore for me.






.

A few years ago I was fishing Southwest Ledge. We had just passed over a spot and got a 35 pounder on eels. When a charter Captain set on top of my drift. I thought no big deal he will drift over the hole then I drive around and drift over it too. As I drove around him he and his crew tried to wave me off. I ignored them and set right where I needed to be. It was a dark and snotty around dusk on a Sunday night. He powered up and came roaring at me aiming foramidships, and then just missed my stern. I was in a 24-foot center console, he was in a 40-foot sports fishing boat. He charters were horrified. He stopped about 30 yards above me. I flipped out and starting screaming at him. My buddy grabbed the gaff and I got the flare gun and then I drove my boat right up to his side and called him every name in the book. I then told him I had friends in the area and we would all kick his ass. If he wanted trouble. He took off for points unknown. I asked around and found out he was from the Cape and had a rep as a tough guy. More like a douche bag to me. I will gladly share his name if you want to know PM me. Those that know me would agree that I am not a voilent person or some sort of hard ass. I think that fear motivated me to act that way. I am not proud of my actions, It would have been better to just report the incident to the Coast Guard and drive away.