NE Fishing Etiquette

[HEADIES]

I think the kayakers who get worked up are a lot of the folks who are just new to the water, in general. I know there was a big rant on Kayak fishing dot com, RE motor vessels going by them at speed. The irony is, I would never take my skiff down the class IV rapids in the Chattooga river – I would not run my boat through the breaking surf at the beach – most people would not. But, Kayaks do it all the time. I’ll never forget being out at 9 mile in my little boat a few years back – I could see a big pink blob on the horizon coming my way from further off shore. A few minutes later, here comes the guy with a GPS on the front of his pink plastic Kayak! Then it struck me, he can’t run out of gas, get a dead battery or have a breakdown. If he gets swamped, his vessel can be righted and go on as usual. So, how vulnerable is who?

Not really.......A big wave can tip even an experienced kayaker into the water if its the wrong angle. As far as taking them offshore, thats a HUGE paddle and not for me but Im not gonna stop you if you want to try it. Access in the creeks is better for Kayaks but there are still limited places to launch from. So saying he should stay out of a big river is pretty ridiculous since he has to start somewhere.

As for goin in the water, if he tips he is probably going to lose a good portion of his gear and if the current is rippin probably his paddle and then there is the whole hypothermia thing.

Not tryin to breakdown your whole post but if you spend any amount of time in a Kayak you might come to these realizations.......As for a pink Kayak, that sounds pretty gay.

[CptMike]

NE Fishing Etiquette.........oxymoron!

[Sea Snake]

NE Fishing Etiquette.........oxymoron!

Capt Mike.....moron !!!


Touche'....beeyach

[fishmounter]

Not to steal the thread but I was fishing the south jetty this weekend and had several boats run within 50 ft of me while I was anchored up close to the rockpile...people just don't realize that they put off more of a wake doing 8-10 knots than they do idling by...I understand it's the inlet, but if I'm running at the inlet I'm betweeen the bouys...if I'm lookin for a spot to anchor, I'll put out as little wake as possible.

Back to your question...if by "motoring" you mean running past you and not idling by, then that's just not very considerate...I always slow to an idle when passing someone in a creek.

I'm with you. I have fished the jetties for years anchored close to the rocks only to have some nimrod (being nice) Blow by and wake me to where I have to crank up the big motor just to stay off rocks.
Kinda like it quiet when fishing. Last week had morons blow by me at 10 plus knots only 100 feet away. Why don't people get it?

[reed]

Expecting people to idle around at the Jetties, Mayport or St Augustine because you are fishing is just crazy! It's like fishing in a Ski Zone and getting pizzed when someone goes past you! Look where you are! I know a lot of us like to think those rocks are there just for us to fish but that's not what they were put there for........ Container ships, Aircraft Carriers, trawlers, and 50ft sportfishing boats go through there. If you are in that area fishing you better be paying attention to your surroundings and be prepared to deal with whatever wake is coming at you. If you or your boat cant handle it safely you should not be there!

The Mayport Jetty serves one of the biggest ports on the eastern seaboard, and the US Navy! Not to mention the fishing industry (both sport and recreational). And recreational pleasure boaters that don't give a crap about fishermen. Do not expect any of them to slow down for you.

[aitkenkingfish]

I hate passing boats on plane but I use horse shoe creek boat ramp & it has some down right impassable spots if your not on plane & quite often boats anchor in the middle of an 8 foot wide channel which forces med to run my boat over shallow sections i'm at full tilt. That being said i'm running a cat & at full throttle I put out a much wake &I do at u idle

[brad safreed]

Boy this really blew up. I guess to sum it all up from what I'm reading, it's OK to go at idle speed past someone working in a creek, if you can safely do that, just try and be respectful. I still think I'd have a really hard time idling past someone with a trolling motor and lines in the water. I just hope we can all get along and catch some fish. That's what it is all about anyway.

You just have to get over the flats fishing mentality. If you are working a creek that has more water past the point where you are, then you should expect that someone will want to access it. Think of it as a necessary evil.