by Baughb » January 25th, 2015, 11:09 am
Last wednesday and thursday on the upper and the lower, there seemed to be a whole butt load of people on the water that were new to it. At the lower, as I rigged up at my car, the only car, on a turn off along chalk bluff, a "guide" in his truck drove up with 4 people and got out and handed each of them their rigs. I sped up my preparations and hoofed it to the water. Fortunately, he took his flock downstream as I went upstream, which was appreciated. I didn't have any crowding issues which again, was appreciated.
Thursday on the Upper, I parked downstream a ways as my little sedan is not a high clearance vehicle and fished upstream past the confluence of Hot creek. Having a good day fishing deep I started noticing groups (about 4) of fishers arriving with one of them being the rodless, guide. By 2pm I looked up and counted 27 people, besides myself recreating on the river. I have never seen so many before. BUT, I was respectful and respected by the others and a known guide to me, took his newbies downstream of me well away from the river and not before asking if I was working up or down stream. So while there are rude fishers about, I believe that they are vastly outnumbered by those who love these rivers and are courteous people of character. That's my story and I'll stick with it.
My only negative guide encounter happened last year on the lower by 5 bridges as a well stickered boat of a sierra guide service just blew through the sweeping run that I was fishing with no regard for me at all. The best part was as he was floating through the section, I caught a decent brown right off his bow on a dry while his client watched. Which was nice.
"He told us about Christ's disciples being fishermen, and we were left to assume, as my brother and I did, that all first-class fishermen on the Sea of Galilee were fly fishermen and that John, the favorite, was a dry-fly fisherman."