Etiquette

[midger]

Well, the season is about to open again, and undoubtedly, we'll all be confronted by hole jumpers, San Juan waders, bank stompers, and the like. This link appeared on Westfly and it covers the Owyhee River etiquette, but could just as well refer to any watershed (river/stream) we may fish. Please note the links at the bottom of the article as well, as these are links to other good articles about Fly Fishing Etiquette. I guess the best way to sum it up is:

Treat other fishers how you'd like them to treat you.

http://www.troutlie.com/tl_owyhee_river_etiquette_manifesto.htm

What do you think? I personally don't even like the 50 yards suggested, and prefer a couple hundred yards or more, so that's why I pretty much fish midweek and in locations where I don't usually see anybody.

[Chris Kuhn]

Well now on a small stream 50 yards could give you access to 3 or 4 pools. On some of the East Coast streams I fish, 50 yards would be impractical. But I think much of that depends on the river.

[rayfound]

I don't like people period. I go where I hope to not run into anyone at all, and I'll just keep walking until I can find a piece of water to call my own (Or to share with those in my group).

If you go with me, etiquette be damned - you're a buddy, you can * me over and do whatever you want, you won't * me off. Just try to be nice to the fish, and I'm happy. If I start bothering you with something I'm doing, tell me to knock it off. But, I like to leapfrog, share water, take turns, You cast right I cast left, whatever. Our lines might get tangles, and I might piece your ear with my fly, but its barbless damnit, and we came as friends - there's nothing that can happen on a trout stream that could possibly change that.

On a small creek, we should be well out of sight of each other, unless we came to fish together, then whatever goes.

[Chris Kuhn]

I generally try to give as much room as possible however if someone shows up and fishes a hole I am not fishing, well first come first served. I'll just hop around him/her as I work up stream. Again I think part of that is an East Coast thing.

And yes fishing with buddies is fishing with buddies.

[midger]

Well now on a small stream 50 yards could give you access to 3 or 4 pools. On some of the East Coast streams I fish, 50 yards would be impractical. But I think much of that depends on the river.

I also thought that 50 yards was way too close, but that article was written for the Owyhee, and that would probably work there given the way it fishes and how the browns hold. I can guarantee that on the San Juan, if you get 50 yards you'd be lucky. Folks there will cast into your waders and often walk through the runs you are fishing. I've even had strangers cast over and hook my line while I was drifting midges. It's a combat fishing river, hence I haven't been back in 5 years.

I also agree with what Ray said as far as fishing friends are concerned, but the articles are stressing folks you didn't come with and that you don't know. Common sense should rule, and again, you should treat other anglers how you'd like to be treated.

I've found that packing a 357 and every now and then, popping off a round, gives you plenty of room.

[Chris Kuhn]

We have a river in NY called the Salmon River. Every year they have a run of hatchery pacific salmon and steelhead that people go up there to fish. On the NE board someone asked if there were any special equipment he needed to fish that run, someone told him elbow pads.

Now I know Rockie mountain guys that complain if you give them anything less than 100 yards. I think in some areas local custom prevails.

That is sad to hear about the San Juan as I would love to fish that someday.

[midger]

Chris,
The fish are large and healthy looking in the SJ and it is a great midging river, but etiquette there is "different" than anyplace I have ever fished. I guess I should say "lack of etiquette" as it is really the only river where I've been pi$$ed off many times. There are places you can go and find solitude though. IM me before you go and avoid Texas Hole and the flats above it.

[Sheriff Joe]

Agreed about the SJ, however, those flats above Texas Hole are where Chris hooked into his biggie in December. Of course, we were lucky to hit it on the one in a hundred day when there were hardly any others (in a blizzard).

I was thinking about this on the EW last week, because there is a lot of pressure there (esp in the first mile or so beneath the dam). There was always someone fishing the spillway pool, and since they were consistently getting fish, I was considering waiting around for them to finish up. It sucked that it even came to that (me wondering what an appropriate amount of time to fish one good pool or wait for it would be), and I ended up just heading off downstream, but sheesh, time increments are the last thing I want to think about when I'm on the river...

You guys are right, though. Anybody else on the river that I'm not there with sucks. What elitist bastards we've become. I think I just hate people....

[Sasha]

Thanks for hot spotting that river



I was on the river mentioned in that article this past Sunday and boy was it crowded. I even had one guy come up and as I was about to say something he noticed me and started to head back down river. I have not had any real issues there, who knows maybe I have just been lucky.

[Chris Kuhn]

You guys are right, though. Anybody else on the river that I'm not there with sucks. What elitist bastards we've become. I think I just hate people....

You know I was fishing a local river a few weeks ago and I was thinking why am I the only one pulled off here? There were several really good holes, in fact I didn't even have time to fish them all. There are some pretty decent fish all rising readily to dries. Can it really be because there are people picnicking on the bank of the river? They are not fishing and no one was swimming. Just eating their tortillas and chicken on the side of the river. Fine, I'll take it if that is what it takes to get a beautiful spot to fish with little or no hassles and no other fisherman.

[castaway]

I also agree with what Ray said as far as fishing friends are concerned, but the articles are stressing folks you didn't come with and that you don't know. Common sense should rule, and again, you should treat other anglers how you'd like to be treated.

I've found that packing a 357 and every now and then, popping off a round, gives you plenty of room.

I think there was a joke written about this once...

[Papasequoia]

This thread reminds me of why I prefer not to fish a certain creek that gets warm from volcanic activity. Oh yeah, and the main reason I hate golf. There's plenty of reasons why not to like golf, (a good walk spoiled as Mark Twain once called it), but waiting for the people in front of you to move on so you can tee off, then having people standing around glaring at you from behind waiting for you to get out of their way so that they can tee off, well, that tops the list for me. The thing with fishing is, except for those very popular streams, getting crowded is a relatively occasional thing. On a golf course? Forget it. It's a constant unless you're on a private course, or midweek in the off-season, etc. And god forbid you should spend more than two minutes looking for a ball lost in the rough. Man, I was glad to quit that game when my mother passed away (she used to like me to play a round with her when I visited). I'll take fishing any day (although the 357 magnum comment sounds like a good tip)

[castaway]

Nice work wth words Jon,

I gave up golf as well... but fishing "volcano" creek is much like golf...

[Sasha]

I still think the best places to fish are the ones where you don't have to worry about etiquette because you and your friends are the only ones there

[209er]

Hello Midger,
I agree with you about the large trout and the lack of et. I went there with high expectations but it didn't take long to pop my fantasy.
That was '90 and I haven't been back since. Actually the Lower Owens got that way in the early 90s and I quit it until just a few years ago. The squids are still there, I've just learned to ignore them. I just don't get it. Same with poachers. 209er