Etiquette/Manners Question.

Breck

Breck

The Whisk(e)y Dick
On Saturday, I was in my boat with the Mrs and our buddy Aaron. We were fishing one of the harbors on the Columbia on the WA side near White Salmon for smallmouth bass. There is a little public park next to the boat ramps with picnic tables and a restroom. Lining most of the harbor shoreline are thick blackberries but there were a few rocky spots that were accessible to the water. We had spent the morning moving from spot to spot. Fishing was slow, but we were getting a few bites here & there. I decided to move to one of the open spots by the park where there was a break in the blackberries. I dropped anchor and after a few casts, landed a nice fat smallmouth. I figured this spot was as good as any so I figured we'd stay for a bit and see if we could pick up a few more (don't leave fish to find fish, right?). a couple of minutes later this woman shows up with her giant lab and proceeds to throw a ball into the water right where we were fishing. I stewed on this for a bit and got more pissed off with every second that ticked by. Finally, I had had enough. I said, "You know, we're fishing here." I didn't yell or scream. I was calm for the most part. No swearing. Here's how the rest of this interaction went.

Karen: "Where the fuck else am I supposed to go? This is a public park."
Me: I threw my hands up in the air in an "I don't know" type of gesture. "Literally anywhere else" I replied.
Karen: "I was being considerate. Next time I'll throw the ball right at you!"

This really got my hackles up but I managed to keep my cool and didn't say anything else and just kept fishing. After a few more tosses of the ball, she took her dog and left.

Me to the other two in my boat: "Damn. That was really rude."
The Mrs and Aaron both: "I would have said the same thing if I was her."

I was flabberghasted. Now, neither of these two are lifelong anglers like me. I am well versed in the ins and outs of fishing etiquette and protocol, but I began questioning my reaction and doubted whether my reaction was appropriate. It bothered me the rest of the weekend.

Am I the asshole here? What would you have done?
 
You were there first....however. You have more options than her. In the spirit of sharing public places you had more options. What if it was a kid trying to fish instead of a dog owner? Would you be as pissed? I'm guessing you might think it's cool the kid is out fishing instead of sitting at home on his phone. And you probably would've given him space?

I think I'm with the Mrs on this one. :)
 
Hard to say. More importantly, did the dog get to swim enough? That’s the other perspective here that hasn’t been discussed.

Seriously though, it’s cool that you’re reflecting on it. And that your friend and lady can call you out and you aren’t seeming all pissed off.
 
Yes, you were the donkey here...

:D :LOL::ROFLMAO:
 
I think I'm with the others in that with a boat, you have far more options. That said, I'm fairly certain I would have had the same reaction if I were in your shoes especially since you were there first. She should have at the very least communicated with you prior to sending her dog into the water right there.

You should carry a hookless teaser for dogs in situations like that...
 
I find myself in this situation quite often, though while beach fishing. Rock throwers, ball throwers to dogs. I’ve felt like I’m invisible many times. I’ve had German shepherds swim circled around me, golden retrievers stomp on my rod, almost been hit my flying sticks and rocks.
I’ve come to the conclusion that these folks don’t fish and are oblivious to what they are doing and how it interferes with your fishing.
I try not to get pissed, but it is hard not to at times. I’m not saying you are wrong as every situation is different. You handled in a way you thought was appropriate.
SF
 
You weren’t wrong to be annoyed, it sucks when oblivious people blow up your spot. But the damage was already done once the dog jumped in the water, so a confrontation doesn’t really fix anything. Better to just grumble to yourself and motor off.

As Sartre said, “Hell is other people.”
 
My general rule of thumb, first come first serve. Yes, it's public land, but that doesn't mean you are guaranteed to be able to do whatever you want wherever you want. If someone is already doing something where you want to do your thing, whatever it is, you should find somewhere else or have the courtesy to ask the other people who are in the area you want to use if they mind sharing that space.
 
Snopro said:
Plenty of water access on the Bingen waterfront where she could have played with the dog. No reason for her to crowd you.

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That's where we were. and yes, she could have chosen any number of other spots to swim her dog where there weren't people fishing. That's the part that really bothered me. I'm a dog lover. I swim my dog all the time. I never swim my dog where there are people fishing or engaged in a splash & giggle. I find another spot.
skyriver said:
What if it was a kid trying to fish instead of a dog owner? Would you be as pissed?
Click to expand...
Probably not. If that was the case, again, there are plenty of other options for shore fishing as well. I'm not an unreasonable person, but I was raised with the mindset of if there is someone engaged in an activity in a public spot and they were there first, find another spot.
 
Long_Rod_Silvers said:
My general rule of thumb, first come first serve. Yes, it's public land, but that doesn't mean you are guaranteed to be able to do whatever you want wherever you want. If someone is already doing something where you want to do your thing, whatever it is, you should find somewhere else or have the courtesy to ask the other people who are in the area you want to use if they mind sharing that space.
Click to expand...
Bingo.
 
I would have been upset too. I was thinking about posting a similar question. Sorry if this is a hijack.

Yesterday I was fishing a popular run down from the Mecca campground on the Deschutes. A young couple walks down to the river 15 feet from my backpack and other rods on the bank and ask "are you fishing here?" I was upstream maybe 50 feet. I said "Yes, but I am about to leave so go ahead." I talked to them for a bit and went down to my next spot. 15 minutes later they show up again. They sit on the bank a short cast below my stuff while while I work upstream. I figured they were going to wait until I left. 5 minutes later I look and the guy is fishing the best spot in the run. I had fished it tight line but planned to throw a bobber to the deeper section when I was done fishing the run with the Euro rod. I asked him to move on.

The river was not that crowded. I wouldn't even think about asking. How close would you start fishing to someone in a situation like this?
 
if the public has options, as u say, i am with you.

if some other dog owner had come up with a pack of dogs and started running them out in the river and carousing, i suspect the 'lady' would not have appreciated.
 
Breck said:
That's where we were. and yes, she could have chosen any number of other spots to swim her dog where there weren't people fishing. That's the part that really bothered me. I'm a dog lover. I swim my dog all the time. I never swim my dog where there are people fishing or engaged in a splash & giggle. I find another spot.

Probably not. If that was the case, again, there are plenty of other options for shore fishing as well. I'm not an unreasonable person, but I was raised with the mindset of if there is someone engaged in an activity in a public spot and they were there first, find another spot.
Click to expand...
Maybe a different way to look at it...What do you think is going to happen if you anchor up right in front of a park?
People go to parks right? 😁

I love having a boat to get me to spots that the masses can't get to. She's looking out past you at the acres & acres of water available to you because you're in a boat. I'm not saying she was correct. It was rude of her to crowd you. But dude, you had to see that one coming.
 
I think you were right in telling the woman you were fishing, which would be obvious to any of us* on the forum, but it probably meant nothing to her, she didn't understand she'd "blown up" your water. Maybe next time she might think about it, maybe. Thanks for sharing.


*"...obvious to any of us on the forum" then again, that's doubtful anymore.
 
Breck said:
On Saturday, I was in my boat with the Mrs and our buddy Aaron. We were fishing one of the harbors on the Columbia on the WA side near White Salmon for smallmouth bass. There is a little public park next to the boat ramps with picnic tables and a restroom. Lining most of the harbor shoreline are thick blackberries but there were a few rocky spots that were accessible to the water. We had spent the morning moving from spot to spot. Fishing was slow, but we were getting a few bites here & there. I decided to move to one of the open spots by the park where there was a break in the blackberries. I dropped anchor and after a few casts, landed a nice fat smallmouth. I figured this spot was as good as any so I figured we'd stay for a bit and see if we could pick up a few more (don't leave fish to find fish, right?). a couple of minutes later this woman shows up with her giant lab and proceeds to throw a ball into the water right where we were fishing. I stewed on this for a bit and got more pissed off with every second that ticked by. Finally, I had had enough. I said, "You know, we're fishing here." I didn't yell or scream. I was calm for the most part. No swearing. Here's how the rest of this interaction went.

Karen: "Where the fuck else am I supposed to go? This is a public park."
Me: I threw my hands up in the air in an "I don't know" type of gesture. "Literally anywhere else" I replied.
Karen: "I was being considerate. Next time I'll throw the ball right at you!"

This really got my hackles up but I managed to keep my cool and didn't say anything else and just kept fishing. After a few more tosses of the ball, she took her dog and left.

Me to the other two in my boat: "Damn. That was really rude."
The Mrs and Aaron both: "I would have said the same thing if I was her."

I was flabberghasted. Now, neither of these two are lifelong anglers like me. I am well versed in the ins and outs of fishing etiquette and protocol, but I began questioning my reaction and doubted whether my reaction was appropriate. It bothered me the rest of the weekend.

Am I the asshole here? What would you have done?
Click to expand...
Definitely not…
 
skyriver said:
Maybe a different way to look at it...What do you think is going to happen if you anchor up right in front of a park?
People go to parks right? 😁

I love having a boat to get me to spots that the masses can't get to. She's looking out past you at the acres & acres of water available to you because you're in a boat. I'm not saying she was correct. It was rude of her to crowd you. But dude, you had to see that one coming.
Click to expand...
It hadn't been an issue up until that point. We had already tried all the other spots. There was one point where we were anchored up and a couple of kids walked up and clearly wanted to fish from the shore where we were anchored. They asked if we were going to be there much longer and how the bite was. I appreciated their polite way of handling it, pulled anchor, and found another spot.
 
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