River Idiots: post your worst stories

[natetreat]

I know that at one point in time or another some of you have encountered someone that matches that description. Some of us have stories about them. My wife says that I'm a bit hotheaded at times, and man did I have an interesting day at the river today. Let me blow off some steam by telling us of some idiots that were worse than the ones that I had to deal with today.

And for good measure keep these in your license case -

DIAL 911 - To Report Poaching in Progress and Emergency Dangerous Wildlife Complaints
WDFW Violation Hotlines
1-877-933-9847
reportpoaching@dfw.wa.gov
http://wdfw.wa.gov/enforcement/violation/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Amx]

So, what is YOUR story?

[natetreat]

So, what is YOUR story?

Well. I was fishing my favorite high water spot, woke up at 5:30 to get there. After catching and releasing three or four Coho, I moved to a different spot next to some folks that just showed up. Of course down stream there were a group of russions and a few others throwing trebles and keep fish hooked in the motor. I walked a reasonable distance away from them and called enforcement and then walked back to a spot with only one person fishing a bobber and roe.

I'm always friendly to other fishermen, and have no problem fishing by myself or with a bunch of other guys. I don't keep illegal fish and don't attempt to snag fish. Ever. I don't need to.

So this guy, who is just hanging out, starts to heckle me as I'm fishing. "Snagger! Why don't you go home! We don't want your kind here." I'm a little irritated. I tell him I've never tried to snag a fish and I always fish legally. He tells me, :aint no way your not a snagger. Put some eggs on, there's no way that a fish in going to bite a corky. That's a snagging setup." And as I'm fishing, he keeps heckling me. Telling me to get off his river, go home because I'm a filthy snagger. At this point I'm through reasoning with him and tell him to get over it. This just encouraged him. I'm not the kind of guy that backs down or leaves when someone is harassing me, so I keep fishing, even though I was planning on going to a different spot. It just peeved me off that this punk was trying to strong arm me into leaving the best spot on the river. And then he started to get to me. I know that he's just a dumb ignorant punk, but there is no excuse for it. I shouldn't have to leave a good spot on the river just to avoid idiots that think they are god's gift. It's not right. So yea, I got in a shouting match with him. I was right, I've fished corkies in low clear water and watched wary coho leave their strainers and stump covers to travel ten or more feet to slam my corky and yarn. I fish barbless and I feed my family salmon 4 days a week on legally caught salmon. I know what I'm doing and I deserve respect. But just because I'm five six and skinny, I become a target for punks who think I'm 16 and in highschool. When people disrespect me it gets to me. That's what I tell him just hoping that the coward would throw a punch so I could teach him a lesson. Then I get my senses back and realize it aint worth it and start to pack up and my pops comes over to see what's going on and this punk starts insulting my father, trying to step up to him. My dad is 52 years old and a very gentle and respectful person. He's even tempered and rational, the opposite of me. This kid starts harassing and pushing my father around, trying to start a fight, and my father, the well meaning guy that he is, starts trying to talk to him rationally, telling him that he's being childish and the he shouldn't treat other people that way. At this point I'm packing up and telling my father it's time to go, that this is retarded and not worth it. My father is starting to get irritated. Then this guys buddies come over like some sort of posse and start pushing us around trying to strong arm us. We're just trying to leave at this point and they're pushing us around like bullies. I'm embarrassed that I got my father involved in something so childish, and these guys want to get violent, telling me they fish this river every weekend, calling us filthy snaggers, trying to push our buttons while not letting us leave. And man I was peeved. Finally the enforcement that I called shows up and these yahoos leave us alone anbd pretend to go about their business. We start to leave and they get written up for not marking their fish, and the Russians all get snagging tickets and gear revoked. But man, I really shouldn't have to deal with folks like that. Just coming to the river trying to start a fight. Calling me a snagger is equivocal to calling me a racial slur it really pushes my buttons. At least I held it together and didn't do anything illegal, but it really sickens me the way some people think they have the right to treat people that way. If I were fifty pounds heavier and six inches taller, they wouldn't even bother me, but I always end up a target because I catch more fish than anybody at the hole, and I look like a highschooler. Argh. It's bad enough when they disrespect me, but when they have the gall to harass a 50 year old gentle and kind person like my father, it really steams me. I've been steaming about this for a while, but I'm over it now.

[ingi]

Ha, I saw you after this happened and you still were steaming, i didnt know they brought your father into it, im the type of guy if i hear insults im the first to walk away and let it in one ear and out the next but dont insult my friends family etc thats a whole different playing field to get my blood pumping.

[oneshot]

definitely one of those times where "Size Does Matter"
still hard to believe there are these Bully type fishers out there?

I'd just start casting into there gear and crowding them and see what happens.. that's me though "Size Does Matter" and Age plays a big role too in the intimidation game.
having a good screwy eyed psycho glare is good to have too, i reckon...

[natetreat]

Oh I have the psycho glare down. All throughout high school I had to deal with punks like this. Except in high school they actually did try to assault me. Except for what they didn't know is that I'm a black belt and boxed competitively when I was younger. But that means I have to be careful and only use my skills for self defense, because I could get in real trouble. I should probably just get a big fishing partner so that I don't have trouble like this anymore.

[jens]

I am sorry to hear about this bud and sorry this involved your old man. I can only suggest using different techniques nate other than your go to corky and yarn. It's a favorite tackle used by snaggers and flossers.

[Bodofish]

Sorry about that Nate. I find myself having to stand up for my rights more and more. The worst part is after you get all worked up it takes the better part of a day to calm back down. It's not good for anyone, young or old.

If it's not fishing it's standing in line, the person behind you is 3" away and leaning toward you with really bad breath and or BO, just hoping you'll leave.

Sorry again.

[Mike Carey]

Ya, that was a depressing read, but thanks for posting it just the same. Hopes it's the exception for you. You can always decompress here.

[natetreat]

I am sorry to hear about this bud and sorry this involved your old man. I can only suggest using different techniques nate other than your go to corky and yarn. It's a favorite tackle used by snaggers and flossers.

I knew you'd say that Jens! You can snag a fish with anything though if you're good enough or not careful.

[returnofthefish]

thats messed up nate. u either need a bigger fishing partner or a bigger dog with u than jack b.

[G-Man]

I find that ignoring a person is typically the best way to prevent an altercation. However, I don't always take my own advice though and knowing me, I'd have put on an extra long leader just to irritate the guy some more. I'd never change my fishing techniques to appease the uninformed. Good to read that enforcement showed up and did their job!

[knotabassturd]

Nate- that sux!

My personal take is I prioritize.

First come first serve. If they were there before me and have half a clue how to fish legally, I would leave them and find other water.

That he was heckling you might be because he was already there and trying to drift eggs, then sees a guy start throwing drift gear thru the hole. No idea what kind of room there was and all, but personally I woulda left him alone and moved on OR switch to what he's doing and ask if there's room if that were an option.

That said, of course there is no excuse for the guy to go off on you personally like that. I'm pretty confident though by pushing back you aggravated him more.

In the end, if enforcement got the ones around you doing illegal stuff then I would declare victory with your Dad and go drink a cold one!

PS- maybe U can rent snake7676 to go with U LOL. Or get a packing fishing buddy? Don't know...

PSS- LOL 2nd edit, as much fishing as you ar eable to do, this IMO could easily happen again. HOPEFULLY NOT of course... At least this event wil llet U htink thru how to handle it next time (again, hopefully LOL). Have fun out there.

[nickbell]

definitely one of those times where "Size Does Matter"
still hard to believe there are these Bully type fishers out there?

I'd just start casting into there gear and crowding them and see what happens.. that's me though "Size Does Matter" and Age plays a big role too in the intimidation game.
having a good screwy eyed psycho glare is good to have too, i reckon...

Exactly. Thats why I'm glad that im 6'4 and 230 pounds . I've never been "messed with" while fishing. As for my river story, I really don't have one, having only fished rivers a few times. I guess I could say that float tubers on the yakama got to me after a while last summer, but its really not much of an interesting story.

[The Quadfather]

but personally I woulda left him alone and moved on OR switch to what he's doing and ask if there's room if that were an option.

.

Oh man, Nate... I am so guilty for not being able to let things go when they happen to me also. I had a Dr. at work today completly be a JA to me in front of people. I carried it for about 4 hours. I sometimes just don't know what to do to let things go. I have got in the car and driven 1 hour of my commutte and suddenly realized that I never turned the radio on..... because I was in such inner turmoil about a situation. Couldn't even put it past me, and turn some tunes on.

But I will say this... Forget about switching to how he is fishing. Sorry KnotB. I don't know anything about river fishing rights and wrongs, but screw that about fitting in and fishing his way. As long as you are legal and such,, fish it up, and I hope you leave with fish and he can just get over it.

[knotabassturd]

Quad- no problem on your opinion differing! Like U say if you are legally fishing then everyone pretty much has the same right on the river.

I've been on both sides of the fence and just decided I'd do it the way I do. Many have probably been on both sides and drawn different conclusion/method.

Of course now I don't care either way cuz I am never on the water enough LOL.

As to your particular incident today- boy doctors sure can be a bit neurotic and carry egos at times. Isn't it fun? LOL one wants to prescribe a med to a patient, then doctor shift change and the next doc prescribes something difft or questions why pt is given particualr med? Egos some of them have makes that stuff fly like concrete when U get caught in the middle of it.

I say carry a sling shot and a couple cans and maybe even a glass bottle. If it gets too much, find a nice open spot U can sling some rocks safely at targets while silently muttering what U think of said doctor LOL.

[fishbiker]

Ha, I saw you after this happened and you still were steaming, i didnt know they brought your father into it, im the type of guy if i hear insults im the first to walk away and let it in one ear and out the next but dont insult my friends family etc thats a whole different playing field to get my blood pumping.

Good for you for keeping your cool and your dad. i am not that eventempered when some one bothers me, i love to cheerfully beat the pulp out of punks that ask for it.
i have had this kind of trouble a few times, last time down on the white salmon and i got hauled of for beating this guy and his tiny punk buddy. i grew up kick boxing ufc type styff. i try to hold my temper but once they touch me its game on. i have learned to try and walk away as there are no winners in this kind of thing. so congrats on doing the best thing but even if you ae samll they were messing with your dad and you may have snapped and went postal on all of them if you didn,t go. good job

[natetreat]

Ha, I saw you after this happened and you still were steaming, i didnt know they brought your father into it, im the type of guy if i hear insults im the first to walk away and let it in one ear and out the next but dont insult my friends family etc thats a whole different playing field to get my blood pumping.

Good for you for keeping your cool and your dad. i am not that eventempered when some one bothers me, i love to cheerfully beat the pulp out of punks that ask for it.
i have had this kind of trouble a few times, last time down on the white salmon and i got hauled of for beating this guy and his tiny punk buddy. i grew up kick boxing ufc type styff. i try to hold my temper but once they touch me its game on. i have learned to try and walk away as there are no winners in this kind of thing. so congrats on doing the best thing but even if you ae samll they were messing with your dad and you may have snapped and went postal on all of them if you didn,t go. good job

I didn't use to be able to hold my cool. Like I said, if I were the same as I was when I was younger, I would have taken him on, and his 4 or 5 buddies, and I would have won. And I probably would have gone to jail ten times over. Where I grew up, if you talked trash you had to be prepared to back it up, and we did. And all of us rednecks hated the cops.

Now that I'm all grown up people have turned out to be a lot more cowardly, while becoming even more disrespectful. And they can see my anger in my eyes. And then they make complaints, even though I never mentioned it. I irritated one of my bosses that was a complete drunk and jerk, just by the look in my eyes as I complied with his ridiculous demands. Now that I'm grown up I can't be so quick to anger.

[salmonator_1228]

I know what you're talking about nate, I'm only 13. One time my dad and I were going pink fishing at Bush Point ( I know its not a river ), my dad left to get the cooler from the car (which is like 20 minutes away cuz of the hike) after I landed a fish. This guy kept on trying to take on my dad's spot, I told him " excuse me sir, but this spot is taken ". Him saying in a heavy accent " so ", I asked him " do you mind? ", guess what he said..... "YES!", yelling at me. Guess what, he didn't catch a single fish since his buzz bomb was way too big, 5" to be exact. My dad and I each caught our limit, with one extra coho hen as a bonus ( my first coho ever! ). It was fun watching him get mad and break his rod though xD,, my dad was like, "karma's a ***** and we left laughing".

[BentRod]

nate, that sucks man. Sorry you had to go through that. There area lot of "jerks" out there. I just try to steer away from crowds as I hate fishing around the combat crowd. Seems like there is always one loud mouth when there is a group. Of course I don't have the problem of outfishing those around me, so tend not to draw attention to myself.
Hey, there you go, just stop catching so many fish! I'd be happy to show you how.
Way to go keeping your cool though. Sounds like they paid for their ignorance in the end....even if it wasn't a size 10 boot that they deserved.