Just wondering what you guys thought on this subject.
How far away from a shanty left on the ice is is ethical and polite to fish. I have run into individuals that didn't show up untill after noon and 50 yards away was to close. The holes I was fishing were holes I had augered the week before. Does the fact that the shanty was left entitle him to any more area than the ground his tent was on...
Of course the perch we were both after were pretty well schooled around some structure and being off by a little meant the difference between a good day or not . Thanks for your opinion
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I havent ice fished much but my 2 cents says I call BS...I think leaving a shanty behind is obnoxious and extremely rude in the first place...and ought to be illegal...to me thats like leaving baited rods in the water and going to town or to bed...possibly leaving a hooked fish on the line all night...and besides that....its a public waterway....so there is no " My Spot " in the first place....Why not just leave it up all damn season and stake a claim to that spot and the 50 feet circle around it...PFFFFT...Personally its an [url "mailto:As@$%"]As@$%[/url]^& move...I may even go so far as to call F&G and have them deal with it...Just saying
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If they aren't there when you arrive you can drill as close to their shanty as you like as far as I'm concerned. If the shanty is occupied you can still drill holes to fish in the area. It is public water. I prefer to find my own fish a distance from most people but there is no hard fast rule.
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Personally I would like to think that if I had an ice house out on a lake that I would put a sign saying free for use when I'm not here but please be willing to move if I show up (oh, and for the sake of liability, a discaimer saying use at your own risk). Them moving 10-15 feet away would be fine by me. Of course, then people would abuse the privilege and trash it and I'd have to scrap that idea.
Anyone who was outside the shack and there before I arrived I would be fine with, but I'm easygoing like that.
An empty ice house I would probably do the same, drill holes 10-15 feet away or more. I guess if the owners of the shack arrive and complain the fishing won't be enjoyable enough to stay anyways.
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Think of the shanty as a boat anchored and fishing . I have had people pull up and anchor so close I can cast into there boat . When ice fishing , I just ask is it OK if I setup over here , and I have never had anyone say no . Curt G.
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Hmm, just had a thought. If you feel someone is ice fishing too closely tie on a flying lure and send it under the ice towards their line. Do your best to snag their line, quickly reel in and snip their jig off, then see how many you can get before they decide to move further away.
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Would a shanty left out on the ice constitute littering? Your question asks about ethical and polite, and these days there is a growing lack of both in many people I have encountered out and about. I see no problem with fishing as close to the shack as you want seeing as how it was unoccupied. When the owners arrive, I feel they have no reason to get all possesive about a spot especially on public water. If they started to be a-holes about it, I would probably get closer just to prove a point. If the shack were already inhabited I would politely give them their space, 20 yards should suffice. But, like I said, if no one was in it, I'm not going to move just because they showed up, if they can't be cool about it, then they are probably doing something nefarious to begin with.
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Just don't understand why there has to be all of this "intensity' about fishing, period! My gosh, it is just fishing. Sometimes you catch 'em, and, sometimes you don't. "Its my hole or my water folks" need to take a deep breath and exhale. There will be a tomorrow, I promise!
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Amen Brother!
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Whether a shanty being left behind is obnoxious or not to some it is completely legal in Idaho as long as the person leaves identifying information of the owner w/ address and phone number on 2 opposing sides of the structure. Now if they were to leave lines in the water inside the structure that would be illegal and grounds for citations. However the only water I see the shack having claim to by being left out on the ice is the water directly beneath the shack. Occupied or not. I agree the polite thing to do if the shack is occupied would be to either give the standard space around it as if they were fishing without a shack. However if there is no one in it I would have no qualms about drilling right next to it if I so felt. And no, I would feel no need to move if the owners showed up later. As was mentioned. No one owns the water. It is public access and anyone could use it, meaning 1st come first serve. If you lift anchor and then want to come back later it doesn't mean you get that exact spot back either.
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20+ years of happy, friendly, good neighbor fishing and I actually had an incident like this happen to me this year. I am a social person and enjoy meeting people out on the ice. This guy got in my face in the worst way when he decided to show up. As far as I am concerned, as long as there is enough distance between shacks and hole that lines will not get snagged when a fish is on is courtesy enough. Guys that leave their gear and expect 20-50 yard of space are up in the night. [
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I don't see why it would not be treated the same as a hunting blind. In the case of a hunting blind it is first come first serve. If you put a blind up someone else can use it if they get there before you. In the regs it says.
"Right of use.- blinds may be used by hunters on a first come first serve basis.Placement of a blind on public land does not create an exclusive right of use. Locking blinds is not allowed Please be respectful of other hunters blinds."
Now I have put up blinds. If I found someone using my blind I would not be happy but there is not much a guy can do. Ron
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I don't belive the guy was right to ask you to move. You can just leave your gear setting somewere all night or half tthe day and expect to save your spot? Can I leave my lawn chair on the bank or a lake or river overnight and save my spot for noon the next day? of course not! It's one thing if you have to go to the bathroom or something. Also 50 yards is more than a courteous dsitance.
Some people are just in your face agressive types and there seem to be a lot of them these days.
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if they are not fishing it. drill as close as you want... no law says you can not. as well if he was an jerk. squirt some water into his door lock. lol
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[
] Oh he did not ask, he came at me foul mouthed. 50 yards is rediculous. Some reserviors are not even big enough to space people out that far. And what if it is a fishing derby with a small city out on the ice????
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Best to pray for this guy........ sounds like he needs help!
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I am sure what happened is that the guy realized that no one was in the shanty and jumped on a good fishing spot. If I see someone fishing close to where I'd like to go. I simply ask. I meet a lot of good friends that way and we can target the fish better. Scratch my back, I scratch yours type of thing. I had one guy ask me to not fish by him in almost 30 years of fishing. And you know what... After talking to him for two minutes, I realized I didn't want to be anywhere by him anyways.
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perhaps the shanty is on a really good spot! maybe you should drill as many holes as possible on the perimeter of it, maybe space them out by an inch...
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I get out to Mackay a number of times during the winter. There is a little town of shacks on the lake all winter long. Having fished this area for a lot of winters, these people are not fools, they put them in these areas because these areas hold the fish. But just because there shack is there doesn't mean that they own the ice around it. I have been out there even during the weekend and only seen maybe 25% of the shacks in use. I have cut my holes as close as ten feet away from a guys shack and if he happens to show up have asked him if it was ok. Just like was mentioned before, never had anyone tell me to get lost. It's just respectful to ask, and I have made some good friends and contacts along the way.
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Leaving gear does not reserve exclusive fishing rights to that spot. I have seen this with Salmon fishing, some guys will walk down early in the morning and lay their rods, tackle boxes and net down on the shore of the river and then leave and expect that they have claimed that spot. I've watched as they returned to find someone standing in "their" spot, throw a fit and then leave. Nothing short of a human body can hold a fishing spot.
With Ice fishing, if no one is in the shelter I will fish as close to it as I want. Since they are not there I am not interferring with their fishing. And if they arrive later in the day, they will be the ones encroaching on me because I got there first that day. They have only claimed the ice that their shelter is covering. How do I know if they are even going to come fishing that day. What if I set up 50 yds away and they never come fishing at all.
I have never encountered an empty shelter before but I always give enough space to those I come across. Mostly because I expect the same courtesy but also because I enjoy my solitude when I'm fishing.
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