How to ruin a day of fishing----fast!

[Eight Thumbs]

There are times when I just despair of my fellow fishermen. Yesterday I went to my favorite early-season spot for bass and brim on Lake Hartwell in SC, only to find that a boater had been there before me. This fine sportsman had used the little cove to empty his fish cooler of ice and unwanted fish. Unfortunately, he had an excellent day of fishing. Dead stripers and hybrids littered the shore, floated in waist-deep water while a few had floated out into deeper water. Somewhere, between 25-30 fish covered the area. The hybrids averaged about 4 pounds but ran as high as 7-8. Three beautiful stripers in the 12-15 pound range had washed onto the shore. Four plastic, ice bags, now filled with water floated in the middle of this mess. Apparently, the fishermen had intended to keep the fish but after a day in the sun (and probably quite a few beers) decided that cleaning the fish was just a little too much effort.

Over a hundred pounds of prime fish was just wasted. A large family get-together or a small church could have had a wonderful fish fry. Instead the fish will rot for the next two weeks and make this area unfishable. Damn lazy b**tards!

BTW, I?m 100% sure that this was not a fly fisherman. In all likelihood , these SOBs were deep-bait fishermen who dangle large shad in 60+ feet of water. I?ve run into this behavior once before in Lake Hartwell and many times in saltwater but waste of fine game fish still enrages me. 8T

[ohiotuber]

Disgusting! Wouldn't you like to catch them doing that?...Just once? Idiots like that need to be caught & have their licenses lifted.
Mike

[bob--o]

One problem with your story.... you called the idiots fisherman. They are outlaws and litterbugs, among other things...

[Steve Murphy]

Report the guy!!!!!! In most places in North America it is illegal to waste any game or any game fish. Not to mention the litter of the plastic ice bags.

[Wild One]

Report the guy!!!!!! In most places in North America it is illegal to waste any game or any game fish. Not to mention the litter of the plastic ice bags.

It sounds like 8T didn't see the guy who did it, however, I'll bet he'll be back again and people don't change. He'll do the same thing or something similar again. When he does, have the Fish and Game cops on speed dial!! Plus that would give you the excuse to go fishin everyday. You have a moral obligation to catch this dude and ensure that it doesn't happen again. "Honey, if I don't go fishing every day this week, then this SOB will keep doing this and before you know it no one will be able to fish there. I owe it to all of the other ethical anglers to do this!" My wife might beleive that.

[Lake Erie High Ball]

Guys, what this sounds like to me is not a fisherman (I use the term loosely) that suddenly decided he did not want the fish. But a poacher who got a tip; then suddenly did not want to get caught and had to rid himself of ill gotten booty.

Here is a tip for everyone. If you see a game warden checking licenses just make sure you have yours. If you think you are doing the guy next to you a favor by telling or calling him on a cell and telling him the game warden is checking, your not! And the guy next to you might be the warden?s partner or some other law enforcement officer or an honest angler. Then guess what, you just caught an OBSTRUCTION charge and arrested. Then you have to explain to your wife and or boss why you were fishing in the first place. In some cases jail is now the safest place to be.

So that?s my two cents. Oh and the above?.telling, arrest, wife?.its a true story.

[Eight Thumbs]

Folks, I would love to have been there to report the slob but the fish dump had occurred at least half a day earlier. Most of the fish on the beach had been pecked over by crows. I always have my cell phone with me when I fish these lake shore areas and I would have gotten the boat numbers for sure if I had been there. Glad to see that others share my rage at this miserable, wasteful behavior. 8T