Wow, where do you guys fish, the local prison lake or something?

I have a carry permit and I do exercise that right when I fish, but in the 5 years I've had it, the only time I ever came close to using the firearm was on a pitt bull some stupid woman had let off the leash. The dog charged me but fortunately for the dog, me and the owner, she got it under control before it was close enough to be a real threat.

By far, the overwhelming majority of people I meet while out fishing are good folks. Sometimes, it's families out having a good time around the lake like letting their kids feed the ducks or skip rocks or swim in the pools, sometimes it's other fisherman or hikers. In a very few cases, I've encountered rude people (unfortunately, most of the rude ones I've met have been fellow fly fishers..) but the vast majority are just people out enjoying the water the same as I.

One time, a family came to a local lake and their kids (3 or 4 years old) were running around feeding ducks and splashing in the water. I was about 50 yards away and the father started yelling at the kids to be quiet because a man was fishing nearby. I walked up to the dad and told him that I thought the world would be a far better place if more kids were running around the lakes, feeding ducks and throwing rocks. His children were not bothering me one bit. It was a big lake and I could easily move to another spot. The man smiled and thanked me and I moved another 100 yards or so down the lake and kept on fishing. Didn't ruin my day or theirs.

But with the stories of rude and aggressive people, I have to believe it's absolutely true, and that I've just been fortunate all these years that I've never come across any of them. Hope my streak continues for another 49 years (well, I'll be 98 then and most likely not out stomping around in streams fly fishing but...).

Jeff