Fishing Docks
Posted by MikeAdams on July 21, 2008
Last night, I read a post on one of our local forums about whether it was legal to fish under or near a dock from a boat on a public lake.
Property owners don’t have the exclusive right to the water in front of their property. There are rights for the publc to use the water also. This particular gentleman was flipping a lure near the dock in question, when the homeowner told him that he was breaking the law by fishing his dock. He told him to leave, and when the fisherman told him that he was within the law, the homeowner took down his registration numbers. He then told the fisherman that he was going to call a CO, which prompted a response from the fisherman, telling the homeowner he would gladly wait for the CO to show up.
This fisherman was well within his rights to fish near the dock. Why is it that there are people out there whether on the lake or in the woods that feel that they own the spot they are at. Granted the gentleman did own the property, but not the water. We fight over the dumbest things. If the homeowner kept up the verbal attack, he could have actually been ticketed for harrassemnt. If your out fishing or hunting, it is a good idea to carry a cell phone with you with the DNR RAP phone number programed into it. This can come in quite handy if such a confrontation should arise.
I had a very simalar situation many years ago fishing a small trout stream. There was a spot on the stream where the land owner owned both sides of the stream and had it posted no fishing. So at first I didn’t fish there but then I got curious about what the laws were becuase some streams can be private and some aren’t so I looked it up and found that it is confusing. So then I contacted the local DNR conservation officer in the area and asked him. He told me that it was perfectly legal for me to fish that stream and as far as that goes I could even go onto the private property to go around anything that I could get past in the stream. So therefore I went back there fishing with a copy of the law in my pocket and the phone number to the CO should I encouter any problems. I never ran into the land owner but to be honest I almost wish I would have just to prove a point. Everyone now days has that mine and only mine mentality to everything and it drives me nuts but if I know that I am in the right then you better believe that I hold my ground.
July 21st, 2008 at 11:48 am
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July 21st, 2008 at 11:49 am
I’ve had this situation quite a few times. My parents live on a lake and there were always the same people that would complain about us fishing near their dock, or bringing the boat in near their dock. We tried to explain nicely about the law, but they just wouldn’t listen, but we still held our ground.
Thankfully, they moved away so we don’t have to worry about it anymore.
July 21st, 2008 at 12:41 pm
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July 22nd, 2008 at 3:59 am