How much info to give?

[flyfishingpastor]

I'm on way too many on-line fishing forums, from many states and there are several that will remove your post if you even mention the stream name or post a picture that is bigger than just the fish - in case someone can figure out which stream its on.
Sometimes they take it to the absurd!

On many of the boards I'm on they HATE TU's "On the Rise" TV show. They claim it is ruining their streams by publicizing the streams and bringing too much fishing pressure. Personally, I really enjoy that show.

The paranoia out there is that if I tell people I caught a fish on the Wabash, there's going to be a bunch of people who troll fishing sites for rivers to fish that will ruin what we've got. Now, I don't like crowds myself, BUT, I am concerned that we are protecting some of our streams to death. I mean, what's the difference between over-fishing and polluters ruining a stream because no one knows about it?

For instance, the best trout rivers I fish are the ones everyone knows about. It's in everyone's best interest to take care of these streams. The DNR patrols it regularly to eliminate poaching and they enforce catch and release, etc. There are a number of brookie streams in WV for instance that have disappeared in just the last couple of years, because of timber and coal companies filling them in because no one bothered to check how close they were to these fragile little streams.

So, I guess I'm of two minds when it comes to this. I don't want to see our little streams over-fished, but I don't want them to disappear either - because no one knows about them. The more of us who value a resource, the more there are to take care of it and report abuses.

Any opinions on this topic?

Pat

[trent]

From a selfish perspective, I understand someone wanting to guard their "honey hole" or "secret spot" or whatever.

However, I think this is more of a conservation/education issue. The easy, short-sighted resolution is to try to hide the resource. The more challenging approach is to try to educate people to use the resource appropriately and also improve the resource (if possible) to better be able to withstand fishing pressure.

[rstaight]

Pat,

I'm with you in respect to giving out information. One example in Indiana is the Brookville Tailwaters. I can remember when the state started stocking bows because the water was to cold for the smallmouth. Then a local TU chapter started stocking browns and you could still fish without hardly seeing another angler.

Then I guess it was about six years ago it started getting alot of press. Some is fine but it seemed like everytime you picked up another magazine there was something about Brookville. Now it's crowded, not elbow to elbow yet but is getting close at certain times.

I have had people, flyfishers at that, step into the same hole I was fishing! Even the sections closer to the dam that typically don't hold a lot of trout are seeing more pressure.

Another one that really got me and the group I fish in Wisconsion with was an article in Eastern FlyFishing. Or is it FlyFisherman? Anyway, a couple of years back they had an article on two of the streams we fished. Not only was there pictures of the holes that we fished but they also had the directions, roadnames, and what bridge to part on and which way to go!!!

At least let people do some home work instead of giving away the farm. Last May when we were there it was a daisey chain trying to fish. Again, people stepping into holes that you were fishing.

OK, some press is needed if for nothing else, than conservation issues. But when the press over does it and drastically increases fishing pressure, that is just as bad or worse than no press at all.

Well enough of this rant.

[trent]

Rick:

I agree that it can be over done and you don't need publish GPS coordinates to a hole.

I think the issue of having other fishermen and women in your hole will not be resolved just by withholding data on sites. The root of that issue is in fishing etiquette, i.e. if someone is parked at "your spot", you go on to the next one or you fish upstream is they are fishing downstream, etc.

Personally, I get more satisfaction out of uncovering new spots to try (even if they are only new to me) than going to the same places every body else knows about.

[rstaight]

Trent,

I agree with your statement on fishing etiquette. I was pointing out that when a stream gets over crowded the etiquette seems to go out the window. Now I know that most people have good fishing etiquette but it only takes one bozo to spoil the day for everyone.