Is it legal for a dock owner to fence in their dock in order to keep
anyone from fishing around it?
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Is it legal for a dock owner to fence in their dock in order to keep
anyone from fishing around it?
I have seen a bunch of them.
That seems like overkill
That just blows my mind. I don’t ever fish anywhere where there are any docks but I have definitely never seen or heard of anything like that.
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I would say it depends on the lake.
You can fence it in as long as you do not harass the fishermen. When I had lake homes I would go out on the pier and offer advice if they wanted it and offer hot coffee. But I see it as God's creation and it belongs to him. some people think they own the water around their dock and the fish. CRA CRA I say......
Seen it on a dock on Watts Bar in Tenn., but nowhere else. Funny thing is ... if he's there he'll tell you about a brush pile just out from the dock, in deeper water (& I always found fish on it).
Basically it's to discourage "dock shooters" from potentially damaging the boats, boat covers, or other items that an angler's bait may errantly come in contact with. That would include Bass anglers, as well as Crappie anglers.
It's not legal to get out onto a private dock ... that constitutes trespassing. But I doubt they have any legal rights to the waters around the dock, just not sure about the water "under" it. Your local F&W office can answer that question.
Seen dock owners put wood or wire around bottom of dock to water to stop dock shooting . Some even run out and cast lines with bobbers all around the dock to keep boats away . Harris Brake here in Arkansas . Some even have trap doors to fish through . I pulled up and used a long pole to reach the trap hole . Owner ran out and closed the door , told me I did not build that for you . Was tempted to slip in one night and sink heavy weighted rolls of netting to stop him from fishing it . :Rofl.
Would not think that would be legal on public lakes , maybe private water bodies . I would check and see .Quote:
Originally Posted by hudnut
It is common on Horseshoe for piers to be wrapped in fence wire. Not sure if it is legal
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Is the fence attached to the dock, or in the water away from the dock?
I would think that practice on public waters like AGFC lakes it should be illegal . It is stopping fishermen from fishing public water.:twocentsQuote:
Originally Posted by arkcrappie
We had wake/wave wood slat walls protruding down below the waterline, a foot or so, to protect boats in the slips, on our pier years ago. They were legal then. If they are running straight down along the footprint of the dock then I would believe they are legal. Similar principle too air rights on land.
No boats on these docks . Just blocking fishermen from fishing under them . Dock owners install trap doors in floor to fish under them. Time to pull a night run and fill under docks with trap doors with netting and weights .Quote:
Originally Posted by SpeckledSlab
Nimrod I would think that urging and/or participating in such night runs on someone’s private property would be adverse to the message sports minded anglers want to promote. In my state if a hunter shoots across private property, even if the game they are shooting is on property they have a legal right or permission to hunt, the hunter can be charged with a 3rd degree felony. As long as a dock owner does not impede or interfere with an anglers access to fish beyond the footprint of his dock, I wouldn’t think that he’s doing anything illegal. I not sure it is just to target a person who doesn’t want fishing under his dock, without his permission. Anymore than it’s legal to take game flying over another’s property, even though they might come down on a different property. I know some property owners will grant permission to hunt over land, just as some dock owners don’t mind people fishing under their property. Here we used have a 50 ft barrier law around our boat house & dock that prevented skiers, jets skiers, and boats from encroaching on them. I haven’t looked into that particular ordinance in a long time, but I imagine there’s still something like it in place today.Quote:
Originally Posted by NIMROD
I hope we, as sportsmen, can find an approach that will win us access to fish these structures rather than forcing ourselves on them. “He whose opinion is changed against his will, is of the same opinion still”. Just as I support legal harvest, I also support legal access. I don’t want people getting arrested, shot, or worse, over such matters. Our life and fishing time is short enough as it is. Thanks
I was fishing the light shining on the water in front of a Dock one night. I could see the bow fishing boat working it's way to me. The next dock over had a boat tied up in the water. One of the kids made a bad shot and punched an arrow in the hull of the boat just at the water line. They pull themselves over to the boat break the arrow off and high tail it out of there. I turned the boat number and location over to fish and game.
On another note. I shoot a lot of docks. Besides planer boards in spring shooting docks is how I fish. I have some hard and fast rules I follow. I make every attempt to not leave any hooks in mooring ropes and docks for people to reach down and get snagged on. A rusty hook could make for a awful infection. If I see a jig left in a rope or a dock I make a decent attempt to remove it without damage. Had one dock owner come out and ask me rudely what I was doing. When I explained and showed him the small collection of rusty jigs on the deck of my boat he said thank you. I try to treat the dock owners property as I would want someone to treat my own property
This is public land so far from the water . They just get permits to have a dock . Rather see no docks cause a few act like they own the water around their dock .Quote:
Originally Posted by SpeckledSlab
Most dock owners with boats have them enclosed metal building . Ones we are discussing are mainly just built to fish off of . Most times no boats around them .Quote:
Originally Posted by DockShootinJack
With or without boats on them, Horseshoe has quite a few that have fence around the perimeter of the pier. Most use reinforcement wire. It’s tough
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I was only playing devils advocate. I have been shooting under and enclosed boat house and saw a float drop down from up inside the voat house. I just moved to the side of the dock they couldn't fish and kept shootingQuote:
Originally Posted by NIMROD
I have seen where dock owners that really harass fishermen fishing near their docks find that their doors used to fish through permanently sealed from underneath when the lake is on drawdown.
Chill…everyone offshore livescoping anyway
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Had an experience on Atkins Lake, an oxbow lake south of Pine Bluff, some 30 odd years ago. There was a house on one end of the lake. I don't remember it having a dock. But what it did have was Rotweillers. Two of 'em. The owners apparently didn't like you even fishing that end of the lake. Dock or no dock. Anyway those two Rots would start barking at you. The owner or owners would come out and chew you out for fishing "their" end of the lake. Then they would sic the two dogs on you. Kid you not, here they come swimming out in the lake towards the boat! I didn't wait to see if shotguns were waved around from the house and took off. Went back and fished the lake a couple of years ago in the same area. No problem, no dogs. But plenty of wasp nests in the cypress trees. Call me yellow. I took off again. I don't like wasps either.
I’d be more scared of the wasp than dogs. Thanks for sharing