evilcatfish Posted February 18, 2014 Report Share Posted February 18, 2014 get in there. take a pistol with you though. That is the dumbest idea ever. Yes, because instead of being arrested or ticketed, you're more likely to BE SHOT by police or some pissed off land owner. I think it depends on the situation, but if you are responsible and have a concealed carry permit then its all good, especially in public land/parks. But yea, the second you have the gun in plain view or waving it around then you are asking for trouble. As it just so happens, there is decent fishing in a few parks within St. Louis City and there are often seedy characters floating around, its a bit reassuring to have a form of self protection-especially in the evening (parks close at 11pm but the rangers don't enforce it) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SPEEDBEAD Posted February 18, 2014 Report Share Posted February 18, 2014 There are plenty of reasons to carry a gun in today's world. Sneaking onto private property is not one of them. I have to admit I got a chuckle out of the whole "responsible" bit there. Being responsible while being irresponsible? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lucas Posted February 18, 2014 Report Share Posted February 18, 2014 That's a shame! Looks like a fine lake. Have you tried contacting the company that owns it? When I was younger I was granted access to some small power plant lakes and the fishing was great. Of course they said no boats, swimming, or keeping fish but I was fine with that. Not sure if they would be so cool now a days though Yes, the water company is well aware that the public wishes it was open. I've heard rumors that PA Fish & Game as even offered to "run" it for the water company. I wrote a letter to the local paper stating reasons why it should be open for public use. The water company couldn't care less. They continue to grow, gobbling up smaller water companies across the nation, while closing down public access to any water source/supply that becomes theirs. Oh well. Just thought I'd add my $.02 about trespassing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
haunted Posted February 18, 2014 Author Report Share Posted February 18, 2014 Right on, thanks for your thoughts guys. Im going for it. I'm not looking to sneak into anyones private property, just public lakes that close at sunset. I'd be ok with sneaking onto a corporate lake or golf course, but not an individuals. I'm not worried about getting caught, that's the last thing preventing me from doing it. It's an ethics thing for me. We'll just play dumb and eat the ticket. Plus my fishing buddy is decorated ex special forces, if worse comes to worse he said he'll just show him his military ID & tattoos and pull rank. No need for a gun on any of the spots I'm looking to fish. I don't think that's a very good idea in any case(unless you're fishing in gator territory). Like I said, I don't care about the laws, I'm more concerned with what my fishing brethren would think. Yalls opinion means more to me than law enforcement's. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aesoprocks247 Posted February 18, 2014 Report Share Posted February 18, 2014 That's a shame! Looks like a fine lake. Have you tried contacting the company that owns it? When I was younger I was granted access to some small power plant lakes and the fishing was great. Of course they said no boats, swimming, or keeping fish but I was fine with that. Not sure if they would be so cool now a days though Yes, the water company is well aware that the public wishes it was open. I've heard rumors that PA Fish & Game as even offered to "run" it for the water company. I wrote a letter to the local paper stating reasons why it should be open for public use. The water company couldn't care less. They continue to grow, gobbling up smaller water companies across the nation, while closing down public access to any water source/supply that becomes theirs. Oh well. Just thought I'd add my $.02 about trespassing. I have the sorta same problem here but they do give you access to it under a lot of rules. The reservoir and land is owned by the city, they make you register your boat for $60 a year which you can only use at the reservoir because of the fear of zebra mussles. Not allowed to be on the water past dark, they have small helicoptors with infared cameras to ensure noone is on the water past dark. The last thing is there is only one boat ramp for the whole reservoir which is at the very bottom. Not allowed to put my kayak in anywhere other than the ramp, even though i can physically put it in anywhere really. I have put it in farther up the res to get to prime unpressured spots but always am looking over my shoulder before I do it. I have seen them catch people doing it but I have never been caught (so far). You can technically night fish from the bank but youre not allowed to park your car aftter dark on any of the roads near it. They will tow your ish! Really crazy rules that make it difficult. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nol Posted February 18, 2014 Report Share Posted February 18, 2014 I always enjoy night fishing because you don't have to deal with other trout fishermen Ect but when i was younger i went night fishing with my younger brother and a friend and managed to catch the lake record. It was already 4 in the morning so we put the fish on a 30ft rope (culling style) and allowed it to swim around under close supervision. Well we waited until the lake opened to show the ranger and she told us that it didn't count and she wouldn't even take pictures for us, the fish was released safely but i guess what I'm saying is night fishing is fun but don't expect any lake records or anything like that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
haunted Posted February 18, 2014 Author Report Share Posted February 18, 2014 I've always had the moral dilemma what i'd do if I caught a lake record after hours when the lake was officially "closed". That's a valid concern, and one we've discussed. We decided if we catch a record fish, we'll have to keep it in the livewell(if we have one atm) or on a stringer in the lake until morning and say we caught it that morning. I used to fish a lake that was dead during the day because it got pressured so hard, at night it would go off! I think the fish adapted and became nocturnal. You thought right. They absolutely do feed at night, especially in the summer. Those big bass have adapted to fishing pressure. Fish are very aware and have memory. An easy test to prove this is go to a high pressured lake and throw a worm to bluegill on a Bobber. They won't hit it because of that bobber. Replace the bobber with a little floating twig or leaf & you'll catch em all day. a lot of animals, especially big game only move at night as well. Here's a prime example- I have a buddy that's been hunting the same deer for 6 years. Year round he sees this deer on his trail cameras, in the same spot feeding on crabapples. But the deer only feeds at night. He's an absolute monster- he has one of the most beautiful, weird, non-typical antler spread I've ever seen. He's definitely a record deer. But that deer didn't get that big by being dumb. He knows it's safe at night and has completely adjusted his feeding and movement patterns. The only shot my buddy has is catching him chasing tail during the rut. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wiswimbait Posted February 18, 2014 Report Share Posted February 18, 2014 Big business owned private land is still private land and trespassing is stealing. Don't see how there is any gray area unless you think your Robin Hood. Going somewhere with a gun you wouldn't go to without one is beyond retarded. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SPEEDBEAD Posted February 18, 2014 Report Share Posted February 18, 2014 That's a valid concern, and one we've discussed. We decided if we catch a record fish, we'll have to keep it in the livewell(if we have one atm) or on a stringer in the lake until morning and say we caught it that morning. Now you're crossing into a level of douche that will surely (hopefully) be shot down as a bad idea. That's shady ish. Period. When compounded with the fact that you shouldn't be there in the first place...well, good luck to you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aesoprocks247 Posted February 18, 2014 Report Share Posted February 18, 2014 Big business owned private land is still private land and trespassing is stealing. Don't see how there is any gray area unless you think your Robin Hood. Going somewhere with a gun you wouldn't go to without one is beyond retarded. Trespassing and stealing aren't the same, but I get where you're going with it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
evilcatfish Posted February 18, 2014 Report Share Posted February 18, 2014 There are plenty of reasons to carry a gun in today's world. Sneaking onto private property is not one of them. I have to admit I got a chuckle out of the whole "responsible" bit there. Being responsible while being irresponsible? I agree. I don't fish on private property without permission and carrying a gun while doing so is a really bad idea. I was talking more from the fishing public land/parks side of things. When referring to "responsible" I meant to carrying a gun in general, not while trespassing. Unfortunately there are a lot of people out there who legally own/carry firearms who are complete idiots Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SPEEDBEAD Posted February 18, 2014 Report Share Posted February 18, 2014 Unfortunately, I agree with that last statement 100% Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Facepunch Posted February 18, 2014 Report Share Posted February 18, 2014 My grandpa had a saying that to this day is something that I live by. "Never break the law, while you're breaking the law" lol. Words of wisdom from a moonshiner and street racer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FishDr Posted February 19, 2014 Report Share Posted February 19, 2014 I'd say it is tempting, and the pay off could be great, but the penalties could be even larger. In my line of work (educator), getting caught fishing illegally would not be good, so I tend to toe the line, even when I know there are some lakes that are not well-patrolled and that likely hold big fish. Thus, even though I'd love to sneak in, it's not worth the risk or notoriety. Another way to look at it is whether you'd be happy if it was your property that people were sneaking onto, even if their activities had minimal or no impact. I flared something wicked when some douche-butt decided that my backyard, with my 2 and 4 year old in it, was a good short-cut to a local bike trail and I let him know in no uncertain terms that this was the first and last time he'd ever want to try that stunt. I suspect you might find a lot of landowners who feel the same way. However, you might try asking, as other have done - every now and then you'll find someone who'll let you fish after hours, especially if you offer to show up a couple of hours before dark, leave the rods in the truck, and walk around with a trash bag. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Willduhhbeast Posted February 19, 2014 Report Share Posted February 19, 2014 I'd say it is tempting, and the pay off could be great, but the penalties could be even larger. In my line of work (educator), getting caught fishing illegally would not be good, so I tend to toe the line, even when I know there are some lakes that are not well-patrolled and that likely hold big fish. Thus, even though I'd love to sneak in, it's not worth the risk or notoriety. Another way to look at it is whether you'd be happy if it was your property that people were sneaking onto, even if their activities had minimal or no impact. I flared something wicked when some douche-butt decided that my backyard, with my 2 and 4 year old in it, was a good short-cut to a local bike trail and I let him know in no uncertain terms that this was the first and last time he'd ever want to try that stunt. I suspect you might find a lot of landowners who feel the same way. However, you might try asking, as other have done - every now and then you'll find someone who'll let you fish after hours, especially if you offer to show up a couple of hours before dark, leave the rods in the truck, and walk around with a trash bag. I always look forward to, and enjoy reading, your posts. Thanks for your contribution to this thread and this forum. I think there are certain scenarios where I would be tempted to fish after dark, on closed bodies of water. To me, its generally not worth is. I haven't found a place around me that seems worth the risk, such is the one you describe OP. If its a public access body of water during the day, and it closes at night, i'd probably risk it every once in a while. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts