I wouldn't be to surprised if someone found your secret spot. There are tons of scanners now that will find the schools of fish and what nots with ease or someone who just fishes the area often found it through trial and error.

So you shouldn't get angry if someone fishes your spot. Although if you see them doing it constantly (and you remember their faces) I think that is abuse. I know there are laws to protect persons from abuse like that.

If you really want to make a spot special you could make a certain type of chum where you fish it at certain times of the week. The only time I went with a guide was at Amistad Lake and he used tons of fish guts and fish pieces to chum the water. We fished with pieces for bait. The guide caught well over a hundred of them by himself and with his kid. I'm sure if I were to go back I wouldn't catch a thing due to not knowing his chumming schedule. Also if I went I would use artificial lures and not even know what kind of fish he used to chum. He called them "suckers" due to their lips and said he catches them on trotlines.

Nah, it's foosh.

Dang it!

Btw, you kill any teal?

Everyone knows I'm a timber fisherman. You will not catch me on a brush pile. With all of the trees in Ray Roberts and Fork, there are plenty of places to go fish. When someone books a trip with me and they're paying their hard earned money for me to either teach them how to timber fish or just go catch fish, it's my job to make sure I put them on fish. So, yes I have "milk runs", yes I have "sweet spots", but since it's my job to catch fish I don't rely on those spots daily. I can't. I have to have knowledge everywhere. I've literally only ever had one issue where a former paying customer kept cutting me off on a milk run that I had just taken him on 2 days prior. It did stink for my current customer, but we chit chatted and fished around each other for a bit and we wished each other luck and I moved on. Honestly, there was no harm in it. I do wished he had been a little more respectful and saw that I had customers and left us alone. But it was my responsibily to have a back up plan. I don't mind people fishing where I have taken them. They paid me and I showed them. It's a free lake.(most people won't anyway) what bothers me, and it comes with the job, is people that turn 180s when they pass by and see me and tie up within 10 yards of me. Again I'm not complaining, yes it stinks, but you learn to deal with that situation. I love to fish. And I love teaching people how to be successful at fishing. I'll promise you, there is nothing that's going to take place on the water that's going to ruin my day. We're all out to have a good time and enjoy the water. Life is too short to worry about spots, or other people and where they're fishing. As long as we are all respectful to each other, guides and recreational fisherman both, and respectful to our lakes and fish, that's all that matters!

Not saying I wouldn't use a guide, but probably rarely except on a unknown lake. now, that being said I would not use a spot a guy is using to make his living, especially one he showed me or took me to.

Now if I find one while searching for a fishing spot out of the blue......well I'm going to fish what I find.

I was once fishing under the bridge at Joe Pool Lake and saw a guy fishing a brush pile. He was murdering the crappie at that spot. Once he he left I pulled up and marked it on my GPS. I have fished Joe Pool several times since but have not had the courage to fish that brush pile. I have fished with a well know guide on this forum and he encourages you to fish his spots. he has many spots and could careless if you fish them. In fact he will provide you the information if you ask. I ways feel great about booking a trip with him because I know I will leave that trip with the confidence to catch my own fish. I can certainly understand why a guide would not want you to fish his spots but I can't imagine a guide would only have only few spots to fish.

Reggie

REALLY!? Do some of you guys think that Hummingbird or Lowrance made gizmos just for you?!! Face it its a Multi-million dollar industry! They sell to anyone! They don't care if your a guide, pro or novice! How do you really know if who found your pile did it with their gas, electronics and boat Versus someone telling them? YOU DONT! If you put something in the water and its found its FAIR game stop crying about it! If you are a Guide and your pass customer fishes it and it bothers you get out the of the business! THEY PAID TO KNOW WHERE THAT SPOT IS! Its so much talk about time and resources put into spots on the lake but when you put them IN THE WATER you KNOW that they could be found and fished! Electronics wasn't stopped at your purchase and you alone DONT have the holy grail of fishing! Bottom line if its out in the water its community property, If your a guide and they fish your spots that's the Business YOU choose so take what comes with it. This mine, mine, mine, stuff needs to be on a thread where you OWN it all, BOAT, LAKE, FISH, BP and make all the rules. Until that happens stop being so sensitive about it! If you don't what it fished don't put it there, if you don't want a customer fishing where YOU took them get out the Business! Too easy! The guides I have hired were more that happy to make me more successful on their lake and even called me back out on there boat to fish as a bud, and I have played it forward 10 fold and send them customers, no I don't announce the spots they show me but if someone finds them why get upset that's why they paid for the high speed electronics! smh! Ruff

So you shouldn't get angry if someone fishes your spot. Although if you see them doing it constantly (and you remember their faces) I think that is abuse. I know there are laws to protect persons from abuse like that.

I could be wrong, but I don't think that any public water are protected at all from from fishing

Pppfffttt, "most" folks that own SI units don't know how to utilize them to find structure & as a matter of fact "most" of'em don't even know how to utilize their maps & gps's...
I see it over & over.....
Juss so you know I'm not sayin don't fish a pile that you fished with a guide my point is enjoy the hunt as much as the catchn it's a lot more satisfying.....

If I remember correctly, several years ago there was a guide on here that got out of the business for that reason. If you want to be a guide, you are going to have to accept the fact a that a good number of clients are going to get "spots". So no, I don't see an issue with fishing a spot a guide took you to. If they didn't want you to fish it, they would not have showed it to you in the first place.

[quote=silentkilla]Pppfffttt, "most" folks that own SI units don't know how to utilize them to find structure & as a matter of fact "most" of'em don't even know how to utilize their maps & gps's...
I see it over & over.....


You're 100% right on that, I happen to be one that is still learning to use that graph. When are you going to show me the ropes on this graph thing. I don't go out with guides so I don't now where those spots are either.

Interesting points of view from everyone...

a lot of times I'll see someone post on here asking for advice on a lake, most everyone chimes in with "hire a guide". Now that you've hired the guide, learned the lake, it's don't you dare fish where and how he\she showed you to fish????
So then, why hire the guide.

Some folks take vacations to lakes they don't get to visit very often. They want to hire the guide to get them on some fish, learn the lake, and be able to catch more fish the remainder of their stay. That's why some hire the guides.

I think part of being a Guide is Sharing your Talent and Skills , included in that is taking Clients to your best spots ,and if they are capable of finding your Spots then you've taught them well . They're never forget the experience and will always have a Special place in their Hearts for your Gift of Kindness . In most cases they'll go to your spots and may not be as successful as they were with you and have an even Greater a amount of Respect for your Talent . I've used guides and have learned a lot from them and even though ill occasionally go to a spot they took me to I'd never abuse the gift they Gave me. Share your Sport ,Spread Your Talent, Teach a Friend to Fish! OLHIPI Tight lines All........

I'm no expert with these units but I get the intended use out if my units very well....
When/where you name it & we'll get out play with your unit & rip some lipzzz....

Amen!