As a fisherman with a spot lock on his front trolling motor I have wondered does using my spot lock constitute anchored or just position fishing?

I have been reading that drift fisherman while boat drifting, sometimes let their path get too close to spotlocked fisherman who become upset. They state that I am anchored here.

Thinking about this situation, I believe without anchor rope out to an anchor then attached to a boat you are technically not anchored. You are a position fisherman.

So who has the courtesy right of way for the spot two fisherman in different boats want to fish?

Even if one of the boats is drifting, shouldn't they still have some sort of boat control so they can avoid collision problems.

I know (all) boats are to do what is necessary to avoid a collision but what is the courtesy rule?

whether you are in the middle of the lake anchored or spotlocked it is common courtesy to not have folks roll up on you an start fishing unfortunatley with all the money an 5 dollar plaques on the line in fishing tournaments courtesy an common decency goes out the window in most cases. if folks would say something on the water to some of the folks that do it some of it would stop instead of waiting until they get home to their keyboard.

The guy who is there first has the right of way. Now if you are spot locked in the middle of a channel, that is a different thing all together.

You are not anchored if you're only using a trolling motor. It would be no different than you using an oar to stay in the same general spot. Then again, if a boat is stationary, there's no way to know it's not anchored. They need a law where you deploy an "anchored" flag and then there's no question, like diver down. Just don't deploy it falsely or at spot lock.

They do......International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea.A single ball hoisted means anchored.The problem is most boaters have no idea what these day shapes mean

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Day_shapes

an·chor
/ˈaNGkər/
Learn to pronounce
verb
past tense: anchored; past participle: anchored
1.
moor (a ship) to the sea bottom with an anchor.
"the ship was anchored in the lee of the island"


to be anchored means to be held in place by a rope and weight, spot lock is not held in place since you move around when the tm makes adjustments.

as to the courtesy thing, he who arrives first has the spot, if you drift into them then you are at fault if they are at anchor, if neither is anchored then common sense should prevail as in, who was there first then you give them 50yds. as you drift by.

Totally subjective but I’d bet the farm that from a “legal standpoint” RUNNING your trolling motor to stay in one place(spot lock) would never be considered “ANCHORED”.