Spot Burning - wonder how Rex feels about this?
 

LET ME PREFACE THIS BY I'M POSTING THIS BECAUSE A BUNCH OF US HAVE BEEN DISCUSSING THIS ISSUE THIS WEEK OFFLINE AND I'D LIKE TO SEE OTHER TAKES ON IT

not sure how many of you guys still go to the other board, but obviously if you do it's become a lot more fun lately with the ridiculously long infamous spot burn post...so it begs a big question, and it's actually fishing related and it comes in many parts, and relates to how people are going to post on this board...let me first preface this by the fact, I am all about sharing information, always have been. In the past, up until this year, I would share my exact fishing spots with anyone who asked for help, thinking I was doing a good thing....the more I learned about the bay, the more I learned this probably wasn't the way to do it. I still share as much information as I can, but I share it in a responsible manner...

obviously the spot that was burned on the other board was not a huge secret...nor are most spots on the bay, but in my opinion you should actually have to put the work in checking it out and see if there are fish there, or find out from one of your buddies who found 'em...why post an exact spot on a board, especially in the dead of winter when fish are more scarce?

to paraphrase my personal hero and idol on an interweb message board, you aren't Columbus discovering America, someone else has been at your spot before you, they kept it quiet, or told their friends in hopes that the spot would not get overrun with lurkers or lazy ass people who don't want to look for their own fish, so why do you feel the need to brag about it on a message board

so it begs the questions, how do You personally decide who to trust? I fish with a lot of guys, 80% with one or two guys in particular, and the other 20% with about 20 or so other guys. I also have a lot of fishing conversations about spots and where the bite is, fishing patterns,etc with people, some of whom I've never met in person. A few of these people I talk to regularly and I trust more with information than almost anyone else. There are also people I see on the water who I'll give my most direct information and they do the same to me. They know I will tell noone, and I know they will tell noone.

Then there are people I fish with, who I would not take to a specific hot spot because, they wouldn't post it on one of the websites, but they would tell others, who would then tell others and burn the spot that way. Then there are the guys I fish with I'll take to general areas everyone knows because, not only will they burn a spot to others, probably post it on the world wide internets, but they won't reciprocate information. All these people in all the categories are friends of mine, they just fall into specific trust levels...I don't like them any less, but I guess I expect people to have the same level of secrecy with my spots as I would have with theirs.

I don't know, I just know there were a lot of people angered by that post on the other board, a few guys and I have been talking about this lately and since I don't give a **** what anyone thinks, I said I would post it and see the general feeling of others....this board being smaller, less lurkers, and a tighter knit group of guys who all for the most part know each other...so we can sit around the sharing circle, and be in the trust tree, and sing kum by ah and see how we all feel!!!

Mark,
A general answer to your question....Yes.

:confused:..basic wtf smilie...now it is ok by your words....lol

You type like a worldwide flyfisherman extrodinaire....Did you say anything in them 9 paragraphs?:D

And..

Rex is too busy expiditing the celestial travel time to people that burn spots to the deity that they prefer to bow down to. (I gave him some discount on ammo)

Jim

_________________

moderate this!

There is too much spot burning going on here. Guess who burned this spot?:eek:.......Gary


Attachment 210

Guess I need to make a trip to BASS PRO :D

I think I said something though, can't remember...one too many zimas...

PS I'm typing like him cause I"m angling for his job...that or I'm doing my best combo of he and CAPT George

Zimas.......my problem is Budweisers

Answer to your stuff...

I only share "spots" with those that share with me. Online, in-shop, personal, via-vhf, via-cell, etc. I will always direct people towards fish.

Just like life...take care of those that take care of you.

Long live family and friends....gotta love 'em all.

Jim

P.S. BPS.....may you find a dozen hungry bloodworms in your fruit-of-da-looms after cunsuming too many Zimas.:eek:

To all of Zilla's buddies......I sell Jumbo bloodworms.......I will donate a dozen for the "cause":D

I'll tell people exact spots and if I don't want that info to go public then I also tell them that as well. If they tell everyone then thats it for them FOREVER!

TED

Jimbo, you know you are the only girl for me!!! BPS **Spit**
I'll buy you a Miller or Coors lite, but I can't do Bud anymore...

here I go jacking my own thread but just saw the movie Beer Wars...you aught to see it, as one of the "little guys" and by that I mean local tackle shops, you would not appreciate what Bud does to the little guy beer brewers!! But I'll buy you a coors or miler anytime :D

First, let me say that I don't normally jig for fish, so this might have an impact on the rest of my post. If I go out on someone else's boat I try not to burn their spot:rolleyes:. Hell, I try not to even post until AFTER they do. I let them post about where we were, how many fish we caught, who was with us, and that sort of thing. I then try to add something to the original post; a humorous story, a jab at a fellow angler; whatever:D.

As far as "burning" my spot; I often burn my own spot, mostly because to me (and my type of fishing, trolling, livelining, cut bait); there is no SPOT to burn. If I'm trolling the Love point area, that's a lot of water. I'll catch fish as far north as Kentmore or as far south as Poplar Island. One day the fish may be up top with bait breaking and the next day bait is deep and fish have followed. In fact, often, we have that senario throughout one single day:eek:. The fish may be in shallow water or deep. Singles may be hot today and umbrella's tomorrow.

With livelinning, I found Poplar Island to be hot last year. A few years ago it was Gum Thickets. But once again, I can find a spot today and go back to it tomorrow, and the fish have moved. In fact, if your're not catching fish MOVE. I may move a quarter mile, half mile, or 200 feet to find the "right" place to toss the bait. How can someone "burn" that spot?

I appreciate all the help I get from fellow anglers. I try to call on my cell phone to those I know are in the area when I'm on fish.

I know Mark (Baldzilla) will think I'm kissing ass, but I want to thank a couple of the better fishermen on the board who consistantly help me. Noone is more helpfull than Mark Lagano or Skip. They are out there more often than I, and are willing to share info whenever I call.

I must admit; this is HOW I use their information. Let's say I get a tip that they are trolling just east of Thomas Point Light in 35 ft of water. I don't run up alongside of them and drop my lines. I intentionally, run north or south of them. I figure we are working as a team after they give my info. I, as a team member, now need to try to find some additional fish for them. I know the fish are shallow, so I run to #1 down by West River. I start my search in 35 ft and hope to find fish of my own. If I do, I call and tell them of the fish and now, they know which way to work, as the tide changes. If they lose contact with their fish, they can head south. If I don't find fish at #1, I'm trolling north toward them and the fish. Eventually, we wind up in the same area (hopefully the most productive area) and we both hammer some nice fish.

This fall/winter we had about six boats working together in the same area for several weeks. We would exchange information freely and we would see each other two or three times during the day. Nobody followed in anyone's wake or cut off each others lines:D.

I know this is a long post, but I just wanted to let everyone know how I use the information I get from others. I wouldn't write so much, but it appears to be a sensitive and pertinant subject. Someone on Tidalfish may be suspended over this topic, so it's worth discussing.
5th (Marty)

OK my two cents...

First off like Mark I do about 90 % of my fishing with one or two persons..In my case with Spot77...The other 10 or so % is with the family a couple of friends...Of course I have to break that tradiation and somehow get out with Mark this year....

Second, both Spott77 and I release every fish we catch and don't use a single one for bait...

As for Burning Spots...Wow...There are a few of you on here and in some shops that I trust, because we have shared information...The key here is shared...Thats a two way street....Not sure I would ever blast out actual GPS's coordinates to anyone because as Marty says fish can be in one spot in the morning and in a completly different spot in an hour...

The way I look at it is this..If we are all caring for our Bay, being responsible fisherman, and sharing both the Hot Spots and our experiences than it should be a better experience for all....As I have said time and time again, just being on the water makes me happy, catching some perch makes a day fun...If I need to catch the biggest Striper of my life I am probably heading back to Montauck not here....Its the experience for me, not knowing so and so was out for 2 hours and caught seven 53 inch Stripers, a small shark, and two dolphins...

So for those of you that I have had an opportunity to share information with, thank you...I think that what we have shared benefits each of us in turn...Not sure I would ever support giving the best Spot of the Moment away to some guys on a day trip from Ohio looking to troll 40 lines across a really good fishing area...

Anyway just my 2cents....

I agree with Marty, I am not out there enough to have the time to check all of the spots I know to see where the fish are that day, so I share what I catch, a general location and how almost every trip I make so that I might be able to help some one else who is in my situation of having limited time to fish and hoping to get simialr information in return.

If I have a cell phone number for you and I know you are out on the water near by I will also make a call. I will answer people on the VHF if I know you and get a number to give you the location I am at if I am doing well, but warning you that the bite could turn off before you get to me which does and will happen.

I also will never post when I am on some one elses boat unless I follow up their post. I will also not post about a spot I fish from a tip I got from some one else.

But the post on the other board about the WWD's is tricky. They are no secret to anybody who fishes this time of the year or who even reads TF, if you fish this time of year, you probably fish all of them until you find fish when you fish the Patapsco anyway, so did this really burn a spot. And because I do not fish those places I still do not know exactly where location Y is but if you fish that area any time of year you would know exactly from the pix posted.

I do not fish this time of the year, and I am cleaning gear, tying bucktails, rigging rods for catch and release, so I think it was great to read JP's post and see his pix of his personal best fish, but I guess if I did fish this time of year I may feel a little differently.

This is a pretty easy answer for me...I have a "circle of trust" if you will...bunch of guys that I fish with...and next to...I share every little detail that I can with them....but basically we all LTJ and we all fish the same way...so the detail thing is not that important..it's location...
When I post reports I put "midbay" as most of you know...that won't change...I have been "burn't" way to many times..
I don't worry about the rec guys as much as commercial boats everywhere...
(Pete this doesn' include you...I wanna ride in your new boat):D
Last year I have never seen so many "hook + liners' in my life....on a typical wed I used to see maybe 1 or 2...last year they were in the dozens...
They also may be the hardest folks to fish around...they think the water is theres...trust me...
Now there are alot of people that you could tell where the spot is to LTJ and they couldn't catch a fish there if it jumped at the jig.....:D
But they are also the same ones that motor in front of you...or run their motors etc....
I see the point that alot of people are making about JP's post...I don't fish that area so it doesn't matter to me but I get it...
I will say my circle of trust has gotten bigger the last couple of years..there are some really good young fishermen out there and they are great to fish with...they aslo know how to keep a spot quiet..
But I know JP very well and he wasn't trying to "ruin" the spot he was just excited about his personal best...
You haven't seen Uncle Phill post about anything...I'm sure he feels bad as well...they are both stand-up guys..just didn't work out the way
it was intended....
I fished in the harbor once with JP in the winter and couldn't belive how small the fishing area was...1 or 2 boats tops....so I can see how this is a problem
The other thing is that I know Skip always says that only a few people actually go there...I forget the formula..X# of guys read it but only so many go there...with trollers I think it's a a litlte different...they are all over the place...LTJing is pretty precise...that being said...Stay Away from my boat!!...:D
BTW there is ZERO chance I would have posted this reponse on the other board....I would have 200 bmails by this afternoon.........:cool:

Thanks Jamie. :)

I just have to give my little 2 cents to this. I have been fishing the Patapsco River for over 15 years now and when I first found TF I started to post my reports in detail. I will have to say I did get burned several times after posting a report and found boats in the area that I had caught fish and when I was fishing those spots there was not a boat in sight. I also know JP very well and I guess he was very excited about catching his personal best. I’m not sure I would have posted a pic like that but sometimes the excitement just gets to ya. As a lot of you know Uncle Phill fishes with me almost every weekend over the last 6 years and I ask him to post a report for me and when he does you will see that he does NOT give any locations but that we are just fishing the river. Phill and I have put our time in the river and have found some good spots that not many guys knows about, humps ditches and so forth. I learn my lesson over the years and as many of you know I will help anyone I can. I’m ready for Spring so we can get some good fishing reports……

Is a WWD in the winter REALY a secret?:rolleyes: There is a BIG click on these boards,some great fishermen, some average fishermen, some lurkers and some trouble makers. Do you really expect EVERY ONE to get along. The internet has helped and hurt the sport of fishing. Fish have tails and boats have motors. If a fish never opened his mouth, he would never get caught!............Gary

Gary...No it's not a secret but some of the pics gave pretty detailed spots...but you're right you will always have clicks...I call them friends etc...
Anyone that has ever sent me bmail after my reports on Wed has gotten info..but I won't post it on the main board........

Spot burning.....a silly idea.....it's a big Bay and people have been fishing it for 400 years.....there are no secrets......just gotta find the feesh and quit whining.

My humble opinion:

- Spot burn can happen (lurkers are really the issue in my opinion)
- It's a free country, people can post or say what they want
- No matter how much of a jerk move it would be, everyone has the right to screw up fishing for everyone else (as long as their actions are legal)
- Everyone has the right to be pissed at someone who screws up the fishing for everyone else
- People should be considerate...but people should be a lot of things

So in short - there is nothing wrong with keeping the info to one's self, and there is nothing wrong with sharing info. The fish don't belong to an individual, but everyone has the right to keep their experiences private if they wish. To each his own. In fact, isn't spot burn really how most truly "secret" spots have been found. Tired of dealing with all the people at location X so I drove around and found something new...

I'm new to the bay so maybe I'm wrong.

I have learned to have many many spots (that I put in lot's of time and effort not to mention gas to find) just in case someone is their already..
Example...a few years ago i took a fellow fisherman to a topwater spot...we killed'em...next day I went back..his best friend was there and every time I went back there after that his friends friends and their friends were there....bottom line..spot was ruined...has never been the same..been there many times since...

But thats why I always have a Plan A..B...C etc...
goinsfishin....I think you made the point extacly...go find the fish...thats just it...75% (maybe less or maybe more)or more of the fisherman don't want to find the fish...they want U to find them and tell me where?.........

But I'm with u it is very exciting to find your own fish for sure....

I have only fished the Patapsco one time and Steve F took me to many of his hot spots. There is NO way that I would post or even tell any one of HIS hot spots. I have fished with Skip, Mlag and Dritchitt and would never divulge any of those locations. They are not mine to divulge and out of respect and thanks, I keep quiet. That to me is a given. When I fish on my boat in their spots, I keep quiet. If I am fishing on my boat in a GENERAL location or area, I will tell other folks that I know about it being hot. It's a touchy subject in certain instances but in general, " Loose lips sink ships "...........Gary

can anyone tell me exactly where the bite is right now. I havent been fishing in about a month and dont want to search all over for fish? Thanks :)

The best place to find fish right now for you Greg is Superfresh or Safeway. I will burn a spot I fished with Greg because we didn't catch a fish:D What are we going to do about that Greg. I'll bring the crab...........Gary

Bahh Gary you told me there were black drum in the mid-chesapeake bay.. I have yet to see one. Paul caught a nice croaker through ;):D

Dont worry, Garry doesnt burn any black drum spots on anyone :p

I like reading everyones opinions...especially SteveF and UnclePhil since I know they fish that area hard. I was wondering how they felt. I moved my boat off the Patapsco this year, and have not fished it once on my boat, and I guess that's why it didn't bother me, but it brought up the question among a lot of people who didn't want to stir the pot and ask the question. I don't fault JP for doing it. Hell I spoke to him last year and gave him an exact spot where I found some fish and as far as I know it stayed completely between us. I don't even think his post would have burned that spot too bad had it not been for one of two of the pictures in particular.

as I said in my original post, no, the WWDs are not a secret, but you gotta put in the work to know if the fish are there....if someone posts a report that "there are fish at location x" then the people that are less likely to go out and look for fish in the cold weather, but if they know exactly where they are, they are more likely to go.

I've been fishing since Jan 6th this year, you won't see a report from me, but there are some of you who have posted on this thread who I've talked to about the fish and know exactly where I'm fishing and know what I've been catching and I trust you guys. I trust guys I dont know that well. Along the same lines, I would share a spot I found with a few people that have helped me out and if the chose to share it with everyone in the world I wouldnt give a flying crap because they have probably already been there or they have helped me or given me information so much I could care less...
a few that come to mind Shawn Kimbro, MLAG, Garlien, B-faithful, Powerplay (or whatever his hockey name on this board is) hell even 5thTuition (he just can't net my fish)...im sure I missed some...

that being said, the entire point of this post was just to get viewpoints...not to bash anyone. It just happened to be the post on TF that started the whole discussion among some friends of mine and me (they have yet to post on the subject), but in short...no more dissertations
1.) I will never share a spot given to me by anyone else on the board no matter if they tell me I can or not...
2.) I don't post many reports, but if I did I would never post a report from a spot that I had fished that had been given to me by someone else
3.) as many have said, and as I said in my original post, you gotta be a huge egomaniac to think that you are the first person to have found a spot, so it's not like you are discovering America, but when you post a specific spot, IMHO you are inviting the people that don't want to put in the work to either a.) catch the fish you have been fishing hard or b.) as Jamie said, blow through your spot, run the motor, blast their music, stomp around a boat, etc...

oh well, two cents made..

Greg; I was at Bass Pro Shop just yesterday and I saw several nice size rockfish in their tank. If you try a lure that doesn't seem to be working, just climb down from the catwalk and go to another aisle and grab some different tackle:D.
5th (Marty)

I think it's worth adding - as someone without a boat who always is fishing with someone else, I don't report locations either and I feel it's a HO's duty not to. I also won't report where I fish when on a charter.

With that being said, if in a couple years from now I buy a boat and take a new friend with me, I don't know that I feel obligated to avoid all the locations people have shown me to avoid the info being passed on, but at the same time I'm going to be interested in exploring and finding my own places to fish.

I can also say I appreciate the fact that just about every time I've asked for help (and honestly though, I never ask for a spot, but rather usually general directions and the type of info to help me find a location on my own), people generally oblige and I've learned a lot from that. For example, I asked someone in this thread once if they were fishing North or South from Breezy - that was all - and they obliged and it helped me find fish and helped me learn something about the time of year I was fishing. I won't have to ask again.

As much as i hate to do this:D:D The bite right now is on LIGHT TACKLE so unfortunately that excludes you. I feel terrible to have to give you this information.:D:D:D:D:D

As the ole saying goes, it never hurts to ask…I know that I have had many phone calls asking where I had caught fish after Phill put up a post and I do try to help them the best I can but some of the places Phill and I fish I was sworn to secrecy and I will not give those spots up Hell I even put a blind fold on Phill when were running to them. :D As it was said there are some guys that will not tell anyone where they are fishing and I like how Jamie post his reports “Mid bay” but he will let you know what he is doing if you give him a call or PM him.

By the way Phill and I sometimes put on in the Patapsco and end up at the Bay Bridge and boy is that a run for us in a flat bottom boat when the wind is blowing 15 plus but it’s sometimes worth it.

Gregg 24-25.528' N; 80-45.328' W

that is a long run from annapolis :p

are you closer to there or will we see you at 38.869535,-75.812257 this weekend?

I am probably gona here aot of S@@@ about this but here is my thought.

With all the bad that goes on in this world I wonder why so many ppl worry about spot burning. I just dont understand the selfishness wanting to keep it all to them self. You might want to understand the feeling that you get when you help others. Look at Wish a Fish. What if they took the position of not taking individuals to fish. I take people fishing and all I care is about their excitment and trying to make a rememberable trip for them. when they catch the fish it gives me a better feeling that if I caught it.

So if you dont want to share then dont, but understand that you all use information from the ones that do share. And honestly does it make that much of a difference in the big scheme of things.

My 2 cents

Vince

Vince,
Your point is well taken, and with all that is going on in the world, no one probably should be concerned about it, but they are. They always were, and always will be. Comparing wish a fish to a spot during mid winter that a few people fish isn't comparing apples to apples. Last year, if you did wish a fish, then you heard me on the radio, had my family on a group of fish that were catching doubles the entire time and I gave out coordinates and asked everyone to come in...
COMPLETELY DIFFERENT ENTITIES

but I do understand your point. We have soldiers dying overseas and we are concerned about spot burning, but you aren't going to change that. In that mindset, who cares about catch and release vs catch and kill, who cares if they shut down fishing forever, who cares your car broke down, who cares we got 40 inches of snow...but on the topic of fishing, it is an important issue, and doesn't make a difference in the grand scheme, but fishing itself is a small scheme issue, hence the issue.

No one on this board should give you crap, which is why we went to this board. You should, and can express your opinion which is why I posted this topic in the first place. Your opinion is valid and well taken
Mark

Marty,

I must have passed you by at Bass Pro yesterday...Of course I stopped there after an eye appointment and my eyes were dialated and I couldn't see sh#$@#$t...I looked like a guy in his 90's with reading glasses and my head 6 inches from the merchandise....:)

I did see those beautiful rockfish in that tank as well...Looked good...For those of us that like to catch other types of fish, that spot looked good as well...Just jigging on that log would do the trick....

As for sharing spots....This is the first and last time I will share an exact spot with the public......

GPS Coordinates:
39.1573ºN, 76.7227ºW (WGS84/NAD83)

Like Marty said, look for something that looks like a tank with fish in it...Try there....Some real nice fish....

:cool:

Trapshoot...there are many different kinds of fishing....for instance if I just wanted to catch any fish...it's about as easy (As Shawn would put it) as taking a feather and a coat hanger and hooking up...but truthfully as I get older I could care less about small fish...16-18"......If I get on a school of them I will move on...
I am looking for a better grade for sure...last year was the best LTJing for quality fish year I have ever had...maybe I'm getting better at it....but I know what to look for...and once I find it I try to keep it quiet...to a degree....
I post weekly reports...I give any info I can except for location...if you really read my reports you can figure it out..(my location)...
If you notice the depth of water that I am fishing in thats a dead giveaway....But normally I catch fish in many locations throughout the day..it's not just one spot that always works...

I bet if I put a post up in May on TFish that said I was slaying bigguns at buoy #80 on a fri there would be 100+ boats there sat am....
I'm not kidding...
So to give you an example...Walleye pete is a good friend of mine who is a fabulous fisherman... he is out there almost everyday so he has an advantage for good fish bite locations...
But he fishes all over I mean all over...he spends days and days just riding around and finding "fishy" looking locations...saves them on his GPS and than goes to them regularly to check them out..
I have lots of guides that call me on thurs to see how my day went and I lots of guides that call me on tues to tell me where they caught fish at...
if Pete posted locations every report he would be out of business...
The vast majority of guys on these sites are quite lazy....but there are a minority of guys who love fishing...love finding their own fish and don't mind sharing info with the guys that share their passion...
When I first started posting reports on the internet I posted locations...got a few calls from some well respected fisherman and they told me I would regret it...they were right...
I get bmails from guys I don't know asking for help LTJing and I try any way I can to help them...

So why in the world would I post a location so that Joe Blow and his 20 friends can show up and ruin a spot...?

Jamie summed up most eloquently what I was trying to say but am too unintelligent to get across! If I fish with you once, or you share your info with me once I'll share every detail with you...but I'm not going to put it out there for the masses. For exactly the reason Jamie said, and I can name numerous instances last year where there were fish and someone posted it on TF and the bite shut down...
MOW, LP, SP, EB and the infamous PI posts...all great bites, all shut down by posts on TF

Let me play devil's advocate for a minute.

Say I'm a relatively poor guy. My boat is an early 80's Grady I got cheap from a friend. I can fish maybe once a month, but if I could I'd fish every day I would. I have a job that has a lot of hours and I take all the OT I can to support my wife and 2 kids. Now, I love fishing like everyone else but my opportunity to find places to fish is limited. I really rely on reports because when that 1 day a month rolls around I know where to go (even if not a specific spot, but a general area of the bay). I want to have success so my kids are into it to, and then I'll pass down the tradition of fishing.

My question (and I'm just playing devil's advocate) - is the opinion to keep all the info quiet elitist? Who does it really affect? I think the answer is really complicated, and not black or white. I'm honestly not sure. Again - I say to each his own...and my personal opinion is to keep other's info quiet and share my info with my friends and those that share with me.

Cheers,

Bob

Vince,
Here’s my take on selfishness, 7 or 8 years ago I took a guy fishing because he wanted to learn the Patapsco River so I told him I would take him out with me and show him a few spots. Well we fished for about 3 hours and we never even put a fish over the rail so I told him that I have a spot that not many guys know about and I would like to keep it that way. So off we went and as soon as we pulled up I seen nothing but fish on the fish finder so I just knew we were going to catch something. His first drop he pulls in a 30” the biggest he ever caught and for the next 1 ½ hours we bailed fish up to 35”. When we got back to the truck I asked him NOT to say anything about that spot because it’s a place I knew I could catch some fish if other places were not producing. Well the next week I go down to the river and went right back over there and as I was pulling up I noticed 3 boats in that area and yep you guess it, it was the guy that I had out with the week before and 2 of his buddy’s with 3 guys in each boat. Did I learn a lesson you bet I did, did that guy ever go with me again NOPE. As I said before I will try and help anyone I can and give them as much information as possible but I learn my lesion the hard way and it will not happen again.

Personally, I prefer the "old time" way - you put in your time, pay your dues and become proficient because of your experience. The internet hasn't done the overall quality of the fishery any good. If I should happen to feel the need to brag about my catch, I do it in person to select people who I know appreciate the info and won't bring in a armada of boats to clean out the school.

Spot burning? In general I am a weekend warrior and a loner. A lot of friends I fished with grew up got married had kids sold there boats. I am always chasing the fish in general because I only fish one or two days a week. I have a few friends & Captains I talk to and in general have to filter what they say. With that said I would not give away anyone’s honey hole. However, I fish some general areas that I know get hammered such as Hackett’s, Pidicory point, muds LP and Brick House. Can a general area be burned? The in fisherman reports these areas every week as having fish on them? Now for specifics locations GPS coordinates pylon numbers and specific humps which are only big enough for a boat or two I definitely believe they can be burned. In General I help out people and give them a chance IF they are A7%&^ then no soup for them. Unfortunately, I think everyone here who has posted on this board has a very unique boat and I see most of you guys burning up and down the bay all the time. I look forward to fishing with you guys this year. I fish in the Chesapeake bay From Stoney Creek – HS buoy.

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10 or 12 years ago on CA and WWA, I'd post a spot or two. I paid the price a couple of times though and learned my lesson.

Pretty much, the info stays close. I know which of my buddies keep their mouths shut and which have a wider network.

And if I see a post about a spot I like to fish that concerns me, I send a bmail to the poster and they have edited it every time.

Yeah - I think so depending on the audience. Years ago I got intel on TF that an area I'd never fished was holding Blues to 7 pounds, and rockfish to 12 pounds.

I broke out the chart, looked for structure in the general area, picked my tide and crushed 'em.