# Clowns on the pier



## Ghostrider

I should have expected it but I was fishing this past week down at one of the piers below Wilmington. A bunch of us were fishing for speckled trout and doing pretty good. This naturally caught the attention of a large group of people including this kid who jumps on top of the rail and begins catching gotcha plugs...we were fishing with floats and live shrimp. One of the group states that he was having trouble casting his float because of the wind and rough ocean. The kid (about 7-8 years old) announces that he just casts over people. I should have seen this coming. During one of his casts, he snaps back the gotcha plug and it catches in my shirt around my neck...close to the carotid artery... 
The kid looked a bit rattled and I was pissed...so I took him to his father who was down from the end of the pier and told him what happened. He was pretty non-chalant about it and I explained it like this...if your child comes down to the end of the pier again and casts near me...you and I are going to go... I think he understood because he began chewing out his son. Teach your kids how to fish and learn etiquette. Unfortunately...this is what we deal with on the pier.


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## lil red jeep

Clowns on the piers usually tick me off too! All that juggling, and unicycle riding, and those red noses! Where do they get the idea that stuff belongs on a pier?


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## RuddeDogg

Yup. We get that up here as well. Nothing like having a kid just walk right up and start pickin up your gear. I go from zero to tribal in a blink of an eye when that happens.


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## lil red jeep

RuddeDogg said:


> Yup. We get that up here as well. Nothing like having a kid just walk right up and start pickin up your gear. I go from zero to tribal in a blink of an eye when that happens.


I know what you mean, but still, don't those big red noses creep you out?


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## RuddeDogg

Hey ever since I saw that movie "IT" by Stephen King......I hate clowns.


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## jspeps

perfect example of why I prefer to fish from the sandy part of the beach


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## fishinvb

im with jspeps on this... see that crap all the time


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## GreenFord

I think they wrote a song about pier fishing......" clowns to the left of me jokers to the right"


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## dlwn88

About 3 years ago a random kid started hanging out with me for an hour and some change near the Virginia each oceanfront, my first time fishing out there. It got a little annoying after awhile haha, but he lost his dad, but he didn't tell me that until the last 10 minutes. 

He said his dad went to go get a beer or something and left him. I tried looking around a bit but told him it was better to stick to one spot. Not long after, the dad finally showed up. This guy was a freakin' loser. Probably double my age but it didn't matter...I'm a chill guy, but I put my rod down and asking him what the heck he was thinking. 

This kid was too nice...someone could have snatched him up...I told him. The guy laughed and said "You sound like my wife man!" so I snapped back with "Well, ever thought maybe your wife is right!? If she's as smart as she sounds I hope shes also is smart enough to divorce you by now." Everyone started laughing, and he stormed to his car and left. Everyone was surprised I said that haha, I didn't want to start anything though. I wasn't the only one upset, half the people out there fishing were yelling at this guy lol


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## lil red jeep

Damn clowns!


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## solid7

I officially do not pier fish anymore. The pier attracts the biggest dumbasses that the world has ever spawned. And I do not have the patience for it. There is NO FISH ON EARTH worth all that bullshit.

God bless those of you who can do it. You can have my space.

EDIT - the last straw was a hispanic man who, at first appeared to be drunken, but later, turned out to just be stupid. Every cast out, he was over my line. (never mind that I am straight out in front of me and he is 50 ft away) I tell him 4 times, "hey man, you are over my line". Every time, he quips back, "Dere must be de current taking my line". On the 5th time, I ask him, "how the hell does the current take YOUR line out of the water, and hang it over MINE?" (because it is draping over the middle of the exposed section of my line. He promptly did it one more time, before packing up and leaving, after I gave him the "glare of death".

Oh, yeah, the same weekend, I think I may have met the Skunk King. I had to listen to some blissfully ignorant doofus tell me about how far his Abu (with a "J12 conversion" levelwind) was casting 150-175 yards - well past his Blue Yonders. Funny, because I just caught that detail re-reading the "meltdown" thread yesterday, and never picked up on it before. He talked my ear off and wouldn't leave me alone, until I finally told him that I had to move to the end of the pier, "before the bite turned off". Damn, I'm smooth...


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## jakuka

I've never fished on a pier. But after reading recent threads about the horror stories of pier fishing I'm not sure that I ever want to. I thought well maybe its not that bad. So I checked out several random pier videos on youtube. And let me just say that I saw enough that I _completely_ understand why the guys at the end of the pier have a reputation for being grumpy. If I fished the pier everyday I'd quickly be labeled with the same bad attitude. There are just some things you can't have enough patience for. I think I'll stick to my solitude in the surf.


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## Ghostrider

Well I am glad it is not just me. The guys at the end of the pier or regulars are a wonderful bunch who will teach you how to be a better fisherman. I would say 99% of the time they have been very helpful and considerate...and early morning is still a good time to go. As the day goes on so does the insanity. The tourists come right up to the edge of the pier where people are casting and I am waiting for the day they hook a small child and send him flying or to the hospital.


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## NCfisher

Hey man not all kids are like that. Im only 14. in all my 10 years of fishing i have never once casted over anyone. same deal with my bro. he's only 8!


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## Byron/pa

> Hey man not all kids are like that. Im only 14. in all my 10 years of fishing i have never once casted over anyone. same deal with my bro. he's only 8!


 And my guess is that you are also a respectful person when you are not fishing. And I'd also guess that somewhere in your life you were taught a thing or two about basic respect.
Alot of people throw the "kid" word around, but it's almost always an adult who is to blame. I avoid the piers like the plauge, but when I'm on the beach or lake, river, stream, etc. and a respectful "kid" comes by, I'm always more than happy to do what I can to help them catch some fish. And I'm sure just about all adults feel the same way, unless they never learned respect neither...............


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## solid7

Byron/pa said:


> when I'm on the beach or lake, river, stream, etc. and a respectful "kid" comes by, I'm always more than happy to do what I can to help them catch some fish. And I'm sure just about all adults feel the same way, unless they never learned respect neither...............


Good kids are a joy to be around. Punks are punks, however, and it doesn't matter how old they are. They all end up the same way...

I help kids out when it comes to fishing. And I'm not the least bit ashamed to admit that I have met a few youngsters that actually taught ME something. 

Perspective - kids learn from somebody. You never know who. You might be talking to someone who learned from the best. Keep your ears open and your mouth shut, unless you are given a reason to the contrary.


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## pogeymoe

the answer is SIMPLE!! CIGARRETS! I dont even smoke but when i run into these issues........do you know how fast a cig will cut a line? I couldnt tell you how many anchor lines ive burnt and turons lines i have burnt. Sometimes people dont realize two bluefish on 7 foot leaders will tangle every time when the anchor lines are too close.. Snap!! anchor rods are cool when the line is hit with a cig. i got tired of it all and got a yak.

try cigs! it works


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## NCfisher

> And my guess is that you are also a respectful person when you are not fishing. And I'd also guess that somewhere in your life you were taught a thing or two about basic respect.
> Alot of people throw the "kid" word around, but it's almost always an adult who is to blame. I avoid the piers like the plauge, but when I'm on the beach or lake, river, stream, etc. and a respectful "kid" comes by, I'm always more than happy to do what I can to help them catch some fish. And I'm sure just about all adults feel the same way, unless they never learned respect neither...............





> Good kids are a joy to be around. Punks are punks, however, and it doesn't matter how old they are. They all end up the same way...
> 
> I help kids out when it comes to fishing. And I'm not the least bit ashamed to admit that I have met a few youngsters that actually taught ME something.
> 
> Perspective - kids learn from somebody. You never know who. You might be talking to someone who learned from the best. Keep your ears open and your mouth shut, unless you are given a reason to the contrary.


Thank you thats exactly the point i was trying to make.


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## fish123

I once was offered a free trip to Ocean Isle, NC, of course I accepted but what I didn't know was that the local pier is populated and run by idiots. I tried to shark fish, I tried to king fish, I tried, but after three or four days, I just gave up because the people couldn't stop screwing with me. I knew, I'd never land any king by myself and there was nobody in sight that knew how to fish. There was a kid(maybe 15) there that was "king fishing" he had a something vaguely resembling king rig, a Penn 3/0 with 80 pound line, locked down with a 131 pound leader attached to three 8/0 circle hooks, and no release(I'm not sure how he expected to land a king without a release). I re-rigged him, but the fact of the matter was that he couldn't learn from anyone there.

.


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## dlwn88

I haven't really had any horrible experiences that bad but I have seen my fair share of pier idiots when I used to go. Well, I go every now and then, but not nearly as often ever since I started fishing from my SeaDoo. Now that I've experienced how nice it is to hit the water on my own or with a friend with the jetski and get to choose where to go, I rarely go to a pier.


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## LEADDRAFT

You guys just got me laughing!!!! Clowns? Jesus... Speckled trout, I'm guessing Ocean Crest...
Sorry folks, One THING, Patience, lots of it....
surf? Love it, but dealing with **Thousands**, well around you, swimmers, rowdy surfers, kids, adults that cannot seem to walk behind you, or UNDER you line, Just plain crazy crap on the beach, Police harrasing you if you have a "Cold One", general racket, yeah that kind of solitude... 

Smell of SunTan oil and baking/frying Touron's, (Whats that J. Buffet song again?) yeppers, thats the ticket.... opcorn:

just throw in a'lil eye-candy to look at, it's all good. 

i was the wolf W/the Red Roses...


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## solid7

LEADDRAFT said:


> surf? Love it, but dealing with **Thousands**, well around you, swimmers, rowdy surfers, kids, adults that cannot seem to walk behind you, or UNDER you line, Just plain crazy crap on the beach, Police harrasing you if you have a "Cold One", general racket, yeah that kind of solitude...


Maybe I am Captain Obvious here... But there is a lot more coastline than there is standing room on piers. One doesn't need to go to a busy beach. I live 3 blocks from one, and it gets very little traffic. That's the way I like it. You can choose a beach that isn't crowded, but you MIGHT NOT have that luxury with a pier. Of course, there's the fishing aspect of the pier vs. the beach, but everything is a tradeoff.

At any rate, you are asking for trouble if you surf cast on a busy beach. Might as well be fishing the pier, at that point...


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## LEADDRAFT

Solid, I'm hving quite a bit'o trouble beliving ya, as i'm 15 min from Cb/40 away from South brunswick Island beaches, About the same for Wrightsville on North to Topsail island..
Please DO TELL, in the middle of Summer, where YOU are going to find a Quite Spot?
Don't mis-understand me here, I prefere to Fish the Suds/Sand When the TURON'S are home for the Fall & Winter.


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## solid7

LEADDRAFT said:


> Solid, I'm hving quite a bit'o trouble beliving ya, as i'm 15 min from Cb/40 away from South brunswick Island beaches, About the same for Wrightsville on North to Topsail island..
> Please DO TELL, in the middle of Summer, where YOU are going to find a Quite Spot?
> Don't mis-understand me here, I prefere to Fish the Suds/Sand When the TURON'S are home for the Fall & Winter.


I don't know those areas. I'm in Florida. The quiet beach that I speak of is halfway between a Hilton Hotel and a Crowne Plaza, separated by all of 3 city blocks. (having no place to park without staying tends to keep people out) I suppose "quiet" is a relative term, but I didn't imply that I was in total solitude. If I have 100 feet between me and the nearest person either side, I am happy.

I have literally, dozens, if not hundreds of spots to fish in complete isolation, if that be my fancy. I am inherently lazy, so I tend to fish close to home. Not sure why it's so hard to believe, but even in Florida, there is still a whole lot of undeveloped shore front. (especially the east coast)

For what it's worth, I also prefer the cold months for fishing, but that's only because it is when the fishing is best. (I am an avid pompano fisherman)


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## LEADDRAFT

> (I am an avid pompano fisherman)


As I too Sir, and Whiting/drum/etc etc.. 
HEY! how's bout We trade places?
or visit?
Come on out to the End, Join the *DARK SIDE*, We got beer and Cupcakes....


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## solid7

LEADDRAFT said:


> As I too Sir, and Whiting/drum/etc etc..
> HEY! how's bout We trade places?
> or visit?
> Come on out to the End, Join the *DARK SIDE*, We got beer and Cupcakes....


Let me answer this systematically...

Trade places = NO
Visit = you visit me, not the other way around
DARK SIDE = I don't like beer, and Cupcakes go straight to your hips

No pier for this misanthrope. But you can come to my beaches anytime between October and April. I'll show you how it's done. 

You can keep the drum and whiting. Drum are damn hard to clean, and whiting are for people who can't catch tasty fish.  (but you can catch them by the bushel round these parts)


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## lil red jeep

Way to go you two! This guy was traumatized by clowns on unicycles honking horns and blowing up baloons and you guys hijack his thread! Some people have a lot of nerve!


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## OVmadman

Sounds like another p&s happy couple. They were matched using our one of a kind pesonality check list. This should be good.


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## solid7

OVmadman said:


> Sounds like another p&s happy couple. They were matched using our one of a kind pesonality check list. This should be good.


Don't expect any drama here. We was just makin' small talk!


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## Drumdum

*I would guess the main thing here is*

*Clowns NEVER inhabit the beach..*

Yeah...right.... 

Guess no one here has found a nice outsuck that had big drum written all over it and had two or three other guys park right on the other side of the outsuck and tangle lines till ya leave right? Or fish a crowded spot like the point and have folks cut you off on a fish or put spikes up directly in the middle of an area that 50plus folks are trying to drift bait across?? Or if you catch a fish in a nice issolated spot up the beach from everyone,and you got folks with radar vision come an pay you a visit along with 4 or 5 other trucks?

Trust me,I have fished both.. As far as a drumblitz or a kingblitz (never happens anymore  ) I'll take the "semicontrolled caos" of a pier anytime,thankya.. jmho....


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## solid7

Wow, Drumdum... Things must be very different in your neck of the woods. I have NEVER had any such thing happen to me on a beach down here. That sucks.

I guarantee you right now - I will take beach over pier ANY DAY in this part of the world.

That sounds like the worst nightmare I could dream of.


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## lil red jeep

Drumdum said:


> *Clowns NEVER inhabit the beach..*
> 
> Yeah...right....
> 
> Guess no one here has found a nice outsuck that had big drum written all over it and had two or three other guys park right on the other side of the outsuck and tangle lines till ya leave right? Or fish a crowded spot like the point and have folks cut you off on a fish or put spikes up directly in the middle of an area that 50plus folks are trying to drift bait across?? Or if you catch a fish in a nice issolated spot up the beach from everyone,and you got folks with radar vision come an pay you a visit along with 4 or 5 other trucks?
> 
> Trust me,I have fished both.. As far as a drumblitz or a kingblitz (never happens anymore  ) I'll take the "semicontrolled caos" of a pier anytime,thankya.. jmho....


As bad as that is, and it does suck, were they wearing red noses and blowing up balloons? Honkin those dern squeaky horns? I hate those guys!


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## NCfisher

DERFM said


> some people need to do their fishing at the fish market !!


That pretty much sums it up.


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## Ed K

Drumdum said:


> *Clowns NEVER inhabit the beach..*
> 
> Yeah...right....
> 
> Guess no one here has found a nice outsuck that had big drum written all over it and had two or three other guys park right on the other side of the outsuck and tangle lines till ya leave right? Or fish a crowded spot like the point and have folks cut you off on a fish or put spikes up directly in the middle of an area that 50plus folks are trying to drift bait across?? Or if you catch a fish in a nice issolated spot up the beach from everyone,and you got folks with radar vision come an pay you a visit along with 4 or 5 other trucks?
> 
> Trust me,I have fished both.. As far as a drumblitz or a kingblitz (never happens anymore  ) I'll take the "semicontrolled caos" of a pier anytime,thankya.. jmho....


I've had that happen to many times they roll in on you and start throwing fresh water rods with bank sinkers and whole finger mullet on wire leaders too. but somehow they always end up catching something.


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## Drumdum

Ed K said:


> I've had that happen to many times they roll in on you and start throwing fresh water rods with bank sinkers and whole finger mullet on wire leaders too. but somehow they always end up catching something.


 I know what you mean there.. Many a time saw folks using a spotrig hook on to a big drum and luck into landing it... Although most of the time folks "hawk" and seek out good spots and somehow they seem to find me when I find one..  Generally I don't mind company,although I'd at least like to know the folks before they horn in.... Just the question,"ya mind if I put a bait out with ya?",would be nice and no doubt I'd say h*ll ya go fer it...  On the planks ya ain't got this,what's there is there,and if you got a good group of folks you can fish a drumblitz right on top a one another no problem...


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## solid7

The problem is obvious - you don't have enough species up there to fish for.


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## tjbjornsen

lil red jeep said:


> As bad as that is, and it does suck, were they wearing red noses and blowing up balloons? Honkin those dern squeaky horns? I hate those guys!


I don't think Lil Red is letting this one go!
We might have a case of Coulrophobia on our hands...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coulrophobia


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## lil red jeep

tjbjornsen said:


> I don't think Lil Red is letting this one go!
> We might have a case of Coulrophobia on our hands...
> 
> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coulrophobia


I can't help it! It was a childhood trip to Ringling Brothers and I haven't been the same since! I mean really, how to they fit 18 clowns in those little cars anyway?


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## Drumdum

solid7 said:


> The problem is obvious - you don't have enough species up there to fish for.


 Cobia,kings, and drum are what I mentioned,but plenty of others... I like a good pull,so pompano and the other smaller fish don't get mentioned,but I do fish for them.. Stripers in the dead of winter,as well as puppydrum,specks,and flounder..

Actually we have most of the species you have down there.. Have actually seen a bonefish or two caught on the planks,know of permit caught in lb nets in the sound,we catch aberjack, jack cavalle,cuda,and tarpon as some of the bigger "Fla fish" we catch.. Used to catch plenty of kings off the piers,with some new regs,imho we could be catching those in big numbers again as well.. 

Even with the,imo,overnetting in some cases,we don't have to defend our fishery,stands pretty well on its own...


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## greg12345

Nothing beats the surf Sept - Nov in Topsail, plenty of holes to go around for the few fisherman that are there. Compare that to the piers at that time with all the spot fisherman...no thx...I'll take a couple citation pomps from the surf over a couple hundred spot from the pier any day.


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## jamesvafisher

I would much rather pier fish myself


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## HStew

Hatteras is the Southern most point for Northern migrating fish and the Northern most point for Southern migrating fish. This means a great variety of fish species available over a long period of time.


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## Garboman

"Or if you catch a fish in a nice isolated spot up the beach from everyone,and you got folks with radar vision come an pay you a visit along with 4 or 5 other trucks?"

(corrected for spelling)

You better believe I will be showing up for a visit if you put a big Red one on the beach or Bow up within my eye shot, my radar vision is failing in my old age, however my "Fish Sense" is a strong, not running with a Posse at the moment but like any "Good" Beach party you never can tell who will drop by..... During the last of the Big Bluefish blitzes of the 1980's I participated in a running scramble that started at Rodanthe Pier with just two fellas besides myself hooking up to 15-18 pound Bluefish..........the Blue fish were briskly moving South in Menhaden and we followed the massive ten acre school South....by the time we made it to Ramp 23 there were perhaps 150 fishermen chasing in 80-90 trucks.........some running along the beach....the new fellas just came out of nowhere out over the Dunes, must have seen the Birds.... and from up the beach in a mad convoy triggered by hysteria...........after a bit I just watched in amazement as to the tangles and cussing and manic behavior......several hundred giant blues flopped on the sand that morning hooked in the Maelstrom, the fish were feeding so voraciously you had to have a bit of luck bringing one in without being cut off by the other slashing fish......If that school showed up in Florida......the Snooks would be toast......

I would have to concur that it is way easier to get multiple Drum netted/Planked vs Beached as the participants on the OBX planks are generally more regulated or as described in other posts someone will "regulate" them.....

As far as pier clowns........ I like laughing...........and tricking when I can........... so Clowns are an enjoyable way to spend "Down Time" , I am probably one of them at times...certainly was when i first started............sand or yellow pine under my feet makes no difference, I will go where I think the bite will be on......


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## Drumdum

Garboman said:


> "Or if you catch a fish in a nice isolated spot up the beach from everyone,and you got folks with radar vision come an pay you a visit along with 4 or 5 other trucks?"
> 
> (corrected for spelling)
> 
> You better believe I will be showing up for a visit if you put a big Red one on the beach or Bow up within my eye shot, my radar vision is failing in my old age, however my "Fish Sense" is a strong, not running with a Posse at the moment but like any "Good" Beach party you never can tell who will drop by..... During the last of the Big Bluefish blitzes of the 1980's I participated in a running scramble that started at Rodanthe Pier with just two fellas besides myself hooking up to 15-18 pound Bluefish..........the Blue fish were briskly moving South in Menhaden and we followed the massive ten acre school South....by the time we made it to Ramp 23 there were perhaps 150 fishermen chasing in 80-90 trucks.........some running along the beach....the new fellas just came out of nowhere out over the Dunes, must have seen the Birds.... and from up the beach in a mad convoy triggered by hysteria...........after a bit I just watched in amazement as to the tangles and cussing and manic behavior......several hundred giant blues flopped on the sand that morning hooked in the Maelstrom, the fish were feeding so voraciously you had to have a bit of luck bringing one in without being cut off by the other slashing fish......If that school showed up in Florida......the Snooks would be toast......
> 
> I would have to concur that it is way easier to get multiple Drum netted/Planked vs Beached as the participants on the OBX planks are generally more regulated or as described in other posts someone will "regulate" them.....
> 
> As far as pier clowns........ I like laughing...........and tricking when I can........... so Clowns are an enjoyable way to spend "Down Time" , I am probably one of them at times...certainly was when i first started............sand or yellow pine under my feet makes no difference, I will go where I think the bite will be on......


 Dern,you be just like Skidmark,always gotta spellcheck me chit.....  

Mike,like I said earlier,have no problem with someone I know coming up and fish'n my spot with me,and you are welcome to do so at anytime... Don't have a problem with someone I don't know either,just would like the courtesy of a "ok if I fish here with ya??"... 

As far as clowns and you being one.. The preformance you put on with that dolphin was a good'n,especially when it looked like he was going to jump onto the beach and land on top of a bunch a tourist...


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## Pin rigr

Worst part of nags head pier is the night crew. you can catch all the bait you want and put in in your bucket but you can bet it won't be there in the morning.

Problem is one guy buys a fishing pass and walks out to the end 10 times carrying a few rods at a time and sits em all against the rail. While his 20 buddies go to the bar and order a beer each now they can all get out on the pier for free. 

Then there's the big bad bottom fishers with there giant flimsy spinning rods that stomp to the end of the pier. one look at the king rigs and they act like they came to the end just to look down at the water then they take the walk of shame half way back down to the pier even though there's a big jigging lane with no pin rigs for them to fish in. Always fun to watch


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## ncdead

we were fishing on the sportsman pier years ago On a cold, rainy miserable day in April. Nothing was biting except false albacore off the end so we were out there throwing to them along with about a dozen other people. this dude walks out and is checking it out, not fishing but with a grin on his face watching those guys that were casting like mad at the moving, busting fish. he starts working a few guys into a frenzy, yellin, 'they are breaking over there,get em boys!!......there they are over there on the other side, quick....cast over there!!!! hey, guys, they are hitting on green....switch to green' This guy was working the boys like a puppet master, had them running from one one side of the pier to the other and digging through their tackle to find something with some green on it. my brother and I were dying....one of the funniest things I had seen while pier fishing to that point. Seen a lot more stupid, dangerous things since then but that made our day.


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## nissan11

The funny pier folk are half the reason I fish the pier. If you can't enjoy a couple beers and laugh at the characters then you should just stick to the beach. You can't expect to go everywhere and only run into experienced and proficient fishermen. 

The pier life isn't for everyone.


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## flathead

> Or if you catch a fish in a nice isolated spot up the beach from everyone


Had this happen more than once. One particular time I was fishing where the south end of ramp 4 meets OI, on a cold December morning, not more than 2-3 other folks within a 1/4 mile. I think Tres was one of those, still passed out from a three day binge.  Landed two stripers and within 15 minutes there were over 50 trucks headed my way. Turned out there were two guys sitting back at the dunes in a truck with lap tops and cell phones. Evidently high paid spies for a group of northern illegal aliens down for a fishing trip 

If I had to choose, I'd choose the surf everyday and all day. But back in the old days, I'd have selected a pier. At least in the surf, you can pick up and move.

And, if you've ever pin rigged during the summer doldrums, well, having one clown around, with a few tricks up his sleeve, always helped pass the time.


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## BLACK ADDER

Well, I was offered a free trip from Va Beach down to the southern North Carolina piers this fall....and turned it down. At age 60 I don't have patience to deal with stuff I did as a kid.


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## buckstand

solid7 said:


> The pier attracts the biggest dumbasses that the world has ever spawned.


20 ft bassboats attract those as well! It must be seasonal migration


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## letmefish

When I was a kid my dad took me Pier fishing a few times. It was ok I guess, and we caught some nice fish. So many times though I witnessed guys getting into arguments because the pier was crowded and people kept casting over each other. Or they would catch a nice fish that would run up and down the pier and tangle everyone up before they could get reeled in. This usually ended up in a shoving match most times. The last time we went fishing on a Pier with my dad some nitwit kept casting over my dad's line. The final time the lines got tangled. Just when the guy was about cut my dad's line, my dad grabbed the dude and slung him over the side of the pier. He landed in the water with one heck of a splash. I knew that was the last time I'd be fishing on a pier, and I must say I wasn't very sad about it. I preferred fishing from the surf anyways.

Now flash forward 35 years, my 13 year old son wants to try pier fishing. I REALLY DON'T WANNA TAKE HIM, but we've gone a couple times. I will ONLY go on the pier when there are very few people fishing on the the pier. I still don't care much for it. Besides I can cast far enough from the shore to reach many of the good pier spots anyways so why should I walk 160 yards down a pier to cast in a spot I can reach from shore if I really needed to. I can still see the guys face in my mind as he goes overboard, and I don't want to have my son to see that.


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## LEADDRAFT

Wow, ain't this a Old thread,, seems it always appears , (Or one like it) around end of August, first of Sept... Must be getting close to that time O' year again... _Combat Fishing_  I Kinda like this time of year.. Lots of "Clowns", Itty bitty kinies, walking up to the end,, bending over among the pin-rigs & rods, then asking questions, Or walking away Embarrassed, noticing 10-20 heads of ole pinriggers, (Now with the younger upcoming Googans) .. Heads turned watching them intently.. See-through "Sun-Dresses", Now; I you can guess why their named that... Catch ONE Spot, put in the bait bucket, & look your place on the rail now has 10 folks there, trying to catch the same.. Surf-fishing? Well since I fish the N. End, that's out, (for now),, mucho entertainment watching the CB police herd Cats,, (Opps I mean drunks),, AND the Bar "up-stairs, while the "patrons" walk the pier,, Never a Dull moment.. Oct~Nov can't get here soon enough.. Tight Lines Folks.. & Cold,,, & What-ever is your flavor..


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## ncdead

Letmefish,I have witnessed a lot of things on piers over the years but have never seen anyone being tossed over the rails. I bet that turned some heads. Hope that doesnt keep you from taking your boy fishing whenever possible, whether or not its on a pier. I have gotten to the point on the outer banks that I will avoid the pier if it's crowded....too many other options.


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## boomer

I watched a drunk with a Penn 209 fight a fish for over 30 minutes, it was an epic battle, back and forth, the fish taking line , him finally gaining it back. After a while I noticed that he was hung on the cross bar of the pier pilings. Every one else around knew he was but figured if he was busy "fighting " his fish he would leave them alone. When the line finally broke , he packed up and went home.


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## Greywalls

I haven't had a positive pier experience in quite some time... At 39 yrs old, I can recall the pier trips of my childhood, both in VA and NC... 30 years ago, they were fantastic times. However, in recent years (and after a 20+ yr hiatus), I've really been turned off from the piers I've visited. Setting aside the actual fishing, it just seems to me that the quality and characteristics of the bulk of people have changed over the years. I don't mean to sound elitist or even racist -- I'm simply sharing my personal experience and honest opinions... When I was young, most of my fellow fisherman were Caucasian middle-class Americans, and looked, acted and talked the same as my father and me... As of late, though, the only folks I really can identify best with seem to be the tourist-crowd... A recent outing in Virginia, in fact, swayed me to write off ever again frequenting a pier outing for the foreseeable future... The entirety of the planks were filled with Hispanic day laborers sullenly sitting atop old five gallon buckets, two encamped Vietnamese families who during four hours never chirped a single word of English, a few folks who appeared to be homeless and/or crackheads (across a couple races), a boombox playing rap music, an expanse of $20 Walmart-special Shakespeare setups, and an altogether environment of destitution, for lack of better words. I get a similar feeling when traveling down an inner city street full of payday loan shops, pawn stores and exotic foreign mini-groceries... I dunno -- maybe I'm flawed or am a suburban douche bag for feeling that way... Just no longer feels like an Orvis and Field & Stream kinda outing anymore...


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## greg12345

orvis embodies everything that is wrong with fishing, IMO. i still like to hit the planks once in a while but would rather have my feet in the sand.


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## marv1234

Old post but I can remember many days this year when people are just annoying as hell. A group suddenly show up and start making noise then they start crowding everyone on the pier. Throwing lines over people then telling them to move over. Then they whine when I show up first at their favorite spot and I don't move so they crowd around me and throw lines under and over mine. Then they start talking about how they know everything about fishing and that I'm doing it all wrong and that's when I tell them I do it my way it works just fine. I don't mind the regular pier rats but some of them are just annoying and have no manners.


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## Greywalls

greg12345 said:


> orvis embodies *everything that is wrong* with fishing, IMO.


Not to hijack, but how so? Just curious. I don't disagree with you -- just couldn't find better analogies to articulate my thoughts... Orvis is successful in marketing what has become known as ‘the fishing lifestyle’. I give them props for those efforts, and for the 5% pre-tax charitable donations to sporting causes... I just wish they still sold QUALITY gear rather than cater to the mainstream of newb anglers and soccer moms looking for over-priced dog beds. :fishing:


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## greg12345

most of the good fisherman i know could not fish if they were forced to shop at orvis, the prices there are exorbitant. i am a big believer in fishing as hobby that should be able to be enjoyed by anyone - this means reasonable quality gear at a reasonable price. orvis is the equivalent of designer jeans that cost $500 - sure the quality may be slightly better than a $30 pair but that is just ridiculous.

but if anyone wants to give away their helios i'll take it in a sec...could really use a 9' 8wt for the salt...


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## Benji

Greywalls said:


> I haven't had a positive pier experience in quite some time... At 39 yrs old, I can recall the pier trips of my childhood, both in VA and NC... 30 years ago, they were fantastic times. However, in recent years (and after a 20+ yr hiatus), I've really been turned off from the piers I've visited. Setting aside the actual fishing, it just seems to me that the quality and characteristics of the bulk of people have changed over the years. I don't mean to sound elitist or even racist -- I'm simply sharing my personal experience and honest opinions... When I was young, most of my fellow fisherman were Caucasian middle-class Americans, and looked, acted and talked the same as my father and me... As of late, though, the only folks I really can identify best with seem to be the tourist-crowd... A recent outing in Virginia, in fact, swayed me to write off ever again frequenting a pier outing for the foreseeable future... The entirety of the planks were filled with Hispanic day laborers sullenly sitting atop old five gallon buckets, two encamped Vietnamese families who during four hours never chirped a single word of English, a few folks who appeared to be homeless and/or crackheads (across a couple races), a boombox playing rap music, an expanse of $20 Walmart-special Shakespeare setups, and an altogether environment of destitution, for lack of better words. I get a similar feeling when traveling down an inner city street full of payday loan shops, pawn stores and exotic foreign mini-groceries... I dunno -- maybe I'm flawed or am a suburban douche bag for feeling that way... Just no longer feels like an Orvis and Field & Stream kinda outing anymore...


Aw come on, you couldn't pay for better entertainment. Like when boom box guy bends down and goes to turn his jam up, but is so drunk he face plants and bust out a tooth. Or when the ranger shows up and all the day laborers disappear. And who doesn't like a good crack head fight, verbal or physical, when they argue the truth comes out. Just stay to your self, or your kind, and laugh at everyone else. And some places,...pack heat.


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## flathead

> could really use a 9' 8wt for the salt...


got mine all rigged and ready to go for October. Took it out to a large pond Tuesday evening. Big bass and bream on homemade poppers only gave it a real light workout. Needs a big red pulling on it.


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## hugehail

Sometimes the jerks or "clowns" on the piers aren't the rude kids or certain others that folks above have talked about above in this old thread from 2011 that someone just revitalized. Sometimes the real irritants are the "regulars" who think they own the pier as well as the entire ocean. Ive been fishing at a certain pier on the OBX since the 1970s. Some time during late September last year there were a few king fisherman who would come out on the pier every day and fish for Drum. They would always start off catching spot around mid pier to use for their drum set up. I had the misfortune of standing about 10 feet away from them when the Spot were hitting one afternoon. I made a concerted effort to cast straight out in front of on every cast (even more so than normal) because I knew I didn't want to get in their way, knowing how some of these guys are. I always try to reel my slack in quickly. Well on one cast I didn't reel my slack in fast enough so that it briefly blew over toward the one of the other guys line. He yelled and said, hey your line is way over here in front of me, in a nasty tone. I replied back something to the effect that "no its not, its just a little slack I need to reel in, its not a big deal", then I reeled in the slack and I was straight out. But that didn't stop the prick from being abusive with his language in front of my 12 yr old nephew. Fishing next to people like this is really not my cup of tea. So when I hear folks complaining about idiots out on the pier who don't know what their doing or who are rude, I need to point out examples like this of fishing elitists who have zero tolerance for other people.


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## letmefish

ncdead said:


> Letmefish,I have witnessed a lot of things on piers over the years but have never seen anyone being tossed over the rails. I bet that turned some heads. Hope that doesnt keep you from taking your boy fishing whenever possible, whether or not its on a pier. I have gotten to the point on the outer banks that I will avoid the pier if it's crowded....too many other options.


It did turn some heads. It also got the attention of the local police, and they came down. One of them ended up in the drink as well, which only added to the negative experience I had that evening while I sit in the Police station waiting for my mom to pick me up.

I do try to take the kids fishing as much as possible, and I have taken them on the pier at Emerald Isle a couple times. It was fun for them but not so much for me as I'm just waiting for all hell to break loose. The kids had fun and that was all that mattered I guess. Both times that I've taken the kids I go and survey the situation first. If it's to many people we don't fish on the pier. The last time we went there were about 30 people on the whole pier, so there was PLENTY of room to fish. My kids caught so many Croakers I got tired of taking them off the hooks 

Lol, a fisherman getting tired of taking fish off a hook, now that's a laugh


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## letmefish

Benji said:


> Aw come on, you couldn't pay for better entertainment. Like when boom box guy bends down and goes to turn his jam up, but is so drunk he face plants and bust out a tooth. Or when the ranger shows up and all the day laborers disappear. And who doesn't like a good crack head fight, verbal or physical, when they argue the truth comes out. Just stay to your self, or your kind, and laugh at everyone else. And some places,...pack heat.


"a good crack head fight".... I sprayed coffee on my monitor when I read that  Oh my gosh that was funny!


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## cooper138

Whoa wait your pops tossed a LEO into the drink?? Did he get charged with assault?


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## ncdead

Yeah i was kinda wondering the same thing. Gotta be pretty pissed to chuck somebody over the rails......dont condone it but wish I had seen it...lol


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## ncdead

Letmefish, I hadnt seen your response about the cop going into the water when I posted ten minutes ago. I'm glad I never crossed over your old man's line. Hope I don't offend you when I say that's funny as hell. Would love to hear how that all played out. I can understand as a kid how that experience turned you off from pier fishing.


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## phillyguy

This thread is a useful reminder to me as to why I HATE fishing piers and avoid them at all cost.


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## greg12345

the one thing i don't like is people that insist on throwing their cast overhead on the pier when fishing with bottom rigs for things like spot, they can never throw it straight out....just underhand flip it...so easy to control & be accurate that way. plus just dangerous to do it that way when it's crowded, not to mention most people are throwing 5oz sinkers with freshwater rods weighted for 1/2oz. 

plugging, throwing out an anchor, artificial fishing then yeah cast normally...but just flip your spot bottom rig out underhand...or at least learn how to cast straight

can't stand inaccurate casters/tangled lines. also use enough weight to hold bottom.


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## greg12345

flathead what type of rod do u have, looking for a salt 8wt that won't break the bank, most are close to a half a grand!!!


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## Greywalls

greg12345 said:


> the one thing i don't like is people that insist on throwing their cast overhead on the pier when fishing with bottom rigs for things like spot, they can never throw it straight out....just underhand flip it...so easy to control & be accurate that way. plus just dangerous to do it that way when it's crowded, not to mention most people are throwing 5oz sinkers with freshwater rods weighted for 1/2oz.
> 
> plugging, throwing out an anchor, artificial fishing then yeah cast normally...but just flip your spot bottom rig out underhand...or at least learn how to cast straight
> 
> can't stand inaccurate casters/tangled lines. also use enough weight to hold bottom.


That is a the truth! The public piers are some of the most egregious offenders...

In any event, spot and croaker just don't do it for me. Hate the whole "scene."


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## ez2cdave

hugehail said:


> Sometimes the real irritants are the "regulars" who think they own the pier as well as the entire ocean . . . . . . But that didn't stop the prick from being abusive . . . . . . So when I hear folks complaining about idiots out on the pier who don't know what their doing or who are rude, I need to point out examples like this of fishing elitists who have zero tolerance for other people.


The same thing happens on online Fishing Forums, too . . .


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## pmcdaniel

Been to several piers along the coast over many years and my experiences have been mostly positive. The only one I really did not like at all was Carolina Beach pier. I don't have any specific issues to cite, but the general attitude of the people running the place and fishing was off-putting. At both piers at Oak Island, Holden Beach Pier, and Ocean Isle Beach we've always had a good time and tend to make friends young and old, many times swapping or "passing down" bait or taking turns watching gear while people go to the restroom or grab a bite. Long Beach pier was good back in the day as well, but that one's gone now. We typically go in October or November, so I can speak of other times of the year.


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## Ghostrider

LOL...this is still going on...wow


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## russellpoore810

I usually fish cape henlopen pier indelaware. Its packed with rude Oriental people. But when in Carolina I do jennettes usually in Oct and Nov. And usually its enjoyable. You always have a bad apple here and there that can't cast to save there life. But jennettes is usually not a bad experience for me and my wife. Stories are funny though lol


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## ncsharkman

When I go out "Sharkin" I prefer it alone, Alone on the beach with the surf and the sand, bait out and drag set with my reel close at hand. Sometimes late at night I think of Davy and I'm sad ,then the wind seems to whisper "Keep on "Sharkin" Dad!
and that's just what I'll do Until God calls me home but until then I know I'm not really "Sharkin" alone.
In Memory of Davy Wolfe 7/15/70-11/1/85


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