Fishing Marina's of a boat, is it permitted or is it private property?

[Bass Man]

Hi Guys,

Does anyone know if fishing on a boat at any Marina on a lake (Not a Private lake) is allowed or is it considered private property?

Some Marinas do allow you to fish the docks however many a times some of them keep trying to chase you out saying the Marina is private and no fishing is allowed even though the marina is situated on a public lake with no signs around the marina saying "No fishing". There were times when I have argued with the follks that the water is public, so as long as I am fishing out of a boat, I should be allowed to fish. However i have had Marine clerks say that the city does not permit fishing within the marina even though its public waters.

So my question is, are we allowed to fish marinas if there are no signs or can anyone confirm where i find info related to fishing marinas?

Thanks.

 

[alwayscatching]

Most marinas do not have signs posted. The most that will happen is an owner will request you to stop to allow traffic to be smooth and not interrupted by fishing. Fish if there are no signs but typically be aware you may be asked to leave.

 

[Shamus33]

From a real-estate ownership point of view, the marina itself can't legally stop you from fishing in front of their place of business. If someone has claimed that the town said it wasn't allowed, the simplest thing would just be to check with the town clerk. Then you will know for sure. Unfortunately that kind of thing would likely be a by-law specific to your area, which would make it hard for others here to speak specifically about your case (unless they live near you of course).

 

[mrregal]

The thing with fishing in marinas is that people spend a lot of money on their boat and don't want to end up with hooks in their covers or sails. Not sure whether its actually illegal or not though

 

[yush_gta]

although the water is public, i was told by a water cop in the regional police boat once when fishing a river that fishing is not allowed in the marina, and by that he means no fishing the portion of the river where the docks and boats are but once past that it's fair game. and someone later told me that you're allowed to troll that area but not stop and cast because those are the navigable waters or something like that, by which he meant where there is a steady flow of boat traffic.

so there could indeed be some kind of city by law prohibiting fishing a marina where lots of boats are found so as to avoid any mishaps. but it's gotta be to a certain extent. so the question is, how far do you have to be from the docks before you're allowed to fish?

i guess it all depends on the municipality/county/region.

 

[alwayscatching]

A water cop lol. I stopped there. Made me laugh too much.

 

[yush_gta]

was about to call him a water rat, which was the name of a show about some australian marine unit police i used to watch.

funny enough, this exact same cop has stopped me 4 times in 3 years in the same stretch of river checking to make sure i have a life jacket on board. he probably doesn't recognize me but i recognize that it's always him and never his partner. seems like he works the river 24/7.