DFG on the PROWL @ the Mad River

[Abking]

Yesterday I popped down onto the Mad from a turnout about 1.5 miles from 101 to take a few casts.  It was only around 51 degrees but the sun was out and light wind, so I sported shorts with booties along with a T-shirt under a sweatshirt.  I got down to the water by a trail through the trees and discovered that there was a 3' deep side-channel I had to wade in order to get to the rock island where I could cast into fishy water.  No problem, in fact I found a clump of grass and a submerged log to kinda skip across and only got wet up to the top of my thighs - saved the shorts for now!  The fool I am, I cast back over the little channel I just crossed and right into a tree on the side where I just came from!  I yanked and it wasn't coming - it would break easy on 8# test...  I stripped down to my undies, shirt, and sweatshirt and waded in to (CENSORED)-deep water and couldn't reach the damn branch, so I retreated, yanked again and broke it off.  Luckily the lure fell into the water where I had just been and I could see it waist deep.  I took my two tops off, waded back out to waist deep, bent over and grabbed my lure off the bottom.  This doused my head.  Damn that water is cold.  I'd say around low 40's...  So I'm back on the bank soaking wet just in my underwear, but I've got my lure.  (It's also something I really have always enjoyed too, to do a full-body dip in cold water makes me feel very alive when I get out!  Hawk's seen the ritual quite a few times in the ocean after yakking, but, don't worry, I usually wear swimming trunks under my wetsuit!   )  I quickly tied back on and started casting in the good water that I'd waded across to get to in the first place.  No bite action, but I was lucky enough to be able to stand there on the rock island drying out in the sun with no wind and wearing just my booties and undies.  It really was invigorating, and you should try it.  So I'm taking a few casts and I hear voices in the trees along the trail above me where I just came from.  I'm considering hoofing it back over to my pile of clothing, camera, wallet, glasses, license...etc., and then figure I really don't give a crap if a couple of guys come down to share the hole and figure I'm a complete lunatic idiot who fishes soaking wet in just underwear and booties!     They get down to the water, both in waders, make their way across and to the far side of the rock island where they continued downstream a bit to pass the hole I was casting in.  I looked up and said hello and they returned the greeting with mildly startled looks of quandry on their faces.  I then announced, "I forgot my waders" and that got a good laugh and allowed them to consider me just another desperate fisherman and not a complete freak!  Meanwhile, I'd noticed two sit-inside kayaks upstream a couple hundred yards at the next hole.  I walked off the rock island and back to my pile of belongings, put on my two tops, license (shoulda had that on when I was on the rock, but it was close by...), camera, glasses...etc. and had my shorts in my hand taking inventory of my wallet, keys and cell phone in the pockets.  I saw the two kayakers making their way downstream, and the fact that they were going right through the little hole around the bigger rocks was why I decided not to walk up there and take a few more casts in the hole.  I snapped two pics as one of the yakkers was very near one of the rocks - probably 70 yards upstream.  Then I made sure my stuff was all safe so I could just wade back across the waist deep section and leave.  I was already wet up that far anyway (and still standing there in my underwear).  I calmly but determinedly walk right into the water to cross, not thinking anything of the approaching kayaker.  As I get well past ball-deep again, holding my arms up with my shorts, their contents, and my camera up around my shoulders, I look back over my shoulder and see the approaching kayaker.  She looks at me and then casually looks away as she puts her gloved hand up, palm toward her, and bends her fingers repeatedly, motioning me to "come here".  So it's like she's saying, "you there, come here, NOW" with her body.  I'm thinking, "what kind of wack-job is this?" and she looks at me, makes a more forceful hand gesture, and says, "come here" very insistently.  I say, "why?" with what I'm sure was a confused and somewhat disgusted look on my face.  She says, "Fish and Game, come here!"  I complied, thinking, "what nerve, to have me wade back over there through freezing ass cold water in my underwear."  As I got over to her I asked what the problem was, "the river's open, right?"  "Yes, but I need to check you out." or something to that effect.  I walk up to her, show her my license, and she checks my lure to see my legal hook.  As she checks we continued talking.  I can't quote the entire interaction, but she knew I was a bit peeved to have been so coldly approached by a plain-clothes agent who was so insensitive, and I could tell she was defensive and bitter, because she has to, as she said it, "chase people down all day."  She added that she was "mostly interested in those other two guys."  So I'm standing there in my underwear, booties and two shirts (if you haven't figured on major shrinkage from the freezing water then get a bit more intuitive, wouldya?!   ) and I really didn't give a crap at all (recurring theme for me) because it was all about the interaction and the level of rudeness.  Then came the clincher.  She says, as part of her statement of chasing people down all day, "why were you beat-feeting it out of here when you saw me?"  (that one IS a solid quote).  I was taken aback!  I said, "I was NOT Beat-Feeting it out of here!  I just gathered my stuff and crossed the river."  She made no attempt to rectify her accusation, but she did make a comment that was an excuse for having done so.  I stated that I respect what Fish and Game does, but we left each other as adversaries.   

I got to my car, fuming, and one of the two other fishermen was right on my tail up the trail.  He says, "you just missed Fish and Game" and I told him I didn't and started to tell him how rude she was, but he had to run to the car and get his duplicate...

I support Fish and Game in their mission, and I want rule-breakers to be scrutinized (poachers jailed), but the arrogance is off the charts.  I'm at my car thinking, "I'm glad I don't give a crap about having to stand there in my wet underwear talking to a woman, but doesn't she have any sense of humanity and common courtesy, where she may have been able to consider that I was just exiting the scene in my underwear instead of standing on the bank to do a little show for what I thought was a passing kayaker?"  On some level it was a violation of my rights, and I'm not jazzed about it.

[PAL]

Literally caught with your pants down bro... What an awkward story. I think I would have continued to the bank. The entire interaction took place with you standing in frigid water? It's one of the most interesting DFG contacts I've heard about. Insert quip about hanging loose here.

[Danglin]

Nice write up,
                      Can relate,

 They forget that they are a public entity. So far, I've been lucky, but I will report rude behavior of any Public servant.

 I know I pay a hefty price when anyone complains about me in the field, no matter how off the wall it is.

 We have a very rude Regional Parks Officer where I live. She confronted me, accused me of " Launching in the wrong area,

 Ect.. Ect...

 And after I correcter her, she kept going on being rude. After she was done and just started to walk away...

 " Excuse me officer, I need your name and Badge # "

 She was Pissed!!!!  " Why?!!! "

 "We'll I'm a Public servant too and your behavior is just inexcusable. 

If my attitude was as bad as yours, I wouldn't have a job."

 She just Pushed her chest out a little farther to show off her " hero " credentails, what piece of work...

 I went to the Regional Office and they were not too concerned, but did look over my vehicle for possible infractions.

I also then complained to the East Bay Parks Office, again talking to the wind.

 I am going to go to the main office up in Sacramento and talk to someone there to see what can be done when we

 encounter Rude/incompetent F&G....

 I don't have my Breath Held, but they are on our schedule for a Fire Inspection ...... Danglin

[kayakjack]

One time iwas coming out of the water at ft.ross and a female f&G warden came over and shook me down pretty good. she checked my license then checked  my fish. the only problem was i had to show her which one was the ling and which one was a cabezon and on and on with my entire stringer. afterwards she threatend to give me a $675 ticket because there were a few pieces of kelp in my tankwell. she said it was illegalto harvest kelp at ft ross. i told her those 3 little pieces of kelp (maybe a handfull) were there incedentally from launching and landing. she played good cop/bad cop for another 5 minutes before letting me off with a warning. according to her, iam a very lucky guy.

[Tote]

Great story Eric!
When it comes to DFG ( or anyone for that matter ) they get what they give.
I know I am legal and there is not a damned thing they can do to me unless of course they are willing to flat out lie. I haven't come across that yet.
On my last ab dive as I finished climbing the cliff there were 3 guys at the top. One asked me how it was. I said it was fine but no hubcaps. He asked to see my abs and I said no, I was too tired. He then very boldly said, "DGF show me your abs!"
I thought it was a joke and smirked it off. Then he said, " I am not joking! Show me your abs RIGHT NOW!"
Thinking he might actually be legit and not appreciating his attitude at all I turned and said, "Show me YOUR f'ing ID RIGHT NOW!"
It was the last thing he was expecting that's fror sure. Turned out to be just some dumbass thinking he was being funny.
I have nothing but respect for people no matter what their chosen profession until they do something to no longer deserve it.
I think when your DFGW asked why you were beat-footing it out of there when you saw her a more appropriate answer might have been,
 " Because you are not very attractive."
When asked to check out your lure you might have said," Normally I would, but you're not my type."
You could have topped it off with, " What kind of grease do you use to squeeze inside of your kayak?"
And then ended the conversation with, " Thank you SIR, have a nice day."

[campngolf]

So let me see if I got this right. You're standing there doin your best "Bear Grylls" impression and as you leave Rambo F&G undercover officer in a yak pulls up on you and accuses you of beat-feeting it out of there?

Maybe she'd dumped up stream and her brain hadn't had a chance to thaw. Or she thought you had an extreme fear of yakkers. She must've had a big chip on her shoulder to accuse you of hittin the road to avoid F&G if she was in plainclothes?

Her behavior gives the rest of the hard-working F&G folks a bad name. Totally uncalled for.

[Abking]

The entire interaction took place with you standing in frigid water?

To be more clear:  I interacted with DFG and had had my stuff sitting on a gravel bank that was in effect an island between the main channel (where she had drifted down and banked) and the little side channel that I had to wade through.  So I was not IN the water while being checked, I just had to turn around during my wade (up to my bellybutton) to come back and meet with her on the bank in the middle of the river.  It was only a 50' diversion. 

I would've asked to see a badge if she would've made moves to search me or something!  ("have you got a fish (insert half-pounder/jack/chub...) in your shorts?!"   )

[scwafish]

Sorry to hear to about your experience.  Wish I could say mine have been different, but the vast majority of my DFG warden experiences have been lame.  I had one guy give me and bigeyedave the 3rd degree at Caspar and he couldn't even ID our fish...what a tool. 

I had another guy go NUTS checking our barbs with a cotton ball.  I was like cotton???...anything will catch on a cotton ball...I rubbed it on my beard stubble and it shredded...he was "thats the rules!  I said show me the "cotton ball section" in the code?  He said "Its not in the code"  I said "Great, then its not a rule!"  He started to write a ticket, and I told him I WOULD be going to court" and he decided to let me off while telling me I was a smart ass.  Then I showed him his bosses cell # in my cell and he looked bummed cause he knew his boss was gonna hear about it ...about 3 zillion others complained too and now he works in Yuba City! 

Fortunately our new Russian and Jenner Wardens are great.

[Mahi]

Dude, that sucks! No excuses. By the way, did "everything" go back to its' actual size? 

[Abking]

I had another guy go NUTS checking our barbs with a cotton ball.  I was like cotton???...anything will catch on a cotton ball...I rubbed it on my beard stubble and it shredded...he was "thats the rules!  I said show me the "cotton ball section" in the code?  He said "Its not in the code"  I said "Great, then its not a rule!"  He started to write a ticket, and I told him I WOULD be going to court" and he decided to let me off while telling me I was a smart ass.  Then I showed him his bosses cell # in my cell and he looked bummed cause he knew his boss was gonna hear about it ...about 3 zillion others complained too and now he works in Yuba City! 

I don't use acronyms like ROFL, but ROFL!   

Dude, that sucks! No excuses. By the way, did "everything" go back to its' actual size? 

I couldn't write about it if it didn't, Dan!   

[swellrider]

The warden part sucks but it does seem quite hilarious Eric. You might have looked for my ten other lures in that same spot that I wasn't stripping to my skivvies for.

[dilbeck]

Then I showed him his bosses cell # in my cell and he looked bummed cause he knew his boss was gonna hear about it

Talk about walking away with one's tail between their legs!  I would have paid anything to witness that.  Freakin Awesome!

Sorry about your altercation Abking.  I would have been equally pissed, especially after being accused of leaving when you had no idea who she was or what she was up to. 

I'm a firm believer in Karma!  It may be tomorrow, next week, or next year, but she will get hers. 

Michael

[Danglin]

I'm a firm believer in Karma!  It may be tomorrow, next week, or next year, but she will get hers. 

 Amen Brother,

  And it's like the unpaid taxes, the longer it takes to back to ya, the more it Hurts!!!! ........ Danglin

[scallen]

Many years ago, I went out to "test' my friend's boat with him after he completed a little engine work.  It was noontime.  Once we got out to Natural Bridges, we decided to put out a couple rods for fun, troll for salmon. 

As soon as we got the rods in, we see a little whaler arrowing right at us.  The boat didn't veer off, we thought maybe they were going to ram us full speed and we got ready to take evasive actions, including trying to pull in our lures and downriggers in a big hurry.

The boat zooms up and brodies about 15yds from us.  It is two female dfg bruisers who ask if we have license?

"yes"

'Can we SEE them?"

(all in an arrogant tone of voice)

"Sure" we say, show the license tell them we just dropped in no fish etc.  They take a look at our empty fish box and zoom away.

Soon as they left we got two double headers.  Big fat salmon, 4 in the box in about 10 minutes.  So we head back to harbor.  While getting gas, guess who shows up.  Yup, the same two DFG, who grilled us for about 20 minutes.  They couldn't believe we caught 4 fish since they had seen us last (about 20 minutes previous).  "You told us you had no fish, you lied to us! blah blah blah,"  and proceeded to search the entire boat for other "illegal" contraband.

Luckily one of the two made the command decision to disengage.  They were attracting attention from the tourists and fishermen at the gas dock, about 50 potential witnesses.  We were just laughing at them out loud, and the spectators were laughing and catcalling from the upper dock.

I never saw either of them in Santa Cruz again.

[swellrider]

Karma is purely cause and effect. It's power is based on persons intention. It takes lifetimes to ripen. It's not likely she'll have any immediate adverse effect due the altercation with Abking. If I were her however I wouldn't go bringing things to head anytime soon.