After reading the great posts and opinions, one more question has been brought to my attention. The question is this; If it is illegal as it has been alleged, to hand off a fishing rod after hooking a fish to someone else, such as a client, is it the responsibility of the guide to first inform his clients that they MAY BE violating the fish and game laws by doing so. Or do you think it that OK not to inform them of their options before he (the guide) hands off his rod to them. It appears by the opinions that I have read, that both the client and the guide may both be involved in an illegal act if in fact these alleged law violations are being violated.

As so many of you have stated in your postings, many of the guide's clients are totally naive to what the game laws are and depend totally on what advise their guide tells them. After all, shouldn't the guide know the laws if he is licensed by the state fish and game? The same question goes for the total boat limit issue. Does a guide have a legal or moral obligation to inform their clients about these so-called "gray areas" before they may be put into jeopardy, or do you believe that it's up to his uninformed clients who may even be from out of state to know better? And finally, as it stands right now, all a persons needs to do to become a fishing guide in Washington State is to lay your money on the counter. Should a guide be tested each year when they renew their annual guide licenses on what the current sport fishing laws are?

I think if we can answer these questions on this BB, a lot of the gray areas will be become black and white. What's your opinion?

P.S thanks again to everyone for "not getting mad" and flying off the handle on this issue.


Cowlitzfisherman,

Is the taste of the bait worth the sting of the hook????


[ 06-29-2001: Message edited by: cowlitzfisherman ]