Actually if you were standing in mud to fish you were in the wrong place. I stand on nice hard-packed sand. It can be a little muddy getting there but once I'm in the river it's great footing. I haven't slipped once. And as for the 200 people. Most of them are better behaved than places I've fished with that had under 10 people. You'd be surprised how smooth things run when the same people have been going to the same place for years.