I got a ticket a while back, but nothing ever became of it for a myriad of different reasons. I like to run my mouth a little bit about ignoring a lot of posted signs, and that's not a lie but this ticket was more of a show of power than it was a criminal complaint. I was not trespassing. The reality of the situation is it's nearly impossible to prove on way or the other. Nobody really knows for sure what is public and what is private. We have a pretty good idea of what would be private based on the way the lots were divided, but the waterways that run through them may not necessarily be private. It's possible for a water way to shift from the public trust to private control, and ice versa. Not to mention bayous, creeks, canals and what have you that once served as boundaries or property markers have shifted and around and moved so much over the better part of 200 years that the lines become blurred. It's entirely possible to be trespassing by simply being to close to one side or the other of a historically navigable canal.

Despite all the bullshite, I'm on the land owners side for the most part. My beef stems from earlier generations raping our marsh and leaving this vanishing resource in their wake. What we have is private, and rightfully so, canals being gated off and people being pissed off for the wrong reason. The gate isn't the problem, it's never been the problem. The canal is the problem. Once navigable waterways have been altered to the point they are no longer usable in a lot of places and the only remaining safe passage is through these oil and gas canals.

quote:
Also the general,public , all us taxpayers and fishing license holders would like to be informed as to what the future holds for us. Someone who's already purchased a lifetime fishing license deserves an answer even more

I don't like to be discouraging, especially when it comes to enjoying one of the greatest and unique natural resources in North America. The sad reality is you will never get any straight answer from any local or state government. Nobody will give you a map, at least not willingly. Nobody in any authoritative position will say one way or the other what areas you can and can not access freely. Nobody can show you what is public outside of WMA's. The eastern side of lake Tambour is private, would you like to take a stab at where in that wide open body of water there is a property line?

It's a real problem that will continue to grow unless people become more vocal. CCA isn't doing anyone any favors and they are our biggest lobby when it comes to the marsh. They want nothing to do with the problem. As long as we have people like those turds who cut off public access fouchon beach with zero repercussion, our shallow water marsh fishing will be chipped away until it's confined to land leased or owned by the state. This assuming someone like Biloxi Marsh Co or Delacroix land continues to allow access out of the kindness of their own hearts.