I was fishing McCoy Creek about 2 miles up from Palisades a couple of years ago and had 2 rounds hit the bank directly behind me. Turned out to be 2 idiot kids shooting beer cans who hadn't thought about the river (and road) being a few hundred yards behind the hill they had their cans sitting on. When I got cover and shouted at them, they came running horrified and thinking they'd hit me.
Not the best situation to find yourself in, no matter where you are fishing. No one has the right to take a shot at you just for fishing, that's nothing short of crazy !! Glad you had the sense to just leave. Fish On !! David Fisher-of-Men Fly Fishing/Fly Tying Ada, MI
When I was young we were hunting chukars in Hells Canyon and a couple of cowboys came riding up to us and told us to get off their land. We were on BLM land. My dad calmly said that he knew we were on BLM land, and the cowboys said that no we were on private land. Dad pulled the USGS map out of his pocket and unfolded it and pointed to exactly where we were and said "I reckon this is where we are. Am I mistaken?" The cowboys looked at each other and the alpha said "You fellers look like your good guys, you can go ahead and hunt." They rode off. It is too bad that ranchers and some farmers are so insecure that they have to bully law abiding sportsmen and women who are enjoying the rivers and fields that belong to the public. I am sorry this happened to you. The Sheriff should have been called because bullies need to be held accountable. On behalf of the civil Idahoans, I apologize.
I appreciate that - I notified the local sheriff at the time, but he seemed disinterested "what am I suppose to do about it?" He quipped - I just replied it's more about knowledge of what happened, in case it happens again to someone else fishing in the area. Thanks for sharing your story as well!
I was fishing the Ruby River in SW MT and a rancher just sat on his horse with his shotgun on his lap and just watched us…we stood our ground, and proceeded to catch a pile of nice rainbows and browns.
@@FlyFishDan My friend and his dog were shot and killed by a random kid 2yrs ago in Washington. People forget that the woods/outback can be dangerous and its not just the animals...
You definitely have the right to fish there. I live in Idaho and that river is wide open to fishing as long as you are within the river bed. I'm hoping it was a stray round from a deer hunter, but I know that there are enough idiots here that it might have been intentional.
Crazy to shoot at an obvious fisherman right alongside the road with cars actively driving by. Feels criminal to me. Glad you were safe. Very cool and collected response!
Wise move getting the heck out of there. You mentioned carrying a 10mm. I just got back into fly fishing and am trying to figure out the best way to carry while on the water. How do you carry while on the water?
I have a hip holster - I'm pretty tall and rarely go above thigh level when wading - I keep it strapped to my wading belt (which is even higher than normal 'belt' level).
Knowing that area . . I really think that may have been unintentional. I’ve known ranchers there and they typically talk to you about where to access and where the high water mark line is. I don’t know, but wonder, if the issue was the Sheriff is that he didn’t have a suspect. If there was an identified shooter I would bet his reaction would have been different.
You should have called the game warden, the law is the law and you shouldn’t have let him get away with it. I had a similar situation in Rock Creek MT (which btw you must fish) and the guy got arrested and charged.
I called the local sheriff - he was a bit apathetic and actually said, "what do you want me to do about it??" I just said - well, good to have knowledge of this in case it happens to someone else...
What he should do about it is investigate and talk to potential suspects, give them warnings, etc... If he's any good, he'll figure out who it is and, at a minimum, make sure they won't do it again.
@@FlyFishDan that’s insane. I would have told him to do a damn job then send an email to the local governor. He’s law enforcement, if he won’t do his job then he shouldn’t be collecting a pay check.
Looks like the shooter was shooting over the road also. Last I checked it's illegal to do that also no matter where you are. I took a bullet through the bed of my truck into my gas tank and I was just driving to work on the 599. I'm 100% for the 2nd, but I'm also 100% for not getting killed for just living my life. I'd like to think that the shooter was just trying to scare you off and not committing murder.
I remember seeing this video when you posted it originally and it is still bone chilling to watch. The fact that you’re saying the sheriff is uninterested is really disturbing. How hard would it really be to have a few officers come out with metal detectors and K9s to at least attempt to find that round? What better use of their time can there possibly be than to investigate an attempted murder? Also, when you mentioned not hearing the report of a rifle, my first thought was a suppressed gun. Either way, glad you’re okay man.
Thanks, I appreciate that. I am holding out hope that it was random, and not someone actually trying to kill me because I was fishing near their land. All good!
FFD, since open carry was passed here a few years ago the trout here are armed now; beware 😉 (seriously, being shot at is NOT kewl). A few years ago we rented a F250 to drag our trailer up to Banff for a week. I'm driving along well North of Bonner's Ferry when "pop" - the truck's back glass just explodes. Never experienced something like that before or since, and the repair shop couldn't provide an explanation. Didn't find a bullet but to this day wonder if some idiot took a pot shot at us driving north. People... ☮ from North Idaho.
@@FlyFishDan Gotta have a couple of loose screws to live here... but the freestone stream fishing year 'round and proximity to Montana and B.C. are superb 🎣🎣🎣
I swear there is something in Hunter and firearm safety that tells us to be conscious of what’s behind our target when discharging weapons. There is 0 excuse for poor management of firearms and safety that comes with them.
That was lucky, pleased you were ok. Really enjoy your videos keep em coming
Thank you kindly!
Good move Dan. Just scoot out of there and live to fish another day.
Besides, we need to keep watching your videos!
I was thinking the same thing - not worth sticking around to find out! :)
I was fishing McCoy Creek about 2 miles up from Palisades a couple of years ago and had 2 rounds hit the bank directly behind me. Turned out to be 2 idiot kids shooting beer cans who hadn't thought about the river (and road) being a few hundred yards behind the hill they had their cans sitting on. When I got cover and shouted at them, they came running horrified and thinking they'd hit me.
Man - that would have been unnerving for sure!
Not the best situation to find yourself in, no matter where you are fishing. No one has the right to take a shot at you just for fishing, that's nothing short of crazy !! Glad you had the sense to just leave. Fish On !!
David
Fisher-of-Men Fly Fishing/Fly Tying
Ada, MI
It’s never a good idea to escalate things, I figured the best approach was to just leave (quickly). Cheers and FISH-ON!!
When I was young we were hunting chukars in Hells Canyon and a couple of cowboys came riding up to us and told us to get off their land. We were on BLM land. My dad calmly said that he knew we were on BLM land, and the cowboys said that no we were on private land. Dad pulled the USGS map out of his pocket and unfolded it and pointed to exactly where we were and said "I reckon this is where we are. Am I mistaken?" The cowboys looked at each other and the alpha said "You fellers look like your good guys, you can go ahead and hunt." They rode off. It is too bad that ranchers and some farmers are so insecure that they have to bully law abiding sportsmen and women who are enjoying the rivers and fields that belong to the public. I am sorry this happened to you. The Sheriff should have been called because bullies need to be held accountable. On behalf of the civil Idahoans, I apologize.
I appreciate that - I notified the local sheriff at the time, but he seemed disinterested "what am I suppose to do about it?" He quipped - I just replied it's more about knowledge of what happened, in case it happens again to someone else fishing in the area. Thanks for sharing your story as well!
Glad you are Ok. 😢
Thanks!
I was fishing the Ruby River in SW MT and a rancher just sat on his horse with his shotgun on his lap and just watched us…we stood our ground, and proceeded to catch a pile of nice rainbows and browns.
Typically, they'll just throw rocks in the water and follow you around until you leave. Were you above or below the reservoir?
People can be so nuts when it comes to fishing
Holy shit is right....glad you're alright Dan.
Thanks Oscar - not something I would like to experience again for sure
@@FlyFishDan My friend and his dog were shot and killed by a random kid 2yrs ago in Washington. People forget that the woods/outback can be dangerous and its not just the animals...
That is horrible - very sorry to hear that
Merry Christmas, Dan!!! There are fewer things more unsettling than to be shot at and hear that ominous buzz….be safe and prosperous in 2025!
Thank you Mark, will do :)) Merry Christmas to you and yours as well!
question: where did you get those fingerless gloves from? They look pretty nice
Thanks! These are Simms- bought them at Fin & Fire in Redmond.
You definitely have the right to fish there. I live in Idaho and that river is wide open to fishing as long as you are within the river bed. I'm hoping it was a stray round from a deer hunter, but I know that there are enough idiots here that it might have been intentional.
It was a bit unnerving for sure, but I agree I was fishing in a legal spot - I'm hoping it wasn't intentional.
Crazy to shoot at an obvious fisherman right alongside the road with cars actively driving by. Feels criminal to me. Glad you were safe. Very cool and collected response!
Not ideal for sure - I was also disappointed I couldn't keep fishing this spot! I know there were big fish in there!
Wise move getting the heck out of there. You mentioned carrying a 10mm. I just got back into fly fishing and am trying to figure out the best way to carry while on the water. How do you carry while on the water?
I have a hip holster - I'm pretty tall and rarely go above thigh level when wading - I keep it strapped to my wading belt (which is even higher than normal 'belt' level).
Shooter used silencer with subsonic rounds too:(
Not ideal for sure
Knowing that area . . I really think that may have been unintentional. I’ve known ranchers there and they typically talk to you about where to access and where the high water mark line is. I don’t know, but wonder, if the issue was the Sheriff is that he didn’t have a suspect. If there was an identified shooter I would bet his reaction would have been different.
Likely so - no real way to decern who fired the shot or if it was on purpose - I just wasn't going to stick around to find out :))
You should have called the game warden, the law is the law and you shouldn’t have let him get away with it. I had a similar situation in Rock Creek MT (which btw you must fish) and the guy got arrested and charged.
I called the local sheriff - he was a bit apathetic and actually said, "what do you want me to do about it??" I just said - well, good to have knowledge of this in case it happens to someone else...
@@FlyFishDanthat’s insane…not very comforting to know he’s not going to do anything.
What he should do about it is investigate and talk to potential suspects, give them warnings, etc... If he's any good, he'll figure out who it is and, at a minimum, make sure they won't do it again.
@@FlyFishDan that’s insane. I would have told him to do a damn job then send an email to the local governor. He’s law enforcement, if he won’t do his job then he shouldn’t be collecting a pay check.
You should have called the State Police immediately. That was attempted murder. Glad you are OK.
Isn’t that the second time you’ve been shot at? I was once.
You should go back with the cops
Looks like the shooter was shooting over the road also. Last I checked it's illegal to do that also no matter where you are. I took a bullet through the bed of my truck into my gas tank and I was just driving to work on the 599. I'm 100% for the 2nd, but I'm also 100% for not getting killed for just living my life. I'd like to think that the shooter was just trying to scare you off and not committing murder.
I'm with you there - that would be my hope as well.
You experienced a warning shot, you were not under fire 😂
I don't know about that...warning shot, whether one, two or three ...still under fire in my book.
I remember seeing this video when you posted it originally and it is still bone chilling to watch.
The fact that you’re saying the sheriff is uninterested is really disturbing.
How hard would it really be to have a few officers come out with metal detectors and K9s to at least attempt to find that round? What better use of their time can there possibly be than to investigate an attempted murder?
Also, when you mentioned not hearing the report of a rifle, my first thought was a suppressed gun.
Either way, glad you’re okay man.
Thanks, I appreciate that. I am holding out hope that it was random, and not someone actually trying to kill me because I was fishing near their land. All good!
@ right on. You’re the man, Dan!
FFD, since open carry was passed here a few years ago the trout here are armed now; beware 😉 (seriously, being shot at is NOT kewl). A few years ago we rented a F250 to drag our trailer up to Banff for a week. I'm driving along well North of Bonner's Ferry when "pop" - the truck's back glass just explodes. Never experienced something like that before or since, and the repair shop couldn't provide an explanation. Didn't find a bullet but to this day wonder if some idiot took a pot shot at us driving north. People... ☮ from North Idaho.
I can’t imagine how frightening that would be - that’s a crazy story!
@@FlyFishDan Gotta have a couple of loose screws to live here... but the freestone stream fishing year 'round and proximity to Montana and B.C. are superb 🎣🎣🎣
I swear there is something in Hunter and firearm safety that tells us to be conscious of what’s behind our target when discharging weapons.
There is 0 excuse for poor management of firearms and safety that comes with them.
Agreed!
I spent 19 months in Iraq, from 2003 til 2005. I hate being shot at. Nothing makes me angrier.
It's a sound you never forget - thank you for your service!!