Cruising West Coast Do I need a fishing license?

[maxlynn]

Returning to the original question, If you are not fishing you do not need a license.

[Scot McPherson]

Originally Posted by maxlynn

Returning to the original question, If you are not fishing you do not need a license.

unless you have a carcass...if you have a carcass on board, you better have a license.

[fatherchronica]

It may be a sleigh ride in May, but in October it was like Santa's sleigh ride, i.e. crashing into the roofs of two and three story buildings. Still in all it was invigorating.

[Scaramanga F25]

In Florida, I believe, a fishing license is needed only in fresh water but not in in salt water.
Please correct me if I am wrong.

[pesarsten]

Florida requires a fishing license for salt water. And for fresh water.
New York, New Jersey, ct, nh, ma, me, nc , sc do not require salt water fishing licenses, IIRC. Clamming, crabbing, lobster and other do require licenses in most states.

[Scot McPherson]

Connecticut and New York DO require salt water licenses.

[Santana2]

From what I know that could get expensive in a hurry. Ok, I'll wait or go out a lot further. Any boats with 20 mi of me. NO FISHING. . . . have a good day. . .

[Santana2]

Ha ha ha ha, I yi yi yi . . . I guess a 1.5ft mackerel is not worth it? SO before I leave WA State, I will go to the store and pay $15 for some salmon and that should last until I get to Oregon (not a big eater) . Once in Oregon, I will find a commercial fishing vessel and buy some more fish (get a receipt) that will last me until I get to Calif. Since I have a Calif Licensed I will be OK, thanks for all the great suggestions.

[buzzstar]

Basically, within 3 miles you are in California waters, almost certainly in WA and OR as well. Federal jurisdiction extends out to 3 miles, 12 miles and/or 200 miles, and beyond all depending upon the facts. As far as CA fishing, you are not doing so by having poles, etc. aboard, but watch out for legally caught fish that might have been caught in CA waters. I do not know about WA or OR.
Just another word of caution unrelated to your inquiry: Mexico is not the same and they have been very tough in the past. I recall stories about boats in the vicinity of Los Coronados (Mexican offshore islands just south of the border) having a lot of trouble just because they had poles (not Poles) on board.
You can visit the CA Dept. of Fish & Wildlife (once Fish & Game) at [url]https://www.wildlife.ca.gov/[url] and download the the sport fishing regs from them. It is a real morass, but I did look and found one small reference to their three mile jurisdictional limit.

[denverd0n]

Originally Posted by Scaramanga F25

In Florida, I believe, a fishing license is needed only in fresh water but not in in salt water.
Please correct me if I am wrong.

As mentioned already, Florida DOES require a license for fishing, even in salt water, if you are within the "territorial waters" of the state. What are the territorial waters? They are described in the state Constitution. On the East coast, three nautical miles, or the edge of the Gulf Stream, whichever is greater. On the West coast, the Constitution states "three leagues."

So, first off, the edge of the Gulf Stream moves. How can the legal boundary of the territorial waters of Florida move? Well, it does. In fact, it has been upheld in court cases that Florida has jurisdiction out to the edge of the Gulf Stream, despite the fact that that makes it a moving target.

On the West coast it is "three leagues." What, exactly is a "league." Hard to say. Neither the Constitution, nor state law, specifically defines it. Look in a dictionary and you will find somewhat vague, and variable definitions. The Florida Wildlife Commission, in the process of rule-making, has decided that a "league" is three nautical miles, and so their jurisdiction extends nine nautical miles out into the Gulf of Mexico. This is just their "rule," though, not a law (though, for all practical purposes, it carries the weight of law).

Confused enough? This is just for the state of Florida. Every state, bordering on a coast, almost certainly has laws and rules that are AT LEAST as confusing!!!

Good luck figuring exactly when you need a license to fish and when you don't!

[pacific_voyager]

Originally Posted by 1Sunseeker

To fish or not to fish, is a license required? That seems to be the question. I would place three telephone calls to the Fish and Game folks in each state I intend to pass through. Get the real scoop from the folks who should know. Then honk on, it's a sleigh ride going South.

Agreed. Don't over-think this. I have been living and sailing my boat for 19 years (including a Seattle to LA passage) and no one has EVER asked for a fishing license.


Either just go without a license; or call the Fish and Game Departments in each state. Why ask a bunch of sailors for a pile of opinions.

Hope you catch a fish and have a good passage.

[buzzstar]

Originally Posted by denverd0n

On the West coast, the Constitution states "three leagues."

So, first off, the edge of the Gulf Stream moves. How can the legal boundary of the territorial waters of Florida move? Well, it does. In fact, it has been upheld in court cases that Florida has jurisdiction out to the edge of the Gulf Stream, despite the fact that that makes it a moving target.

On the West coast it is "three leagues." What, exactly is a "league." Hard to say. Neither the Constitution, nor state law, specifically defines it. Look in a dictionary and you will find somewhat vague, and variable definitions. The Florida Wildlife Commission, in the process of rule-making, has decided that a "league" is three nautical miles, and so their jurisdiction extends nine nautical miles out into the Gulf of Mexico. This is just their "rule," though, not a law (though, for all practical purposes, it carries the weight of law).

Confused enough? This is just for the state of Florida. Every state, bordering on a coast, almost certainly has laws and rules that are AT LEAST as confusing!!!

Good luck figuring exactly when you need a license to fish and when you don't!

The constitution of what? There was no "west coast" of when the US Constitution was written. Florida was not a part of the United States. This is almost the worst case of thread drift I've seen. How did the question get us to Florida or the Gulf Stream and moving targets? BTW, are you talking about Big Leagues, or Little Leagues?

[newhaul]

Irrc you only need a Washington or Oregon state saltwater fishing license if you intend to land a catch in either state ( in this case land means make landfall)

[Stu Jackson]

Originally Posted by buzzstar

The constitution of what?

He did say STATE constitution. Who's in the big leagues now?

[buzzstar]

Originally Posted by Stu Jackson

He did say STATE constitution. Who's in the big leagues now?

You are correct. As they say, even a blind squirrel gets an acorn every so often. But, even being mildly dyslexic (I am) I take solace in knowing that neither Florida nor B.C. are Washington, Oregon, or California.


BTW, the big league comment was semi-current US humor, which does not translate well into Canadian.