Angler blocking footpath, I know I was unreasonable, but would this annoy you/what would you have done??

[Patienceisntvirtuous]

I realise this might need a diagram! I was out running with my dog today. There's a footpath off the main road which leads to a dam. People fish on it. The footpath has a fence either side of it right up until the dam, give or take about 4 feet of land comprising of grass and another footpath (between the end of the dam and the fence). An angler was sitting at the dam, with his fishing rod to his left propped up on some apparatus completely blocking the four feet of land which I was to run across, right next to the fence. No way around it without going for a swim. It was poised about a foot and a half high.

I stepped over it and my dog jumped over it. Dog is huge, didn't touch the rod just cleared it. I didn't take a flying leap, I stepped over it carefully. Then continued my run-but he shouted after me that I shouldn't step over it, he'd have moved it (he hadn't said anything like this before I stepped over it). I shouted back that it was okay, and he responded that had I broken a section of his rod it would have cost me £250.

It's then when I was unreasonable, I shouted back that I wasn't waiting for him to move the rod, I've as much right to the path as him.

And he was blocking it which isn't great. Further up from the footpath would have been fine, no fence there and grassy areas surrounding so I could have just avoided.

I imagine he'll spend half his day repeatedly moving his rod, sitting in the spot he was right opposite where the footpath emerges, It's a regularly used-route.

Would you have hung about while he moved it (again he never said 'hang on I'll move my rod')?
I had no reason to think he would, and I wouldn't have asked either because I didn't know it was possible without a lot of faffing about. It wouldn't have been an especially quick thing to do, a long fishing rod with various elements and garments attached to it.

Anyway no harm done but I perhaps shouldn't have argued back with him.

I would bet these guys just love blocking the path, knowing that they will be impeding mainly women in the daytime. They love the opportunity to tell you off.
I was once blocked by a guy on a canal path and he was grumbling away at me at having to very slowly move his stuff, my old dog spotted his tackle bucket was full of spam, wolfed the lot in seconds - I was most apologetic....

Hmm I wonder if he'd have said this to a man? No. Not a chance

I don't understand why this always comes up on mn threads where an op clashes with a man over something. I've seen 100s of incidents where a man challenges another man in public over some trivial thing such as parking, queues etc. It is not just women they do it to...

Infact most cases of violence are man on man so that's pretty sure many of them cases stem from incidents like this.

Well no but these type of men are unlikely to get rude with somebody who they know might clock them round the head. They tend to get rude and aggro with people they feel they can intimidate

and women do the exact same, look at the amount of threads in workplaces etc where women are the bullies. But why must on every thread where a man is the villain must be use it taint all men?

Also what if you were cycling and it was too fast to stop. Very dangerous

That would drive me batshit!
It's one thing to slow down to pass walkers on a path, we are all using the same shared space, but if someone was blocking the whole path and needed to move it in order to let me pass, thus slowing me down I'd be really cross.
I'm pretty sure his fishing license doesn't allow him to block the whole path.

I think I'd run with a megaphone so I could give him fair warning.

Then you shouldn't set up on a public path. If you are using a shared space you have a responsibility to be aware of what's going on around you so that you can respond to the other people using the path.

I'm not an angler, but aren't there loads of private fishing lakes?

Nat6999 · Yesterday 23:39
He was probably absorbed in what he was doing & you made him jump, I know when I used to fish you could have set a bomb off next to me & I wouldn't have noticed, I was in the zone watching my float.“

in which case, don’t knowingly block the footpath.

I think you were unreasonable honestly. You should have just asked him. Jumping over his equipment and with a big dog too. Bound to annoy someone.

"I am so going to use the term 'maggot drowning antics' about them as a collective, now!"
There's a website called maggotdrowning.com with forums for anglers, my husband belongs to it. He's gone fishing today actually.

The comment is not tainting all men, it's tainting men who are confrontational to strangers in public places.

I'm a man and I feel the "he wouldn't say that to a man" comment that appears on many threads here is nearly always justified.

This forum has been an eye-opener for me, with regard to the various comments women have to endure from complete strangers. Not just from men, but also from other women, also from old people of both sexes. Some women have even had comments from teachers, nurses, postmen and delivery drivers that I could just not imagine being on the receiving end of.

I've gone through decades of adult life and cannot remember strangers on public transport or supermarkets or anywhere else getting shirty with me. Just being a man guarantees me a level of respect and politeness that some women apparently have to live without.

We have this at the local beach. A few weekends ago it was Low tide and at least 50 metres of beach between the dunes and water. Some prick had set up his rod on the dunes and the line went right down into the water. He was pretty much hidden and of course I didn't see him.
I was walking along the shoreline and the dog tripped on something then I felt a burning on my shins and it's a bloody invisible fishing line.
Knobend went completely batshit screeching at me and waving his arms. I kicked the line and went on with my walk and he turned into a raving manic as I walked away. He then did the same with a family with small kids behind me and insisted they curtail their walk before his line and turn around which they did.
A busy beach on a sunny Saturday morning and he effectively sets up an invisible trip line/garrotte and whinges if anyone dare disturb it.
I had fantasies about cutting the fucking thing but on my way back I just stood on the line so it part buried in the sand. Wanker.
Unfortunately my car was parked right by him so I had to do stealth manoeuvres to get in it without him spotting me...

If he blocks a public right of way with his gear and it gets broken as a result, that is his fault. YADNBU.

I agree you were polite OP. I'd have probably either ignored him or given him a middle fingered salute. No way he should be blocking the entire footpath.

Pointing out that men have an advantage which they will sometimes use to bully line women isn’t tainting all men. The decent ones won’t mind a jot because they’re the ones who think ‘right I’ll set up over here’ or say ‘sorry let me just move that quickly, I didn’t realise it was so in the way.’ They don’t need you in their corner, don’t worry.

Bet he was gutted when you didn’t do what you were “supposed” to and wait, ask nicely and wait again while he performed The Slow Motion Put Out Man Moving Things for you.

Silly man. He should count himself lucky that you didn't do any harm. I'm overweight and have dyspraxia. I'd definitely have tripped over and squashed his precious tackle 😄

I used to live directly next to a river, during fishing season it became a real pain as the fisherman would block the narrow footpath with all their equipment and place the rods completely across the path when they fiddling with them. I started by politely asking to pass especially when I had DD in her pram and my Ddog with me but found that they were not friendly or helpful and I'd be glared at or ignored. They would also get really pissy with DDog when he trotted past on his walk and would show an interest in what they were doing, he wasn't bounding around or jumping or their stuff just sniffing at the stuff they were blocking the footpath with. While they might have paid to be there it didn't give them ownership of the place.

That's so coincidenctal, when I see a woman running I always want to push her over.

Not really, obviously. That would be a Dickish thing to think

He was rude to block the path.
He was rude not to move his rod when he saw someone approaching. He should have been looking out for someone at all times if he was going to move his rod every time. Its his responsibility to move obstructions he made.
There would be absolutely no way in hell I'd pay anything towards his equipment if I broke it if while jumping over it as the OP did.

I'd have done the same as you. Imo he should have been the one to look out for people coming so he can move his gear in advance. Sounds like a him issue, not a you issue. Don't give it a second thought.

My Dh said that's bad fishing etiquette and you should be aware of what's around you at all times.

then he told me canal fishermen are the worst for a load of reasons and something about when he accidentally hooked a canoeist and had to reel him in and cut his top to free the hook . I almost wish I didn't ask 😂

I read these threads and think surely, SURELY, no one will think YABU. But here we are.

You weren't unreasonable and next time some joker shouts at you like that, remind them that if they don't have liability insurance that covers deliberately causing hazards on a public right of way they could potentially be forced to pay out a significant sum of money if they injure anyone with their actions...

I think that men can be arsey and unreasonable to other men and not just to women. Some men are bigger arseholes to other men than they are to women, even if only because they are sexist pigs.

Anyone who blocks a public footpath and then expects people to ask / wait whilst he moves it is a completely entitled prick.

It is my honest opinion that anything in the "pick it up and throw it out of the way" (into the water) to "jumping over it" range would be reasonable.

If someone is blocking a path as they manoevre their wheelchair or try to stop their pushchair-bound toddler from chocking then you wait patiently and politely. If someone blocks it for no reason then they are basically saying that they don;t respect other people, so why should you respect them.

In which case, the correct behaviour on a canal path is that the cyclist should use the bell, slow down, and then give me and other slower path users time to move in if we can - and not use it as a ‘get out of my way, because like fuck am I going to slow down as I approach you at speed’ signal.

Those kind of cyclists are a-holes and the true nature of my personality cares not a jot. I don’t cycle like that when I’m on a shared path, there’s no need for any cyclist to behave that way.