Northwest Fishing Reports

Hey that sounds like an Elton John song.
I was rowing around Liberty Lake and found a kayak half full of silt getting smacked against the rocks on the south east side of the lake. I didn't catch any fish, but found a boat. I hauled it home and am posting as many messages as I can to hopefully find the owner. I've contacted the "authorities" (that was a mistake, what a pain). I'm also posting on CL and will probably try the Spokesman Review (not that anyone reads it though).
I figure it came from somewhere on the lake and the wind sent it on it's lonely journey.

If you hear of anyone...PM me please.

Reelman

For your sake, I hope you don't find the owner. But you get an A for honesty and effort. Let us know how it turns out.

Finding a kayak on a lake and taking it home is stealing, weather your looking for the owner or not. If left alone the owner would have found it!

spindog wrote:Finding a kayak on a lake and taking it home is stealing, weather your looking for the owner or not. If left alone the owner would have found it!

agreed take it back and put a note somewhere. that is somebodys money, possibly llooking for it. do the right thing and try to find the owner. maybe knock on a few doors if the lake isnt to big.

Ethical dilema on WALAKES.COM............

Seriously though.. I think if a guy felt in his heart that he was trying to diseave or cheat someone he wouldn't post it to the world. Just my 2 cents. He does seem to have made a pretty good effort in all areas.

Spindog and tnj8222,
I understand it's someone's money and it is not mine. Really I do. In reading my original posting, when I wrote "found a boat", it makes it sound like I've adopted it already.
I've lost stuff or had it stolen before. I know what it feels like. I also know what it feels like to get something back I thought I had lost forever.
My rationale for picking up the boat is not to "score" a boat, but to be able to let someone have that feeling like the world is not as sick as they thought and that people do care and take care of others. If I left the boat there, most likely some visitor to the lake would more likely than not have their name written on it and have it in their garage by night fall. I trust myself to do the right thing far more than I trust others.
As it stands right now, I'm taking it to the sheriff's station (they refused to pick it up. Some excuse about not being able carry it in their car) tomorrow.
As for knocking on doors, there's got to be 1000 houses around the lake, but I'm already planning flyers and notes. My guess is the owner doesn't even know it's missing yet.
This is all talk; I'll update when I find the owner.

Good job reelman.

Gringo Pescador wrote:Good job reelman.

I 2nd that!

BB

tnj8222 wrote:

spindog wrote:Finding a kayak on a lake and taking it home is stealing, weather your looking for the owner or not. If left alone the owner would have found it!

agreed take it back and put a note somewhere. that is somebodys money, possibly llooking for it. do the right thing and try to find the owner. maybe knock on a few doors if the lake isnt to big.

This boat reminds me of when I dropped my cell phone at the dog park at Marymoore park. I searched and back tracked
my route but someone had picked it up actually causing more problems. If my phone would have been left alone it
would have been there when I retraced my steps. If left alone the owner will find it! Had to go through the panic that
someone had taken it, then the nightmare of hassle and jumping through hoops to get it back. Unbelievable.........
I lost a boat cushion, found it a week later hanging on someones dock ladder.

The real reason I posted this is to see if there are any WLers who live on Liberty Lake. I thought if there was a home owners association, I could use it as a resource to get in touch with the owner. I think I have it figured out though: there are only two arterioles for the homes on the lake. Three "Found" posters (one for the local shopping center) should do the trick.
I'm amazed with the people on CL. After going to the effort to post a "found" notice on CL, 5 or so people have sent me offers to buy it!?!?!?!?
If that was the kind of person I was, would I have posted the "found" ad? Wouldn't I have just put in a "for sale" ad instead?
I wrote a PS on my ad that says "No, you can't buy it. It's not mine. Ask the owner when I find him."

Ah, no good deed goes unpunished. Reelman, I guess going to the authorities was not the only pain in this process. Apparently some folks missed the entire point of your post. Don't let that get you down. You did the right thing and Karma will prevail. When you head hits the pillow at night you know you did the right thing and so does the guy upstairs.

reelman-pm sent, I know your intentions are genuine.

Reelman :thumright

[quote="reelman"]Spindog and tnj8222,
I understand it's someone's money and it is not mine. Really I do. In reading my original posting, when I wrote "found a boat", it makes it sound like I've adopted it already.
I've lost stuff or had it stolen before. I know what it feels like. I also know what it feels like to get something back I thought I had lost forever.
My rationale for picking up the boat is not to "score" a boat, but to be able to let someone have that feeling like the world is not as sick as they thought and that people do care and take care of others. If I left the boat there, most likely some visitor to the lake would more likely than not have their name written on it and have it in their garage by night fall. I trust myself to do the right thing far more than I trust others.
As it stands right now, I'm taking it to the sheriff's station (they refused to pick it up. Some excuse about not being able carry it in their car) tomorrow.
As for knocking on doors, there's got to be 1000 houses around the lake, but I'm already planning flyers and notes. My guess is the owner doesn't even know it's missing yet.
This is all talk]Good man!

spindog wrote:

tnj8222 wrote:

spindog wrote:Finding a kayak on a lake and taking it home is stealing, weather your looking for the owner or not. If left alone the owner would have found it!

agreed take it back and put a note somewhere. that is somebodys money, possibly llooking for it. do the right thing and try to find the owner. maybe knock on a few doors if the lake isnt to big.

This boat reminds me of when I dropped my cell phone at the dog park at Marymoore park. I searched and back tracked
my route but someone had picked it up actually causing more problems. If my phone would have been left alone it
would have been there when I retraced my steps. If left alone the owner will find it! Had to go through the panic that
someone had taken it, then the nightmare of hassle and jumping through hoops to get it back. Unbelievable.........
I lost a boat cushion, found it a week later hanging on someones dock ladder.

There is a BIG "if" about your phone. If the next person who saw it, after the honest one, left it alone wasn't honest, you'd be complaining about how you lost your phone. The replies I've gotten from my craigslist ad have proven to me that I did the right thing.
The thing was being knocked against the rocks by every breeze and wake. Do you leave a lost puppy in traffic? If I leave it somewhere else, it would be left on private property (become theirs) or increase the chances that it goes home with a thief.

considering the boat was found with a bunch of silt in it and geting knocked against the rocks...the owner probably has no idea where it is and so leaving it there would have done no good at all. reelman definitely has done the right thing. theres no way the owner ever would have found that...

reigndawgs wrote:Ah, no good deed goes unpunished. Reelman, I guess going to the authorities was not the only pain in this process. Apparently some folks missed the entire point of your post. Don't let that get you down. You did the right thing and Karma will prevail. When you head hits the pillow at night you know you did the right thing and so does the guy upstairs.

+1 On this sentiment.

physher92 wrote:considering the boat was found with a bunch of silt in it and geting knocked against the rocks...the owner probably has no idea where it is and so leaving it there would have done no good at all. reelman definitely has done the right thing. theres no way the owner ever would have found that...

Couldn't agree more, this was me exact thinking.


I think that since reelman is a nice, honest fellow he did the right thing by taking the boat with him and making flyers to leave at the launch/around the lake for the owner to potentially find rather than leaving the boat there for any potential no-good-nick to stumble upon and take for himself or for the hawk.

My .02

I just love threads like this. I know I will no doubt p!$$ someone off. Just to start off, yes I know everything, don’t bother asking.

So after much reading on the subject of freshwater salvage. Reelman, you did the right thing in my opinion! Even if it's a pain in the rear contacting the authorities, that was the correct response. Removing a derelict wreck from the water was also correct as long as it was fresh, not half buried. As to who owns the boat? Well a lot of variables. Was it found in the public or private domain? If it was recovered from private land did you have permission to remove it? On public, do you have a salvage permit? If it was on the bottom it may be considered habitat and may be governed by WDFW and or the EPA and illegal to move (of course if it was leaking oil....). Is it owned by a third party holding a lien on it?
Down to the bottom line as I read it. It's sort of like finding an abandoned car sitting in the woods. It's not yours until you determine if it is stolen (contact the authorities), see if there is third party interest (lien or bank papers, again the authorities) and make a reasonable attempt to find the owner. A reasonable attempt would be to put up signs in the area if possible, run an announcement in the local paper and post on forums (notice plural). If no one steps forward to claim it, it's yours. Document the process and of course take pictures of everything.

What’s worse? Removing someone’s derelict from the water or leaving a navigational hazard that could hurt someone? I'm not going to make a moral judgment here but, I don't walk away from accidents or incidents to "Just not get involved". Let your conscience be your guide and do the right thing.

FOUND: Owner of missing kayak! It makes me happier knowing it was a guy that lives in one of the apartments, not one of the million dollar homes. It means that much more to him; it was a gift from his dad who won it in a golf tournament. A friend told him about one of my signs. He didn't bother looking because he thought it had been stolen. He lives on the opposite side of the lake from where I found the kayak.

Thus ends the saga.

Reel Man

It all paid off:cheers: Glad to here it worked out...