What are your thoughts on moving/modifying structure to; a) attract fish or maybe MORE & BETTER fish, b) make the trophies easier for you to target and/or harder for those who don't know where the structure is, c) improve or create possible spawning sites to improve recruitment. Are any of these things ethical/unethical in your opinion?
What prompted these questions is that I was out at my favorite lake which is drawn down about 20'+. Someone has moved a tree that was high and dry last night, into the water sometime today. It's in a spot where I had caught about a 5#er 2 weeks ago. They positioned it well and anchored it with a large rock. I have no doubt it will hold a bigger fish than the 5#er at times within a week or 2. It is visible for anyone who is fishing the lake right now and was only moved 5' vertically. I think this is fairly ethical because it isn't hidden and everyone has the opportunity to find it easily. On the other hand it gives an unfair advantage by artificially potentially positioning a fish where a fisherman has a greater chance of targeting it effectively.
I have been thinking about building a small rock pile on a large mud flat that is usually 5-10' deep the rest of the year. This could be taken as giving myself, and anyone else who marked the location of it before the water came back up, an unfair advantage over the fish and fellow anglers.
I have also been thinking of placing some gravel in amongst some brush that I've seen bass use for beds. I think this would fall under the previous category of giving an unfair advantage over fish and fishermen in terms of fishability, but it would also give the fish a better chance to get a good spawn.
Conversely, one particular area has a ring of brush around it and last year the only way in was wading and that would spook every fish in there. It's the perfect place for a few bass to create the next generation, largely undisturbed, but there isn't anything but a mud bottom. What kind and size gravel would be best for beds? This would be a good and ethical thing to do because the fish would be better off for it and I can't effectively get to them so it doesn't give me any advantage. What do you guys think?
Tight lines,
Wade

Would you consider it unfair if you were to take the time to photograph, and sketch out the landscape every time the water dropped? I surely wouldn't.

This would no doubt give you an advantage over someone who does not know the bottom terrain, but that does not make it unfair! Some people spend hours, even days graphing unknown water. You can't consider their findings an unfair advantage just because they took the time to study what they can't see.

Sure, you know you put something there, but you also have to take the time to reidentify that spot when the water returns. No different then saving a GPS location.

I've actually done that on one of the lakes around here... not gonna say which on but I have... anyways we did it in 3 different spots on the lake, one was an easy shore walk, the second was a bit of a hike and mainly only reachable by boat, and the third was also a hike but easier with a boat... anyways before the water went back up, two of the three had basically been dismantled... the easy to reach one, and the number two one we put up... We had brought a drill out and wire and wired these branches together and someone still messed with them... the one that stayed together held a few fish but one of the branches was easily visible so im sure others visited it...

Anyways sometimes you need an advantage.. and sometimes people decide they dont like you having an advantage..
Carrot...

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Pretending to be a swimbait fisherman since 2001.

I am not a frequent bass angler, so I have no strong opinion about the ethics (but it seems ok to me, but it may not to a tournament angler). However, I wonder if altering structure in a lake is legal, depending on what entity owns or manages the lake. The alterations that I have heard of were done with official permission.

Bob

Good point Bob. I won't be doing any of these except possibly the gravel in the ring of brush but only if I can get permission. The next 2 questions would be who do I ask? I think I got that covered, and what size & type of gravel?
Tight lines,
Wade