Private pond question

catfishrus

Twelve Pointer
So I own a parcel of a 10 acre pond. I bought it from a absent landowner type of thing. Previous owner passed away leaving it to his children whom I bought it from. One of the children kept a parcel and built a new house. That parcel is about 3 acres of the pond. I have 6 acres in the pond. Two other landowners on the far side don't own any water but find it okay to allow their guest to fish in the pond via paddle boats. I want to be neighborly but darn it. I don't like it when people show up fishing and these folks aren't even at home. I don't want to be liable for accidents for their guest. Wasn't sure where I stood on this because I always heard nobody owns the water.

Today the lady with 3 acres got mad after she confronted two fellows fishing on her side. They wouldn't leave so she called the law. Law gets there and these same fellows start the old nobody owns the water tactic......police said that was a no go because it was on private property and they would have to leave.

I went to lunch and just happen to run into a local warden today. I asked him and he said the same thing...private property..private water. The warden told me even though a water body shows up a GIS map it doesn't mean its public water.

I have heard the old saying if you floating in the middle of a creek that you aren't trespassing. Yet if I drop my canoe in the city lake after hours....I'm trespassing.

SO my questions is what is the difference between public water and private water?
 

Wildlifer

Old Mossy Horns
It all depends on how you get there. The pond is surrounded by private land thus you have to access the pond via private land. Navigatable water can usually be accessed at some point from a public place.
 

Boojum

Ten Pointer
There is a lot of gray area in the law in NC, but basically: Any water surrounded by private land is private, unless it is a legally navigable stream. This doesn't mean a creek that will float an inner tube, either. There are several sections of stream here in my county that are legally posted, even though the remainder of the stream is public trout water; because the landowner owns both sides of the creek.

A private pond on private property is just that-private. All the gray areas in the law generally deal with steams and their navigability. Private impoundments are always private.
 
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The guys above have it right as far as legality of navigable waters. I'm fairly biased in my opinion of how to handle the situation since my family owns 60 acres with 2 private ponds and one shared. We've ran SO many people off our land in the past 20 years it's ridiculous... It sounds like the other water front holder doesn't want people in there and if you own the rest of it, then I'd say talk to the neighbors and politely ask them to not allow people on your property. After that, keep running them off until it becomes a serious nuisance, then start calling the law on them. It's YOUR land! You bought it to enjoy it and you should be able too peacefully without disturbance. You probably won't have a good relationship with your neighbors other than the lady who already runs people off! It's NOT their land to let people on though!
 

sky hawk

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
The issue here is not whether this is "private" or "public" water. The issue is do those two homes across the pond have a right to use, i.e. access the pond legally? Typically, all of the properties that adjoin a body of water have a right to use a shared body of water, but they do not have the right to use the other property owners' dry land (walk around the pond).

This particular situation may be different, but usually if a property owners' land touches water, then they have a right to fish that water from their property and to access that water by boat. The pond itself (for the sake of fishing rights) is usually not split up where the underlying property line is. So when you get in a boat, you can fish your neighbor's 3 acres of the pond, and she can fish your 6 acres. That's not a legal opinion, but that is the way it is usually enforced.

For example, as a kid I used to fish a local country club pond that was about 5 acres. We were given permission by a friend - one of the 10 homeowners that adjoined this pond. Since it was surrounded by private property, only those homeowners and guests could fish in it - not the rest of the members. I accessed that pond by boat and fished the entire pond without issue. One day I was fishing from shore and began walking around the bank when one of the neighbor ladies came out and ran me off her property. Which was her right to do because I was standing on her land at the time.

I would probably seek a legal opinion past the local LEO. Are there any shared covenants or language on the deed about it? Do they own ANY land under the pond?
 
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Firefly

Old Mossy Horns
Believe it or not I saw this same thing on a 60 acre lake in SC..A bridge crossed this lake and there was a man who allowed people to pay him a couple of bucks to launch a boat that gave the public access to that 60 acre lake. Then development started on the lake big time, doctors, lawyers all kinds of big shots bought up the lake front property and decided to keep the public out of their side of the lake. It worked, suddenly no trespassing signs went up on the developed side's of the lake where the million dollar houses were. The people who owned the houses took the position they owned the lake also it even went to court and the judge ruled the homeowners did indeed own the water on the developed side..So that left the man with the boat ramp a very small area of the lake for people to fish in. Folks were highly upset because some had fished that lake all their lives but the law said, private is private..The game wardens started giving out tickets to trespassers shortly after the judge's ruling..It remains that way today. IMO you should have the right to keep people off what you own if you so wish too...
 

Mr.Gadget

Old Mossy Horns
Pond like that falls under property lines and deeded use.
If they do not own the property they can not use it wet or dry.
 

catfishrus

Twelve Pointer
The issue here is not whether this is "private" or "public" water. The issue is do those two homes across the pond have a right to use, i.e. access the pond legally? Typically, all of the properties that adjoin a body of water have a right to use a shared body of water, but they do not have the right to use the other property owners' dry land (walk around the pond).

This particular situation may be different, but usually if a property owners' land touches water, then they have a right to fish that water from their property and to access that water by boat. The pond itself (for the sake of fishing rights) is usually not split up where the underlying property line is. So when you get in a boat, you can fish your neighbor's 3 acres of the pond, and she can fish your 6 acres. That's not a legal opinion, but that is the way it is usually enforced.

For example, as a kid I used to fish a local country club pond that was about 5 acres. We were given permission by a friend - one of the 10 homeowners that adjoined this pond. Since it was surrounded by private property, only those homeowners and guests could fish in it - not the rest of the members. I accessed that pond by boat and fished the entire pond without issue. One day I was fishing from shore and began walking around the bank when one of the neighbor ladies came out and ran me off her property. Which was her right to do because I was standing on her land at the time.

I would probably seek a legal opinion past the local LEO. Are there any shared covenants or language on the deed about it? Do they own ANY land under the pond?

I get what you say and that is why I asked but that is not how it was enforced yesterday. The local police department (Cabarrus county) told the guys to leave based on where they was fishing in the pond. He did not question where he entered the pond...fact was he was on somebody else's land within the pond. Now as far as his access to the pond, I know he trespassed to get in the pond by crossing a 10 ft strip of property that belongs to another landowner. Police didn't know that. Why that landowner held back the 10ft to those folks when she sold to them...I don't know but she did. So the landowner whom the fisherman parked on does not own land up to the edge of the pond but I don't think that was even discussed yesterday.


Here is something to think about...Fishers lake and Concord lake are surrounded by private landowners but none of them are allowed to access that water via boat. Its private property and belongs to the county.
 

Mack in N.C.

Old Mossy Horns
Here is your deal ..you own a certain portion of the bottom of that lake. Imagine putting a fence on your property line and it being on the bottom of the lake sticking out of the water. No one has a right to fish pAst that fence (property line) unless you say so. The other owners have no right to fish yours and you don't have the right to fish theirs unless given permission.
 

CRC

Old Mossy Horns
Lake Adger in Polk County is surrounded by private land yet the county owns the lake and dam.

You can access the lake over private land by agreement with the state (public access boat launch on private land)

Lake Lure in Rutherford County is owned by the town and boating is restricted yet the state declares the lake public inland waters.
 
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Mallard Cutter

Six Pointer
This got me thinking about trout steams . If the land is posted but the water is stocked by the state what are the rules EXACTLY ? Can you legally fish the property ? I have been ran off before from a stocked stream but the guy didn't have ANY posted signs on the property. I have heard several different people say that you could fish legally as long as you remained in the water. I don't want trespass on anyones land but if I can legally fish I would like to. It seems like there would be no reason to use my tax dollars to stock a stream if the public is not allowed to fish. Any and all thoughts are welcomed , and I really didn't mean to hi-jack a thread !!!!
 
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