Just wondering if it was a thing necessary for some reason I didn't know about.

I have a lot. Not necessary but I use a light to keep some jack leg from running over me. During the summer months the bow and stern lights are not enough at times.

The reason is there is a law. I turn mine on when I hear a boat coming. The light attracts insects. I mostly fish lighted boat docks and marinas. One nite I was in a Marina sitting pretty much under a street light. Some idiot in a sailboat started raising hell because my lights weren't on. Ahoy mate, where are your running lights?. I yelled back, well you know.

Perch, I came close to running a guy over on the river last night. It was a dark night and he flashed a light when I was closer than I would have liked to be. I wasn't going that fast but I sometimes run fast through there and it is a regular area where boats go to avoid rocks in the middle. He was sitting still in total darkness.

As I went by I thought I was being friendly and said "You need to turn your navigation lights on buddy." In my mind I was thinking I might save him being run over. I heard him smart something off about minding my own business,but I never said anything else or slowed down.

Later I was thinking there might be some technique where total darkness was needed bass fishing I didn't know about. I thought you had to have your navigation lights on anyway, but then I got to thinking I might be wrong and they might only have to be on if the motor is running.

Nevertheless,I thought it would have been a good idea to have a light on since I've seen guys who would have run over the guy if he did them the same way he did me because I've seen them running through there a lot faster.

As quite as a 4 stroke run's ,he won't hear it in time and get himself killed or mangled up.

No, he was just a dumbazz. He may have been getting romantic. There is no reason as to fishing. The only thing is light hurts your night vision. I'll tell you if I get a yak, it'll have a strobe on it after dark. Too many drunks and idiots. I'm glad you didn't hit him. It's a shame you didn't have a big Q-beam to blind him with once you saw him. I never ran with one, but know guys that do. I wonder how I never hit anything as much as I fished at night. For one thing I knew the areas, I never night fished around flooded timber unless I was there before sunset. The water is very dangerous. It is and always has been my greatest love. It was a fishing buddy that got me into deer madness. Did you call a warden after you hit the bank? People like him cause deaths. Hunt(andfish) safe!

let me clear mine up. If I am on the main lake or on the rice lights stay on. I run moonlights also. If you can't see me then you need to get your eyes checked. A few years ago a guy got cut in half at the barge canal on pickwick for not having lights on. So my lights stay on I run extras also.

Usually fish blacked out if I'm in a pocket or cove. Black lights fishing when casting to shoreline. Running lights on main lakes.
Was running back to the launch just after dark one evening. Had my sunglasses on to keep bugs out. Thought I was as looking at a star. At the last second I looked without my shades on. It was a light on the top of a sail boat. Not another light on it. Dang near hit it head on. I stopped and yelled at the folks on it. They were below and hadn't noticed it was dark. May have been gettin busy....

Perch,I did have the Q-beam.I was jug fishing,but I didn't want any trouble.I don't shine it except very quickly after looking a while with my less powerful head light.I try not to be obnoxious. I honestly wasn't yelling at the guy in a smart ass way.I just said what I was thinking before I even thought about it pissing him off. I mean,why would somebody get pissed off for you trying to save their life?

Reminded me of a guy who recently pulled out in front of me.I had to slam on my brakes and screech tires to keep from T boning him.Then he shoots me a bird and pulls away,while I just sit there stunned.

Then later I saw another guy fishing close to the bank with no lights,so it made me wonder if it was some thing I just didn't know about.

In defense of the guy,he was close to the bank and I would likely have missed him by at least 3 feet if I had been running full out.LOL. If He had been out farther I could have seen his silhouette,but against the bushes close in he was invisible.

If I start fishing at night, I'm gonna get me some LEDs around the boat.

That's what we do.. Once it gets to where there is hardly any boat traffic, we'll kill the running lights and just use moonlight to see the bank.. If we move or hear a boat, we flip on the running lights.

I do alot of night fishing on logan martin for crappie. I anchor up with plenty of lights on. But you can not hear a boat coming at you 100 percent of the time. They are louder going away from you. I also use a bright headlight that helps get their attention. I've had some close calls. That's really all I worry about night fishing.

We have probably crossed paths and not know it... We fish a lot at night on Logan martin, just bass instead of crappie.

If you ever see a couple guys that look extremely too big for the flat bottom they are fishing out of, that's us

This is AC almost running over a guy in daylight!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ADSXNYtL-54&t=62s

I fish in blue eye close to I 20. One night a flat bottom came by with 0 lights on it. Stealth mode. I always have a green light in the water.

This is the time Wiley almost ran over a guy in a Guntersville creek! Careful language!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j0L_dqFcgBI

You need a flashing blue light for those times Mega!

Wasn't us.. We stay down river for the most part. My buddy lives on coosa island so we don't get too far from there

The white 360 degree light on a sailboat is what's required and normal for anchor.

I fished for years at night. I've also had more than my share of too close, dangerous encounters. It scares me still just thinking about them. I came to the conclusion that the white light at the stern should be a strobe light of some sort because the white stern lights, some dim, some bright, just blend too well with the shore lights or the stars. I really would like to see this changed. Opinions??

BTW I couldn't stand fishing with the lights on, but a lot of times you just have too.