[catfishonthelake]

I got married at the Raritan Inn on the South Branch, which doubles as a private trout club. The way the owner explained it to me was that the river itself (water, fish, etc) cannot be owned, but the property (the riverbank and river bed) is privately owned by whoever owns the land parcel. If you could somehow float down a private stretch of river without you boat/kayak/canoe touching the riverbottom or having to get out of the canoe and put your foot down on the ground, technically you would be ok. Only problem that most clubs are on non-navigable streams, so at some point you're gonna get stuck or need to get out of your vessel, at which point you are tresspassing.