Will talking or footsteps on the bank scare trout?
Talking, essentially never — the air-to-water boundary reflects almost all airborne sound, so conversation at normal volume does not reach the fish. Footsteps are a different physics problem: your boot thumps travel through the ground into the water as low-frequency vibration, which the trout's inner ear and lateral line read clearly, and a fish in a quiet pool can be alerted by heavy steps several meters from the edge. On soft or undercut banks the effect is worst. Walk softly and stay back from the lip; whisper all you like.
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