Since I spend a lot of time casting jigs and dragging fligs I regularly dredge up stuff off the bottom. That includes more than a few rods and reels. But I never seem to get any that are either good quality or still fishable. Most of the rods I have brought in are covered with months/years worth of lake scum and/or are very low end quality. Since some of them are Walmart special spincast rigs, I suspect that young anglers are to blame for the loss. But not always. Big wipers have made off with more than a few decent rigs.
However, since I usually get to the ramp early...often before boaters...I have found lots of stuff like tackle boxes, nets, nice rod and reel setups, etc....even cell phones and wallets. These I usually turn in to the lake managers to hold for someone to report them missing. In a few cases I have been able to assume ownership after nobody came to get them in a reasonable time.
However, since I usually get to the ramp early...often before boaters...I have found lots of stuff like tackle boxes, nets, nice rod and reel setups, etc....even cell phones and wallets. These I usually turn in to the lake managers to hold for someone to report them missing. In a few cases I have been able to assume ownership after nobody came to get them in a reasonable time.