10-25-2004, 01:35 PM
Dave,
We bought our 14' aluminum boat in March of 2004. We went out weekly for about 3 months. We fished two different lakes in our area, both of them relatively lightly used. We did OK at one of them for a month or so, mostly catching small bass, with only one that was decent. After that, around June or so, the bite died, and after several trips without a hit, we packed the boat away for the summer.
I've fished here and there for years, but hadn't had a boat for about 5 years. I began to think it might be something I was doing that wasn't working...so I started talking to the other guys when the boats would come to the ramp after their day on the water. Turned out they didn't do any better than we did, time after time after time.
I began to see that a lot of people have very low expectations when it comes to catching fish. Of course, when 200 people go fishing in one day, someone is bound to catch a nice fish or two, and that guy will be the one you read about in the magazine or the local fishing news...but the 198 others who caught two or three 12" fish aren't mentioned.
It's interesting to me that most of the people who are featured in Georgia Outdoor News, our local fishing and hunting magazine, are guides. When they publish an article about someone catching a pile of nice fish, it's always a guide or someone on a guided trip. And what is that? Pay fishing.
I've been fishing since I was a kid. I'm 60 years old. I always heard fishing in the South was great. I'm in the South. Fishing isn't great. It isn't as good as it is in the west, in my opinion. Even in lightly trafficked lakes, the fishing is poor to fair. I'm talking 500 acres or less.
Places that should be full of fish, where on a really big day, there are 5 or 6 boats on the entire lake...but no one catches anything but baitsized fish.
I'm not going to tackle large lakes with my 14' boat. In fact, I'm starting to lean toward selling the boat and considering fishing a thing I used to do when it was fun. There are so many things in life to do with my time other than sit in a boat all day in the sun wondering why there aren't any fish, and why I haven't even seen one on the fishfinder all day.
We bought our 14' aluminum boat in March of 2004. We went out weekly for about 3 months. We fished two different lakes in our area, both of them relatively lightly used. We did OK at one of them for a month or so, mostly catching small bass, with only one that was decent. After that, around June or so, the bite died, and after several trips without a hit, we packed the boat away for the summer.
I've fished here and there for years, but hadn't had a boat for about 5 years. I began to think it might be something I was doing that wasn't working...so I started talking to the other guys when the boats would come to the ramp after their day on the water. Turned out they didn't do any better than we did, time after time after time.
I began to see that a lot of people have very low expectations when it comes to catching fish. Of course, when 200 people go fishing in one day, someone is bound to catch a nice fish or two, and that guy will be the one you read about in the magazine or the local fishing news...but the 198 others who caught two or three 12" fish aren't mentioned.
It's interesting to me that most of the people who are featured in Georgia Outdoor News, our local fishing and hunting magazine, are guides. When they publish an article about someone catching a pile of nice fish, it's always a guide or someone on a guided trip. And what is that? Pay fishing.
I've been fishing since I was a kid. I'm 60 years old. I always heard fishing in the South was great. I'm in the South. Fishing isn't great. It isn't as good as it is in the west, in my opinion. Even in lightly trafficked lakes, the fishing is poor to fair. I'm talking 500 acres or less.
Places that should be full of fish, where on a really big day, there are 5 or 6 boats on the entire lake...but no one catches anything but baitsized fish.
I'm not going to tackle large lakes with my 14' boat. In fact, I'm starting to lean toward selling the boat and considering fishing a thing I used to do when it was fun. There are so many things in life to do with my time other than sit in a boat all day in the sun wondering why there aren't any fish, and why I haven't even seen one on the fishfinder all day.