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So, my brother and I have been fishing for the last 3 seasons. Each new year has brought less success than the previous one. More experience and knowledge gained by us have lead to less fish. We had hoped the inverse would be true.
We target smb and lmb primarily then kitties or trout. We've had a tough year at PV for bass. I don't believe we've landed one bass in about 5 trips. Holmes creek is another water nearby with lmb. that has been a poor producer this year. just a couple between us. We have done very well there a couple years back however.
I was thinking that we know enough to make it more complicated then it needs to be and maybe we overthink it sometimes. We typically look at the topo maps we got from sportsmans and note possible fish locations based on the season/water temp with underwater structure or cover. Lure selection varies by time of day, water clarity, etc.
We have a tin boat, elec motor, fish finder, and enough tackle and knowledge to cover most situations. So, we should have everything we need. But something is just not coming together for us when we get on the water.
We would appreciate some input, criticisms, questions, on how we might adjust our approach to finding and catching bass.....or cats, muskies, pike, etc.
Thanks for reading through the rant. Fishing needs to be fun again
-Mike
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You remind me of ME and my brother 18 years ago. After looking back at over own learning curves and comparing it with what you wrote, I have to say ... you are on the right track to becoming a satisfied "catcherman".
My VERY BIGGEST SUGGESTION would be to fish along side of someone who is actually regularly successful on a particular water or species. What you learn in one day of fishing with someone who is regularly successful will save you years of experimenting ... not to mention the money you would save.
You also indicated that you have enough tackle to cover most situations. I remember thinking that same thing. But now looking back, no way did I have sufficient tackle to successfully catch a species.
I have noticed that most guys here, in their BFT profile, will often times list the species or waters they are good at catching. Take a look at those BFT profiles and hook up with one that matches your fishing preferences.
I'm pretty comfortable and passionate about Gorge and Bear Lake mackinaw, Pineview musky, Willard wipers, and Strawberry trout. But as for LMB or SMB, I have zero interest in them.
Now on the other hand, a guy by the name of Clifford Sackett ("[url "http://www.bigfishtackle.com/cgi-bin/community/community.cgi?do=user_page;pg=user_profile_view.html;username=bassrods"]bassrods[/url]" here on BFT) loves fishing bass and is VERY good at it. He often takes newbies out and schools them. He is kind of a weird dude (aren't we all?) but a good guy and man, can he catch bass! I'll bet that if you [url "http://www.bigfishtackle.com/cgi-bin/gforum/gforum.cgi?do=message;user=7783"]shoot him a PM[/url], he'd be glad to show you how it's done.
Meanwhile, keep up the persistent passion.
--- [url "http://www.bigfishtackle.com/cgi-bin/community/community.cgi?do=user_page;pg=user_profile_view.html;username=Old_Coot"]Coot[/url] ---
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One thing they taught me early on is to start a fishing journal where you track each trip. I did mine in a spreadsheet. I list date, location, mode, what I used, what was successful, how many, how big, water temp, level, weather and etc. really fun to look back and compare. My memory doesn't cut it anymore. If you don't fish a lot, can I suggest tracking the posts of others and record as much info as you can. You will start to see patterns and times when you need to be fishing a certain location for a certain fish. Fall is a great time to fish for lots of different fish. The smallies will be chasing minnows so look for where your minnows go. I find them on underwater bars where the water increases in speed or up against banks where they force the minnows. You can see them splash and jump where they are feeding. I've found lures similar in color to the minnows then tip it with worm or something tasty to a fish. Try different presentations and retrieves and etc. that is more important than the lure. If you fish them right you'll catch fish. Hard to go wrong with a jig. I like curly tails, but most of that stuff will work if you are where the fish are feeding. Have some 3" curly tails in white with salt&pepper, yellow, purple or black. I like 1/4 oz or 3/16 oz jig heads. Good luck. J
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Since I'm a newbie to fishing myself, I really have no advice. Just confirming info that's already here.
Bassrods took me out, and it was a great trip! Also been out with TubeDude a couple times too...but I think I make a bad student, he calls me a brat now. LOL. I learn best by DOING rather than just being told or reading about it. Not only are you learning, but also gaining experience at the same time.
I used to get frustrated at not catching anything all the time. Now that I'm older and hopefully wiser, I have resolved to just enjoy the sport and not try to get too riled up about not getting anything. Lately I go out fishing simply to be away from society and enjoy nature. Yes I would like to be able to bring home dinner for all the time and effort, but it's not as drastically important to me as it was a couple years ago.
Plus, I think the fish know that I'm a girl, and we ALL know that fishing is not a proper girl thing to do anyway  (especially if you ask my mother, who thinks I should stay home, cooking and knitting quilts instead)
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Thank you for the reassurance Coot.
As far as the tackle goes, I agree that I can't cover every situation with what I have. But I think sometimes we fishermen are caught by the lures and tackle. Or at least for myself have thought buying more gear means more fish. The bait monkey is hard to resist.
The topic of fishing with more experienced anglers is a great idea and something we have briefly considered. Reading is great but there is a part of the puzzle we are missing and I agree that learning from a better angler in real life can help tremendously. This approach would probably save us much time and frustration.
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I actually have a template for a fishing log but haven't used it yet. hmmm. That is a good reminder.
The jigs you are referring to are the little round ball type? I also frequent a larger bass specific forum where most anglers are from the south, midwest, and california where most jigs used are larger jigs and craw type trailers. I hadn't thought of using smaller jigs. We will have to give that a go next time. Thanks!
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Fish them with confidence and you'll catch them. Good luck. J
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