Your overall success in fishing for Pros' and non pro's?

[bassfighter]

In today's fishing condition where more fishing pressure exist.

 

Are you successful with your results because of experience, having some good teacher, or inborn talent? or your success is based on your hard work in putting time into this hobby, and self experimentation?

 

Or are you always a lucky person in fishing? Caught the fish at the right place, time and moments?

[trapshooter]

There is no substitution for time on the water and a willingness to experiment when things aren't working.

[solopaddler]

There's no doubt that some people have an innate natural ability that can't be taught, a "touch" if you will. Nothing learned, it's just in them.

However, preparation and attention to detail are a big part of success as well.

I'm always prepared to the nth degree for every single outing.

Each and every steelhead trip for example takes anywhere from 1-4 hours to prep for.

[Guest gbfisher]

I believe whole heartedly in complete blind luck................

[purekgw]

easy match the hatch and use the right color for the condition can never have to many Rapalas and research where your going to be fishing

Edited December 11, 2008 by Pure

[Terry]

great, I have all the luck in the world

more then I could ask for

 

 

 

 

too bad it's all bad luck

[lew]

You have to decide whether the bait for the day will be orange & black, or black & orange.

 

After that it's all easy

[MCTFisher9120]

Nope no luck here, pure skill lol. In earlier years i would only fish for maybe 30days a year, but this year i had opportunity after opportunity to get out fishing. I fished 2 rivers, and 5 different lakes this year. I was out for 83 days fishing witch increased my chances of catchin personal best fish and new species of fish. For me i got caught 6 new species of fish and 8 different personal best sizes, with a additional rod and reel and some new baits my odds of having success and catching fish went up. Seemed like a good year to me

Edited December 11, 2008 by Mike The Bass Fisher

[charlesn]

It's pretty simple. When I win a tournament, it's because I did all the right things. I was prepared, I developed a good pattern, I executed well and persevered through bad luck or misfortune and my dedication, hard work and experience paid off.

 

When someone else wins it's because they got lucky and found an "easy to catch" pod of fish.

 

lol

[pike slayer]

ok so i only started fishing 4-5 years ago. All my buddys have fished all their life with their fathers and grandfathers. They only know one technique, one way to catch a certain fish. they would have the saying "ohhh i guess the fish just arent biting today". for the first couple years i didnt know any better and i went long with it. then i started researching, different techinques, different lures, etc. and i found out theres more then one way to catch a species of fish. So when the days we were just about to leave cause "the fish just arent biting" i said wait stay a little longer i want to try something and i'd try something different and bam i start catching fish! i turned around skunked days into some of the best fishing we have ever experienced. I have now changed the way they have fished, trying different things till we find something that works and this year we have not been skunked once. this has been my best year so far it doesnt really take that much skill just an open mind and knowledge of the fish. and well catching fish isnt luck but catching a trophy is, theres tons of fish in the lake but only so many that are trophys so your playing your odds!

Edited December 11, 2008 by pike slayer

[Radnine]

ok so i only started fishing 4-5 years ago. All my buddys have fished all their life with their fathers and grandfathers. They only know one technique, one way to catch a certain fish. they would have the saying "ohhh i guess the fish just arent biting today". for the first couple years i didnt know any better and i went long with it. then i started researching, different techinques, different lures, etc. and i found out theres more then one way to catch a species of fish. So when the days we were just about to leave cause "the fish just arent biting" i said wait stay a little longer i want to try something and i'd try something different and bam i start catching fish! i turned around skunked days into some of the best fishing we have ever experienced. I have now changed the way they have fished, trying different things till we find something that works and this year we have not been skunked once. this has been my best year so far it doesnt really take that much skill just an open mind and knowledge of the fish. and well catching fish isnt luck but catching a trophy is, theres tons of fish in the lake but only so many that are trophys so your playing your odds!

If this is true, when do you call it a day? I guess when your arms are tired.

[forrest]

Experience....it helps a lot, but, there is no substitute for a good teacher. Ao when old timer X says do this....I do it and usually do well.

 

Once I tire of the experience part for the day I try different things and surprise myself and those I fish with sometimes too.

 

forrest

Edited December 11, 2008 by forrest

[OhioFisherman]

Just my opinion, you have to enjoy it, be willing to learn, develop the needed skills, and be aware, never pass up good luck. You can fish all day and get a couple hits or catch a limit in 5 minutes, got to land the ones you stick, in a tournament a dink keeper can move you to money.

 

Fishing with people that know what they are doing is always a plus, not everyone approaches a situation the same way, the more ways you know can`t hurt.

Edited December 11, 2008 by OhioFisherman

[Radnine]

I went up to Big Doe in October. I was in a boat with my B-in-L and another guy. In the other boat were two other B-n-Ls and my nephew. All of whom have fished this lake for years (12 plus).

The B-n-L in my boat had five fish in the boat before any of the rest of us had a nibble. In fact, we had none until after lunch when he hooked us up (in our boat) with what he was using. Then I bagged a couple and so did the other guy (the other boat still got squat).

But what I was struck with was the way he did things (things like opening his bail after getting a hit, to keep the bait in the area. And rigging a cheater hook, sharpening his hooks, etc.) I know that I can learn a ton off of him.

If there is an issue it is that he is all about catching more fish than everyone else (thus my signature change after our trip together). I am just not that intense. I would rather troll and grab the odd one on a Rapala, than work myself to the bone because I know that there are more down there.

I guess to get back to the thread, I think alot of it has to do with skill. But if you don't have the skill you can still enjoy the sport immensely.

Jim

[hirk]

I have fished for 40 something years,my opinion on this is that to be sucessful you need to love to fish 1st and foremost,after that you must be able to learn the theory and apply it.This comes from a hunger for knowlege and time on the water.After years of building up the library of skills/knowlege it becomes increasingly easier to adapt and capitolize on whatever situation you are faced with,nothing can replace time on the water.I used to get skunked often back in the early 80's but it's been 8-10yrs since it's happened,I can look back and see how I got to were I am,if the desire is there it's just a matter of time to get to the next level and so on.

[misfish]

Fish pro/am,s get to know thier spots. Well not the ones Charles fishes,becuse there are to many lucky angers out there.LOL J/K

 

All joking aside,fishing the pro/ams and fishing with guys like Terry and Charles and Chong ,listening to guys like Kulic,and well so many others that have offered up, that know the wheres and hows,that has made me a better angler. I just like to goof around these days,but I got it all right back here in my mind when I need it.

[jwl]

I think it's all experimenting and learning along the way.

 

I have fished avidly since I was a little kid..was lucky enough to grow up spending every summer travelling to somewhere in the north and camping, fishing for a couple weeks every summer. I also grew up fishing for just about everything all over the Niagara region. Mostly the grown-ups would just leave us kids to our own accord and just goof off fish and have a good time. Then as I got a bit older, knew how to swim well ect and my mom thuoght it was ok, that was it..off on my bike all over the place 3-4-5 days a week fishing, sometimes even twice in the same day.

 

Soon using a bobber for panfish turned into using lures, bigger bait, minnows..fishing creeks and the River instead of a pond ect and it all started coming together from there. As kids we looked around at what all the gorwn-ups where using and catching fish on and started from there by copying some of thier actions.

 

As the years go by..more fish caught, more species conquered, and more season fished, I started keeping fishing journals and keeping track of even the most minute detail for the day..the date..the weather...the time...the water conditons...general report on the surrounding area....water temps if I could...forage available...ect..and so on..and over time I have come to develope patterns that let me catch a variety of fish as thier availability and so forth come ibto factor throughout the year....there isn't a month of the year I don't do some type of fishing for the most part I probably average a good 200 days or so fishing a year..some years a little less, some even more..to become a more successful angler you have to be willing to oput in the time, and face many tough days along the way..scrapes, cuts, bruises, and skunk days, over come, adapt, and most of all just get out there and keep trying...just because one guy catches a toone more fish than you..doesn't mean that someone else isn't catching a tonne more fish than that guy

[irishfield]

I believe whole heartedly in complete blind luck................

 

 

Ya you're right Andy... I didn't see any eyes on Lucky !

[steverowbotham]

It's pretty simple. When I win a tournament, it's because I did all the right things. I was prepared, I developed a good pattern, I executed well and persevered through bad luck or misfortune and my dedication, hard work and experience paid off.

 

When someone else wins it's because they got lucky and found an "easy to catch" pod of fish.

 

lol

 

we think much alike

[Rich]

Experience is the greatest teacher. More time on the water = more learned.

 

You must be willing to try new things and new spots regularly. Changing almost constantly until you feel confident in all aspects of what you do. Then you move on to something else that's new. That constant eagerness to learn mixed with the time on the water to learn it.. that's what makes a great fisherman.

[ccmtcanada]

Agree with what everyone is saying...experience, natural talent...all comes into play.

 

Have I been skunked this year? Oh yeah...lots of times, on shore.

 

One thing that hasn't really been mentioned is confidence.

 

For me, confidence in your lure, your line, your setup, your skill is as critical as all the other things.

[Rizzo]

You have to decide whether the bait for the day will be orange & black, or black & orange.

 

hahaha...if that's the case Lew can I borrow those nice rainbow baits you've prepared for tomorrow?

[Leecher]

I agree with what everyone is saying also and will add "instinct" what I mean by that is being able to determine where to go on a new lake that you never fished before.

 

I've been fishing since I'm old enough to cast a lure with a rod and fished a lot of lakes and was for the most part successfull at it.

 

Leechman

[lew]

hahaha...if that's the case Lew can I borrow those nice rainbow baits you've prepared for tomorrow?

 

Roger, if the black & orange work the way I'm hoping, I'll GIVE you the rainbows

[kemper]

There is no such thing as luck,

 

Experience is number one IMO, knowing the conditions and what has worked for you in the past will shape what bait you throw on any given day. Also experience on the water body is huge, especially in steelheading. For example on my home river I can 9 times out of 10 pin down where the fish are holding, because I have spent countless hours out there, but if you take me to a new river I wont know exactly where they are and what they want. I might be able to put a good guess together and be successful but not to the same extent as I would be if I knew the water.

 

Prep is huge too, I spend a ton of time getting all my gear together before any trip. Every colour of bait, every type I think might work goes into the box/vest. Knowing the water conditions before you go is huge too, for example if I am going steelheading tomorrow, I am not only going to check the hydro charts but im also going to drive to the river today (its close) and see the water first hand. That way I know what I need to bring, and what I dont.

 

last but not least, OFC. Im serious, I would not be half the fisherman that I am today without this place. When I was 13 I joined, and since then I have been on a constant learning curve in getting out fishing with members and just reading endlessly. This place rocks