how has your fishing changed....
 

angler evolution.....I've watched guys go from surf rat to boat owners, chunkers to plug tossers, spinning to fly, inshore to off-shore addicts....I used to spend every promising night swimming out to rocks hurling bucktails etc. into the darkness hoping for the opportunity to be overmatched by a big fish....now I'd rather get up at 4am launch my SUP when the wind is right, see the sunrise and enjoy a good paddle, fly rods and/or occasionally a spinning rod strapped to the deck in case I bump into some fish...I'd rather take people fishing and watch them fish and enjoy the environment than fish myself....I don't fish from shore as much because honestly the pressure on most locations has greatly increased and the trash that you see left behind from fishermen really disgusts me, I'm tired of people who mindlessly encroach when I feel like I've found a little spot just to be alone...not that it doesn't happen on the water, I've been buzzed plenty of times by boats for no reason....I try to avoid fishing weekends when it's full on nutty

what is your happy place(s) when you fish now? has it changed much?

I don't fish fresh water like I used to, every season I took two trips in the spring and two in the fall to Lake O.... it's too labor intensive for me now. I don't fish salmon on Winni like I used to.. my sweet water activity is only in the winter.

I don't chase bass up and down the coast like I once did, in the 70's I would start in jersey and fish my way as far north as Popham beach in Maine, Now i'm too old, and the big fish are few in that northern range.and I don't have the ambition to drive countless hours. the last 20 years I've stuck tight to my home patch of water, it's been good to me, I don't fight the elements like I once did, and I pick and choose tides that I WANT to fish, mainly because it's easier... life is a circle, my circle brings me back to my home waterers that I cut my teeth on almost 6 decades ago.

every season I tell myself I'm going to fish a bunch of fresh water then I don't:hihi:

Last few years I have promised myself I will get out more - and I never do.

I can only fish at night, never reliably get up early to fish, and I am a wreck the rest of the day. Unfun

I stayed out pretty late a few weeks ago waiting on the tide to turn anticipating the fish would show...they did but the next day was brutal...pretty much a blur...I think it was worth it :) maybe

I still fish many nights, but instead of 3-5 hours, its more like
1-2 max.... Unproductive nights are the new norm...

I no longer feel like "I am missing the big one" if I skip a night.

is my catch rate slower because I fish less?
or do I fish less because my catch rate is slower?

not sure... but I do feel there are much fewer fish in my favorite
spots. moving around hasn't helped much.

I own a 19' boat, but have zero interest in using it to fish for striped bass... mainly use it to pull my kids on a tube, and then go casual bottom fishing.

I fish a lot less. I use to fish 2 - 3 nights all winter with 1 or 2 others. We'd catch a few fish and then move on to a different spot to talk to others we know. Prob. would go to 3 to 4 spots a night and in some we wouldn't even fish - just talk to friends. It was more social than fishing. Last few years the internet blew up the spots and each spot would have 7-10 people load vs the 3/4 before. Lots of pictures being taken and then posted on FB the next day. It was no longer enjoyable. My spring river fishing has gotten worse over the last 6-8 years and it is tougher and tougher to catch good size fish. The days of multiple 40" fish are in the rear view mirror. Summer fishing has also gone down hill and there are more people out. The fall run is non-existent.

I have less motivation to go out and have to force myself sometimes. I have been fishing more by myself lately which has its good and bad aspects. I don't spend as much time out, move around more and head home earlier.

realty ..life ……... less ……………….. mostly physically , but now its gerring at times mental /I have everything ready & then just say fu ck it ..

bought F/W gear thinking I could get back to the real peaceful fishing …….. didn,t take real long the I couldn,t get to a lot of places , either physically or legally …………..&&&& the trash issue is just to much .

I went out alone Tuesday .managed to find a few . then bluefish & I had already been late because a lack of bait …………. which I ran out of .
when I was about done I fell [again] stayed there for a while .finally crawled up ……..saw that when I fell a snapped my rod rack when I hit it .
But I was all set to go the next day because of the activity...……. alarm went off .tried to rollover and get up ……….. body had tightened up ….. nope no go ..

figure I have 1.5 years left / its not much fun alone & not many left to go the way I go .

I miss many of the guys I use to fish with /a few RIP took care of it & others just tired .

I use to love to fish with Got Stripers .& he wouls ask me to be at the ramp 4;30 ish ……….. no way .he finally got sick of asking , got a yak, woman & golf …….so the became history ………………………..others guys just disappeared . changed fish . quit fishing . etc, etc, etc, :hs::hs:

Don't fish from shore much anymore, only after I'm done a 'yak trip.
In the early aughts, used to spend all day fishing from shore for stripers, multiple times per month. Don't usually fish for stripers alone these days; usually combine striper fishing with something else, so there's a chance I'll get some dinner (been years since I got a keeper; nothing but dinks these days). Overall, don't give it anywhere near as much effort as 15 years ago; sadly, these days it doesn't seem worth it.

I spent years driving to the coast every other weekend and fishing friday night, trying to sleep saturday, fish sat nite and then drive home sunday.
I'm too old to last all weekend on four hours sleep.
So now I play golf and fish for Pike, bass and trout in Rivers near me.
I can catch 3'+ pike literally in my backyard and I keep hearing the Striper fishing is dead.
It's ok.

I used to fish the surf but then I bought a tinny. Never looked back to the shore. Old and lazy now and do things on my terms.

I start and end my season chasing largemouth, smallmouth and pickerel. Once the sea bass come in to upper BB I’m loading up to vacuum seal as much as I can for the winter. Then I trailer the yak down to Gooseberry point and make the long peddle out for the mixed bag of schoolies, sea bass, tog and the occasional fluke. When the funny fish are in, especially the early bones I’m chasing them, then it’s all about tog and luckily I can get out on a few friends boats late fall to load up on the last good eaters of the year. Since i sold my CC and joined the plastic navy, I’ve put more eaters in the freezer then I did running around looking for that magic bite.

Pete, not sure if you remember, but I would often run into you at various spots in South county about 10 years ago.... when the mullet run was booming, and we were staying awake on adrenaline...
... I met so many great people in passing , you were one of them. (I still think about installing that wetsuit zipper you made!)

Not once this spring with the waders on,,,, should have, a buddy from the west coast has been coming every spring and that’s what gets me on the beach,,,, not this virus year... :-(

Boat! I’m possessed,,, don’t think I’ve missed one fishable day yet.... freezers packed.... as long as I can do it I’m in.... :-)

What Rockfish9 said.

Stud

It’s true....

I used to think my brother was hardcore, and then I started hanging out with Gup.
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can't really say anything has changed for me as far as fishing goes in the last 15 to 20 years.still get out every night from early may to late october,might miss 10 nights at most. my catch rate is higher than ever though much smaller. I don't get out on the kayak as much,seems like its always blowing these days,and the beach closed for birds decreases easy acess.The only other thing that has changed over the years is that i don't see any of he guys from this site that i use to fish with other than Mikey,the Rapping in One

Worked great, hated peeing in wet suit
I think I used to run into you in front of the little camp east of Quonnie
I expect it’s a McMansion by now
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Yeah, Mike I am one of the quitters. Between working 3 days a week for BackBeach, selling the boat and having bad knees, I'm pretty much done I think. Unless I get new knees, I cannot jump rocks. I like fishing the beaches on the Cape but that is pretty much shut down, between the Plovers and the seals.

So it's just easier to play golf. It's not fishing but you know the only thing I ever fished for was Bass and now with the way the stocks are, I just cannot do it.

I don’t consider it quitting, we all fished our butts off most of our life and as we get older our get up and go has got up and gone, priorities have changed.

So true Bob.

When I first started out I fished the local south shore beaches cutting my teeth in the surf! Then I found Cape Cod, bought a beach buggy (my Jeep CJ-7) and started learning the backsides beaches and driving Race Point for years until the plovers and the seals killed Cape Cod! I then moved my fishing closer to home fishing the ditch for many years until the crowds killed that! I then bought my first kayak in 2009 and have been kayak fishing both saltwater and freshwater! Its been a great journey and I have fished alot of great places! The journey continues.........:cool:

Def haven’t fish for as long as most on this site but when I lived in Quincy 15 years ago would get out almost every night but was young and had a short drive when I worked in Plymouth I’d hit the beaches almost every am before work. Now that I’m an hour plus drive to most my spots I try to pick and choose my tides off what has worked around certain tides conditions and moon phases in the past. That being said I’ll be out hot and heavy next two weeks Driving an hour each way squeezing into my wetsuit driving back an hour getting in late then waking up early. Waking up everyday at 4 am has its disadvantages but nights like I had the other night make the three hours of sleep that much more tolerable at work the next day. Tight lines
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Banzi Trip: As taught to me by Gary Soldati:
1. Drive to the ferry, Block or CH.
2. Optional: Dress into wetsuits on the trip over
3. Walk off the boat (and keep walking)-- Fish all night.
4. Walk onto ferry boat the following morning, and fall asleep.
5. Drive home.

Problems:
1. Like all the other posts above, I too am aging out of this type of effort. Such efforts are best done and shared with an equally competent and enthusiastic companion. And they are tapping out also.
2. The fishing no longer has the potential for any quality like it once was.

"Equally competent"????????
I'll take that as an insult!

I’m too old for that...,,.
I can catch pike in my backyard
and play the equally silly game of golf without driving for hours and hours
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Truth


:laugha:

Back in the day, Pete would drive down from VT in the blue van to fish Weekapaug and SW Rhody and then go back

Easily beats driving from Boston to Truro or Naps

Nothing is better than driving from Boston to fish Truro or Naps.
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Chinese Downhill, my man.
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