Log Books!?! - Striper Talk Striped Bass Fishing, Surfcasting, Boating

Tattoo · 12-19-2002, 12:37 PM

Electronic or the old pen and paper, whats the best?

Having never kept a log book, and now starting to loose my mind, I figure it might not be a bad idea.

JHABS · 12-19-2002, 12:40 PM

You have plenty of TIME

Tattoo · 12-19-2002, 12:47 PM

You must be Polish, TIME for what??

Megabyte · 12-19-2002, 08:29 PM

Yea, I;d be interested in what others do, if anything.

I'm still using a quill & parchment cause I can't remeber where the last EBA show was and it was in my own town !

But yea, I didn't know they had electronic ones

HESH2 · 12-20-2002, 09:29 AM

I HAVE ONE OF THOSE DAY PLANNERS AND EVERY TIME I FISH I WRITE IN IT.WHERE I WAS AND WHAT I CAUGHT.WHAT PART OF TIDE I STARTED AND WHEN IF LUCKY HOOKED UP.THEN I POST HOW MANY FISH I CAUGHT THAT DAY.THE DAY PLANNER IS ABOUT 7'' BY 3'' SO I KEEP IT WITH A PEN AND LOCAL TIDE CHART ON MY CENTER CONSOLE.I HAVE ONLY BEEN DOING IT FOR 2 YEARS BUT IS A GOOD REFERENCE POINT.I ALSO WRITE WHAT I CAUGHT THE FISH ON.I ALSO WRITE IN IT WHO I FISHED WITH THAT DAY AND WHAT THEY CAUGHT.SOMETIMES I WRITE IN WATER TEMP AND WEATHER-BUT NOT ALL THE TIME.AT END OF YEAR YOU CAN ADD UP HOW MANY FISH YOU CAUGHT AND WHAT MONTHS WERE BEST.

fishsmith · 12-20-2002, 09:57 AM

a grease pencil/crayon and a laminated surface are great for wet boats, but then you have to re-write it for future use.
This is what was used when I was in the Navy.

DRUMCORPFAN · 12-20-2002, 10:03 AM

I started writing my notes in april regarding day's spent fishing, i found by late may i stopped taking the time to take the time for notes. what a mess!

Spare Spool · 12-20-2002, 10:57 AM

I actually found a pretty cool little database for the Palm called HanDbase. Someone had made a Fishing Log database with it that I modified for my own use. The DB works well, I just stopped using it. I wish I had the discpline to record information about each fishing trip as I am sure that logs become useful tools if you use them all the time.

tlapinski · 12-20-2002, 04:59 PM

i was writing some stuff in a spiral notebook that i used to keep in my truck. then i forgot to write in it one trip. after that, i never remembered to go back to it. next season i plan to stick to it, though!

Got Stripers · 12-20-2002, 10:33 PM

Every year I say this will be the year I start, but my log is still upstairs, so when my mind does go I'm in trouble. If you have excel, it's a great tool for stuff like that, because you can sort it by so many criteria. You can sort by spot, by time of year, by weather conditions, by tide or whatever you want. You just have to be consistant about logging in similar data the same way, so the sort does what you want, when you want it. You can also set up hyperlinks in the spreadsheet, which are similar to the links we use on the internet, which can link back to articles on subjects that relate or more detail trip notes if your that involved.

thewaterfordstriper · 12-21-2002, 12:48 AM

i have been keeping a paper and pen log for about a year and a half now. if i don't write in it as soon as i get home i feel guilty.

denis · 12-21-2002, 11:24 AM

tatto

electronic,i keep a record of the date,places,boat-or not,tide stages,wind speed direction,water clr-dirty,fly-or spinning,and number of bass,have records for the last six years it's verry interesting to compare the years. but you have to log it in right away,or you forget something.

thewaterfordstriper · 12-21-2002, 12:41 PM

do any of you guys try organize your notes at end of the year? meaning where you caught fish, tide, time wind etc etc.

denis · 12-21-2002, 04:00 PM

yes i'll look for my best days(number of fish caught) where and on what tide and wind direction. it will change from year to year.

bloocrab · 12-21-2002, 05:54 PM

MAY 24, 2002

You can mark that day down in your log books Tattoo...I'm sure you can remember a few of the details ...

......

Its not that difficult, especially on a "Good" outing. I keep a tiny notebook ($1.99) in my vehicle. After a decent trip, it gets recorded. I don't always remember every stinkin' detail, but the few details that get recorded are usually the important ones. If you have the time to write down everything that happened....ya ain't spendin' enough time fishin'

I have a folder on my desktop labeled Fish Log ... which gets backed up occassionally to a floppy -

just in case...Every once and awhile, I bring the note-pad in, and transfer the information to the folder.

If you consistently catch fish, you'll do it more often. If you get skunked more than not.....you'll always keep forgetting. Unless you record all the times you don't catch fish...

Tattoo · 12-22-2002, 07:01 AM

Quote:

MAY 24, 2002

Thats the day i needed, how did you know?

Bill L · 12-22-2002, 07:49 AM

This WAS going to be the year I started too....

I think I prefer paper and pencil, seems a little more permanent and flexible, but the computer data base approach like excel would be useful for searching and sorting. I like Bloos appraoach of keeping notes and transferring to the computer, best of both worlds. IF you keep notes, an "Engineers Field Book" is worth looking at if you can find one. These are the pocket-sized yellow notebooks that surveyors keep notes in -- heavy duty, weatherproof paper, can really take a beating