Question... - Striper Talk Striped Bass Fishing, Surfcasting, Boating

Jenn · 12-12-2002, 06:27 PM

....ok.....a WHILE ago I picked up a couple of Frank D's books...I am just NOW getting to Striper Surf..I know everyone has their own feelings about him personally/ and or his writing.......but anyway here goes my question....

ok...so about 50% of the info in there I follow myself......about 30-35% I have read about or heard from someone and wanted to try etc. and the rest I QUESTION!!!! some sounds like something I should do or try to see if it works and some of it sounds rediculous!!!!!! Now I myself am always game for trying new ideas.......and I KNOW one of my biggest problems is everytime I read or hear of something different I want to try it...but never having enough time to do it all (HA! wouldnt that be nice...)

So how do you go about deciding whats worth trying and whats not?????? do you follow your instinct...what YOU think makes sense???? or do you follow the path that seems more traveled?????

I know its proably a hard question to answer but thought I would give it a shot!!

capesams · 12-12-2002, 06:51 PM

I'm an old stick in the mud, jigs an eels, some plugs. I to have read fd's books, an what he said about chatham light is all a$$ backwards, I will go no further into this subject..my 2 cents.

Van · 12-12-2002, 09:33 PM

I've read a couple also.
It seems to me that it was so many years ago, and there
were many more BIG fish then
Todays conditions and tactics are different.

He didn't have much trouble catching lots of BIG fish back then, plus he lived on the beach.

Just MO...
V.

capesams · 12-12-2002, 10:28 PM

I told myself that i wouldn't get into this , but u know that pic. thats floating around here of the pile of bass on the beach, I've seen this in person on north beach back in the early 70's, guess who's truck they were in front of. those guys [some] that are writing their books now weren't great bass fisherman just rape artests. if u only knew the reel stories.

Jenn · 12-12-2002, 10:30 PM

thanks.....but it wasnt necessarily just about his books....but any book or article (his book just got me thinking thats all)

sometimes I just wanna do it all and end up confusing myself!!!!!

Jenn · 12-12-2002, 10:35 PM

Quote:

I told myself that i wouldn't get into this , but u know that pic. thats flotting around here of the pile of bass on the beach, I've seen this in person on north beach back in the early 70's, guess who's truck they were in front of. those guys [some] that are writing their books now weren't great bass fisherman just rape artests. if u only knew the reel stories.

hmmm......I am not sure if I read into this right....but if I did.....

I had an experience a while back where I was very dissapointed......and it really opened my eyes.......

things arent always what they seem to be are they?????

capesams · 12-12-2002, 10:38 PM

sorry jenn, it just bugs the crap outta me when people make hero's outta these guys, stick with what catches fish for u, get good at one thing first then go on to something else.

Jenn · 12-12-2002, 10:50 PM

Quote:

sorry jenn, it just bugs the crap outta me when people make hero's outta these guys

Certainly no need to be sorry......I will continue to read the books and articles.....and maybe learn something from them, because thats my nature....but I definately dont think them all "heros" just because they can write words about fishing!!!!!! Matter of fact... there are three people in this world that are MY fishing "heros" ....and they will never know it........better yet...they dont NEED to know it!!!!

redcrbbr · 12-12-2002, 11:46 PM

i'm probably a bit like you jenn. once i have caught a fish, lets say chunking for instance i will stay chunking a long time whether i am catching something or not. after not catching anything for a long time, then i start thinking(this is when the trouble starts) maybe i should try this or that. sometimes it works sometimes it doesn't. but what the hey if i didn't try it i wouldn't know. which brings us to another problem.. some techniques work in some places and don't work in others(i'm so confused)

and for those days or nights when nothing seems to work you can always jump up and down on the beach screaming obscenities.

MountainBreeze · 12-13-2002, 07:52 AM

Well... I have to be honest and say that when I started fisihng the surf, a few months ago, I read some of Frank's books and enjoyed them.

But... as I have read more fishin' books, by other authors, I don't really care for Frank's books as much.

As some people have said, he seems "braggy" to me and I don't really care for that.

But... that is just my .02.

JohnR · 12-13-2002, 08:16 AM

I like some things about Franks books as they do travel back to an older time and there is some relevant info when reading between the lines.

On the other hand - he's often more arrogant and combatant than neccesary (I'm letting sleeping dogs lie here).

Now for learning stuff - going out with the attitude to catch fish and that everynight can be a learning experience goes a long way to make an enriching night. Never does the same water crawl in front of your rock - it's always different from minute to minute and year to year so watch, study, & learn - AND HAVE FUN!

Next thing to do is to not fault yourself if you are fishing in opportunity instead of fishing by plan. If you can only get out on Friday night when the tides and winds aren't what you like - don't hold it against yourself as that reduces the fun factor. Work a little harder and see if you can still pull the rabbit out of the hat

Like CS said - develop one method reasonably well. When you venture to new things you can always fall back to plan #1 ...

sorry for rambling - not enough coffee yet

Van · 12-13-2002, 08:43 AM

Well ,,,reading some of the replies has certainly enlightened me.
CS, Sometime I would like to hear those "reel stories".

This kinda confirms some opinions that I have keep to myself.
And his books seem more story-like than informative..

Swimmer · 12-13-2002, 09:28 AM

Ah, NORTH BEACH, I remember when my buddy Marty Hanley and I traveled out there with his father who owned one of the shacks on that gorgeous strip of land. We used to sleep over on wood cots and shoot fireworks off all night. Marty's dad would grill steaks and corn on a pot belly stove that washed away with the rising waters that accompanied the storm the first week of February in 1978. North Beach to my way of thinking should be just what heaven should be and if it isn't then I am not interested. I know my reply to this thread drifts somewhat from what capesam was chatting about when he spoke eloquently of the resource rape by the purportedly great fishermen from years past. I do remember seeing so many fish in the water and on the beach that I find hard to believe that anyone fishing could not have caught all they wanted. I caught my first one out there casting a line from a boat rod about 20' into the wash, and that was only after I pulled the line off the reel and threw the weighted line by hand using flouder hooks with a bit of seaworm as bait. Anyone who hasn't spent a night fishing on North Beach by all means should.

Mr. Sandman · 12-13-2002, 01:30 PM

I think his books are entertaining but he re-cycles too much stuff from one book to his next. Some of the photos are even the same. and I don't think some of the photos are actually ones taken where he says they were...but I can't prove that.

IMO the guy was/(is) a great fisherman and was a trail blazer in the 60's but he is still living in the past today. He is a bit of a dino today but has something to contribute. Many places he talks about have not produced fish in years. How many B&W pictures of his wife do we have to see? Readers want current information not refections of the past. I think you are better off subscribing to the fisherman and SWS to actually learn anything. But his books are cheaper then a good plug in PB so what the hell.

I really wonder if he actually goes surfcasting still today....or does he just write about the past? Has anyone seen him on the beach? ever?

JPowers · 12-13-2002, 02:37 PM

" Has anyone seen him on the beach? ever? "

Yep. Saw and chatted with Frank & Joyce last Sept as they were departing from a predawn fishing trip at the East end on the Canal.

schoolie monster · 12-13-2002, 03:46 PM

I'm also a person who reads something and thinks, that sounds great. I'll try it and after 10 minutes, I resort back to what I know 'cause when I'm out there, I just wanna catch some fish.

I think the key to any technique is having the confidence to fish it correctly. If you have the confidence, you'll stick with it, fish slowly and thoroughly, and success should come. When I'm not confident, I fish too fast, you know, pretty much spaz out and cast all over the place, and constantly think about changing again. It takes time to develop that confidence and time to learn to fish any technique well.

I also think that too many people only try new things when they aren't catching fish. Well, one of the biggest reasons you may not be catching fish is that they simply aren't there, or are there and won't feed. One way to develop confidence in a lure or a technique is to try it when they are hittin' anything and everything. At least you know they will eat it and get a feel for it. Some days I can do that, some days I'm just having too much fun.

Now, I'm not saying changing up can't trigger fish. I'll change up if I know fish are around and I'm getting chasers or am seeing fish, or bait being chased.

Got Stripers · 12-13-2002, 03:53 PM

It helps if your fishing with someone, who is already up to speed and can show you the ropes. I love getting out with guys skilled at other methods of catching, you can't have enough clubs in your bag as far as I'm concerned, even if I tend to still play all 18 holes with a 9 iron

. I'm experimenting more and more with the large grubs and jig heads and have to say the results are great, might even go bigger with that grub series.

capesams · 12-13-2002, 05:34 PM

AHHH! I knew I shouldn't have started the fg bashing. yes I been there when they were all fishing, back then a16" fish was a keeper, with more fish around then water.but then came the crash in the early 80's wonder why? He didn't do it alone, some guys were useing gill nets from the beach when they thought no one was looking. OK, I'm done, said that before didn't I