i hate fishing

[GonnaCatchABig1]

it's getting ridiculous... in the past week i have covered/traveled over 200 miles in total.. guess how many fish i've caught.. none. still.
i was the only person on an 80person deep sea party boat who didnt catch atleast a dogfish.. a dogfish.. i couldnt catch a freakin dogfish!!! payed $65 to watch other people catch stuff. atleast it was a decent change of scenery if you call endless expanses of water scenery.. which i do for some odd reason. i guess catching a glimpse of a whale and a $2 beer made it worth it..

mean while back on shore.. it's nothing but dog fish. throw chunks.. nothing but dogfish. by the dozens.. toss wood, well then it's just nothing. we are inching ever so closer to the cape on our excursions. and all we have to show for it is hearing about how great the fishing is when we aren't around. the fish blitz right down the freaking street every night!!!!! and i cant reach em!

i've tried everything and then some.. the only thing i have left to try is baiting plugs with chunks.. (which i sort of started last night with a chunk on a jig)

now.. in three months, fishing for at least 5 hours, usually about 7 to 10 hours, EVERY DAY. the odds dictate, that even if i am the worlds most horrible fishermen, i should by a stroke of dumb luck hook up. at this point i should be able to fish in a puddle in the middle of the sarah and pull out a striper.

dont start with it's the "your spot" crap.. cause other people including guys from teh board fish in some of my spots and catch crap. and a guarantee i fish most of them more than they do.

the fish seriously have me so pissed off at this point i could shoot myself in the face.

i put in 30hours and over 120 miles of travel over the weekend alone with absolutely nothing to show for it.

this has gone beyond just a bad streak.. i had that one fish like three weeks ago sure.. but one schoolie in three months hardly counts. i'm starting to think i didnt even really catch it and that i dozed off and dreamed i caught it.

ok rant over..

cant wait to get back out there tonight!

[ProfessorM]

Happens. You have to learn to enjoy the other aspects of fishing besides the catching. If I only went fishing to catch fish I would have given up years ago. But if I see you though I am heading in the other direction.

[GonnaCatchABig1]

Originally Posted by ProfessorM

But if I see you though I am heading in the other direction.

you are a wise man.. trust me. i enjoy the other aspects. to a point. there is only so much beauty you can take in, before the reality of the smog sets in.and you realize that it's all going to be gone someday. consumed by waste, cause people are more concerned about the bottom lines and finding new ways to be lazy and mass produce them to make the afore mention bottom lines larger, than they are about the delicate balance that is nature. plus i have to many things i want to get my mind off of at the moment.. i nice a quiet relaxing night of thinking by the ocean is not in my best interest for a good time. reflecting on the grand scale of things that is life, when your depressed isn't all that fun.

oh yeah.. and then there is the not catching anything... or dealing with the spiny mutts all night.. that will suck the fun right out of it.

i can enjoy a nice night out as much as the next guy.. just as long as lil magical fish swims by once and a while and says to me.

::sigh::

i don't really hate fishing.... i love it.. maybe i need a break. because it is becoming more of a task then anything.

BUUUUUUUUT... it's prime fishing (or so i hear) how can i stop now?!?

[ProfessorM]

tomorrow is another day. good luck

[RIJIMMY]

You need to partner with some more experienced fisherman, try to hook up with some guys on this board who fish in the same general areas as you.
I understand your frustration, this stuff is hard. Its a big ocean and the fish can be anywhere. If I were you, I;d spend next spring hooking up and fsihing with some guys out here, offer to buy coffee, eels or drop them a plug. It can take you years to learn something you can pick up in minutes from someone else.

[thortum]

Try doing everything differently: tie your plugs on with your OTHER hand; if you think the fish are too your right-front, throw to your left rear [even when your fishing from shore];get your most expensive plug and tie it on with a regular "over-hand" knot; thow your bait out only 10' from shore [sometimes this actually works]; if your fishing at night, try fishing at high noon; and if none of these "tips" change your luck, try the ultimate thing that has never failed for me--PISS INTO THE WIND! Good luck and NEVER give up. Your luck will change.

[GonnaCatchABig1]

Originally Posted by thortum

Try doing everything differently: tie your plugs on with your OTHER hand; if you think the fish are too your right-front, throw to your left rear [even when your fishing from shore];get your most expensive plug and tie it on with a regular "over-hand" knot; thow your bait out only 10' from shore [sometimes this actually works]; if your fishing at night, try fishing at high noon; and if none of these "tips" change your luck, try the ultimate thing that has never failed for me--PISS INTO THE WIND! Good luck and NEVER give up. Your luck will change.

ya know what scary thing is? we've REALLY done all of that already.. like i've said not only her,e but in numerous other threads. we've done everything in our power. no pay off. the party boat skunking followed by a trip to one of the more productive spots for people right now.. was the straw that broke my back. this skunking streak was all fun and games till i was the one out of 80 that got skunked. doing the same thing as every one else. i mean how hard is it to catch a dogfish on a clam?

now i fear it's more serious.. i've even tried selling my soul to the devil for a fish...(weeks ago) didn't work.

i'm not a n00b by any means. i've been fishing my whole life. learned plugging in fresh water when i was 6 and until recently swore by them. but then i was forced into chunking, cause the fish around here wouldn't take anything but clams, and i cant figure out to imitate a clam.. ok well i can think of a few.. but i wont get into the potty humor.. i'll save that material for the rocks.. lol.

but anyway. so, you guys know me more of a chunker n00b guy since this is my first season on here and i spent most of it chunking. but it's far from the case. not saying i couldn't learn a few things from the pros here.. theres always something to learn.

what i am saying.. i'll give $50 to the first person who can get me a night of 25lbs of striper.. be it 25 1lbers, 5 5lbers or 1 25lber..

at some point this year i went from catching easily 50lbs of bass a day to catching nothing. and i'm still after almost 10 years of striper fishing looking for a keeper.

in order for that $50 its gotta be from shore.. thats where nearly all my fishing has been done. and catching like.. 5-6 schoolies shouldnt be hard. boats dont amuse me much.. especially the tube and worm approach. i cant even explain how unamused i was with "deep sea fishing". if i dont atleast make a cast to a spot i think might be good. it's no fun. atleast there is aiming involved in casting while chunking. not just.."eh drop it here and then go till we find a fish". heck i hate being put in charge of other people rods while they go do stuff. cause i didnt pick the spot it landed in. you get my point. plugging from a boat, different story.

any way. we've met alot of people. lurk every forum. read every report and then some. keep in touch with the local goin ons. scout just about every where. ask a million questions. do everything right.. then do everything wrong. to the point of the only advice left to give is "just keep at it". which i think was all that was left at the 300 hours ago mark. which was about the last time i caught a fish.. 300 hours on the water ago.. with about 900 or 1000 between that one and the fish before him..

our rods are breaking, our new and just serviced reels are crappin out again all ready. our box has become a revolving door of hooks, lines and sinkers. i think we've got over $8k invested this season. i remember a few $120 on bait alone days. the average being $70 a night between gas bait and rigs.
so i dont know how many more people could be more hardcore about it. i suspect boat guys invest more in gas. but thats just part of having a boat. but i doubt they spend half as much time on the water. so now that persistence thing is becoming out of the question. i know a few must be lucky enough to spend as much time fishing as we do, but they probably catch fish. as i have yet to meet anyone willing to stay out for as long as we do with out catching anything.

this is pure desperation my friends. i've seen more people show up with out a clue and by a stroke of pure dumb luck hook up. we dont get the same results..

but i think i may have an idea.. which just popped into my head.. from now on.. i am no longer fishing for stripers. i am officially fishing for dogfish. cause i'm good at that. so from now on i am the dog catcher. gonna bring those boys to the pound!


yeah it wont work.. cant jinx yourself intentionally. but now maybe it might cause i jinxed the jinx.. but now i just ruined it..

see i've been driven mad. think i can get benefits for being driven insane by fishing? like that guy in sweden or whatever that gets disabled benefits cause he likes "heavy" metal music too much?


i give it till this weekend though before i go loopy and get locked up. we got a hot tip that this "miracle spot" we found tried today was only a day spot. which i dont believe. even though i am an avid spokesperson for day fishing. we jsut cant get down there during the day till the weeknd so... untill then we got lots of night time to do.

god it feels good to full out rant.

and remember $50. though it might not be worth it. cause every one with us suffers our fate. we pretty much lost a buddy to it. hes off catching keepers left and right with out us fishes with us.. gets skunked..

edit: holy cow!! wall of text!!

[The Dad Fisherman]

Last year I had about a 6 week span where I couldn't buy a fish. I was getting frustrated too. So one morning I went out, packed my plug bag with plugs I never caught anything on and went out. Banged a nice fiesty 20 lb'er.

I think the lesson I learned from that is to change things up more. Sometimes you get caught up in the "This always works for me so if its not working there must be no fish" mentality.

Go to a spot that you never fished before and try throwing some plugs you never had luck with before....you never know.

Although that Cod trip would have put me over the edge....

[GonnaCatchABig1]

Originally Posted by The Dad Fisherman

Go to a spot that you never fished before and try throwing some plugs you never had luck with before....you never know.

Although that Cod trip would have put me over the edge....

see above.. lol.
and i'm glad you agree with the cod trip over the edge.

night before we spent from4 till 2am fishing in all new spots. 1 was blitzing when we arrived. so we had two hours of sleep before the trip would have fished until the trip had a g/f not called us home. then after a few hours sleep were back at it yesterday in more new spots.

it pretty much our routine. spend every free second fishing. trying everything.

[RIJIMMY]

There are spots, the 2nd to 3rd weeks of Novemeber where I can guarantee you will catch 30 2 - 5lb bass using any small rubber jig - PM sent

[GonnaCatchABig1]

Originally Posted by RIJIMMY

There are spots, the 2nd to 3rd weeks of Novemeber where I can guarantee you will catch 30 2 - 5lb bass using any small rubber jig - PM sent

wanna make a bet?! lol.
i actually joked this is how i would make a living the other day. proving our in-ability to catch fish. doing exactly what other people tell us to do. right next to them while they catch fish.

it's like a freak show. pay to watch how bad we can be.

[BW from AZ]

I know you all are slipping. No one threw out my most hated words....."WATCH FOR BIRDS". You've done better than me this year.

[GonnaCatchABig1]

Originally Posted by BW from AZ

I know you all are slipping. No one threw out my most hated words....."WATCH FOR BIRDS". You've done better than me this year.

of course!! why didnt i think of that?


just joshin.

[BigFish]

Pencils Chris.....pencils! You should be running and gunning! Any topwater lure this time of the year and you should be icing down your arms after you fish! Get out and practice with your plugs.....they don't catch fish if you do not know how and when to employ them also how to work them in one situation or another! There are alot of dogs around so bag the chunking......put on some wood and have a ball!

[GonnaCatchABig1]

Originally Posted by BigFish

Pencils Chris.....pencils! You should be running and gunning! Any topwater lure this time of the year and you should be icing down your arms after you fish! Get out and practice with your plugs.....they don't catch fish if you do not know how and when to employ them also how to work them in one situation or another! There are alot of dogs around so bag the chunking......put on some wood and have a ball!

it aint workin larry.. i've fished till i was sore all week. and well every other day.. i've determined by the wounds on the pencil it was bloooos. teeth marks all over the tail end.

we chunk, we plug, we suck. other than the blitzes just out of reach no surface action.. my faith peaked with those two hits and then just sunk once i found out the culprit. plus getting skunked on a cod trip.. come on.. who does that??!?

[thortum]

WOW! I'm exhausted [and depressed] after reading this tread after. All I can say is to fish in the day time so you will be able to see whats happening around you [not that it will help you much judging by your story]. You have my deepest sympathy. Not to rub salt in your wounds but I just caught the biggest fish [striper] of my life a few hours ago [day time]. 38lbs.+ 49". I caught it because I could see my suroundings. Fishing from shore -high winds low tide no sign of life until I saw one small splash. Thought 12" schoolies were hitting 2" bait, until I snagged a bunker, which I quickly released [don't like fishing with bait]. After seeing the occasional bunker and the small splash I decided to give the dreaded dirty bait fishing a go. All I had for hooks were a few small trebles so I snagged a bunked and sent him back out. Well I hooked and lost one solid fish very quickly. Sent out another bait only to have this fish break my line. I'm now beginning to become a convert. Third fish turns out to be my lucky charm. Moral of story: keep you eyes open; try different things; fish in the day light; and don't pump your own GAS before you fish!

[Raven]

makes you so tense that your arms tighten up and then your neck tightens up and you start having tension headaches and the stress can literally kill you and cause you to have a heart attack.

I think the reason you fish is because it's a challenge and you derive enjoyment out of it.... but if it's stressing you out that much then your
trying sooo hard to the point like you mentioned it's more work than fun.

i was out this morning and i was getting pounded by waves in the boat
and since i had split a cord of pine yesterday i was almost to sore to
fish and felt like i was gonna hurl and for the first time i got skunked
and didn't care because i said... why beat myself up here today!
i have better and more important things to do right now than this
so i packed it in and left. the highlight of the day was seeing a young bald eagle flying over head and that made the trip worth it by itself.

maybe you need to travel to Rhode Island or somewhere so different
that you feel different there... not to mention that site fishing is as
much fun as any other method of fishing imho and then try meditating
there for at least 15 minutes so your not so tense. you could start taking
some brain function vitamins like cq10 and drink more water and lay off the cafiene which makes your brain spin too fast (it really does) so that it
keeps you in a perpetual agitated state where you never relax enough to truly SENSE your surroundings or tune into the fish or the oceans rythem.

try going to a view different bait shops and explain to them that you haven't caught a striper in ages and your slowly going insane and could they..............................
possibly give you a tip or point you in the right direction and ask for recommendations for the best type of bait to use during this time of year.

Also realize that this is the most screwed up weather pattern we've seen in decades and it is bound to affect the fishing in strange ways and that might have allot to do with your lack of success and then quit beating yourself up over it so much to the point out of frustration you have become your own worst enemy of late.

Jetison all this emotional baggage
your toting around with you....release it and just let it go....allow it to drift away from you so you can have a better perspective and allow yourself
to find new ways to enjoy the sport again.

i hope this commentary has been helpful and not critical or insulting
which is not my purpose for taking the time to write it.

and ditto on the hand scent... that could be a huge factor

[Clammer]

I,m confused ?/ya fish to catch fish ???
that,s the only reason to goooooooooooooooooo
Geez /I,m enjoying the wrong things // &&&&&&& their mostly free ;;
Commercial time sucks /because ya up against it to catch fish ;;
gotta be the right species /@ the right size &&&&&&&& on the right days >>>

There isn,t much that beats a great sunrise > been a long f$%^&*() time since I,ve seen one // or sunset
the smell of a ocean low tide in the darkest of nite /laying on your back / waders optional // watching the stars ;;

I rarely fish with anyone that [[HAS}} to catch fish .. this time of year /often my rods never leave the truck ::

ya gotta enjoy ..ALL the surroundings

[GonnaCatchABig1]

i would love nothing more than to not fish right now. but people all around me are laying into monsters. if i stopped now i would never forgive myself. i had plans of being packed up and settled in for winter by now. so every day i fish like it's the last day of the season. and the next day the fishing gets better! (for every one else)

i can enjoy a sunrise or set as much as the next guy. but ya seen one, ya seen them all. and i see both every day. (today was a nice day off)
seeing things like whales, and osprey carrying pogies over my head are amazing. seeing odd creatures lurking around under docks etc. i do soak it in. but nature gets routine after seeing the same things every day. i'm not out for a picnic after all. if i've got my rod, i'm out there to catch fish. just so happens that i almost never leave my house with out my rod in hand.

all my social buddies gave up on me. cause i spend saturday night out fishing instead of drinkin up. in fact pretty much when ever i get a call i am on the water. typical day is.. go out in the morning fish till around noonish. then wait for my buddy to get out of work and head back out around 5 or 6 and fishing til midnight or later. and there is the weekends.. during which the fishing NEVER stops. we often get all the sleep we need with our bait soaking.

i think once i finally get my first keeper i will be able to relax. but then again it could ignite me into a fishing frenzy..

[Raven]

just keep in mind that failure serves you

to point you in the right direction....

not merely to add another stick of frustration

to the camels back and eventually break it....

sometimes you have to stop thinking so much

and just focus on every observation you can make

and trust your gut INSTINCT ...and when that still small

voice speaks to you ever so quietly that it's easily dismissed

or ignored ....listen to it even more so.... as its your guide

speaking to you...and more often than not its on target

and right! and with that said -> i'm off to the barn.

GOOD luck or even better yet GOOD skill !!!

you have it ...

ps, with cold temps coming, i'll be out on the water shortly

[GonnaCatchABig1]

after a day off.. i'm ready to go again. i have a good gut feelin. but locig says it will be like every other night. lol.

[Slingah]

Originally Posted by GonnaCatchABig1

after a day off.. i'm ready to go again. i have a good gut feelin. but locig says it will be like every other night. lol.

go...have fun...if it isnt fun, dont do it..

and stop listening to that locig guy whoever he is....he's the one probaly holding you back....

[BigFish]

That'd be "logic"......ya twit!

[Slingah]

Originally Posted by BigFish

That'd be "logic"......ya twit!

I know Larry.....a little joke that went way over your head.....not much logic in catching striped bass...

[BigFish]

Didn't go over my head.....I thought maybe one went through your legs!

[Slingah]

touche' dillwad....

[Jenn]

Originally Posted by Clammer

I,m confused ?/ya fish to catch fish ???
that,s the only reason to goooooooooooooooooo
Geez /I,m enjoying the wrong things // &&&&&&& their mostly free ;;
Commercial time sucks /because ya up against it to catch fish ;;
gotta be the right species /@ the right size &&&&&&&& on the right days >>>

There isn,t much that beats a great sunrise > been a long f$%^&*() time since I,ve seen one // or sunset
the smell of a ocean low tide in the darkest of nite /laying on your back / waders optional // watching the stars ;;

I rarely fish with anyone that [[HAS}} to catch fish .. this time of year /often my rods never leave the truck ::

ya gotta enjoy ..ALL the surroundings

we need to fish together sometime


hey gonna catch .....you are obviosly frustrated and lord KNOWS I have been there. But it is true that the times I put more pressure on myself to catch the worse I did, the harder I tried, the more lures I bought and failed with, the more I distanced myself from the beauty of a sunset and the more obsessed I became with not catching. I read up on every detail and said "I will try that" only to fail again. Finally one day while "going back to my roots" in fresh water I fished my but off....you name it I fished it......not a single hit. Well my friends kids were in the boat that day simply dropping a shiner over the side.....straight down......you guessed it! they caught smallmouths and largemouths like they were blitzing blues for heavens sake! It was then that I started to realize maybe it was time to forget everything I read, heard or saw in a fishing show. It was time to pull out the old arsenal and keep it simple!

BY the sounds of it youre overcomplicating things and spending 8-10 hours just frustrating yourself everytime.

Seriously think about going on a reputable charter too. We went a few weeks ago with Bil & Jules and caught some nice fish. I would certainly not "pay to fish" everytime I fish but once in a while I think its a good idea to let a professional take the ropes and take the pressure off of yourself to catch. Relax and ENJOY, learn from them, fill the freezer but most importantly let them help you BOOST YOUR CONFIDENCE again!!!!!!


wow I think I need a nap now......

[saltydog]

GonnaCatchABig1.your NOT ALONE. I spend about 4 hours driving time every outher week-end looking an fishing. one weekend I drove to the NOB then to south cape beach, an to sandwich old harbor, then to the DITCH an ZIP till last Saturday. headed down to pick up more supplys from MIKE BUT he was CLOSED--> out hunting. headed to the ditch east end. got there around 8:30 birds every where hundreads of,em out of reach. walked down the the jetty an jumped in line w/ everyone else. the guy to my left was tossing a 3oz jig letting it drift down an crossing everyone an telling them they were casting over him time for me to head out moved down an out about 60" up ahead of the GREEN CAN. now about 9:00 put one a big rubber bunker gold/black.
from that first cast till 12:30 fish after fish in the ditch an even on the back side an not one outher FISHERMEN was changing there bait . I was lifting them on the rocks, an tossing them back in all morning even lost some BIG ones got pics on my camara phone. I actually STOPPED fishin, my arms were tired from lifting them on to the rocks
got to say one thing THANKS to BRADED LINE. that was my LAST day of the season. don't feel bad my SON hasent cought a striper all season. I headed over to C & C around 1:30 telling mike about my morning an picked up a bunch of supply. so HANG in just put MORE TIME in. WHAT ELSE is there to do FISH,BUILD PLUGS
GOOD LUCK GOOD FISHIN