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Posts: 2687
Location: Hayward, WI | Many of us probably know at least one person personally or maybe through this site that we consider to be a REALLY good fisherman.
Maybe it's a guy that is winning tournaments wherever he goes.
Or it's that guy that every time he takes a trip to Canada, MN, or WI he's catching good numbers of big fish, and usually reporting at least one and often multiple 50's from a week long trip.
Or maybe it's a local guy that is just always on fish and puts up more numbers and more big fish than anybody else you know.
What are these guys doing that earns them success more often than not when they hit the water, whether they are familiar with the water or not? How are these guys approaching the day, or the season to give them above average results?
The million dollar question is how do those of us that are not THAT guy, approach fishing so that we become THAT guy? Just what does it take? And if you are THAT guy, do you have some tips that could help the rest of us?
Discuss. 
Edited by curleytail 4/1/2015 12:47 PM
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Posts: 1036
| All pretty much boils down to one thing. Time on the water. |
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Posts: 397
Location: Wisconsin | The guys I have in mind just spend more time on the water than everyone else. They know what the fish do in a lot more situations than I, and when those situations arise, they capitolize.
If I knew what was going through their head, I would be a much better fisherman! |
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Posts: 20219
Location: oswego, il | Awareness and your ability to think for yourself. This sport can be broken down into followers and leaders. Which one are you?
Edited by ToddM 4/1/2015 1:09 PM
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Posts: 2687
Location: Hayward, WI | I was thinking time was the obvious answer, and in general spending more time on the water is probably the most important thing a person can do to increase their odds.
Let me throw this wrench in though - some guys DON'T get to fish that much more than the average weekend angler, and they still do better in a given amount of time than most others.
What are they doing different, or better?
Tucker |
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Posts: 8782
| I've fished with "that guy" more times than I can count. As mentioned above, time on the water is key. But there is more to it than that.
The first part is knowing the waters you fish like the back of your hand.
The second is being able to translate your experiences to a whole new body of water.
Third is being out there every day. When you're out there every day, you know where the fish are. You know what colors are working, what presentations are working, and what time the fish are moving. Even a marginal angler will have an advantage when he/she can hit the water and go right to the areas where fish are being seen and caught.
You or I can sit down the night before with a map and pick out areas and spots that "should be" good. We can look at water temperatures and wind. We can refer back to areas where we caught fish or saw fish at this time last year.
But the guy who has fished every day for the last month can go right to the fish. Not a guarantee of success or course, fish do move. But knowing where they were yesterday does help a lot.
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Posts: 345
Location: Poynette WI. | I was going to say exactly what Vegas said. Probably the best advice anyone could give. A side from attending seminars and countless hours of research and discussion it all comes down to applying it when on the water. Paying attention to what the fish and waters are telling you and outting the time on the water. What I believe for the guys consistently catching big fish is that they are putting them selves in a place where big fish are or if there after numbers there going after a numbers lake. They're not magically or aimlessly putting there finger on a map to pick a lake. |
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Posts: 397
Location: Wisconsin | Good points Esox...
I have fished one particular lake for 15 years, and it changes every year based on where weeds grow in and what not. So a spot that was awesome last june may not be a fishable spot at all this year. Only lots of time on the water will make you point out those hot spots year in and year out.
Another thing is strategy. I know some guys that will park on a 100yard weed bed all day, becase they know fish are there and they are waiting for that window to open. I also know other guys that are run and gun guys, hitting tons of different spots with different presentations, looking to find what is working that day. I guess that is one cool thing that makes this sport so diverse |
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Posts: 20219
Location: oswego, il | Read my post above, answers all questions. |
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Posts: 1901
Location: MN | And even That guy doesn't always catch fish. It's a low numbers and low odds game. I've fished with a bunch of good sticks and see them get blanked as well. I would say being able to spend the "right" time on the water is the the thing that separates that next level from most of us. When you're a weekend warrior and are relegated to fish the weather and conditions you're faced with, that can be a tough thing. |
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Posts: 1169
Location: New Hope MN | Fish with lots of different people. You'll learn new things good and bad.
Like how to net properly, Right Tonts? |
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Posts: 8782
| There's no "right way"...
One guide I fish with regularly will spend a whole day on the same three spots, throwing the same lure and picking those spots apart. Back and forth and back and forth. That takes some getting used to, but eventually the fish show up and eat.
Another just runs and guns, blasts through a spot, handful of casts and gone. We may hit 20 spots and fish none of them for more than 5 minutes. Eventually we encounter a hungry one, sometimes more.
Another likes to pass up all the "good spots" in favor of tiny little humps way off of any visible structure where you feel like you're just casting into oblivion. "What is this we are fishing and why are we way out here when.... OMG, there's one!!"
At the end of the day, they ALL put a lot of quality fish in the boat.
Edited by esoxaddict 4/1/2015 1:45 PM
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Posts: 4269
Location: Ashland WI | I agree that there is more than "time on the water".
I would say the ability to "think on the water" is equally critical.
For example, last fall I had a tough day. A friend and I went to a numbers lake and casted for around 8 hours straight. We moved one small fish. When I look back, I realized that we tried different lures and speeds, but not different depths. That day was sunny and calmer. The fish could possibly have moved up into some really shallow areas. It was also after turnover, so they could have been deep. For whatever reason, I did not think of this while out on the lake. Possible could have made the difference for us that day. |
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Posts: 447
Location: Waconia, MN | Time on the water is key! |
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Location: Contrarian Island | being versatile, adapting to what the fish tell you, having an open mind, boat control, and being very observant...
sure time on the water will put fish in the boat, simply by being on the water when the feeding windows open... anyone can put 100 fish in the boat in a season with enough hours on water to do it...like others have said, it's the guys that put fish in the boat with LESS hours on the water than the rest that are doing things right....
Edited by BNelson 4/1/2015 2:27 PM
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Posts: 4343
Location: Smith Creek | I fish with "that guy" occasionally too.
He's totally relentless in his pursuit. Focus never wanes, never wants to call it quits, rips pounders all day without taking micro breaks or switching to lighter baits.
I'm not sure he actually enjoys himself out there, but if we fish a lake neither of us have any experience on he'll catch fish.
If you aren't that type (I'm not) then time on the water is your best bet. |
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Posts: 2325
Location: Chisholm, MN | To me, a lot of it has to do with reading the conditions and capitalizing on feeding windows. It's a combination of all factors like knowing the lake, presentations, boat control, and then putting it all together. You have to be good at all factors to be REALLY good. Not that I'm really good or anything... |
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Posts: 20219
Location: oswego, il | Time on the water isn't key if you make the same mistakes and do the same things with the same result. |
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Posts: 25
| 99.9% luck! I fish a river in WI that I have landed over 400 muskies on. I used to fish it 5-6 days a week all season long. My longest netted fish is 48.5". I talked to a 17 year old kid who has fished it a fraction of the time I have at spots I have fished forever and he has a 50.5" and a 52" (bucktail and sucker) and less than 75 fish. I must be the most unlucky musky fisherman in the history of the sport. |
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Posts: 1937
Location: Black Creek, WI | Time on the Water is no guarantee. Its what you do with that time that seems to make the difference. All the good feedback regarding creativity, experimentation, "thinking", etc. is where its at. Whoever said be the leader and not the follower.... is on the right track as well. I'd much rather fish 8 hours with a guy that reads the water... than 16 hours with a guy that just grinds fish out. |
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Posts: 13688
Location: minocqua, wi. | i know 3 people who i'd consider "that guy" and have spent quite a bit of time in the boat with all three. i know about the same number of others who i haven't fished with but they are similar in what i see in their approaches. all i would say are where they want to be or can read it when they aren't and not afraid to adjust. they know what the lake looks like without water, are meticulous planners and organized physically and mentally all of the time. they are the guys who are doing it in extremes when others may not quite want to do it (weather, early, late, wind, rain etc... ). their hooks are always sharp, their boats are always organized and they use baits as tools. they are well connected and detailed about the systems they use to manage data in their electronics and then they are able to put their boat in position to present and able to adjust to the mood of the fish at the time ... from hot windows to cold fronts to everything in-between. if they have a day to fish a lake they aren't afraid to spend most of it looking, learning, mapping instead of just chucking baits down a shoreline or out in a basin. they are aware of what is happening around them from deer, loons, seabirds, wind, surface activity etc..., you name it.
most of all they are consistently lucky ... |
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Posts: 1937
Location: Black Creek, WI | jonnysled - 4/1/2015 3:38 PM i know 3 people who i'd consider "that guy" and have spent quite a bit of time in the boat with all three. i know about the same number of others who i haven't fished with but they are similar in what i see in their approaches. all i would say are where they want to be or can read it when they aren't and not afraid to adjust. they know what the lake looks like without water, are meticulous planners and organized physically and mentally all of the time. they are the guys who are doing it in extremes when others may not quite want to do it (weather, early, late, wind, rain etc... ). their hooks are always sharp, their boats are always organized and they use baits as tools. they are well connected and detailed about the systems they use to manage data in their electronics and then they are able to put their boat in position to present and able to adjust to the mood of the fish at the time ... from hot windows to cold fronts to everything in-between. if they have a day to fish a lake they aren't afraid to spend most of it looking, learning, mapping instead of just chucking baits down a shoreline or out in a basin. they are aware of what is happening around them from deer, loons, seabirds, wind, surface activity etc..., you name it. most of all they are consistently lucky ... Well said, Johnny. Its what you do with your time on the water that makes the difference. Heck, even what you do OFF the water in preparation makes the difference. TIME alone means nothing. |
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Posts: 8782
| "Intelligent Fishing"...
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Posts: 580
| I think everything Sled said is 100% spot on, and there are some other great answers above, but I'll focus on something that is really fundamental. Both Brad and Sled already alluded to it, but after having fished from the back of the boat with different guys over the years, one of the single biggest differences that I've seen separating the really good anglers from the so-so anglers is the simple concept of Boat Control. (And by the way, having fished with Brad a fair amount over the years, I can say that I don't know of anyone better when it comes to this topic).
Boat control means positioning the boat along structure such that your casts are placed correctly and, just as importantly, the boat's speed is correct for the conditions, the type of structure that you are fishing, and the types of baits that are being used. Also, when fishing with a partner or two, it means positioning the boat so that all anglers are in perfect position.
To do it right, it requires both knowledge and skill. Knowledge of the EXACT location of the structure as you approach it, knowledge of EXACTLY how the spot is laid out, knowledge of the best "spots on the spot" within that structure, and then the (often overlooked) skill of positioning the boat correctly, often times in adverse conditions, without blowing through the spot too fast or wasting time by "dying on the spot" and fishing it too slowly....basically matching the boat speed and boat's approach with the correct type of presentation for the conditions.
If you've fished with anglers who "don't get it", and anglers who do, you'll know that it makes a HUGE difference and IMO isn't something that gets talked about nearly enough. Guys who do it right put themselves in the perfect position to "get lucky".
Edit: correcting those nasty typo's.
Edited by Matt DeVos 4/1/2015 4:30 PM
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Posts: 20219
Location: oswego, il | The person who put a motion timer on a bathroom light doesn't get it. They would not make a good musky fisherman. The person who invented yoga pants on the other hand, completely gets it and would fish circles around most.
Edited by ToddM 4/1/2015 4:45 PM
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Posts: 13688
Location: minocqua, wi. | i know a guy who uses the same or very similar "system" to grouse hunting. he's consistently lucky there too and seems to always have the guns in the right position. |
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Posts: 670
Location: Otsego, MN | Time on the water
Always learning
Logs and learns from past outings
Fishes with others and learns from them
Plans their daily attack ( weather, wind, majors, minors,) |
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Posts: 32886
Location: Rhinelander, Wisconsin | One of the keys I think opens quite a few 'success' doors is knowing enough about what makes the fish you are trying to catch tick and to have a reasonably complete understanding of the 'alien environment' in which they live, so that if a good thing happens you know the what, why, where, and how of it and can repeat it.
Every body of water has differences and similarities to every other. Understand those and what the fish do seasonally, etc. and why they do that in each and good things start to happen. Understand the relationship of all other fish of any given species to the fish you are targeting. Learn how the catch the largest of those other fish too.
A really good Ford truck mechanic who knows zero/zip/zilch and shuns knowledge about Toyota/Chevy/Dodge can tell what's what, but can't necessarily fix what's busted. That person may be recognized as a 'great mechanic', but will be great on a 'Ford' lake, and not as great on a 'Chevy' lake.
Know the targeted fish's capacities and abilities, and don't accept story/lore/rumor/whatever as a substitute for that knowledge.
Ask 'why?' allot. Figure out the answers.
Fish for other fish some. Accept that you don't know what you don't know, and try to put yourself where you can learn as much of that as is possible.
Take the red pill.
Don't put a timed motion sensor on the bathroom light. Or the fan. I'm not sure why not. |
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Posts: 1144
Location: Minnesota. | Interesting topic for sure!! Some really good answers given that just about cover the entire gamut of "what to do" and paying attention and maybe what not to do etc.
Plus the all too obvious deal with time on the water.
I've not much to add other than I'll go back and re-read some input on paying attention and not being bone headed or stubborn enough to not change it up a bit. I guess that's my bit of input.
Keep trying. Pay attention. Keep at it more and also realize that we're after a fish that has it's own inconsistencies and you'll quite likely never be able to get much of that down pat. It's like watching a bunch of middle aged girls trying to agree on everything in the kitchen...it ain't gonna be possible!
Seriously though, it would work to be able to minimize the dumb moves and learn. And then put that to later days on the water.
And there's that again....time on the water.
Personally I think it wouldn't be near as much fun if I got 3 fish every time I went out. But if you would see MY record you'd maybe call on that comment!!!!!
Man, I love this sport!
Jeremy. |
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Posts: 719
| Hard work. And luck is just preparation meeting opportunity. |
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