From the dark clouds of Covid pandemic, to the unprecedented hurricane season, to the closures of stores, restaurants and social distancing, there wasn't a lot good to say about the year. A dark cloud hung over everything and it seemed like it would never disappear.
Friends and family, teammates and co-workers... we all knew/know someone who has lost someone this year or at the very least was sick with Covid.
When a person stops to think about how everything-society and culture- changed and what we''ve lost, not only is it sobering, its downright depressing.
I would be remiss if I first didn't bring to the forefront, the very person who made all of this possible in every sense of the word...a very loving and supportive drop dead gorgeous wife who allows me the freedom to fish every day I wanted to and there was no way I couldn't have had a year like this year without her understanding and support. She is amazing and while I tell her this everyday, I don't think she realizes how much I really mean it.
So for some statistics. I kept track of a lot of things this year once I got going. Played around with the idea of keeping track of a lot more items, but eventually narrowed it down to these.
It was with this thought in mind I started thinking about my year in particular. Instead of focusing on negatives, I wanted to highlight the positive aspects of the life I lead now. It most certainly had its ups and downs, but the ups outweighed the setbacks as my life has finally begun to truly follow the path I've tried forcing it along for decades.
I don't think she necessarily approves of my fishing all the time, but she certainly has no qualms about eating any of the fish I bring home. I have made a standing offer of taking her along on any trip I go on, but she doesn't care to fish, just eat them. Additionally, she is not a huge fan of any trip I go on where it takes 4 hours or more just to get to with the exception being to Pactola.
So is it a win-win situation? Maybe, but I will say I do miss her an awful lot while I am away. She's damn near perfect....just that pesky not liking fishing part...
Anyway...lets get to the core of this post.
I was going to post what seemed to me to be "peak or optimal hours" on the waters I fished but decided I really didn't want any more people down there fishing during "happy time" lol... so here goes...
2020 stats
- Fished 187 days in a row
- Fished 257 total days
- Average trip Time: 2.41 hours (Trips/hours=average trip time)
- Total hours -700+ hours
- Totaled 290 trips
- Average Fish per trip 7.067137 (2000/290)
- Average Fish per day: 7.782 (2000/257)
- Miles Traveled. 3000+
- Used 2 miles of monofilament to spool and respool my rods (11 330 yd spools)
- Roughly 2000+ fish caught
- 15 different species of freshwater gamefish
As a result of those stats, the following result statistics came into focus:
- 41 Master Angler/Proud Angler Fish Catch and Release-(Nebraska or South Dakota)
- 14 master Angler Rainbow Trout (20+") -Pactola
- 1 Chinook (31" ) -Oahe
- 7 White Bass (17-18"") -Lake Sharpe
- 2 Smallmouth Bass (20") -Oahe
- 1 Northern Pike (38") -Oahe
- 2 White Crappie (16") -Skyview
- 13 Largemouth Bass (20-21 5/8") -Skyview
- 1 Saugeye (26") -Gavins Point tailrace
So whats this all mean? It means persistence pays off. I'm in no way anywhere close to being a "pro" in any sense of the word. I know at least a dozen or more guys that could fish circles around me on any given day...I'm just persistent to the point of being ridiculous. I just wore the fish down into mercy biting my baits.
All kidding aside, lets look at all this from a numbers standpoint. The stat I am most proud of: The Master Angler catch
I came up with a nice way of figuring out an average between MA catches. Days total fished /MA=255/41=6.22 trips per each MA fish. Thats just an average.
All kidding aside, lets look at all this from a numbers standpoint. The stat I am most proud of: The Master Angler catch
In real life, things didn't work out that way. I found big fish at least a few times a month but I can guarantee you it was not every six trips. And when I did find them, the trend was that I caught more than one...in effect it boosted those numbers up quickly.
Sidenote: All but 4 of those MA fish were taken from the shoreline. Absolute fact! And the Largemouth and Crappie MA's came out of the aforementioned city lake.
I came close a bunch of other times throughout the year. And for this I kept track of fish that were within 2 inches of a catch and release MA.
Sidenote: All but 4 of those MA fish were taken from the shoreline. Absolute fact! And the Largemouth and Crappie MA's came out of the aforementioned city lake.
I came close a bunch of other times throughout the year. And for this I kept track of fish that were within 2 inches of a catch and release MA.
- Near Miss MA/PA-Catch and Released (Fish within a 2" margin for a C&R MA)
- 32 Largemouth 19-19 7/8 inches -Skyview
- 42 Largemouth 18-19" -Skyview
- 1 channel catfish 28" -Skyview
75 fish that were just short of MA status. All released to grow more over the year. All out of one lake. Albeit a lake I spent about 90% of my available time fishing because it was incredibly close.
Looking over those stats, I'm happy. Ecstatic. Those numbers are freaking incredible. Its been the best year I have ever had fishing. And its already got me thinking how to up my game and numbers for 2021.
Looking over those stats, I'm happy. Ecstatic. Those numbers are freaking incredible. Its been the best year I have ever had fishing. And its already got me thinking how to up my game and numbers for 2021.
I did change a few things up, made an effort to master a few new techniques, but the key to all this was simply tenacity. In my way of thinking, more time on the water meant more opportunities to put my bait/lure in front of more fish, thus increasing the big fish count considerably. Was there skill involved? Probably a little. I would attribute that aspect of all this more to knowing what to throw when and where, understanding what type of water I am fishing and where to start looking.
But there is some more info I am willing to divulge, primarily, the top five lures I used to catch fish all year.
But there is some more info I am willing to divulge, primarily, the top five lures I used to catch fish all year.
So this came as an absolute surprise to me but numbers don't lie. The simple combo of threading a Gulp minnow onto a plain round ball head jig scored over 50% of my fish for the year and managed to accomplish this in only 4 months.
To be clear, there was no clear cut retrieve that out produced any others over the long term. There were also no clear cut locations or time periods that outproduced others. Indeed, as the season progressed it became painfully obvious the fish wanted variety. Also, fish in every body of water I visited found this combo tempting. I caught a ton of fish on this no matter where I went.
The combo also produced 5 of the Master Angler Largemouth Bass and over 2/3 of my largemouth 18-20". Impressive enough for me to make sure I had a rod rigged and ready to go each time I hit the water. Impressive enough to make damn sure I will have a rod rigged up with this and ready for 2021.
This marked the first year I seriously made an effort to include this technique in a meaningful way in my arsenal. Don't make the mistake of thinking its simple jig fishing. Nothing about fishing it the way I did this year was easy. It was down in the trenches eating mud brutal, but it was obviously worth it.
To be clear, there was no clear cut retrieve that out produced any others over the long term. There were also no clear cut locations or time periods that outproduced others. Indeed, as the season progressed it became painfully obvious the fish wanted variety. Also, fish in every body of water I visited found this combo tempting. I caught a ton of fish on this no matter where I went.
The combo also produced 5 of the Master Angler Largemouth Bass and over 2/3 of my largemouth 18-20". Impressive enough for me to make sure I had a rod rigged and ready to go each time I hit the water. Impressive enough to make damn sure I will have a rod rigged up with this and ready for 2021.
This marked the first year I seriously made an effort to include this technique in a meaningful way in my arsenal. Don't make the mistake of thinking its simple jig fishing. Nothing about fishing it the way I did this year was easy. It was down in the trenches eating mud brutal, but it was obviously worth it.
#2 BERKLEY FLICKER SHAD
2020 is the year that will go down for me as the year I finally became a firm die-hard believer in the magic of the Flicker shad.
This bait was a prime producer over the course of the year but fizzled out midseason with the availability of forage. That said, I caught some seriously big fish on these lures. This lure was responsible for my personal best walleye, which I popped out of Chamberlain SD.
This bait was a prime producer over the course of the year but fizzled out midseason with the availability of forage. That said, I caught some seriously big fish on these lures. This lure was responsible for my personal best walleye, which I popped out of Chamberlain SD.
Their hunting action was nearly unmatched by all but one lure.
Retrieve speeds obviously varied per water temperature and color selections and preferences changed almost daily, but once the fish locked in on it, this bait was exceptional. So much so, I have purchased about 50 of them over the course of 2020. Bigger channel catfish pounded the hell out of this bait, smashing at least 4 into total un-usability.
I will say this. I really questioned the way it ran through the water when I first started to use them. Seemed too erratic, but that shad profile being what it is, is a huge dinner bell for a lot of fish and as a result, popped me quite a few walleye this year.
#3 STORM HOT-N-TOT
Absolutely one of my favorite crankbaits. This is the one lure I made reference to in the Flicker Shad portion. I caught some absolute pigs on this bait. The way it hunts in the water is more aggressive than the Flicker shad and it offers a chunkier yet similar sized shad profile. You can really feel it thump on a steady retrieve and its a proven (4 years straight) producer.
There were certain colors that worked best for the lakes I fished, but water clarity was ultimately the deciding factor. Natural colors dominated this year for me with the bait.
I used this from shore, from the kayak, from the boat....I cast it, trolled with it and drifted with it...it performed exceptionally well a good chunk of the year, with the exception of the Summer and Summer peak periods. I do not go anywhere anytime without having at least 1-2 of these baits with me.
The Venerable Rapala #11 or #13. Quite possibly the epitome of jointed lures, its action often duplicated but never matched.
Honestly it put more bass in my hand than all the other lures except the Berkley Gulp Minnow. Slayed a few bigger Channel catfish on them this year too, including a 28 incher, A 26" and a 25".
Honestly it put more bass in my hand than all the other lures except the Berkley Gulp Minnow. Slayed a few bigger Channel catfish on them this year too, including a 28 incher, A 26" and a 25".
The only downside I had with this was its success rate was sporadic throughout the course of the season and seemed to be successful on only 2 of the bodies of water I frequent.
The jointed Rapala has been around for a very long time, and the reason for its longevity is that it works. If it didn't you wouldn't see it on the store shelves. Another must have lure when ever and where ever I go.
The jointed Rapala has been around for a very long time, and the reason for its longevity is that it works. If it didn't you wouldn't see it on the store shelves. Another must have lure when ever and where ever I go.
#5 JOINTED SHAD RAP
Another lure from Rapala that gave me some big fish sporadically throughout the year. With it I did manage to catch a lot of 18-21inch walleye, but there was no consistency to its success. It was feast or famine, due in large part to the nature of flatland/lowland reservoir walleye
The shallow version definitely outperformed its deeper brother for me and it only seemed to be a twilight lure, meaning almost all the fish I caught with it were in that magic time between sunset and full darkness.
In years past, this lure has been exceptional for me. 2020 saw it as performing well enough to get into the top 5, but not nearly as productive in situation it should have exceled in. Now whether that come down to my color choices is a topic for further discussion.
In years past, this lure has been exceptional for me. 2020 saw it as performing well enough to get into the top 5, but not nearly as productive in situation it should have exceled in. Now whether that come down to my color choices is a topic for further discussion.
HONORABLE MENTIONS:
- MISTER TWISTER SASSY GRUBS IN PEARL COLORS
- NED RIGS
- BOGSTALKER GRUBS (CUSTOM COLOR FOR 1 LAKE)
- SENKOS
- SALMO HORNETS
- MOXIES
- HUSKY JERKS
- RATTLING ROGUES
Starting next year, I am thinking I might start keeping lengths and possibly weights on everything I catch. Should also keep track of color patterns, lure types, water temps etc to see if I can get some more definitive patterns to emerge.
It ought to be a more interesting year, as I plan on trying to cut down the shore fishing and get more boat fishing in, especially during the colder parts of the year from October to first ice.
Looking ahead, you will see me expanding my range and fishing different lakes and different classifications of reservoirs and water bodies. You will also see me targeting new species and hopefully being successful at it. And along those journeys, I will strive to detail how and what I did, and why I chose to do it.
It ought to be a more interesting year, as I plan on trying to cut down the shore fishing and get more boat fishing in, especially during the colder parts of the year from October to first ice.
I'll be putting more emphasis on techniques I've chose to ignore in the past like bottom bouncing, dipsy diving, etc. The reason is that since I have ignored them, I need to now learn how to use them to ascertain their potential application to the bodies of waters I do fish. Or that they are boat-centric and I am still getting the hang of fishing with my Tracker I've affectionately named "The Mistress" or "High Plains Drifter."
There will also be a sharper focus on some aspects of live bait fishing even though I am not a big live bait fan. Hate trying to keep bait alive or lugging it around with me when I'm shore fishing. Total pain in the ass. But with focus upon total improvement comes sacrifice. Like the old saying goes...No pain no gain.
From the blog standpoint, I want to begin to incorporate a bunch of new items, but only as time allows. My overall goal is to help people catch more fish or at the very least, inspire them to get off the couch and catch spend more time outdoors. Suggestions could be helpful and much appreciated.
From the blog standpoint, I want to begin to incorporate a bunch of new items, but only as time allows. My overall goal is to help people catch more fish or at the very least, inspire them to get off the couch and catch spend more time outdoors. Suggestions could be helpful and much appreciated.
One thing I have always embraced was that life is or at least should be, about adventure. The level of adventure can and should vary depending on finances, health and/ or passion for the sport. Every outing should be looked upon as a blessing and cherished as a memory. A simple outing can turn into the adventure of a lifetime. That's the beautiful thing about the outdoors and on the water. You never know what the day is going to bring
Keep those lines wet, those hooks sharp and the fish afraid.
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