What Did You Achieve This Year?

[tomustang]

At the start of the year many of you have set goals for fishing. What were they and which ones did you accomplish?

[QUAKEnSHAKE]

Well at a lake I go where I usually suck I caught a PB for that lake. It was 3# thats a good catch for me any place.

 

[xxxblungblung]

I spent a lot of time with the jig, for the first time and did really well with it. 

[A-Jay]

I committed this season to learn "Stitching" - only one way to describe my results ~ Epic Failure.

 

Haven't decided if I'm going to revisit it again or not.

 

On a much better note,  and using more conventional methods, I was able to improve my smb & lmb PB's this year.

 

That's always nice.

 

A-Jay

[rippin-lips]

My goal every year is to catch a bigger fish 'Pb' then the prior year. This year I was able to do it twice. I was also able to visit a friend in Tx and fish Sam Rayburn for a week. We've only talked about it for 5yrs now. Finally it happened. I also fish a new technique every year. This year was the drop shot and my Pb came on that too. Next season it'll be the shakey head.

[aceman387]

I experimented with weightless soft plastics and slow retrieves and had some pretty good luck.

[flyfisher]

I committed this season to learn "Stitching" - only one way to describe my results ~ Epic Failure.

 

Haven't decided if I'm going to revisit it again or not.

 

On a much better note,  and using more conventional methods, I was able to improve my smb & lmb PB's this year.

 

That's always nice.

 

A-Jay

Stitching makes fishing a senko look like power fishing....

 

I didn't get out nearly as much as i would have liked but i had some success with the jig and bottom bouncers which was something i wanted to work on this year.

[McAlpine]

A huge win for me was sticking with baits that made me slow down when the need arose.  Caught some clutch fish in tournaments on shakey heads.  Finished this year with a 2nd and a 3rd.  Better than usual but not where I want to be.  More work ahead!  Boated a 5-6lber early in the year and tied into two that either would have been a new personal best, one of which we had at the boat and my own stupidity of tightening down the drag allowed that sow to take another lunge and break the line.  Still, had a couple good 7-8lb fish on and nearly in so things are going the right way.  It's funny.  When I was a young boy I could always go out and catch bass.  It amazed me at the stories the grown ups had of days getting skunked.  It has taken me a long time to realize I had it figured out back then.  Don't have to do what some pro says is the right way to do it.  Just have to do it your own way.  It's like coming 360 and it's good.

[papajoe222]

One of the goals I set for myself was to catch fish on a rod that I'd built during the off season.  One of those rods spent the entire season in the company of many different rods on my deck and helped produce some fine catches.

My other goal was to ignore the impulse to abandon my search for big fish when the going got tough, which it does more often than I had anticipated. I caved in on a number of occasions, but was mostly successfull and that mindset paid dividends.  I caught more bass over 20in. in one season than I'd caught in the previous three fishing the same waters.

[slonezp]

Jika rig proved deadly for me this year.

[slonezp]

I committed this season to learn "Stitching" - only one way to describe my results ~ Epic Failure.

 

Haven't decided if I'm going to revisit it again or not.

 

On a much better note,  and using more conventional methods, I was able to improve my smb & lmb PB's this year.

 

That's always nice.

 

A-Jay

Epic failure or loss of interest? From reading your journal, I could certainly see that boredom played a big part of the "failure". I know stitching was essentially using a big worm at an extraordinarily slow pace in deeper water. Have you thought about modifying the presentation to more suit your style of fishing? Maybe a different location or different bait?

[A-Jay]

Epic failure or loss of interest? From reading your journal, I could certainly see that boredom played a big part of the "failure". I know stitching was essentially using a big worm at an extraordinarily slow pace in deeper water. Have you thought about modifying the presentation to more suit your style of fishing? Maybe a different location or different bait?

 

I have and there's quite a bit of winter left to figure out what's next.

 

Something's got to be change.

 

 As I look back and think about some of my previous angling adventures, when you consider the time / effort spent on this last one, the lack of results here were disappointing to say the least. 

 

A-Jay

[bmlum415]

Caught a PB of 10lbs 11oz

[KyakR]

Two things: accuracy and cranks! Funny but I have the opposite problem from many here........I fish too slow. My goal has been to rip cranks, use buzz-baits more effectively, get those baits down where they need to be and stick with it. And I did meet this......so satisfying! I felt I learned a lot this year! My thanks to all of you and to the staff and writers at BR.......the reason I did stick with it has much to do with the guidance and encouragement I received here. Merry Christmas!

[Preytorien]

Two things really.....

 

1. Bought and learned how to use a baitcasting setup. I went with a friend who gave me a great 5-minute lesson on how to use one, and I was hooked. I've been very pleased with my results since.

 

2. Started learning the senko. I'm sure I have more to learn, but this year I was introduced to it by my best friend and he showed me the ropes. I've had some great luck with it. I'm excited to have it in my arsenal for next year.

[Dwight Hottle]

I have and there's quite a bit of winter left to figure out what's next.

 

Something's got to be change.

 

 As I look back and think about some of my previous angling adventures, when you consider the time / effort spent on this last one, the lack of results here were disappointing to say the least. 

 

A-Jay

 

But you got a lesson in humility.

[Felix77]

I had 3 basic goals this year ...

 

1 - Learn a new technique - The Drop Shot

** I spent some considerable time working this technique but found myself fishing the Mojo Rig way more mainly because of the conditions.  Either way I learned to work the Mojo really well and still need to work on the Drop Shot when the opportunity presents itself.

 

2 - Focus on catching limits during a tournament.

** Out of 14 tournament days I fished only 10 ended up without limits.  That's a significant increase from last year where I only caught limits in about 50% of the tournament days I fished.

 

Other

Not a goal per se but I won a Pike tournament and cashed in a State Federation Tournament on Chatauqua.

 

I still made a ton of mistakes which cost me other opportunities.  I also continued to learn a TON from my boaters.   In all I think I had a pretty good year.

[Dwight Hottle]

My goal each year is a new pb. Didn't happen for smallies but I did pb three times on largemouth. My largemouth success is directly attributed to fishing a stellar fishery in Mexico, lake baccarac.

My other goal was to fish with some new people & enjoy it & I did. Made a few new friends too. That is how bass resource serves me the best. Thanks again Glenn.  

[Fishes in trees]

I didn't break anything major this year - outside of a couple of rods.  I achieved some competence in summer deeper water fishing - using jika rigs.  I got better at finding deep weed line edges, using my electronics.  Next year, I need to get better at fishing in grass/vegetation.  I got embarrassed a couple of times frog fishing - a buddy fishing from the back of my boat catching good fish every 10 minutes or so and I could;t buy a bite.

[Snakehead Whisperer]

Caught a PB smallie twice this year (7.5 and then 7lb. 12oz.) Was really trying to catch a snakehead in the 17lb. class, but unfortunately this never materialized. I also have recently taken a liking to chain pickerel fishing in the colder weather, which has proven to be some of the best light tackle fishing I've ever experienced (also caught a PB chain pickerel right at 5lbs.)

Surviving my boating accident was probably my lowest and highest point of the year. This has given me the most useful perspective of all of my fishing experiences this year.

[Nitrofreak]

I finally achieved success for someone else , I was able to share with our veterans a great day along with my place of employment's help , I took what I have learned here and finally applied real success for my wounded warrior this past summer !!! 

 

WWWOOOOHHHOOO  !!!  Thanks guys and gals !!!!!

[RF813]

I went from not fishing since I was 14, to bobberfishing for sunfish, to regularly catching LBM. Learned just a smidge of what is out there, but gained a love for fishing. I hope to continue learning how to fish different lures  and techniques in the upcoming year. Thanks to everyone who has answered my questions in the forums, it's greatly appreciated.

 

Rich

[A-Jay]

But you got a lesson in humility.

 

You Know - I really didn't need one.

 

Buy The act of imposing humility upon another person is called "humiliation".

 

A-Jay

[DRH2O]

Last season was my first year fishing from a kayak so just learning the ins and outs of that was one of the biggies. The most challenging was learning to flip and pitch from such a low seated position. I ended up using a kind of modified roll cast but by the fall I was pretty accurate with it. I also figured out what did and didn't work with my yak setup so I have some winter projects to get it all refined for next season.

 

On the fish side I set a goal of 7lbs. I've managed to bring in a handful of fish the last few seasons that all hover within a couple ounces + or - of 5lbs. Good fish to be sure but I figured I'd set my sights on bumping it up a healthy notch.

 

On the upside I managed to catch one that was easily in the 7-8 lb range. On the down-side I managed to lose her in a moment of epic stupidity while trying to lip her up next to my yak.

 

Next year I'm just hoping for a chance to recover the little peice of my soul that died that day

 

~DR

[ww2farmer]

My goal every year is to make it to the end of the season alive, with a working boat, and minimal gear lost or broken... ..... Sooooo..... VICTORY!!!!... I let the fishing take care of itself.