Retirement and fishing

[geo g]

I have recently retired, one year ago.  I don't fish anymore now then I did before retirement  I fish almost everyday.  Once or twice a week from the boat and 4 or 5 days a week from the bank.  I thought before retirement, I would be out in the boat almost everyday.  I quickly found out that I don't like fishing from the boat by myself.  I enjoy fishing with others and have several friends I enjoy taking out with me, not to share expenses, but to share the enjoyment of fishing and good conservation.  I have never charged anyone a dime to fish with me other then sharing a good time.   After fishing for over thirty years with good friends, its not the same in the boat by yourself.  Sharing the fish with others is part of the enjoyment of fishing for me.  The  laughs, jokes, and conversation are a big part of it.  Things for me did not change after retirement, I guess I need to find friends that are also retired.!

[Ratherbfishing]

I fear I may be confronted with the fact that being somewhat introverted (or maybe I'm just a p.i.t.a.?) I don't HAVE that many fishing buddies and those that I do won't necessarily be retiring when I do.  One friend is in debt over his eyeballs and will probably have to work until he won't be in any shape to fish either.  Another is in his mid 70's now and he's been slowing down a lot.  And, truthfully, like some others have said, I don't like fishing alone in my boat all that much.  I agree that loading/unloading the boat by oneself is a pain (and will not likely become easier as I get older).  But yeah, actually I do prefer to fish with someone else.  Most of my best memories involve others.  It's like taking a photo of a person or of an object.  Invariably, the photos with people in them are sooo much more interesting.  I think that to a greater or lesser degree, I'll have to just get used to the idea of doing some fishing alone.  Or not doing it and just accepting it.  Or fostering more friendships.

[Scott F]

Due to a recent back surgery, I an retiring 18 months earlier (now) than I was planning on. Several of my fishing friends are already retired, but they don't seem to have as much time to fish as it appears I do. My other problem is the lack of decent fishing waters within an our or two of home. There are several rivers that are wadeable with good smallmouth populations not far away, but I'm not in good enough condition yet to do much wading. My favorite water are up North in Wisconsin, but retirement income may limit the number of times I can make the trip. Driving 3 hours or more each way for a poor day of fishing to Illinois lakes does not motivate me to leave the house.

1 hour ago, Ratherbfishing said:

I fear I may be confronted with the fact that being somewhat introverted (or maybe I'm just a p.i.t.a.?) I don't HAVE that many fishing buddies and those that I do won't necessarily be retiring when I do.  One friend is in debt over his eyeballs and will probably have to work until he won't be in any shape to fish either.  Another is in his mid 70's now and he's been slowing down a lot.  And, truthfully, like some others have said, I don't like fishing alone in my boat all that much.  I agree that loading/unloading the boat by oneself is a pain (and will not likely become easier as I get older).  But yeah, actually I do prefer to fish with someone else.  Most of my best memories involve others.  It's like taking a photo of a person or of an object.  Invariably, the photos with people in them are sooo much more interesting.  I think that to a greater or lesser degree, I'll have to just get used to the idea of doing some fishing alone.  Or not doing it and just accepting it.  Or fostering more friendships.

Just exactly where in central Illinois are you?

[gim]

I'm only 34 so I've got at least another 25 years before I can retire.  If I could do it all over again, I'd be a teacher.  My old man just retired from teaching at 61 but in reality its not really all that different from when he was working because he always had the summer off to fish anyways.  During the summer when he was still working you could find him 1) at the golf course or 2) on the lake.  Well now he's retired and you can still find him 1) at the golf course or 2) on the lake.

[Mike L]

For me retirement let me pursue my dream of fishing competitively. Before I would just enter local charity tounament's and fish in 2 local clubs on the weekends once in a while. After retiring we bought a motor home so now I can go when and where I want..At least till the money runs out!

 

Mike 

[Ratherbfishing]

18 hours ago, Scott F said:

Due to a recent back surgery, I an retiring 18 months earlier (now) than I was planning on. Several of my fishing friends are already retired, but they don't seem to have as much time to fish as it appears I do. My other problem is the lack of decent fishing waters within an our or two of home. There are several rivers that are wadeable with good smallmouth populations not far away, but I'm not in good enough condition yet to do much wading. My favorite water are up North in Wisconsin, but retirement income may limit the number of times I can make the trip. Driving 3 hours or more each way for a poor day of fishing to Illinois lakes does not motivate me to leave the house.

Just exactly where in central Illinois are you?

I'm near the the home of the "Struggling Illini" (Urbana-Champaign).  I hear you about lacking motivation to drive a long distance for marginal results.  There are a couple of decent places i know of but most are about 2 or more hours away.  I've been wanting to make more north trips, too, but it's like pulling hens teeth (mixed metaphor) to find good/reliable fishing companions.

[Silas]

I'm 73 and retired about 5 years from 3 jobs I had at once. I moved in the swamp so close to the water I can see my boat sitting in the water. Don't use my boat trailer any more except to bring to dealer for a tune. 

    I can go miles and miles in the water from my door and never spend time preparing to go, traveling for hours, launching boat, motoring far away and finally the whole trip home in traffic. 

My boat never leaves the water and I just plug in the on board charger when I get out of boat. I only bring 5 outfits at a time and different ones at that. Sometimes I'll bring one outfit and limit myself to that as I try to get better at a technique. I never bring fish home unless I hurt one  

. I love to play with great gear, and get pleasure casting and enjoying nature. I've got a few alligator "friends" that I feed when at certain spots  They recognize me and swim alongside the boat.  Very peaceful and idyllic. Never fish on weekends or holidays  

   I actually am fishing in about 5 minutes from entering the boat. . Now I fish only when water, tide, and wind are favorable. This is now about twice a week. Fish only half a day, then back to house for lunch, coffee and snooze in recliner. 

     If not fishing, I'm riding my motorcycle. Usually thru twisty swamp roads to great little known eateries. Or I'm across the road from my house practicing my combat pistol shooting  

key is to have several interests so you never tire of any. If I wake up early and weather is bad, I simply roll over and grab that young chick beside me!  LOL!

TIP:. Don't keep putting off retirement waiting for when things are "better."  You are playing a risky game and before long, a casual visit to the doctor for your yearly checkup will reveal that you may have put it off too long and now you have some health issue that will curtail your favorite activities.   You will be "all dressed up" and can't go. 

 

[je1946]

6 minutes ago, Silas said:

I'm 73 and retired about 5 years from 3 jobs I had at once. I moved in the swamp so close to the water I can see my boat sitting in the water. Don't use my boat trailer any more except to bring to dealer for a tune. 

    I can go miles and miles in the water from my door and never spend time preparing to go, traveling for hours, launching boat, motoring far away and finally the whole trip home in traffic. 

My boat never leaves the water and I just plug in the on board charger when I get out of boat. I only bring 5 outfits at a time and different ones at that. Sometimes I'll bring one outfit and limit myself to that as I try to get better at a technique. I never bring fish home unless I hurt one  

. I love to play with great gear, and get pleasure casting and enjoying nature. I've got a few alligator "friends" that I feed when at certain spots  They recognize me and swim alongside the boat.  Very peaceful and idyllic. Never fish on weekends or holidays  

   I actually am fishing in about 5 minutes from entering the boat. . Now I fish only when water, tide, and wind are favorable. This is now about twice a week. Fish only half a day, then back to house for lunch, coffee and snooze in recliner. 

     If not fishing, I'm riding my motorcycle. Usually thru twisty swamp roads to great little known eateries. Or I'm across the road from my house practicing my combat pistol shooting  

key is to have several interests so you never tire of any. If I wake up early and weather is bad, I simply roll over and grab that young chick beside me!  LOL!

TIP:. Don't keep putting off retirement waiting for when things are "better."  You are playing a risky game and before long, a casual visit to the doctor for your yearly checkup will reveal that you may have put it off too long and now you have some health issue that will curtail your favorite activities.   You will be "all dressed up" and can't go. 

 

Well put sir, I retired 4yrs ago and fish whenever possible.  Problem I have now is I'm to old and feeble to handle the launching and loading by myself and it's not always easy to find some one to go with me. 

[Airman4754]

I have about twenty years to go, but I know when I do retire I will have a house on a good bass lake with a hydraulic lift. 

When I feel like going, I will go. Which will be most days. 

[Bassun]

1 hour ago, Mosster47 said:

I have about twenty years to go, but I know when I do retire I will have a house on a good bass lake with a hydraulic lift. 

When I feel like going, I will go. Which will be most days. 

That's my plan to a T.  Make it easy, and convenient.  I'd love to find a "cheap" weekend place now on a local lake, but their idea of cheap and mine don't seem to line up, lol.

[Goldstar225]

61 weeks until I retire.  I'll still have to fish on the weekends occasionally since my grandson is still in school but aside from that, it's my time and schedule!

[CrustyMono]

I've got 50 years until I retire!

[Ratherbfishing]

11 hours ago, CrustyMono said:

I've got 50 years until I retire!

I'll trade with you (if I can subtract my age too).

[.ghoti.]

I'm semi retired as of December 2015. I work two day a week instead of six. My plan was to fish any day I wanted to, weather permitting. 

You know what they say about plans. This was supposed to be a great fishing year for me. Well, 2016 is going to go down as the absolute worst year of fishing, in terms of time spent on the water. Weather, work, honey-do's, family, vacations, etc; you name it; it got in the way.

I've written off 2016 as a total loss as far as fishing goes.

Next year will be better, or else.

[Ghostshad]

I retired March 12 at age 62 , My plans was fish the PreSpawn ,Spawn , PostSpawn , but my knee's are bad & i ended up fishing very little . I have Back Surgery tomorrow which i hope will fix my knee pain , So i'm starting all over again so now i hope to start on the Fall Bite . GoodLuck  GodBless .

[Ratherbfishing]

1 hour ago, Ghostshad said:

I retired March 12 at age 62 , My plans was fish the PreSpawn ,Spawn , PostSpawn , but my knee's are bad & i ended up fishing very little . I have Back Surgery tomorrow which i hope will fix my knee pain , So i'm starting all over again so now i hope to start on the Fall Bite . GoodLuck  GodBless .

Good luck with the surgery!  Mobility is sooooo key to fishing (and everything else).  I want/hope to retire before my age (and general decrepitness) spoils it for me.  I have heard stories of people who dragged out retirement (so they could get more money) and then wound up getting sick and dying 6 months after they finally do retire.  I feel for them, of course, BUT I don't want that to be me.

[Mike L]

1 hour ago, Ghostshad said:

I retired March 12 at age 62 , My plans was fish the PreSpawn ,Spawn , PostSpawn , but my knee's are bad & i ended up fishing very little . I have Back Surgery tomorrow which i hope will fix my knee pain , So i'm starting all over again so now i hope to start on the Fall Bite . GoodLuck  GodBless .

Best of luck with your surgery. I had a spinal fusion 4 yrs ago and know how it feels. Once it's over and you're pain free it's like you were given a whole new life. 

Prayers sent for a successful surgery and quick recovery. 

 

Mike

[Dannytoo]

I retired in July of this year at the age of 69 I work now part time in a business we own. I do not fish on weekends or holidays just don't want to fight the weekend boys anymore for a spot to fish. 

that being said I put limits on my fishing days no more than twice a week once is the normal. I work on my 02 tracker more fixing things that I let go because of time at work. Don't know how long the fun will last but it is great now. 

 

[CrustyMono]

7 hours ago, Ghostshad said:

I retired March 12 at age 62 , My plans was fish the PreSpawn ,Spawn , PostSpawn , but my knee's are bad & i ended up fishing very little . I have Back Surgery tomorrow which i hope will fix my knee pain , So i'm starting all over again so now i hope to start on the Fall Bite . GoodLuck  GodBless .

Best of luck with the surgery, i hope you can get BACK to doing what you love. back issues are no fun. 

[WRB]

Spinal cushion surgery can go well depending on where the fused vertebra are located and nerve damage caused prior to surgery. 

My spinal fusion surgery was S1to L5 bone to bone for years until the L5 broke into pieces and was successfully repaired. Both feet are numb all the time and can't lift more than 20 lbs. Getting older isn't for sissy's! 

Currently thinking seriously about selling my bass boat and getting a elecrtic powered boat to bass fish on a private lake. Hooking up the bass rig, launching the boat at O' dark thirty and putting everything away after each outing isn't easy. I retired 2 years ago at age 71 and it's not getting any easier as time goes by.

Enjoy every day on the the water when you are healthy!

fast recovery Ghostshad!

Tom

 

[Turkey sandwich]

11 hours ago, Ghostshad said:

I retired March 12 at age 62 , My plans was fish the PreSpawn ,Spawn , PostSpawn , but my knee's are bad & i ended up fishing very little . I have Back Surgery tomorrow which i hope will fix my knee pain , So i'm starting all over again so now i hope to start on the Fall Bite . GoodLuck  GodBless .

Good luck with e back surgery! Thanks to a car accident in 2013, I was left with 7 bulging/herniated discs.  I finally caved last year and had L5-S1 fused.  It is not a fun surgery or recovery (read: it absolutely sucks), but a year later and lots of PT and aggressive weight training and I'm genuinely starting to feel good again.  Good luck with surgery, trust your surgeon, and get up and moving around as soon as possible.  

[Dwight Hottle]

20 hours ago, Ghostshad said:

I retired March 12 at age 62 , My plans was fish the PreSpawn ,Spawn , PostSpawn , but my knee's are bad & i ended up fishing very little . I have Back Surgery tomorrow which i hope will fix my knee pain , So i'm starting all over again so now i hope to start on the Fall Bite . GoodLuck  GodBless .

Best of luck with your surgery.

[smallmouthstalker]

On 10/13/2016 at 6:58 PM, Catt said:

If it appears that I am ignoring you...it is most likely because I am:

1. Busy fishing

2. Thinking about fishing

3. Talking about fishing

4. Reading about fishing

Or I'm just plain not interested in what you are talking about!

I've often wondered over the years why I get so little done on my to do lists, and time flies by so quickly.  The I realized its all about fishing.  I live for the process of preparation, the fishing itself, and of course the necessary evil of recuperation.  Then the process starts again with very little pause in between!  Ever since a kid, if I'm not able to fish, I'm certainly planning (with weather and other obstacles) when & where exactly the next adventure will be.  SO I HEAR U LOUD AND CLEAR!!!

[papajoe222]

I retired at a fairly young age, took on a job with flexible hours that offered health insurance and fished more often. . With the added time on the water, I started targeting big fish. I was elated with the size of fish in the lakes and pits I fish and didn't concern myself with numbers. About the time Medicare kicked in, my grandson began seriously playing baseball . Travel, school and park district leagues have been keeping me busy during fishing season and my time on the water has dwindled considerably. Night fishing likely accounts for the majority of my fishing now and I'm back to fishing for numbers. If I can black mail the better half into spending our winters down south I'll be back to enjoying extended hours fishing AND watching/coaching the grandson.

[2tall79]

The worst part is fighting your way thru rush hour traffic to get to the launch..........or you could just sleep in awhile longer.  ?