iiTzChunky Posted February 5, 2017 Posted February 5, 2017 So I wanna start one of these but not really sure how to keep track of everything. What does everyone keep track of? Water temp seems very helpful to know but I'm not sure how to go about finding out. Ofc keeping track of what I'm throwing and what's working and not working, and length and weight. Is there anything else I should track? Quote
Global Moderator 12poundbass Posted February 5, 2017 Global Moderator Posted February 5, 2017 Weather condition,moon phase,wind direction,color of lure,depth,retrieval speed,barometric pressure if you're into that,water clarity, that should get you started. 1 Quote
flyingmonkie Posted February 5, 2017 Posted February 5, 2017 You're not sure about how to go about finding water temp? Get a thermometer! If I'm bank fishing, I carry one in a metal casing that has a split ring in one end. I'll hook it onto my lure and toss it out a couple feet off the bank. No sense keeping track of things that mean nothing to you. What are the things that YOU pay attention to when you fish? Start there. As you learn more about fishing, you will likely pay attention to more things and your journal will grow. 2 Quote
iiTzChunky Posted February 5, 2017 Author Posted February 5, 2017 2 minutes ago, flyingmonkie said: You're not sure about how to go about finding water temp? Get a thermometer! If I'm bank fishing, I carry one in a metal casing that has a split ring in one end. I'll hook it onto my lure and toss it out a couple feet off the bank. No sense keeping track of things that mean nothing to you. What are the things that YOU pay attention to when you fish? Start there. As you learn more about fishing, you will likely pay attention to more things and your journal will grow. Well since I'm pretty new I figured water clarity water temp time of year, color of lure would all be things that caused the bite. Keeping track of retrieval speed might be a little hard for me. I tend to get caught up when I get that bite I get into and and completely forget what I was doing to get the bite. 1 Quote
flyingmonkie Posted February 6, 2017 Posted February 6, 2017 Knowing what you were doing to get bit (and then being able to repeat it) will help you catch more fish now than a journal will. Maybe you should work on that first. Start simple: date, place, basic weather and water observations, lure. Considering you're pretty new, jotting down a quick summary of your outing will be more helpful than data. Eg. "2/5, East Pond, It was warmer and windy... couldn't get bit on a worm, but they were lovin' that lipless crank! Seemed to get hit anytime I was fishing around grass." Those quick narratives will go a long way. 2 Quote
IntroC Posted February 6, 2017 Posted February 6, 2017 Date of course, what hours of the day you were fishing, sky conditions, temp, wind speed, barometric pressure, water color, water temp, water level, lure you were using, color of it, how you were fishing it, cover being fished, structure being fished, or anything else that jumps out at you that particular day. For instance a mayfly hatch could influence what type of bait they were hitting that day. Or if you notice a carp spawn taking place can question you into what stage the bass spawn is in. I mentioned barometric pressure, of all the ones I listed IMO this is the least important. I have never been able to figure out any patterns based on this but still write it down. Moon phase is another. Journals can really start being helpful after you have kept them going for a few years. The more you fish the more helpful they are. Quote
parkerg31 Posted February 6, 2017 Posted February 6, 2017 http://www.bassresource.com/fishing/fishing-log-book.html This is what I based mine on starting out and it works really well. Hope this helps! 2 Quote
Super User Catt Posted February 6, 2017 Super User Posted February 6, 2017 I log the following information into Micro Soft Word date, time, weather, water clarity, depth, structure, cover, techniques, lure, total number caught, total keepers caught, & largest bass caught. At the first opportunity I transfer this data into Micro Soft Excel there by giving me a searchable log or I can sort by any parameter. 1 Quote
BigSkyBasser Posted February 25, 2017 Posted February 25, 2017 On 2/5/2017 at 2:20 PM, flyingmonkie said: You're not sure about how to go about finding water temp? Get a thermometer! If I'm bank fishing, I carry one in a metal casing that has a split ring in one end. I'll hook it onto my lure and toss it out a couple feet off the bank. No sense keeping track of things that mean nothing to you. What are the things that YOU pay attention to when you fish? Start there. As you learn more about fishing, you will likely pay attention to more things and your journal will grow. I've been looking at getting a thermometer to keep on me but I'm not sure how much I should invest on one or if a cheap pool thermometer would work? Thoughts? Quote
flyingmonkie Posted March 2, 2017 Posted March 2, 2017 I've heard of folks using pool thermometers. I got this and it does just fine: https://www.amazon.com/Orvis-11041000-Rugged-Stream-Thermometer/dp/B0039MY5XE Quote
IgotWood Posted March 2, 2017 Posted March 2, 2017 On 2/5/2017 at 4:07 PM, 12poundbass said: Weather condition,moon phase,wind direction,color of lure,depth,retrieval speed,barometric pressure if you're into that,water clarity, that should get you started. ^^^^This! Something I like to track more than anyhthing is the weather for a few days prior to my fishing trip. What the weather did yesterday and the day before can play a big role in what the fish may be doing today. Any other peculiar observations should be noted as well, ie; fish breaking surface, bait presence, bird activity, etc... The information that YOU use to determine when, where, and how you will fish, should be the information you are tracking. Quote
Super User WIGuide Posted March 2, 2017 Super User Posted March 2, 2017 I used these for the few years I kept a journal. http://www.bassresource.com/fish/fishing_log.html Quote
Super User Fishes in trees Posted March 2, 2017 Super User Posted March 2, 2017 I've been telling myself for 3 decades now that I should start & continue a fishing log. I've tried various things. . . keeping the log in the truck . . . .keeping a voice recorder in my pocket and dictating comments from time to time . . .. combination of the above .. For me, none of that works for very long because after a day of fishing I'm pretty tired and I either forget to do it or tell myself that I'll do it later. I hope you have more success in maintaining your fishing log than I have over the years. It is hard enough to keep my mileage log straight on my fishing truck. Quote
runt4561 Posted March 2, 2017 Posted March 2, 2017 I keep a journal of my tournaments. I don't do it for normal fishing because, I fish differently in tournaments than I do if I am practicing or fun fishing. these are the things I keep track of: - air temp and water temp at beginning and end of the day - wind direction and speed - general status of weather... pre front, front moving through, post front, cloudy, clear etc - what I caught and size - what baits produced and what size baits.... 1/2 oz trap, 3/4 oz trap, t-rig with 3/16 or 1/8th oz - location on lake where fish were caught.... this will be general map location as well a specific structure where the fish were caught. this could be outside grass line at joe's point or deep docks in joe's cove. - what I placed in the tournament and what the winners weight was. - how much money I won. it really helps me to match seasonal patterns year after year to bodies of water 1 Quote
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