Banks vs Boats: It's Really 2 Different Sports

[Bankbeater]

Sometimes when I go fishing I just want to catch numbers, and sometimes I want to catch the biggest bass in the lake.  It doesn't matter if I'm in a boat or off the bank those are my goals.  I'll adjust my gear and tactics for the day according to how I will be fishing.

[hawgenvy]

I do a lot of bank fishing in the evenings after work, usually for an hour. I also fish club tournaments with a local club about once a month, usually at Lake Okeechobee or in the Everglades. My biggest catches have been from the bank, usually from waters with little pressure and walkable banks. I consider myself very lucky to have such places nearby. They give me lots of hook setting experience for tournaments, and have allowed me to become reasonably proficient in most categories of bass lures and techniques. I guess I prefer the bank over the boat.

 

 

 

 

[The Bassman]

On 12/26/2018 at 6:41 PM, Mobasser said:

Sometimes it's fun just to grab a small box, one or two rods, and go! Good fish can be caught from the bank too

My typical outing consists of one rod, a few baits in a velcro lure wrap, scissors, forceps (instead of pliers), and a rag. Sneakers dedicated to trampling goose poop and mud and I'm good to go.

[FishDewd]

I'm 99.9% bank fisherman. There are very few occasions I get the chance to actually fish from a boat. The biggest differences I find between bank and boat is that in a boat there you have certain advantages when it comes to finding fish, covering water, and using techniques. If you watch videos that teaches how to fish certain techniques, they are almost always boat based. Which is fine, but some things are better suited to a boat vs. from the bank. So when banking, you have to make some changes in order to get similar results. And when on larger bodies of water with a lot of depth transitions, there is the major disadvantage of having areas you just simply cannot get to from the bank. When limited to the distance of a cast, it often pays to pick outings carefully. The hotter days they pull out into deeper waters where we can't reach them... although there are normally some resident bass that still stay relatively shallow except for during extremes. So yeah... they're different sports in a way. Bankers and boaters have the same goal, but the manner in which we approach accomplishing those goals are significantly different.