Anyone Super Type-A Like Me and Keep a Spreadsheet With Types of Lures and Fish Caught?

[Catt]

I was asked what I've learned from 50 years of record keeping?

 

About the time I think I've got em figured out, they prove to me I don't!

[Tennessee Boy]

I've kept various types of records for over 40 years.  Today I keep several different electronic files like sonar recordings,  waypoints,  and paths for future reference.  The most rewarding thing I do is I keep a fishing journal in a word processing document.   I record the basics for each trip but I also explain in words what my thought process was for the day as I tried to figure them out.  It's very interesting to go back and compare my way of thinking then and now.

[WRB]

I try to avoid fishing memories when on the water and make an effort to fish the moment based on observation input.

It’s easy to tie on ole faithful and fish with your favorite lures in places that worked in the past.

Our local bass lakes have suffered from drought conditions and mis management to the point historical data is nearly worthless. Most of my favorite locations are high and dry, the primary prey source are gone, what worked in the past is ineffective today.

I learned to trust what I see around me, bird activity and sonar and try to keep an open mind to adjust to conditions.

I still tie on my hair jigs and pork trailers, everything else is trail and error, back to the basics. Determine the seasonal period the bass are in, the depth they are at and what prey source is predominate. Don’t need a spread sheet, just need to remember to set the hook.

Tom

[Catt]

 If you eliminate your history you have eliminated your experience!

 

I do not try to recreate pasted days but I'm still catching bass on Toledo  Bend off structure I learned 50 years ago. Now these bass are not on the exact GPS waypoints but they're still on the structure. 

 

These records (history) give me a starting point when I read current conditions. 

[Cgolf]

I keep a spreadsheet and logbook of river fish caught and baits that caught them and similar for my yearly week long fishing trip.

 

The biggest thing I have used it for is to limit my spending on lures I will rarely use. It has saved me a ton of money the last few years and really helps me focus on what my tackle needs are.

[JustJames]

On 12/14/2021 at 10:51 AM, TnRiver46 said:

Absolutely not, I’m closer to type z. I do take pictures of the fish though, and that has a date stamp so I know what I caught and when anyway. I also have a crazy ability to remember most everything in the past, that’s a blessing and a curse 

 

also most of my trips are archived on bass resource, so there’s that 

I’m pretty much type Z too then lol. I have no time for that when I fish almost every day and catch fish most of the time. I do take picture of the fish with lure and setup which give me location, time of day and season. I mostly bank fish so depth is not my option but as far as I know what structure underneath is good enough.

Most of my fishing journey is on IG and often times I would look back what I used last year and where I caught biggest fish. I only fish one small 400 acres lake so it easier for me to keep track.

[Way north bass guy]

On 12/14/2021 at 1:51 PM, TnRiver46 said:

Absolutely not, I’m closer to type z. I do take pictures of the fish though, and that has a date stamp so I know what I caught and when anyway. I also have a crazy ability to remember most everything in the past, that’s a blessing and a curse 

 

also most of my trips are archived on bass resource, so there’s that 

This is exactly how I am. I’ve thought about recording some info over the years, but I hate paperwork ?. Much like you, I also can remember many details about past trips. It’s funny how the brain works, sometimes I can’t remember work or family stuff that happened a week or two ago, but if I’m near a lake I’ve fished in the past, I can pinpoint tons of spots where I’ve caught fish, and often what bait they were on. 

[TnRiver46]

1 hour ago, Way north bass guy said:

This is exactly how I am. I’ve thought about recording some info over the years, but I hate paperwork ?. Much like you, I also can remember many details about past trips. It’s funny how the brain works, sometimes I can’t remember work or family stuff that happened a week or two ago, but if I’m near a lake I’ve fished in the past, I can pinpoint tons of spots where I’ve caught fish, and often what bait they were on. 

Haha yep! Don’t need waypoints either, I can get there by smell 

[schplurg]

I record all my trips on video then have my various staff members make the spreadsheet based on those.

 

Okay the video part is true.

[Big Hands]

I like spreadsheets maybe more than most, but not as much as others. My longest formula is 247 characters (it's an IF/AND formula). I made a spreadsheet calculating gear inches and top speeds at different cadences for bicycles for each gear combination just to see if I could do it. I'm also an aerospace refugee from a ways back (15 years at Northrop before they merged with Grumman). I have made mortgage amortization spreadsheets, NCAA March Madness and FIFA World Cup trackers, and lots of other odd spreadsheets just for S's & G's. I taught beginning and intermediate Excel classes for the past 12 years.

 

All that to say that I have absolutely no desire to make a fishing spreadsheet.

 

 

[TnRiver46]

5 hours ago, schplurg said:

I record all my trips on video then have my various staff members make the spreadsheet based on those.

 

Okay the video part is true.

Hahaha! I’m a fishing with mike subscriber 

[MacJig]

I keep a spreadsheet of every fishing journey I take. The spreadsheet gives the date, the time I go, where I go, the conditions (like weather conditions), a brief write-up of what happened (ie. Gear used, lures, peculiar experiences), the number of fish I caught and a cumulative total. It really helps me down the road to see how well I've done in a certain place and at a certain time using whatever gear I used. It's been very beneficial for me! I've done it for about 3 years now.

[RNSkeeter]

While I've just started some moderate journaling of my fishing trips, what I DO have is an excel spreadsheet of every single piece of gear I own. It's tremendously helpful when I lose something and need to re-buy. I have a really poor memory and I'll forget what colors names are, who manufactured it, or what weight something is. I even use it in the tackle shops so I can fill in things I don't have. Having a spreadsheet of everything makes it a lot easier and I find myself referencing it a LOT!