1 minute ago, schplurg said:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01FU9ZIMU/ref=emc_b_5_t

 

Brand of GoPro clone. It has a very good Sony sensor and a lot of good features for around $100. This is the one I'm using right now.

awesome dude thanks for the link. I think i might spend the extra cash for a waterproof one to get those sick underwater shots as well.

I've tried for a couple years to do a log. I admit they're fun to keep track of, but I haven't noticed that they've improved my fishing. I've noticed time on the water and how to use lures effectively have contributed more than what bait worked on a day with similar wind, sun, barometric pressure, and lure choice/color I happened to use that day two years ago. Conditions, lake contour, fish populations, and outside factors change constantly and made some data irrelevant. The logs became a source of hassle as I had to constantly update it, and that's if I could always recall my catches that day if I wasn't recording as soon as I had caught. In any case I think part of my problem is that I would need a considerable number of data points to establish actual patterns. My two seasons' worth isn't likely enough data to make conclusions. 

 

I've since stopped logging....and I find fishing more relaxing and enjoyable. But I can see that it would be of some benefit if you were to use it for years and years. 

Check this out.

 

You can find it under Tools at the top of this page.

 

https://www.bassresource.com/fish/fishing_log.html

 

I'll keep fishing that log till that ol' bass bites. ?

 

This reminds me of a story. I used to go to the reservoir every Saturday morning. There was always an old man fishing from a dock there or putting in his jonboat to troll for crappie. He would always tell me to fish a log that was under water nearby and that he caught a 10 lb bass off it once. I always fish that log and have caught quite a few off it-nothing approaching his 10 lb. claim. That old man died of a heart attack while fishing in that boat. My buddy found his minnow buck floating 2 days later and it still had a crappie in it. He still has that bucket and uses it. If I could choose how to leave this world, that would be it.

 

BTW, I did keep a log a couple of years until I started to recognize the patterns. I still have it and will consult it from time to time.

On 2/7/2020 at 12:26 PM, A-Jay said:

I value being able to get out on a big body of water several days in a row, far more useful than anything from trips past.

 My wife has wondered why 2-4hrs isn't enough "fishing".

 

1 hour ago, Paul Roberts said:

 My wife has wondered why 2-4hrs isn't enough "fishing".

 

I need that long just to get warmed up.

A-Jay 

5 minutes ago, A-Jay said:

I need that long just to get warmed up.

A-Jay 

I wish - currently, 4-5 hours is the longest I get to fish. And that's only once a week if the weather is canoe-tolerable on the scheduled day.

I don't see the fishing log as something that will tell me what to do based on what happened a year or two ago. More, I am looking for patterns of where I was successful or not based on what I am doing. For instance, if I analyze the data and see that I tend to fish deep weeds after a cold front has moved in and I barely catch anything, then the next time a cold front moves in, I can go spend  my precious fishing time elsewhere on a lake. I try to fish as many local tournaments as I can so I don't have the luxury of only fishing on nice days. Freezing rain, tornado (happened once!), unseasonable heat, recent weed kill in the lake, these are all conditions I would like to have a data based starting point for.

I use the one from this very website. 
I know it was a good day when I can tell by my entries a couple of pops have been opened and the stream of consciousness is wide open and on plane..

My 7lb bag sounds like Old Man and the Sea...

2 minutes ago, 813basstard said:

I use the one from this very website. 
I know it was a good day when I can tell by my entries a couple of pops have been opened and the stream of consciousness is wide open and on plane..

My 7lb bag sounds like Old Man and the Sea...

Pops, Bags and the Old Man.

Sounds like a 70's Sit Com.

?

A-Jay 

 

I have a journal that I record where I fish, kayak or boat, weather conditions,  lures used etc and anything interesting that may have happened. 

Typical excerpt from my recent log book. I've filled it out like this for a long time. It goes back seven years.

 

Date:------

Location: on the water a little to the left of my house

Weather: Nice day

Bait: perch crankbait

Fish: nothing

 

Date:-----

Location: on the water a little to the center left of my house.

Weather: Nice day, a few clouds

Bait: perch crankbait

Fish: Somethin's there...I think.      nothing.

 

Date:----- Etc....?

Generally a waste of time IMO unless looking to capture something specific (data); but they can be fun to look back over when you get older, especially if kept in a journal format ?