So here's the deal I've been bass fishing for 20 years. Everybody gets excited for a big trip or if your one of my northern brethren you surely get excited for ice out in the spring. But one way to tell if your ate up with bassin is if you get excited for small excursions. I went out for about 4hrs today and it was a struggle. My buddy fished a pond within 30 minutes of me, did well and gave me the lowdown on the bite. I've spent the past several hours watching fishing videos on YouTube, cruising topics on here and just anticipating tomorrow. Do you still get as excited as you ever did for fishing? I apparently still have it whatever it is

Oh yeah. Feels like Christmas Eve every trip. The anticipation is half the fun . 

I still get excited to beat the bank for 30 minutes after work in the mornings even though I know I'm most likely only catching 1-4 12-15 inch fish. 

my trick to never lose the excitement is to purposefully not catch fish often, never have to worry about getting bored of catching fish this way

 

I swear it's purposeful...

Honestly?  No.  If it requires that I have to navigate the zoo at the ramp and the irritations on the water, I don’t care to go.  If I’m fishing a new venue with promising habitat and fish counts and can get out mid week, that’s different.  I also get excited to fish the structure others drive over.  If I can get the long rod out and crank deeep, I can get excited.

I don't get too excited about the trip, but when I hook into a nice bass/fish, that's when the excitement meter hits tilt..lol 

Every... Single... Time!!! Been at it more than 40 years. I'm excited to get out there on the water, or in the woods everytime. 

Yes I do.  The day after I get home from a trip I start thinking about the next trip.

Hmm...

I leaving for Pickwick at 5:00 AM and I am packed to go...So I was able to sleep in

until 3:00.

 

19 minutes ago, roadwarrior said:

Hmm...

I leaving for Pickwick at 5:00 AM and I am packed to go...So I was able to sleep in

until 3:00.

 

Good luck!!!

26 minutes ago, roadwarrior said:

Hmm...

I leaving for Pickwick at 5:00 AM and I am packed to go...So I was able to sleep in

until 3:00.

 

Good luck, I’m up too, looking at the weather….. debating if I’m going to head out in the rain or not. Supposed to get some lightning early. 
 

Yes I still get excited…. Last night, I was getting my poles ready, putting line conditioner on, rigging some of them with what I want to start with.
Counting all the fish I haven’t caught yet …. Haha

Sure I love it. Most of my fishing I do at rivers and lakes is fairly local. A couple of what I call road trips are further away a season. But I’ve never lost any passion for it. Might be growing as I get older. I don’t do much on you-tube and don’t see what an episode of Jimmy Huston fishing a stocked golf course pond is going to do to help me get enthusiastic about going out. But there is nothing wrong about that to get you amped up. I would think like anything else you have to have your head into it. Some times you need to take a break for a few days or a week and refresh your head and mind. Take care of something you may have been neglecting for a while, knock that out and you’ll be amped to fish. Good fishing. 

Never lose that wonder of what will happen whether woods in fall or summer on the water. I will dink w/gear and line today for tomorrow's jaunt up the river. I'm somewhat jaded from the years and will admit that smaller fish don't ring my bell anymore but when the drag starts to scream the adrenalin kicks in and it never fails to remind me why I'm here. The rest of you guys going out today......Catch A Big One!    Dave

There was a video of Rick Clunn several years ago in which he caught a 7-8# bass. After landing it he laid back on the deck then sat up holding his hand out. He was visibly shacking, he stated, when that stops happening I'll stop fishing. 

I'm more enthusiastic now than I've ever been. Yes, I get excited about a quick bank trip or a longer boat trip. I love fishing

I can’t read this thread I get too excited 

Not anymore, that is why I sold my boat and most of my tackle. 

Most of my lifetime my love of fishing was obsessive, hard to sleep and not think about the next outing. 

Now I look forward to just get out on the water and enjoy whatever comes along, it doesn’t matter if I catch bass or not.

I do enjoy putting my partner on fish and feel good when it works out.

Tom

Glad to see everyone else in this thread is as sick with bass fishing as I am! 

Everytime I get frustrated with all the effort put in with lack of results it don’t take but one thud on the TRig for it to be all worth it. 

It doesn’t matter how long I have been fishing, I still can’t sleep the night before a fishing trip.  

You betcha, there are days I am too wore out to go, but every time I start getting stuff ready that tingling anticipation starts to build, will I avoid a skunk? Is this the day I break a state record/land a trophy? The not knowing how it will go reminds me of a very tame version of the same feelings I used to get in Afghanistan before a patrol, just this time I don't have to worry about getting killed quite so much. 

I have to remind myself the following:

 

- Preparation and planning are all part of the fun

- I am not going to catch fish every time (or shoot ducks / deer / pheasants)

- Enjoy being outside

- Enjoy being alone (I manage a large team...deal with people all day...)

- Enjoy fishing/hunting with my Dad and Brother (when we gather)

- Have patience with the paddle-boarders who clog up the ramp

- It's not a competition (...but really it is...HA!)

- Write in my fishing log...# of fish...stories...observations...weather...etc.

- Take my time...when I rush, I make mistakes...safety FIRST!

 

** Dang, I'm getting excited just TYPING this...cannot wait to get my boat in the water this weekend!!  **

That excitement is the only thing keeping me employed.  Seriously.  This last year has been ridiculously rough at my job, and I hated to quit, but I just didn't know how much longer I could take the stress.  I've seen some ups and downs over the last ten years, but this last year has been a completely different world.  

 

But I found a small lake near my job and started packing my lunch and fishing on my lunch break.  Now, while I still absolutely hate my job, I at least enjoy going to it in the mornings, because it means I get to fish.  

 

It's amazing how 20 minutes of fishing can change your day.  

Yes, I used to drive a route all over Central Cal.  Everytime I went south I'd park next to the delta and catch a couple of catfish.  My boss asked why I stopped in the same area every time I went thru there.

I told him and he just said bring him some catfish too,lol.