One of the most valuable things that I have done is to keep a fishing journal. Here I write down when and where I went fishing and what the weather was like i.e. 4-6 am, 72°,raining heavily, Nashua River at Pepperell Pond or 7:45-9 pm, 96°, humid, very cloudy, on the Squannacook downstream from the grist mill in Townsend Harbor. Then I jot down what I caught and what bait were used to catch it; also list what lures were not successful.
If the body of water you fish has significantly different water levels over the course of the year, record those as well. This can have a major impact on the water temperature, flow, and oxygenation of the water. The temperature of the water is another major factor because certain fish prefer different temperatures. Trout like cold water with lots of oxygen and bass like warmer water, but not so warm that there is no enough dissolved oxygen for them.
Later if you are going to a certain location, you can go back and see what you successfully used for lures or bait and what time of day was good. Speaking of the time you may want to take into consideration how close to sunrise or sunset you were there. This is because the time alone can throw things off. If you decided to go to a certain place where you had been at 8pm in the middle of the summer, but now it was the autumn; it would be pitch dark in the fall. Think reasonably.
In your journal you may find that brightly colored lures are great towards the evening hours and on cloudy days dark colors attract more fish.
Keeping your journal for your local areas pays off big time in the long run. Whenever you are thinking about fishing in a certain spot where you have taken notes before, you can go to your journal and see what worked best. This way you cut down on your time experimenting with various baits and lures. Try these first before you cast out any others to test the water with.
Good luck and see you on the water’s edge…
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