"Expert" anglers

[joeD]

Why?  We always think that we are our "better" selves right now, and not before. 

Society has drilled into our humanity that the past is some aberration, and the here and now is the "real" life. Our past mistakes make us "better " now.

Nonsense. You know as well as I do that you (we) were better when we were younger and skinnier and unmarried and happy. 

[Mitch f]

 

Why?  We always think that we are our "better" selves right now, and not before. 

Society has drilled into our humanity that the past is some aberration, and the here and now is the "real" life. Our past mistakes make us "better " now.

Nonsense. You know as well as I do that you (we) were better when we were younger and skinnier and unmarried and happy. 

Half right ?

[Parkerhollow]

Tons of good attitudes and solid wisdom on this thread!  

Not to get overly philosophical but to me there is a larger point to qualifying someone as an expert angler that has to include the overall knowledge of the resource.  might seem obvious that in order to be an expert angler you have to be at least a part time biologist but I think there's a solid reason for distinction.  

Experts are the people that we want working with MDC to set regs, define management goals, etc. This group of people can not only tell you where the fish are, but why they are there and speak objectively with scientific based reasoning on the matter not just spit anecdotal remarks.  They can tell you if there  Personally I respect the opinions of these individuals at least as much as most of the career biologists.  These guys and gals are on the water the most and looking at it with a scientific eye not just at the weigh in bag in a tournament.

like it or not we are all representatives of the sport (even the guys with gigging rails and freezers full of smallmouth) but some of us are also ambassadors of the resource.  Those individuals have my gratitude and I am really glad they communicate their observations on here and elsewhere.  

Just my opinion.

[Old plug]

There is a old saying about fisherman. It says a true fisherman  go through phases in life. The first one is he he discovers fish and fishing in that phase all he wants to do is carch fish. Very soon  he only wants to catch big fish. Then later on he only wants to catch certain fish. At  77 I have entered the last phase. I just want to fish. I do not care what I catch most of the time are how many or big. I just like being out on the water fishing how I want ,when I want , and with what I want. I can probably put all the diferent types of lures I use in my front pockets. I find more joy in fishing outside the box than all the other stuff. as a example I intend to go out in a couple hours abd fish drop shot over flats and wacky worms n channel banks. I know both will work.???

[fishinwrench]

 

Experts are the people that we want working with MDC to set regs, define management goals, etc. This group of people can not only tell you where the fish are, but why they are there and speak objectively with scientific based reasoning on the matter not just spit anecdotal remarks.  They can tell you if there  Personally I respect the opinions of these individuals at least as much as most of the career biologists.  These guys and gals are on the water the most and looking at it with a scientific eye not just at the weigh in bag in a tournament.

I wish that was true.

[Chief Grey Bear]

 

Tons of good attitudes and solid wisdom on this thread!  

Not to get overly philosophical but to me there is a larger point to qualifying someone as an expert angler that has to include the overall knowledge of the resource.  might seem obvious that in order to be an expert angler you have to be at least a part time biologist but I think there's a solid reason for distinction.  

Experts are the people that we want working with MDC to set regs, define management goals, etc. This group of people can not only tell you where the fish are, but why they are there and speak objectively with scientific based reasoning on the matter not just spit anecdotal remarks.  They can tell you if there  Personally I respect the opinions of these individuals at least as much as most of the career biologists.  These guys and gals are on the water the most and looking at it with a scientific eye not just at the weigh in bag in a tournament.

like it or not we are all representatives of the sport (even the guys with gigging rails and freezers full of smallmouth) but some of us are also ambassadors of the resource.  Those individuals have my gratitude and I am really glad they communicate their observations on here and elsewhere.  

Just my opinion.

 

 

I wish that was true.

Must sound like Bizzaro World

[Old plug]

CHIEF I have sort of disagree with you about this. As I read the post it meant fisherman. It would be nice if fishermen always understod conservation but I have seen and personally know some that who pay no attention to conservation. About all of them are crappie fisherman. But they are still expert fishermen at what they do I can be assured of it. 

Most really truly expert fishermen ( not just somebody with a lot of fishing savy.)  I know got started fishing at a early age and fishing was a driving compulsion at the center of their life. And by that I mean they would eat it sleep it and live  fishing every moment they could. You can tell a expert by the way he can tell where the fsh are and how they will react 99% of the time just by the feel of the enviorment that surrounds him. I am not including myself in that group by any means. Bit have have fished with a few like that. 

 

[Blazerman]

This may be off topic here, and I may get some argument from the lake fisherman, but i truly believe if you grow up fishing streams and become good at it, you will be a better fisherman then someone who grew up fishing lakes or none moving water. To be a good river fisherman you have to learn quickly how the fish relate to current and also learn how to cast to a spot accurately. And feeling a bite in current was also was a skill that had to be learned.

I started on the Meramec and when i started fishing LOZ with my buddies, casting to specific spots around docks seemed easy. Casting a jig and letting it fall and feeling the thump of a crappie was super cool and amazed me as to how easy it seemed. Same with casting a spinner bait or crankbait along side a dock and getting hammer by a bass.

I know lakes and rivers are apples and oranges and I am not saying when fishing lakes i always catch fish, What i am saying is it did not seem as complicated as fishing a river. And also if you grew up fishing a river, the skills learned while river fishing will make you a better fisherman on any other body of water. 

But in both cases you have to find the fish to catch them and that has always been the hardest part.

 

[Gavin]

Al, you are better fish catcher than I am, but, I don't give a stink about how it happens. Maybe it's because you paddle ahead all the time, never give your buddies first shot. That is how you roll. 

 

[ozark trout fisher]

Yesterday, I worked a 11 hour day in the woods (finishing a lovely 65 hr week) and instead of going home I hit a small national forest lake near my work site, and fished 'til dark.

I don't have a point, except that I woke up in camp in the middle of nowhere this morming because of that instead of my warm bed and the largest fish I caught was a 9" bass, plus a couple bluegill.

Who cares, it's beautiful country, the stars were bright, and I caught all of them on a pretty wet-fly my late grandfather taught me to tie a little over a decade ago.  And for some reason I do not fully understand or condone, I have enough reception to post this. Life is good. No need to overthink this stuff.