Getting into a rut

[WestCentralFisher]

This post isn't a complaint, just a self-observation. I've noticed since about mid-October my fishing ventures have been in what I'd call a serious rut. All summer I fished just about everywhere I could in the Ozarks, but since it got chilly and the smallmouth have retreated to their winter holding areas, it's like every trip is groundhog day. 

This isn't a bad thing. I'm consistently catching trout and smallmouth bass every trip out, in the same few holes of the same couple rivers. It's not that I'm struggling, it's that there is no drama. I know pretty much what I'm going to catch, how I'm going to catch it, and there remains but little mystery in either. I've found myself passively hoping I'll get skunked once or twice to build some anticipation. 

It hasn't been unenjoyable. I find myself leaving the river after a couple of hours and going for hikes, scouting for deer sign for potential future outings, or just generally exploring. But I think I need to expand my horizons a little. Might be time to visit one of the particularly challenging wild trout creeks or go try and find the wintering holes on a smallmouth stream I don't know well.

It's just a strange feeling I don't know if I've really experienced before, mostly because I've spent most of my life as a pretty mediocre fisherman, and I've generally had to scratch and claw just to catch fish.