mapping
Posted: Fri Feb 22, 2019 8:19 am
Just a few thoughts. My green book has never been very far from my favorite chair. For over 45 years that book has been picked up and re-studied over and over. There is rarely a time where you do not take something in that is like a slap in the face. Mr. Perry always said that much of what is in the study material will not be totally understood until you experience those things on the water. A short note first. My time on the water especially last year has made a difference in the amount of fish caught and more of an understanding of how weather and water effects the fish and also what is needed to control depths and speeds in order to catch the fish.
When I look at the total picture of what is involved in spoonplugging, see those that are having success and those that are not, the difference in the fisherman is those that catch fish know what the structure they are fishing looks like. They have mapped it either with the lures or have followed the breaklines around the feature and have set up what they need to do both trolling and casting. Mr. Perry used his lures to map, observed the shoreline features to help to know what might exist under the water and then used markers and shoreline sightings to make passes. Then before he left the area he wrote down his findings so that time that it took to map the structure was not wasted. You do not read anything in the green book about locating a major breakline and following it around the structure to find the size and shape. This was Dixons thing and I agree with that method and it should be done before ever putting a lure in the water. When I was 18 years old I fished with a guy , Denny Coulardot and on that day, he showed me how to follow the base of the weedline and find every good fishing spot in the lake. From that day on, I was never lost and could map any structure in a matter of minutes if not too large.
At our last meeting, I drew a bar up on the board with several fingers. I asked all the member if they could map this bar , throw markers on the fingers, and then show me the contact point. A few actually said that they couldn't do it. My next question was if they don't know exactly what is there, how do you expect to fish it correctly either trolling or casting. In my opinion, the inability to map is the reason so few find success. Even having the ability to map, it may take years to find out exactly how the fish use a structure during all of the fishing seasons. This is why the learning never stops. Mr. Perry states in the green book that the most important thing in your future as a fisherman is your ability to interpret bottom conditions. Without this knowledge , a fisherman has no chance. There must be a reason for every trolling pass or a cast. It is to eliminate the unproductive water and end up catching the fish. If you do not have a reason for every move you make, you might want to think about how you are going about your fishing. John
When I look at the total picture of what is involved in spoonplugging, see those that are having success and those that are not, the difference in the fisherman is those that catch fish know what the structure they are fishing looks like. They have mapped it either with the lures or have followed the breaklines around the feature and have set up what they need to do both trolling and casting. Mr. Perry used his lures to map, observed the shoreline features to help to know what might exist under the water and then used markers and shoreline sightings to make passes. Then before he left the area he wrote down his findings so that time that it took to map the structure was not wasted. You do not read anything in the green book about locating a major breakline and following it around the structure to find the size and shape. This was Dixons thing and I agree with that method and it should be done before ever putting a lure in the water. When I was 18 years old I fished with a guy , Denny Coulardot and on that day, he showed me how to follow the base of the weedline and find every good fishing spot in the lake. From that day on, I was never lost and could map any structure in a matter of minutes if not too large.
At our last meeting, I drew a bar up on the board with several fingers. I asked all the member if they could map this bar , throw markers on the fingers, and then show me the contact point. A few actually said that they couldn't do it. My next question was if they don't know exactly what is there, how do you expect to fish it correctly either trolling or casting. In my opinion, the inability to map is the reason so few find success. Even having the ability to map, it may take years to find out exactly how the fish use a structure during all of the fishing seasons. This is why the learning never stops. Mr. Perry states in the green book that the most important thing in your future as a fisherman is your ability to interpret bottom conditions. Without this knowledge , a fisherman has no chance. There must be a reason for every trolling pass or a cast. It is to eliminate the unproductive water and end up catching the fish. If you do not have a reason for every move you make, you might want to think about how you are going about your fishing. John