Since I couldn't get away to go fishing last weekend, I did the next best thing, I drug out my old fishing logs and began to relive fishing trips from years past. Actually, reliving old fishing trips is only one of many great reasons to keep your own fishing log. Recording stream conditions, weather patterns, and flies, lures, baits and techniques used can help improve your fishing.

            Jotting down unusual wildlife you spot, or interesting rock and mineral formations, notes on mining ruins, or Indian artifacts can help increase your enjoyment of your outdoor excursions. If business ever gets really, really, bad, I can always go back to that molybdenum deposit I found in the Stanislaus National Forest and stake out a mining claim. (I digress, back to fishing logs).

            A ritual I observe each year is to go through the previous years fishing log and tally up the years fishing results. I count all the days I fished, how many fish I caught, how many I released, my average catch per day, what species were caught, how many different streams I've fished etc. Sometimes it's troublesome to write all the base information down, but it really pays good dividends over the long haul. I used to be especially proud of how many fish I caught, but as years went by, I was more concerned with how big the fish were, and eventually cared more about how many weird species I could catch and identify.

            1973 was a banner year for the total number of fish caught. I pulled in 824 trout in 29 days on the water for an average of 28.41 fish per day. I released 67% and kept 33%. Ten years later  in 1983, I only fished a total of 14 days but the size of the fish was much larger and I was releasing 81% of my fish unharmed. In 1993 I was with my seven-year-old daughter and five-year-old son drowning minnows in a farm pond.

            Now, I find that I'm placing more emphasis on interesting events that occur in a stream, like the time I floated sideways down the creek in my car, or the thunderstorm that terrified my dog so badly that I had to carry her under one arm while I tried to fish one-handed. In September of 1976 I caught two fish at once, a Smallmouth Bass on my top fly, and a Rainbow Trout on my bottom fly!

            I heartily recommend that you keep an angling log to record your fishing progress, as well as to preserve the memories that you'll savor in later years. As you read your old fishing logs, you'll relive those great days when everything went perfect, and laugh at those days when you couldn't do anything right.

            I remember telling  a novice angler to watch his step on the slippery rocks just seconds before I slipped and fell into the water with a great splash. The images of angling buddies long since passed on will come to mind and you'll smile at their memory. I get a tear or two in my eye when I remember fishing with a cop who was once a young buck in the prime of life, but now can't walk because a junkie stabbed him in the spine.  

            You can become a better angler by studying your old logs to find out what techniques work under certain conditions, and which do not. When you face similar conditions again, you'll have a head start. I record water temperature, air temperature, altitude, water clarity, cloud cover, precipitation, which flies I used, and which caught fish. I have designed my own pre-printed form and included sections for fish caught (by species), line and leader used, starting and ending time and then a big section for general notes. I try to always take a long lunch break on the stream, not only to eat, but also to make log entries, and sometimes even just take a nap on a sunny sand bar. I've never taken my blood pressure while I'm fishing, but I'd be willing to bet it drops substantially the minute I step into the stream.

            Try an angling log this year. It increases the enjoyment you get out of fishing. Give it a try!

            Until next week, Tight Lines.