Now, I like my standard format for my fishing report postings as I feel that they tell the tale just fine with an intro, a batch of stats, a handful of notes on the highlights, lowlights, observances, random happenstance and, of course, pics.  But several times in the pre-blog days I wandered off that path in borrowing a page from Bassmaster magazine’s “Day on the Lake” feature.

For those not familiar with the magazine’s monthly series, the concept is to put an angler on an unfamiliar body of water and then provide a chronological account of the decisions, results and conversation during a seven hour day.  The articles finish with the angler’s assessment of the day, what approach they would take were they to return “tomorrow” and yep, a Top 5 weight.  It has been my favorite feature in the magazine since its inception many years ago and is always my first read when the latest issue arrives.

2002 Day – Brent,action shot                                                                                               2003 Day – Dad, Top Bass

My kickoff date for my new website venture to start this month marked fifteen years of writing which all began with occasional fishing, trapping and general outdoor reports to family and friends prior to becoming a blogger back in April 2010.  Among those pre-blog postings were seven of the “Day on the Lake” type postings of my design, borrowing some of the concepts from Bassmaster along with inventing some of my own, including taking a photo of every fish we caught no matter the size.

2004 & 2005 Day – they all count and have a moment of fame for this project

My archives indicate that I kicked off this idea in 2002, posted a pair of these reports in 2003 and then made it an annual project with one a year through 2009 (skipped 2006 for some reason, probably had another kid or something).  Each of the outings were trips with a partner, either Dad or my brother, Brent, but unlike the Bassmaster version all but one were trips to familiar waters.

I just finished re-reading each of the old reports and while some are a bit lengthy, I still found them quite entertaining.  Of course, I had a front row seat and certainly possess a bit of bias as the author.  Still, it is fun to look back and reminisce over days spent on the water with your best fishing partners.  Some “Days on the Lake” were more successful than others in terms of fish but as I continue to put a few more years and fishing trips behind me I’ve come to realize that fishing is about a whole lot more than catching.

Yet again, a ringing endorsement for keeping a log/journal or in some way recording your day on the water.  For within those postings and log entries there are countless details that still bring a smile or a shake of the head, details that would have long been forgotten had they not been documented.

Good stuff then, good stuff now and good stuff for the future.

2007, 2008 & 2009 Days

So, this resolution is to take another swing at this approach at least once this year after being put on the shelf since 2009.  More details to come and perhaps a revisit of the past postings prior to kicking off the 2017 version.  After all, who doesn’t like a fishing report, even if it’s nearly 10 years old?

Hey, guess what?  My initial resolution of a blog a day for May is now officially completed.  And I’m having so much fun that I’m going to keep the string alive into June.  Talk to you tomorrow.  Troy