How to Track Fishing Data for Success Next Season
As we plow into December, many anglers make final entries in their fishing logs, notebooks, calendars, or whatever recording method they use to keep fresh in their mind fishing experiences from the past 12 months. The drive behind this ritual is that they’ll be able to mine that fishing tracking data to shape and sharpen their performance next year.
The process really excels at revealing small details that can improve scores with everything from bottom feeders to offshore pelagics in terms of which spots produced the most action or biggest fish, which baits and lures ruled your local seas, and if there was a strong correlation between productivity on specific tidal stages, moon phases, or wind direction in selected locations.
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Indeed, insight from all these tidbits add up and, theoretically speaking, the more data you record from each trip, the more details you’ll have to map out a successful game plan next season. Sometimes overlooked in the mining of micro details, however, is the macro picture, which can also have a surprisingly profound impact on your future fishing. What we are speaking about here are large-scale trends that you might notice while reviewing several consecutive years of personal logs and/or public fishing reports, specifically hoping to uncover variations from long-term patterns.
In the waters off Rhode Island, for example, the past two years have seen a strong influx of stripers on the nearshore spring blackfish grounds to the point where Capt. B.J. Silvia, of Flippin’ Out Charters in Portsmouth (facebook.com/FlippinOutCharters), has been telling his tautog fares to be ready for both on early season trips.
“We always caught some school bass during spring blackfish season,” says Silvia, “but the past two Aprils have seen some really big stripers chasing hooked ‘tog to the surface.”
There’s no guarantee that action repeats next year, of course, but Rhody anglers might want to plan for double-duty trips come April and May should the trend continue. Adding some beefy striper sticks and a larger landing net to your ‘tog arsenal is his advice since 30-pounders are always a possibility.
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A relatively short ride down the coast, the South Shore of Long Island, New York, has also seen interesting trends emerging. “We’ve had a couple years in a row now with exceptional late-summer and fall bluefin tuna fishing tight to the beach,” reveals Bryce Poyer, proprietor of White Water Outfitters in Hampton Bays (whitewateroutfitters.com). “That action has been driven by vast bunker schools and can often be found within a few miles of our inlets.”
Cobia have also trended upward along the coast from Long Island down through southern New Jersey, notes Poyer. Again, the action has been driven by the presence of menhaden. “This is developing into a reliable mid-to late-summer fishery with some really big fish in the mix,” he continues.
Because cobia can grow to 50 pounds, Poyer suggests including a couple of dedicated cobia outfits if you plan to target ocean stripers around bunker pods. “You aren’t likely to win the battle with a big cobia if using forty-pound test leaders and standard striper gear,” he cautions. “So, if you suspect cobia are around, live-line your bunker on the sturdier tackle. You’ll probably want to also bring along a bigger net and a gaff as well.”
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The waters off North Carolina have seen some remarkable trends over the past few years too. As noted in the September edition of this column, wintering gray weakfish, which used to hold out in 60-foot depths off Ocracoke and Hatteras inlets, are now up in some of Pamlico Sound tidal creeks during the colder months, and redfish are hitting springtime offerings like Poppin’ cork and shrimp combos right through the winter since things have been so mild in recent years.
Down in the Florida Keys, a trend that has seen steady development over the past few years is anglers catching giant tuna weighing as much as 700 pounds within six miles of shore.
According to Jake Moll at Tackle Center of Islamorada (tacklecenter.com), the big tuna always came through, but it’s only in the past few years that anglers figured out they’ll smash a rigged-Spanish mackerel on the troll.
“If you plan to make your first attempts at this heavy hitting sport, stop by the shop so we can get you set up properly,” advises Moll. “You really want to be fully armed for this kind of battle.”
-by Tom Schlichter
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