It's weird. In my 20s, I'd fish anytime I could. Multiple days in a row. Middle of a hot summer day....freezing cold fall weather....Never got tired of it. Now, in my 40s, I still enjoy fishing, but I can go weeks without fishing and it's not a big deal. I'm not depressed. I just enjoy other things in life at this stage. I still love to ice fish as much as I can. But, being in the boat in the summertime or casting along a river just doesn't appeal to me as much as it used to. Anyone else experience this? Does the appeal to fish come back? Kind of never thought I'd get to this point and I'm actually totally ok with it.
General Fishing Discussion
Have you ever lost your enthusiasm for fishing?
Displaying 1 to 15 of 79 posts
I can count on 1 hand how many times I fished last year. I said this year would be different, get the boat ready early in the year and fish Lake Michigan again as i have all the gear. Well the boat is still where I parked it last June. It might have acquired a few items as a storage container and I still haven't purchased a license. I did however buy 2 new fishing rods, so there might be hope!
Lots of issues with lost enthusiasm both hunting and fishing. Biggest is I realized that it's not about killing stuff or even spending time outdoors but enjoying the experience with friends and family. The loss of my dad and grandfather over the the years was huge. They weren't just my ancestry they were my best friends and teachers. Now I've moved out of state and know few people to hunt or fish with. This virus stuff makes it even worse. I've never been much about catch and release. If I can't eat it, I hope I don't catch it (although it does help on a slow day). I may have to start eating bass as that's the majority of what I can catch here. Caught a few trout and had a couple of nice meals of those. I have a small boat and like others plan on going and then its...too hot, too windy, too many chores waiting, too many bugs, or there's a 10% chance of rain. What it boils down to is I don't feel like teetering into a small boat and baking in the hot sun alone to maybe catch a handful of panfish to keep. As a kid I would have looked forwarded eagerly for just that.
I got up this morning at 5:15 to go fishing. I looked at the weather forecast on my computer. I used the wind, wind direction and heat index as excuses not to go. When I was younger I went in just about any conditions just short of a tornado on the ground.
I think my age has finally caught up with me. The last couple years I have been losing interest, but now it has really gotten bad. This year was going to be a new start, with a new interest in pan fishing, but I can’t get started.
I think a lot of it has to do with the increased number of boats out there. Maybe as people start going back to work and school things will settle down. Fishing during the week used to be much more relaxing.
Was that just another excuse, or justification for not going?
This is so strange. But suddenly this year, I’m more enthusiasm about fishing than many years prior. Last year was a dud as far as enthusiasm. A switch flipped. Might be due to me not working as many hours in May, and actually getting out there. Such a good bite this time of year!
This is an honest question all of us will have to answer sooner or later. Its been since 1989 that I last dropped a hook in the water. Back then, I was hitting my limit every day, fishing a 98 acre Lake with almost zero pressure, on a Naval base with Limited access. Hurricane Hugo hit us so hard the oxygen Levels in the water became depleted and wiped out the fisheries. That storm destroyed some of the best fishing anyone could ever hope for. Not too long after, the gulf war happened and I had to go, leaving a Damaged home to wait until I returned. I lost interest in everything I cared about. Now, as a Senior Citizen I find myself collecting a hod podge of cheap equipment and trying to rekindle the Love of a Sport that used to keep me out all night almost every night. Going back to fishing College on you tube videos, trying to Learn Northern Coho Salmon, Brown trout and Steelies, in the Great Lakes where I reside these days and all. I am determinded to beat the PTSD and this Pandemic too. Tight Lines!
Well , when I was younger I use to wrench on race cars that were ran at Slinger Speedway, so when spring and summer came around , the race car was number one , everything else was second, now that I am older , fishing is what I like to do more than anything . Just upgraded my boat to something bigger, my wife is the best fishing pattern anyone can ask for . And now have a grand daughter , so as of now I am making up for lost time from my 20ties and 30ties where one season I only took my boat out twice, the rest of the time was wrenching on the car . So as of now I have even more enthusiasm to get up and hit the water any chance I get .
I still love fishing, but what was getting old to me was hooking up the boat, driving to the launch, launching the boat by myself, not catching anything for 5 hours, loading the boat back on the trailer, backing it into the driveway, hooking the batteries up to the charger, cleaning the fish if I kept any, and then finally covering the boat. I still love fishing and driving the boat and catching fish, but everything else is starting to seem not worth the effort. I use the heat as an excuse not to go. For the past 5 summers, it's been getting hotter and hotter each year. I can't handle the heat any more. Also, last year I got an aggressive case of melanoma from not taking sun exposure seriously for too many decades.
One thing that rekindles the fishing spirit is taking kids fishing. My daughter just loves it. I'm happy to just watch her catch fish and teach her the things I've learned. Last year, we went up North and she was happy as could be just catching tons of rock bass.
Feel your pain forspencers. when my wife passed almost 10 yrs now I sold my 18 ft ranger '"fisherman" and have not "wet a line" since then! Great boat and great times way back when! Traveled all over the country with that boat. I never got a chance to fish "SALT WATER" maybe someday. #1 on my 'BUCKET LIST"!!!
It’s easy to get bored with fishing for the same species, the same method, the same lake. This year I’m going to get a ultra light rod and reel and try my hand at pan fishing. I used to do this when I was young, then I started bass fishing. Bass fishing has become boring to me. I tried walleye fishing, but Winnebago is the only lake close enough to really catch them. I hate fishing the river spawning run amongst the crowds.
So if you lost some desire for fishing, maybe a change will re-spark your interest?
It comes and goes. I used to be in the hooch at least 150 days a year. Then slowed way down. Got another fishing partner and from spring back to fall forward and then some every Saturday. Last 2 years not so much. But the itch is back. From 2 Saturday’s from now till the trout quit eating, I will be gone to South Carolina. And maybe our to White river in Arkansas in January. Have to big boxes of streamers for big brown trout. 8 ball pool
Displaying 1 to 15 of 79 posts
