Speyducer
Advisory Board
Release to spawn another day
Posts: 4,123
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Post by Speyducer on Dec 11, 2007 12:47:19 GMT
I'm needing some information regarding how many of us keeps fishing diaries for each season. The reason I'm asking is that my Daughter makes hand crafted cards and I'm wanting her to try and make fishing diaries that can be personalised. If buying such a diary what would you want the page layout to contain. I was thinking something like this :- Date, River, Weather, Fished with, Fished for, Set up and method used, Fish caught and size, Additional comments, Any replies would be most helpful, Regards, Hornet Additional data: Beat on the river Ghillie(s) Companions/fellow anglers fished with (or otherwise met riverside) Temperature - air/water Water height vs. summer level Flies / Spinner / other used Fish seen & where Fish hooked & lost - on what Fish takes/pulls - on what Hours (duration) fished Photos taken Pool(s) or stream(s) that landed fish were taken in Measurements taken of landed fish - weight, length, girth Colour/Condition of landed fish - eg liced, etc Wildlife seen/noted Just a few extras! Mike
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Post by charlieH on Dec 11, 2007 14:53:58 GMT
Without wishing to pour cold water on your project, I think that Mike's list of possible inclusions go to point up the inadequacy of diaries and game books with ruled columns.
I think it's far better to get a really nice bound book with blank pages. This allows you to write as little or as much as you want about any particular day and to paste in photographs, beat maps, bar bills or other mementoes, without the confines of ruled columns.
Books with columns are excellent for keeping in the hut on a beat, but for an individual who fishes different waters, and for different quarries, I think they are often too restrictive.
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Post by John Gray on Dec 11, 2007 15:21:23 GMT
I have kept a fishing diary since the early eighties, although less diligently in recent seasons. I find too many specified sections a bit restricting, preferring to use a blank notebook, in which each entry is simply headed by date and location, and perhaps the catch, if any! This is very flexible and allows all relevant details, and they will vary considerably from one outing to the next, to be recorded. As a simple example:
Fri. August 11th
River Allan, Narrows - 10 pm to midnight ................. Sea Trout 2 1/4 lbs
After the rise in the water yesterday, when the Allan was at a good salmon height - Derek took advantage of it to take a 53/4lb grilse from the back run at 8 am on an Ally's shrimp while my needle fly was unsuccessful - I thought it would be worth a cast or two for the sea trout at the Narrows.
The river had dropped well back but was still running a little above summer low. A bright moon but partially obscured by cloud and not too high in the sky. A warm, calm night - good conditions for fishing .... and midges!
No fish in evidence so I was taken by surprise by a strong take to my tail fly, a size 8 mallard, red and silver, at 11 pm by a spirited 2 1/4 pound cock fish. It almost managed to get hooked up in the bankside grass but I managed to net it after a short but lively struggle. My first sea trout from the Allan this year - DT5 floater on 10 ft light line rod and 5 lb Maxima.
N.B. Immediately before hooking the fish, something swam downstream close to the far bank, perhaps a mink, water rat or duck. Whatever it was, it didn't deter the sea trout .... maybe even stirred it into taking my fly!
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Tyne Andrew
Active Member
April Spring Salmon 2010 - Lower Pitchroy, River Spey
Posts: 1,104
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Post by Tyne Andrew on Dec 11, 2007 15:50:38 GMT
Excel for me !
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Post by highplains on Dec 11, 2007 16:56:44 GMT
I would highly recommend you all at least take to recording your catch; date, fish, weight, lure/bait, returned etc.
It may seem pointless now but believe me when you get older, as I am, you will be amazed the pleasure you will get from looking back and even remembering the fish in question.
The more detail the better I suppose.
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Post by neptune on Dec 11, 2007 21:24:53 GMT
perhaps a space for a photo of the days catch just so in years to come the grandkids can see the proof especially helpfull if there just starting out
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fenton
Active Member
Posts: 246
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Post by fenton on Dec 16, 2007 16:38:13 GMT
A proper database would be superb. Perhaps we could link an excel sheet into the forum, to combine everyone's data? This would then (after a number of years) provide a powerful resource. It would then also be possible to do some simple stats to look at the variable associated with catching fish! I was lucky enough to have access to Wood's Cairnton records and tried something similar, unfortunately even his records did not contain enough numbers to provide any really interesting results! I suppose the downside to this would be we might not bother going fishing if the conditions didn't match the stats! Cheers F
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salmo
Advisory Board
Posts: 1,814
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Post by salmo on Dec 16, 2007 20:59:15 GMT
I am not a fan of keeping loads of data so I would like a fishing diary with blank pages for writing descriptions of the day out or the beat or the party with no fixed format. In the back of the book it would be good to have some pages with tables for recording all the catch details and conditions.
Alternatively it could have a table on one page and a blank sheet on the opposite leaf.
There should also be a spot for describing the experience of being on the river, teaching my sons to cast, helping someone land their first fish, the smell of the fishing hut when the wood stove is lit on a spring morning. These are the memories I treasure.
I would also like the book to have a built in MP3 recording of the gurgling sounds of my favourite beats, discussions with ghillies, and of course some reel screeching...
salmo
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alta
Active Member
Posts: 115
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Post by alta on Dec 17, 2007 22:51:37 GMT
There's a web site where you can download a screeching reel tone to your mobile as a ringtone. if I find it again I will post.
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fenton
Active Member
Posts: 246
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Post by fenton on Dec 18, 2007 11:23:46 GMT
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Post by tweed ghillie on Dec 18, 2007 20:02:14 GMT
Joe for years when I was keepering I recorded everything in a journal, The Country Spotsmans Record Book & Journal ,.published by David & charles, its a 220 page volume, on every page there is an illustration by John Paley ( quite beautifulthey are too) On the opening page there are three columns Date/Place My Companions and the bag , on the opposite page is a full page for remarks..It was probably aimed at game shooting (forgive the pun) but i also entered my fishing days as well. I occasionally pull them down and re-live some of the memories. Well worth a look all the best Mel.
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db
Active Member
Posts: 34
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Post by db on Dec 18, 2007 21:37:16 GMT
2008 will be the 20th year I have kept a diary - it is a purpose designed fishing diary. Whilst the entries are fleeting at best, and sketchy in the 'lean' years, it's nice to reflect back over half my lifetime and rekindle those moments. It's about complete now and the next one I buy will be a plain hardback journal which can be filled out with as little or as much detail as possible. I find the formatted diaries too constrained and would recommend a plain journal as John Gray and CharlieH suggest. I can see the logic of using excel or some other PC programme but that would be too impersonal and lack a bit of 'soul'.
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salmo
Advisory Board
Posts: 1,814
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Post by salmo on Dec 18, 2007 22:21:40 GMT
The experience part can be kept personally but could also be relayed in individual posts but for hard data junkies it might be interesting if we could agree on a basic data request.
Would it be of use if we could add a table on the forum that could be filled in on a voluntary basis?
Thoughts?
salmo
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conwyrod
Advisory Board
Autumn on the Conwy
Posts: 4,659
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Post by conwyrod on Dec 18, 2007 23:31:25 GMT
This is an extract from a WORD fishing diary I've kept for the last 6 seasons. Fairly basic, but I've found it helpful and interesting to read on occasion.
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