Fishing Log Book

[Si]

Hey guys. I have kept a fishing log book off and on for awhile and refer to it every now and then but i think it could heaps better. I havent really got something out of it that i thought i would when i started it. Just wondering whether people bother with a log and what other factors people put in their logs in order to identify trends in catch rates to environmental factors.

Cheers

[Basstones]

This is something I need to get serious about as well, i'm sporadic at best with my recording of conditions. At the moment I am keeping mine to fairly basic factors, ie Time, Date, Tide, Approx moon phase, Bait, Catch & basic weather conditions (ie sunny, overcast etc).

Water temperature is the biggest factor i've been thinking of including, but is a bit of a pain when shore based. Anyone's thoughts on whether it's worth it?

[fat-buoy]

When I bought a boat years back the old guy I bought it from had kept a diary of all his fishing expeditions and threw it in with the sale. It included everything you would want to know ... except where he was fishing... hahaa I guess he knew where it referred to, but to me it was pretty much useless.
I have never kept a diary as such but can normally remember where a fish in a photo was caught and then look at the date on the photo to see when it was... not what i call a science but it is the best I can motivate myself to do :)

[daki23]

I'd be interested in making an app for iphone/andoid.... bit bored lately so i can do some programming.... let me know if u have any ideas :)

[NAGG]

Logs are one of those things that I never really got into because for most of my fishing life it was about going fishing when I could ..... not when the moon , stars , tide , aligned ........ otherwise , I'd never go fishing.
I did have some favorite periods that I used to target Jew ....... but catches did not seem to be affected by wind or temps ( moon & tide only ..... with a bite period on sunset)
I do have a couple of mates that keep a concise log ...... but over the years , I reckon it has confused them more than anything .

Chris

[Lucky_Phill]

There is a software log out there.

It is advertised in Bush'n'Beach fishing magazine.

Ken Fox, I believe is the owner and he lives at Sunny Coast, from memory.


LP.
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[Captain Incredible]

The quickest and eaiest way to keep records now is with your digital camera. (Put the date/ time on your pics) or simply file them under the trip date & maybe location. Suddenly you know what you caught, what the weather was like, where you were (you will recognise it from the photo), etc, etc. If you want to ge the tide & moon specifics for some reason just GOOGLE that day if you need that info.

I used to keep laborious written records & still have to legally keep a fair bit of relevant data to comply with the legalities of running a charter boat.

But "pictures tell a thousand words!" Throw your pen away.

Short, sweet, effective and bloody works for me............................................

Cheers,

Keith

[trymyluck]

The quickest and eaiest way to keep records now is with your digital camera. (Put the date/ time on your pics) or simply file them under the trip date & maybe location. Suddenly you know what you caught, what the weather was like, where you were (you will recognise it from the photo), etc, etc. If you want to ge the tide & moon specifics for some reason just GOOGLE that day if you need that info.

I used to keep laborious written records & still have to legally keep a fair bit of relevant data to comply with the legalities of running a charter boat.

But "pictures tell a thousand words!" Throw your pen away.

Short, sweet, effective and bloody works for me............................................





Cheers,

Keith

Given that camera's are now becoming gps enabled its even better, the camera records the time date and location on the photo.


But given a discussion I had with a fellow ausfisher regarding etiquette as far as gps marks go, its going to make keeping your marks to yourself that much harder. Take someone fishing and if they want your mark they can just take a photo.........:-?

Mark

[Captain Incredible]

Then choose your mates carefully. The camera I am talking about is yours or mine.

I am very aware of the need to protect my intellectual property on my charter boat, but at the same time there are plenty of generic marks we all fish. I get a bit disappointed for instance if I turn up at the St Paul & some loser orders me to f**k off because this is his "secret spot".

This discussion is about how to keep a fishing log book. And photos are a really easy way to record a lot of information simply. But if you have a hot session just kill everyone else on your boat......(LOL)

Cheers,

Keith

[Si]

yeah cheers guys. I do take and file photos according to date and yes they do tell a thousand words. some good perspectives there guys. Has anyone found in their log books a real gem of a find or a consistent trend that has helped them. I understand that environmental factors are highly variable and what works one day may not work the next even if the conditions are the same. And, I'm not asking for their specific find but whether its actually really worth the effort of putting a multitude of enviornmental parameters in.