Bank fishing

Thanks for sharing that Craig, good story...and I agree, bank fishing
can teach you alot that can be used on the lake!
JK

Bank fishing

Group: rec.outdoors.fishing.bass Date: Thu, Apr 8, 2004, 5:04am (CDT+5)
From: (Craig=A0Baugher)
40% of my time is spent bank fishing. I love hanging out with this small
group of old goats (most in their late 70's and early 80's) that bank
fish Belleville Lake. We all met about 3-years ago while I was fishing a
tournament and I choose to work the bank they were carp fishing. They
started picking on me, so I made it a point to go back after the
tournament to sit and chat. Now, I make it a point to visit them a few
times a week. I love listening to their old tales (that I have probably
hear at least a 100 times), but they always seem to add a little
something new each time.
Another group I make sure I visit a couple times a week is a group of
homeless folks that actually live in tents along the river section of
the lake. I again love to hear their stories while I catch a few silver
bass, perch, crappie, and walleye that I leave for them to eat. Most are
there because of booze and drugs, but once in a while you meet a few
that just happen to fall into hard times. They usually only stay there
about a week or so and then they leave. One old gentleman (Walter) is my
favorite. I watch out for Walter just to make sure he's alive and well.
Walter stays all year round, collecting beer and pop cans to get what
little he has, and I make sure he always finds a little package of
stuff, for he will not take money or charity of any kind. But if he
finds it on his own, that's ok.
So I love to walk the banks, catching fish, enjoying all the nature
around me, and conversing with whoever is around. I believe bank fishing
has only helped me to become a better boat angler. For while the two
methods are almost totally opposite of each other, the techniques I have
learned from bank fishing has helped me to win more than a few
tournaments when the conditions get tough.
--
Craig Baugher
Be Confident, Focused, but most of all Have FUN!

I boat fished for about 15 years, but those days are largely over and, for
the last 7 or 8 years, the vast majority of my fishing has been from the
bank. More good bass have come from the bank than the boat, but that may
just be a testament to my incompetence in a boat.

On one level, bank fishing is much more relaxing than boat fishing, because
the element of having to locate the fish is removed to a large extent,
especially on the featureless water that I fish. When I do poorly, I can
just tell myself that they weren't within casting distance. That may be a
load of horse manure, but I can still use that for rationalizing my
failures.

I have some places close to home and I'm retired, so time isn't a problem. I
can't stand for too long, so my trips tend to be short, about 1.5 hours, but
I often go three times a day. I just wish that the bass season didn't start
so late in NY (3rd Saturday in June).