Old School, Simple School

New guy to crappie.com here. Old guy too (76 going on 100).

I just was wondering if there were many folks on here that just go out and fish with zero or almost zero technology. Just you, a rod or two, a fairly simple boat or canoe or kayak.

I personally enjoy it most going out in my solo canoe and paddling around looking for likely places to cast and enjoying the time on the water. I get skunked a lot especially when getting out on a new to me lake. I have 4 ultralight rods of various lengths and use them one at a time. I usually don't bring all of them at a time. I don't use sonar or a trolling motor or any other electronic devices. First of all I can't afford them but mostly I prefer simplicity. Nothing wrong with all that stuff. It is just my personal preference.

Are there others out there as simple minded as me?

When I'm in my $300.00 no frills yak but not the boat.

Yeah, I fish a kayak with no frills at time, but also have a multi-species boat that I like to use with most of the bells and whistles (no front facing sonar though). I see you're from the upstate. I spend winters in upstate SC myself.

68 going on 100! Old Alumacraft 14-foot FD model. Garmin 5 CV. mostly for watching depth of water, take about 3 rods use one at a time.
I like simplicity also. :fish

I agree nothing wrong with using, having, whatever a person likes to use.

Sold the bass boat years ago and now only use small aluminum boats with 55# thrust Minn Kota. Nice thing is being able to fish lakes that don't allow gas motors. So much quieter and far fewer aholes to have to deal with plus not having to fill the boat's tank considering the high price of gas. Of course, the trolling motor comes in handy when fighting a 20 mph wind while trying to race back to the truck just before a fast moving storm hits.

I use sonar, not to find fish I will catch, but to see if there are any fish in the area beneath the boat - especially bait fish. Like Bill who likes:
"paddling around looking for likely places to cast and enjoying the time on the water", I let my lures do the finding, casting 2-5x times/ minute. Knowing a lake it key to finding fish faster, and my goal every time I go fishing is to catch fish on my soft plastic creations.

A camera is a must, not ony for documenting my lures and the fish caught on them, but scenic shots.

I started that way in my paddle kayak and it was very relaxing and enjoyable. I now have the electronics on a pedal kayak. While I catch more fish now there is a part of me that misses the simplicity of doing without and enjoying the beautiful outdoors.

Yeah I guess if you count my cell phone I am not totally devoid of technology. I like to take the occasional picture to prove to SWMBO that I am actually fishing.

And probably sometime soon as the muscles and joints continue to deteriorate I will strap on a trolling motor. But so far I can still paddle. I fish mostly small, quiet lakes.

For me it depends what time of year I am fishing. I have a little two man bass boat that I used to fish the spawn and bridge pilings the rest of the year. I typically leave the outboard and electronics at home and go fish. I find it very relaxing. I also like to night fish in the summer. Tie up to a piling, drop green light with three minnow rigs and simply wait. It's a great way clear your mind and enjoy the peace.

Welcome to the forum. You definitely landed in the right place to increase your fishing success.

I'm paddle power only these days myself, though I definitely use a depthfinder. The better you learn the bottom, the better your chances of figuring out where the fish like to be. You can rig up a temporary mount for depthfinder & transducer on any canoe, kayak, jon boat for not that much money. I love simplicity too, but why not maximize your time on the water? I can't begin to tell you the last time I got skunked, it's been years. Paddle power forces me to go much slower, though I get to study and learn the bottom a lot better than I used to in my bass boat, zipping over it at 60+ MPH.

Even if you don't use electronics, once you find suitable structure by trial & error, triangulate the spot by lining up trees, buildings, docks, points, or any other landmark that will help you locate and pinpoint the location again in the future. Before the days of depthfinders, my daddy & I used to use a heavy sinker on masonry cord with knots tied in the line every few feet & colored cloth tied every 5 feet, then we marked the depths on a hand drawn map. We learned the water as good as we could. It prevented us from fishing blind and it increased our catch. He used to say, "Why rely on luck when you can figure out where the fish like to be?"

Jim

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"Why rely on luck when you can figure out where the fish are likely to be?"

Jim

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Couldn't agree more!

Does anyone listen to music while fishing? My SansaDisk MP3 player holds over 100 songs, fits in my pocket and has incredible sound. It kind of distracts from not being able to find/ catch fish until I do and has the affect of slowing me down and simply enjoy being on the water. Fits right in with this scene:
https://texasfishingforum.com/forums...ntain_lake.jpg

I don't use much technology while i'm fishing places that I'm familiar with. I do use technology to get me to and from the boat ramp. My 14ft jon boat does what i need it to do. I sometimes skull around with one paddle in the creeks to stay stealthy when I get on some fish but I do use the trolling motor to move from spot to spot to save my arm for casting. My fish finder is a glorified flasher that I use to map out the bottom of places im trying to learn how to fish. Using little technology has made my fishing skills increase exponentially over the past year. Everyone should give it a try sometime. You'll get better at being able to identify where fish are on a new body of water.

I haven't pulled the kayak out in some time since the Jon boat ends up being more comfortable and gives me more freedom to fish more areas in a day. I need to get it out at some point and do some serious jigging.

I get what some of you are saying about depth finders and other technology. As I said the lakes I fish are small and quiet. I have a light anchor that has the line marked in three foot increments. I can check depth anytime I want. I'm perfectly content to quietly and even slowly explore. I get skunked a bit but I have my good days too. All time on the water is happy time. It doesn.t bother me at all to get skunked.

Even my cell phone is only there for safety communications and the occasional picture. My music is the birds and the wind and the insects and watching wildlife. Oh yeah the splashing of a fish sounds nice to.

Mid seventies (going on 100:Rofl) I primarily wade fish so my equipment is pretty much minimalist. A small Fanny pack with essentials, water, hip boots and a rod and reel. That scene is very pretty spoon. No music for me. I fish and listen to the sounds of nature, as best my hearing aids allow! (Still laughing).
Bob

I fish out of small boats about 1/2 the time.
I really like fishing the spawn and quickly filling my box and paddling back to camp and seeing the guys with live scope asking where the fish went ?





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A 15 ft real cane pole, a pill bottle full of hand dug worms, a pocket knife, small needle nose plier and old sneakers walking the bank


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Originally Posted by flymoron

A 15 ft real cane pole, a pill bottle full of hand dug worms, a pocket knife, small needle nose plier and old sneakers walking the bank


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My hat is off to ya.

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Originally Posted by flymoron

A 15 ft real cane pole, a pill bottle full of hand dug worms, a pocket knife, small needle nose plier and old sneakers walking the bank


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Talking about getting back to the roots of fishing. Those little bream sure tasted good fried up after you had dug the bait and put in all the work

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Originally Posted by GreenLine

I really like fishing the spawn and quickly filling my box and paddling back to camp and seeing the guys with live scope asking where the fish went ?

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I do somewhat the same thing during the Spring. Cleaning fish people like to ask questions and I say it's because I have a livescope. This raises even more questions. As we talk more I tell them it must really help but then I tell the the truth - I never turned it on today.

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Originally Posted by UpstateSC_Bill

I get what some of you are saying about depth finders and other technology. As I said the lakes I fish are small and quiet. I have a light anchor that has the line marked in three foot increments. I can check depth anytime I want. I'm perfectly content to quietly and even slowly explore. I get skunked a bit but I have my good days too. All time on the water is happy time. It doesn.t bother me at all to get skunked.

Even my cell phone is only there for safety communications and the occasional picture. My music is the birds and the wind and the insects and watching wildlife. Oh yeah the splashing of a fish sounds nice to.

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I definitely like your style.

I have some decent electronics but there are times when I just use the maps page for the depth and chase a thump.

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Originally Posted by flymoron

A 15 ft real cane pole, a pill bottle full of hand dug worms, a pocket knife, small needle nose plier and old sneakers walking the bank


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Ohhh to be able to be a kid again...or atleast act like one. I think I had the same pill bottle. And a quill.

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Yes sir I keep it simple myself. Fish from a kayak with 2-3 ultra lights and have a blast. Only electronic I have is a battery powered Hawkeye fish finder mainly used for depth and water temp.


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It is gratifying to see a fair number of simple minded folks like myself replying here. Although I have done a fair amount of bank fishing and I can be perfectly content just getting a line wet I prefer being on the water in my little canoe. Mine is an Old Town Discovery/Guide 119. It works great on the quiet waters I fish.

Nothing wrong with paddling and tossing a jig to a good looking spot

I do all spring… once the gush move out to open water I rely a little more on depth finders and a old hummingbird side scan but all spring I’ll be in my 1436 sitting in the front with a paddle in one hand and a jig pole in the other! It’s the way I learned from my grandfather and it’s my absolute favorite way to catch a fish!


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I am too old to be simple.

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I am too old to not be simple. High tech makes my hair hurt.

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The older I get, the more I use electronics to find 'em and a float to catch 'em. Sometimes trolling too. Arthritis don't play! :yikes

Just sold my 1222 livescope , Let the hustle ,hurry world have the latest and greatest . Would rather see something other than a screen all day . Once you retire catching fish is secondary to the experience . Cant eat all the fish that one can catch fishing Monday . -Friday . Tournament needs are driving the market . Nothing wrong with that , just not why I fish . Attachment 451386Attachment 451387

Awesome pics!!!

I upgraded to two 9 inch TI2's. NEEDED larger screen. I got them used at a good price. They are obsolete, but serve my purpose. I looked at new stuff, but don't need it to catch a 5 fish limit.

We do at lot of just riding around and sight seeing in the same area. Never gets boring. My wife and I are in our 80's now. Time changes everything, including your outlook on life.

Tom

sure there are , I often have just a rod and few jigs and hop out here and there and pitch my jigs in the water , ketch plenty of fish and enjoy the scenery too .....:highfive

BobC, without music I fish too fast. Besides, where else can I dance in the boat like a fool :fingerdance (as long as no one else is around that is...).

While I have a good selection of all the electronics on my boat. I don't always use them, not even during tournaments. Some days I just want to be on the water enjoying the day. Sometimes I even put a line in teh water.

I sold my boat ( mostly bass fishing). Crappie fish docks now, biggest problem now is deciding which one out of 5 do I go to.


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the older I get, the more I love going back to the basics. Yep, got a nice glass stratos and us it on the rivers. But I pulled out the old 1432 and put a new trolling motor on it just for the ponds. Took an old metal folding chair and cut 3 inches off the legs and strapped a throw cushion in the seat and a 1 inch ratchet strap to hold everything in place and I am as happy as a hog in slop. Quiet, peaceful, no waves or traffic. Just me and the owls and turkeys and two geese that are ADHD. I use a 10 lb anchor in the wind but my spotlock is a stick of 1/2 inch conduit. My dad bought that boat new in 1967. It's in great shape too. Heavy gauge aluminum. I had forgot about that sound of the water slapping the hull of that boat. Sure brings back memories of my childhood.