From Ronnie Garrison,
Your Guide to Freshwater Fishing.
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How I Keep A Log

At the top of the square for the day I go, I name the lake. Beside that, I note the number of bass, breaking it down in keepers and throwbacks. At West Point and Oconee, I have three numbers, keepers on that lake, bass between 12 inches and 14 or 16 inches, and under 12 inch throwbacks.

Water temperature and weather conditions are usually noted next. I find is important to know what the water temperature was if you hope to repeat a catch. It is amazing how much the temperature changes from year to year. The water temperature has a strong influence on the fish and can determine how you should fish. The weather patterns also give you an idea of what to try. Wind, sun or clouds, unusually warm, cold, or normal for the time of year, all are important to note

Water condition is always listed. I use clear, stained, heavy stain or muddy. They all mean something to me. You can use your own definitions for many conditions. After all, this is information for you. To me, stained means seeing a crankbait down about a foot, heavy stain is seeing it down a few inches and muddy means it disappears as soon as it goes under. Lake level can also be helpful to know. There is no need to run miles to fish a rockpile that held fish last year but is out of the water this year!

Keep Up With Your Lures

Lure selection is important. I try to list not only what worked but what did not work. I want to know what lure was used, its color and size, how it was fished, and line test and type. I always write down information if I fished one way most of the day and then switched and caught fish. Type of structure where fish were caught is critical to keep. It helps to know details like depth, bottom composition, area structure and any unusual features. Structure that did not hold fish should also be noted for future reference. Specific information on fish caught, such as time of day, is written down.

I always debate how much information to log in from other fishermen. Included is information I know first hand. What my partner did and what I saw others doing is more important that what is told around the scales at weigh-in! I note comments but am careful to separate hearsay from fact. This information often is put in the margins with other detailed notes, tied to the correctdate with a number. Information from a weekend trip sometimes runs over into the next week, onto days when I do not go fishing.

Put Information In A Computer Program

Some day, I plan to put all my information on computer. You can purchase a program for that purpose or, if you use databases, you can make your own. I now keep all my calendars in a briefcase, in chronological order, and go through them before each trip. It would be much easier to punch a key on a computer and just look at information about Hartwell in April rather than going through all calendars for the month of April and looking for Hartwell trips.

It's real important to write so you can read your notes! I fish for bass more than anything else so most of my notes are about bass, but I keep up with other types of fish also. I even note how to line up trees that hold crappie so I can get on them each January! When and where the bream bed on a specific lake, the best areas for catfish, the best bait for hybrids at a specific time,all are examples of information that could help you in the future.

Other than helping catch fish, I like the memories my notes bring back. I will always know the details of my biggest bass ever, a 9 pound, 7 ounce hog that hit a chartreuse Boss Hog on February 10, 1991 at Jackson. I also know how many days I fish each month and year and how many bass I catch from year to year. At the bottom of each month's page, I keep days fished and number caught that month and a running total for year to date numbers. Those facts are good to have for your own interest.

Keep a fishing log. It can provide information that will help you catch fish. It can also bring back good memories that will never fade! Start today!