Skunked 2025

lectricbassman reply :

Just out of curiosity, how many times have you returned from a fishing trip without catching any fish. Ive had more than a few recently and it really messed with my confidence. I know its going to happen, what do you do to get back on your game?

geo g reply :

It doesn't happen every often these days but it has happened to even professionals occasionally.

1). The first thing I would do is change ponds.

2), Down size to a 4" plastic. (senko, zoom centipede, or fluke).

3). Fish slow and be a line watcher.

4). Look for a depth change, or ledge, close to vegetation, and concentrate on that area.

4). If that doesn't do it, go home and take a nap!

Good luck it will turn around soon.

Choporoz reply :

I come home and re-read the latest Bassmaster article about Yusuke Miyazaki's tough "Day on the Lake". I'm sure he hated it, but it has done wonders for me

Catch and Grease reply :

I get skunked all the time, my excuse is I fish a tough lake hahaha

Dwight Hottle reply :

I have seen guys travel over a thousand miles to a flyin lake in northern Canada and skunked for a day. It happens to all of us. It should help your overall game plan. Rethink your approach and consider if the problem is you or the fish just don't want to feed. Once you become successful it is just that more sweet .

mjseverson24 reply :

Its been a long time since I have been skunked ( probably 6 years ago small reservoir near san diego ) the key for me is being prepared for the unexpected. I have a pattern in mind when I go to the lake based on the time of year, weather conditions and type of lake. so the night before I rig up about 30 rods with all different types of stuff some to go along with the expected pattern, and some that would be considered plan B-Z to ensure I have a successful day on the water. sometimes it is something so small as the type of line ( floro or braid ) that makes all the difference, or the difference in fall rate between a 3/16 oz weight and a 1/8 oz. I try not to fish memories, but sometimes its hard especially if it is a lake i usually do well on, these are the times when the skunk becomes a possibility. The biggest thing for me has been the multiple rods ready to go, it is great to be able to pick up a rod make 3 casts with it and put it back down without having to cut and retie because most likely if i only plan on making 3 casts i wont make the switch if i didnt have a rig ready, and not switching can lead to a lot of missed fish. Fishing from the bank on the other hand it is pretty common to get "skunked" i know it happened a lot to me growing up, and i am sure if i went bank fishing today it would still happen regardless of how many rods i brought...

Mitch

ClackerBuzz reply :

If i really want to catch a bass I head to the weeds or shallow water. both if i'm desperate

Huntrava reply :

My trick is to keep going smaller on bait till something bites. Minnows are fish.

Haven't been skunked in years.

SirSnookalot reply :

Don't even give it a thought. There are days I'm catching plenty of fish so it evens out.

Sam reply :

Not often at all.

Last time I go skunked is when I went to a local lake to try casting some new lures.

I was not really trying to catch anything. I wanted to see how the bait casted and how it worked in the water.

Otherwise, I never get skunked.

riverbasser13 reply :

If your schedule allows fir it try a different time of day when the fish are more likely to be feeding, ie early mornin or late afternoon

aceman387 reply :

Try tying on the ned rig.I have been playing around with it the last couple months and have been pleasantly surprised with the results. Its simple to use and i have caught some decent size bass on it. I f your not having much luck with the swim retrieve try hopping it in or deadsticking it.http://everything-smallmouth.com/ned-rig-fishing/

einscodek reply :

havent been skunked since an outing late last fall but its that time of the year coming up soon

always had a gameplan and a fallback but when its close to winter and theyre not workin', I'm not a cold water fisherman.. I pack it in just before thanksgiving

Steveo-1969 reply :

For me, I can usually avoid skunks from March - October. Then from November - February bringing home a skunk is the norm. For me those 4 months represent about 200 hours of fishing. Conservately let's say one cast a minute, 60 casts an hour = 12,000 casts. With nothing to show for it but cold fingers, a runny nose, and pesky ice in my rod guides. And when I get home and my girlfriend asks if I caught anything, the answer is always "Nope, but I had a great time!".

Hmmmmm, is there such a thing as "Fishermen Anonymous"?

Rhino68W reply :

Try to be objective and evaluate yourself to see if it was YOU. Maybe your overcomplicating things, fishing too fast, or possibly not choosing the right spots. And there is always the possiblity that the fish just aren't biting. Either way, when you get home from a bad trip just go back and think about what you were doing versus what you should have done. Stick with the basics until you get your confidence back.

Justin Mott reply :

I think we all will get skunked for one reason or another. Sometimes its the weather, the season, timing, or the wife bringing you off the water. If it just happens once in a blue moon, I'm not concerned about it. When I first started, I got skunked way too many times to count. But after 15 years of doing this, I've gotten fairly grounded in my approach and have gotten in the habit of looking at the mistakes I might make in a days time.

Maybe my casting was off and I need to practice a specific cast. Maybe I got caught up with an area or presentation and didn't cover enough water or experiment enough. Or maybe I started fishing midday in the summer and I was asking to get beat up on. It could be anything that affects your style or focus, in my opinion.

Like most of us that have been fishing for awhile, we don't get skunked enough to really notice so we are making our adjustments or putting alot of thoughts into those days where we just catch a few solid tournament fish or even worse only small bass.

Justin Mott

*Hootie reply :

My skunk trips are always the first two or three trips of the year. I always figure that the reason is because I am fishing ice cold water.

Hootie

Swampstud reply :

Go back n research the bass' seasonal patterns. Then study a lil bit about how the weather can effect their mood an willingness to bite from day to day. Ill knock on wood now an tell ya following n studying those two sujects has kept me from blanking/ bein skunked the past 2 seasons.

BassinLou reply :

Getting skunked happens to the best of us. It's part of the game. The only way to remedy the situation is to go out and fish again.

flipin4bass reply :

If you were able to learn anything new about your tackle, craft, prey, or anything new about the water you fished, or even meet a new friend while on the water...then maybe you were not skunked at all. A day on the water without fish is always better than a day without fishing at all.

atcoha reply :

Got the itch after doing yard work, headed to a public lake that is way over fished...Tried a jig, too much grassy muck on the bottom, went with a 10" worm t-rigged.

Got a single bite, ended up biting the tail off, about 3 inches of it. No more luck. Headed back to the house to get my inshore stuff ready for tonight. Hopefully the bull reds will cooperate tonight.

SirSnookalot reply :

In Florida it's pretty hard to get skunked bass fishing but it does happen in the summer. I have other species I target that I may not get a strike for weeks, that's not abnormal. On the opposite side there are times it's fish a cast, but not all day long the bite may last 30 minutes or 10 seconds.

NDH Fishing reply :

I get skunked sometimes, I try to avoid talking about how my fishing day went after that, but if someone asks Im not gonna lie, so I just tell them

I already caught all of the bass in that lake yesterday.

Bankbeater reply :

So far this year I have not been skunked. I think I am balancing out from last year when I got skunked like every other trip.

Mainebass1984 reply :

Getting skunked is not allowed. It has been years since I have been skunked. Even when I am using my boat as an ice breaker in the fall I can still get a few bites on a jig or silver buddy. In the early early spring when the lakes are still half frozen the jig and suspended jerkbait produce. Getting skunked just isn't allowed. Then again if I am going fishing I am fishing atleast 5 or 6 hours. Most of the time I am fishing 8-10 hour days which gives me plenty of time not to get skunked.

BrownBear reply :

On 9/19/2014 at 7:14 PM, aceman387 said:
Try tying on the ned rig.I have been playing around with it the last couple months and have been pleasantly surprised with the results. Its simple to use and i have caught some decent size bass on it. I f your not having much luck with the swim retrieve try hopping it in or deadsticking it.http://everything-smallmouth.com/ned-rig-fishing/

aceman387,

Thanks for your post and for the link, saves me time from trying to filter out everything to find it. I am going to give it a try next time I go out.

BadBassWV reply :

I read it twice 30 rods. I don't think I have 30 different baits to try LOL.

lectricbassman reply :

Thanks for all the great tips everyone. Went out on the same pond ive been getting skunked at and actually caught some nice fish! Instead of forcing the technique i wanted to use i listened to the fish. I realized that ive been stuck in a mental rut. Today i really really really wanted to fish a topwater frog. So instead i threw a spinner bait first. No luck. Threw the frog. No luck but i forced myself to throw a curly tail grub. Tried hopping it on the bottom. No luck. Then as i swam it quickly along the bottom, wham! First fish wasnt a bass but a nice crappie. I had no idea they were even in this pond. Lucky for me the bass wanted the same thing and i landed quite a few bass and crappie today. Long story short, dont be a nimrod, listen to the fish!

guitarglynn1 reply :

On 9/19/2014 at 6:18 AM, lectricbassman said:
Just out of curiosity, how many times have you returned from a fishing trip without catching any fish. Ive had more than a few recently and it really messed with my confidence. I know its going to happen, what do you do to get back on your game?

I am a master of going fishing and catching nothing. I don't let it mess with my confidence though because it is going to happen. I always feel like no matter what, I can learn something each time I fish. And some times catching nothing one day is part of why you have success the next time. One thing I have learned from my fishing experience is, catching fish is not easy. At least for me it is not. But I learn from it and walk away a better fisherman for it I think.

einscodek reply :

On 9/30/2014 at 9:46 PM, guitarglynn1 said:
I am a master of going fishing and catching nothing. I don't let it mess with my confidence though because it is going to happen. I always feel like no matter what, I can learn something each time I fish. And some times catching nothing one day is part of why you have success the next time. One thing I have learned from my fishing experience is, catching fish is not easy. At least for me it is not. But I learn from it and walk away a better fisherman for it I think.

Yes let a skunk teach you instead of frustrate you.. in this way you move forward

and with each step forward you get better

I would give one suggestion.. erase that idea of "catching fish is not easy"

that is not a constructive conclusion

its also alot about attitude and confidence believe it or not

guitarglynn1 reply :

On 9/30/2014 at 11:08 PM, einscodek said:

Yes let a skunk teach you instead of frustrate you.. in this way you move forward

and with each step forward you get better

I would give one suggestion.. erase that idea of "catching fish is not easy"

that is not a constructive conclusion

its also alot about attitude and confidence believe it or not

So are you saying where the mind goes the fish will follow?

einscodek reply :

Heh..I said its alot.. its not all or is it?

ClackerBuzz reply :

On 9/30/2014 at 9:46 PM, guitarglynn1 said:
I am a master of going fishing and catching nothing. I don't let it mess with my confidence though because it is going to happen. I always feel like no matter what, I can learn something each time I fish. And some times catching nothing one day is part of why you have success the next time. One thing I have learned from my fishing experience is, catching fish is not easy. At least for me it is not. But I learn from it and walk away a better fisherman for it I think.

x2. i finally started keeping a fishing journal this year. but it's more a 'not get skunked next time journal'. it's far more focused on what my original plan was, what i actually did on the water and what i learned for the day vs just a record of catches. i start to see patterns in locations and techniques which allow me to be more efficient on my next outing. it helps me to cover smarter water, more effectively

Choporoz reply :

On 10/1/2014 at 1:40 AM, guitarglynn1 said:
So are you saying where the mind goes the fish will follow?

Be color blind - don't fish so shallow

1681

Skunked 2025

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