My Fishing Experience

I am the most ordinary, boring recreational angler. Same as everyone. There is nothing unusual about me when it comes to that. Why, then, am I writing this if I am like everyone else?
First, I want to share a sentiment: fishing is my passion. Why wouldn’t I? It’s not worse than anything else.
I created this blog for the simple reason that I understand perfectly well that it is not a passion only I indulge myself in. There are many different techniques of fishing, as there are many approaches. Some fish just to eat their game. That is one approach. Others do it for the sake of fishing as such — I am one of them, by the way. And many others want to catch a big trophy fish. I hope they plan to get it and then release it. A real trophy fish is very rare. Killing it to amuse one’s ego is a lousy approach if I do say so myself. Unfortunately, some people are exactly like that, but I hope you are not one of them.
I am city dweller originally, but there is nothing more pleasant for me than the murmur of water under the boat, steady rocking, and the fish biting the lure. I adore it, and many love it just as much as I do.

However, in the course of my life, I have repeatedly encountered problems with how to choose the appropriate equipment and tackle. Sometimes, my friends gave me advice. Sometimes, I made a choice by myself. But there’s one thing that I learned from that: there is no such thing as perfect fishing gear. There is no universal product that would fit everyone for everything. Especially when it comes to fishing, hunting, and similar activities.

Spontaneous fishing trips, even to a popular destination, are laden with surprises and shocks, and not necessarily in a good way. The right choice of equipment and gear will help to minimize the chance of trouble.

I was born in a smallish town and rarely traveled out of town. It was only when I turned 18 that I first bought my first fishing pole. I even remember that in detail, too. It was a fishing rod I purchased it from my friend, and he gave it to me almost free. I was surprised he had it, he wasn’t a fan of fishing to the best of my knowledge, and I didn’t ask him where he got his fishing rod from, naturally. I was surprised, not shocked into being rude. But the fact is a fact, he had it, and I got it.

Then I moved to a new house, near a few lakes, bought a boat, and then immediately realized that because of its length, the fishing rod did not suit me very much. Then I bought a shorter fishing rod, but I didn’t like it at all. It was awkward to hold, and it was massive. In the end, I lost it, or rather, it broke down.
I was more lucky with the boat, but now, I understand that I could have taken something better. There was no transom in my boat, and I could not put a trolling motor there. I had to work the oars. Only, I didn’t understand how the oars worked at all. I ended up buying wide oars, which, of course, allowed me to move quickly, but in return, I was getting tired a lot faster.
Then I took a snorkel, a spring gun, and tried spearfishing. I liked it, though not so much, mostly because I was freezing and caught a cold the next day. Regular fishing wasn’t like that, but the experience was still unusual and fun. I made several artificial fish shelters to hunt nearby, but if I knew that ready-made shelters were available, I would’ve instead bought them.
In general, I made a bunch of mistakes. And then I thought, why not make a blog where I would review the advantages and disadvantages of fishing products? At the end of the day, it can be beneficial for just about anyone.
So here we are.

The reason for making this website

Why would I make such a site? Because I feel it’s needed, badly. Yes, of course, some people took it upon themselves to compile reviews on some fishing gear, but they hardly cover all the products that exist. At the same time, such reviews often contain a lot of information that’s only barely interesting.

In my opinion, we need a more practical approach. If a person needs to know which particular rain suit is better, it is essential for them that the reviewer covers as many different pros and cons as possible. I am sure that people are not fools. I am sure that, in the end, many of my audience choose products that are different from those that I included in my reviews. Just because I gave information to choose from, and a different product can suit them better than the one recommended by me. And that’s fine.

Too often, many supposedly useful sites do not feature anything at all in the review, except for photos of the products and, at best, a brief retelling of their features. But what about the process of choosing? What to pay attention to? And what to do if something goes wrong when you’re fishing?

The last question concerns me the most. That is why I am writing not just reviews but also informational articles. For example, how to choose a fishing line for your needs. Or what to do if someone falls through the ice. I think you agree it would be strange if I tried to put that information to any review. So I don’t.

Feedback is essential to ensure quality content. Without it, it is almost impossible to grow and improve. What if I just can’t afford to buy a new boat for review? I usually just go to a friend of mine who may have such a boat. But that kind approach has its drawbacks even if I find a friend with the right boat every time. All my friends exploit their boats in different ways. To ensure 100% absence of mistakes due to bias, I should either limit the number “testers” to one person or, on the contrary, I should maximize it. And I can do the last thing by using your feedback. Not only the feedback on my reviews, because, to be honest, there is nothing to comment there except for drawing my attention to factual errors, but also the feedback about the products you’ve been using that I did not even consider.

Fishing equipment is not very expensive, and the choice is not very hard to make. Still, the right choice is not just money spent wisely. It’s also more pleasure from fishing.

My website is made for anyone who calls himself or herself an angler or wants to become one. Scratch that, it is for anyone who likes to spend time on or near water. Need to choose the right product? Great, I can help. Do you need to know some useful tricks that have nothing to do with fishing products and everything with fishing? I’ve got your back there, too.

I love fishing, and if you love it as much as I do, I will be happy to help you.