GillsDeep916 Loc: Elk Grove, CA

I am curious if it was easier to catch fish decades ago because of less fisherman/competition or are there no real differences or is it better now?

I'm talking about the 60's-80's. I didn't fish back then though I could have fished in the 80's had i been introduced to the hobby.

There are so many people fishing nowadays. Whaddaya guys think about the state of affairs of our nations fisheries, wherever you may dwell?

I hope you all you catch your PB on your next cast, or on any subsequent cast actually 🤪.

Good luck out there.

Tight Lines 🎣

Flytier Loc: Wilmington Delaware

There's a lot more people than there used to be all going after the same resources. Where you hunted and fished last year might be a strip mall or houses this. It gets harder every year to find quality areas that haven't been ruined.

Big dog Loc: Bayshore, Long Island, New York

More boats in the water, more hooks in the water, more fish getting hooked, higher mortality count. Fewer fish reproducing. Yup, it’s simple science.

NoCal Steve Loc: Dunnigan, CA

There were many waters in the US duringvthe 70's that were so polluted they were fishless. The improvements over the last 50 years continue to add new fisheries and enhance existing ones. Of course there were places with great fishing and little pressure that get fished hard today. Clear Lake in California is a great example of that. A retired game warden tells of the time he cited a man for having 6 bass at Clear Lake in the late 60's. He estimates the best 5 fish weighed more than 55 lbs! And the guy was fishing from the bank! That will probably never happen again but even with all the pressure, BASS named it the #1 bass fishery in the US for the last decade. And it kicked out a 16÷ lber last year. CPR (CATCH/PHOTO/RELEASE) contibutes to continued good fishing. I think there is plenty of fish out there waiting to tear your pole out of your hands!

Big dog Loc: Bayshore, Long Island, New York

And of course it depends on what species of fish we’re talking about. Tuna and shark fishing has declined big time, due to commercial fishing. The winter flounder along the Northeast is all but gone, due to commercial fishing and the destruction of spawning grounds. Salmon are having a harder time with warmer waters.
Other fisheries may appear to be getting better but only due to the concerted efforts of sportsman in the local area.
As more people fish, or eat fish, the tougher it’s gonna get.

Doug Lemmon Loc: Rochester Mills, PA

Flytier and Big dog both make valid points. Boats are being sold like Campers and ATV's. And, you see many more fisher men and females than ever before. So Yes many more lines in the water.

While I agree with their comments, we have to look at the other side of the simple science. Depending on the areas you might be referring to, Stream and River conservation and restoration projects have been beneficial, as well as the technology of tracking resident and migratory fish with electronic devices. Stocking and breeding programs programs go hand in hand with the fish kill of previous years. Seasons are being opened and closed more than ever today with the fish population in mind. For example, MilleLacs in Minnesota set catch and release only for Walleye and closed for any Walleye fishing in the month of July due to large ice fishing harvest. Also more people are taking part in CPR ( Catch Photo Release ) As long as the fish was now mortally harmed, it will live to breed and fight again another day.

With that all said, best advice to everyone is just be a good sportsman. The daily limits for possession are set with all factors considered . There are an abundance of great fishing locations all across the states.. get out there and find one!

Graywulff Loc: Cortez,Co.

I live in a relatively unpopulated area. There are lots of man made lakes around, mostly for irrigation purposes but each has a minimum pool to preserve the fishery. There is only one lake left where boats with motors are allowed because of the zebra mussel problem. It's a whole nother world than it was. In the 50's and 60's I fished the rivers and lakes and ponds in Montana usually caught a fish or two or a slew each time. In the 70's and 80's fished lakes and creeks in Northern New Mexico, less successful outings but managed to catch fish quite often. 90's were a down time for me. Now I'm here in S.W. Colorado. I generally fish for what no one else wants, perch, northerns, brook trout. I don't catch anything of any real size but I manage a fish dinner most times I get out. I can't speak for the rest of the country but from what I have seen of the threads posted here there is much more pressure, more stringent limits, and in general a much lower regard for our natural spaces. So in concluding my two cents, fishing is fishing, sometimes you catch, sometimes you don't, every time you get out you win.

flyguy Loc: Lake Onalaska, Sunfish Capitol of the World!

All good thoughts, Wulffy.

The question was posed to the fishing veterans about the quantity and quality of fish. My thought is that it is a hard question to answer for a veteran. I have had many 50 - 100 fish days back in the 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s, and the early 2000s. But now, I'm physically not able to fish as hard as I did then. Now, if I go out and fish a couple of three hours, and catch 10 - 15 fish, that is enough, it gets to be work. So, I go home and have a beer.

Graywulff Loc: Cortez,Co.

Me too flyguy. 👍

Flytier Loc: Wilmington Delaware

I could start on habitat destruction, but I've already had my rant for the day. Another time.

Big dog Loc: Bayshore, Long Island, New York

👍👍

Catfish hunter Loc: Riggins idaho (Paradise)

I’ve, honest only been fishing for about 62 years. I’m only 65. Lol. I’ve seen pictures of me fishing when I was 3 but I don’t remember that all so well. In the mid 60s I was only 10 so I’m gonna say fishing is better now but that’s probably due to the fact I know how to fish a little better now. I fish in Alaska every fall and the locals tell me the fishing is still as good there as it was when they were younger. It’s a matter of changing locations and not so much that it’s fished out. The food source changes so the fish move to find it. We still boat 20 plus fish a day up there and it’s not hard to do. My fishing buddy is all about managing the fishery because most biologists are not fishermen and don’t really understand the management part of any given species. I don’t know that’s just what they tell me. Makes sense to me though. New age computers don’t know what old age fishermen do and most fishery management comes from computer designation now. I know there are lots of people up there who don’t catch fish and they blame it upon poor fish management but we seem to catch as many as we want. My buddy supplies all the old folks around homer so he keeps a few. In the lower 48 I’ve used those same principles. If I’m not catching fish I study the habitat. If the food’s not there the fish won’t be either. There’s a certain science to it. Just like people. Fish evolve and will only be where they can sustain life. I don’t seem to have a lot of trouble catching most fish I target but I do see people struggling. In my younger years there were, definitely fewer people fishing and I caught fish more easily in most places but now I have a different approach and still do ok.

NoCal Steve Loc: Dunnigan, CA

Big Dog, well said. Made me realize my focus was freshwater. I know we must have some Pugent Sound members. Please share with the rest of the country what the fishing was like in the 70' and 80's. Then tell us what it's like now.

Big dog Loc: Bayshore, Long Island, New York

Well, back in the early ‘70s there were still plenty of winter flounder around, as were the blowfish. Then THEY started using pressure treated wood for the bulkheads and all that weed, sponges and barnacles disappeared. With that the blowfish disappeared. At the same time, that they were replacing the bulkheads they were redoing the electrical wires, leaving the old wires in the ground or water. Lots of those old wires still had juice going through them which went into the water. Most of the marinas being located on old creek beds, the same creeks that the winter flounder would be spawning in, were now ‘sour’ from that electric water pollution. Like salmon, winter flounder spawn in the same waters they were spawned in. So many creeks were now too sour for the flounder to spawn in.
Add the commercial fishing fleet to the mix, the boats that now used nets with a mesh large enough to allow the smaller, juvenile fish to escape. Only problem is, by the time those smaller fish made their way out, they were already dead. I saw this first hand while on fisheries patrol in the Coast Guard.
I remember when you could fill a garbage can with flounder, now if you catch a daily limit of 2 it’s amazing!
I’ve been told that there are hatcheries rearing blowfish but I’ve heard nothing about the flounder.
Keep in mind that at one time, just a few centuries ago, Atlantic salmon were heading up every river, stream and creek along the Northeast coast to spawn. That doesn’t happen anymore.
The Alewives were incredibly populous but now it’s a rare thing when one is sighted going back into fresh water to spawn.
Around here the ‘experts’ are telling us that Searobins aren’t the ‘trash fish’ that everyone has always said they are. They tell us they’re actually tasty. Well sorry but I’m not gonna fall for that kinda mind control! I’ve tried sea robin that I caught and cleaned. YUCK ! It’s not a fish for eating, it’s got gray meat and taste like what it’s always been called ‘trash’.
Yeah, things have changed ! And not for the better.

Flytier Loc: Wilmington Delaware

The trouble is if you take one fish off the roles to fish for, the rest get hit harder. No porgy and silver hake, chase seabass. Run out of seabass, chase tog. Now they're all scarce.