Stick to what I know or try somewhere new

[bigray]

As some of you may or may not know from my previous posts that I have taken up fishing again after about 10 years. So far i'm loving it really got the bug again! The problem is that I keep returning to my local lake (Sapphire Lakes, Cromwell, Notts), I tried another local commercial and blanked (I wasn't the only one). Last weekend I took a friend of mine there who is heavily into it and he had a great time and will be back.

 

The question is do I stick to what I know and enjoy or move around and risk dissapointment. I have every intention or hitting the Trent when the season opens but in terms of commercials what should I do?

 

 

[Phone]

Bigray,

 

If catching is important I say "if it ain't broke, don't fix it". To broaden your horizons with thousands of combinations may just confuse the issue. At least you know where the bathroom is - stay put, get aquainted, have fun. (that is unless you plan to go on the "pro circut")

 

Phone

[stuchef]

I'm a big believer in moving around its too easy to go with what you know. by moving round learning new things will make u a better angler. And take what you've learnt to your lake might help you catch even more fish also it's not always about catching carp after carp I get more of a thrill if I go on a commercial and for example target chub and catch a net full of chub. Get on that Trent! yes u won't be catching big fish all day but 1 3lb tench will have you talking bout it for years

[kirisute]

in my experience you take your knowledge to somewhere new and just improve on it;

its a rare lake indeed that wont catch on a certain technique that will work happily on other lakes; sure you might need to adjust some of the technique a little but chances are similar techniques will work across a good range of waters.

for instance I love waggler fishing; I would put it at maybe 90% of how I fish; its versatile and will work in a lot of places will little to no changes...if I do choose to change I can alter to a float/ledger rig, or surface rig with relative ease and im stating within my chosen technique.

if things fail utterly then obviously a new method is called for..but that's a really really rare day in my experience.

learning new venues is fun; taking your "usual" methods and applying them will allow you to learn in a comfortable set of circumstances where you can make alterations to technique if required but still feel confident

[Rusty]

Disappointment is a part of angling I’m afraid whether it be blanking on new waters or catching the same old fish on reliable ones. Fish where you enjoy most for the time being, eventually you’ll want to try something or somewhere different and the problem will be solved for you.

 

There’s no need to make a conscious decision.

[Mat Hillman]

I like to do a bit of both, I'll often alternate trips, one to somewhere new for a bit of a challenge, and next trip to an old favourite swim for a confidence boost after a blank

 

Mat

[Barry C]

Part of the fun of angling for me is fishing different venues, catching not being as important as variety.

I try to get at least one new venue in every year.

If I do get fed up with struggling I, like most have a few banker waters where it would be rare not to get your string pulled.

[arbocop]

I find that it goes through phases - regular water for a while then need the buzz of somewhere else for a bit or a different tactic. To be honest, I don't get to go that often so I spend my time doing the next best thing - most of my fishing involves searching out new waters, reading and thinking about it. I think therefore I am minded to be like Rusty.

 

Mike

[Anderoo]

You can have too much of a good thing, if you're getting itchy feet I'd go and try somewhere else. You can always go back. If you're just going to the same place, doing the same thing and catching the same fish, a change can really invigorate you.

[RUDD]

You could try a new method, try to target one species of fish or try a different pegs.

Over the space of a year I will have fished various venues/pegs/methods and targetted various species. doing the same thing time and time again gets boring.

 

A new venue can be both fun yet disappointing at the same time as you have the unknown V learning about the place.