Fishing Pigeon Lake "Is it luck or chance"

[headchef]

Good day fellow fishermen, I am a advid reader of Alberta outdoorsmen and have always enjoyed the stories,picture's and comments,but do have to comment on those who complain about and in regards to poor fishing or a lack of fish at pigeon lake.I have always wanted and dream't that some day i will live by a lake and do what i have grown to love from my childhood years is to fish. 10 years ago that dream came through and now i reside at Mulhurst Bay. I do believe that fishing is all about luck, but to gain a greater chance of luck one must learn where,how and when to fish.I have fished every square mile and all times of the day on Pigeon and can say that there have been days where i have been skunked,but there have been days where its been "FISH ON" all day long.Over the years i have taken my knowledge and can honestly say that its very rarely i do get skunked.I have learned when to fish, where to fish and what to fish at certain time of the season and day.But with this all said,i do have a ice cabin on the lake that stay's at one location that does not produce fish all the time and i have fished for hours and not seen anything but here's the kicker.After all the years of fishing and the knowledge i have gained my wife say's to me that the best fishing is between 3 to 7pm. This is coming from a person that does not nearly have the hours of fishing as i do and has her own thoughts of how to fish but yet we sit 5ft away from each other in our cabin and she is pulling pike,walleye whitefish through the hole with little effort as i look down my hole to see nothing and wonder to myself what the $#@*.What it comes down to is that it's still all about luck and allways will be.

[Lady White]

Good point! My dad and i can go out I move 30 times, he will sit in one hole somedays I slay all the fish sometimes it is him. Some days I catch my limit and spend more time digging holes then actually fishing.

[Winch101]

Fishing walleyes during daylight hours , I will move 50 times especially if there is no real structure....That is why I bought that 4 strk strikemaster
17 lbs I think ...nice...If I catch one in 12 ft or less around 4 oclock I will usually stay put for the nite-bite. I will lay out a series of holes perpendicular to the shore starting 8-10 ft and out to 25 or so ..... a few minutes at each hole...20 mins or so at each series ....catch a fish stay a little longer...otherwise move on.
I have had some unbelievable walleye action in summer there but have never been there in winter.It pains me to see those sizzlers go down the hole

Mobility is the key.but it is all Luck otherwisw the Mrs. wouldnt give me the beatings I get in that boat...But I am a hell of a baiter, netter , driver ,elec motor puller upper...you know like a guide but no pay , no tip :bad_boys_20:

[Rainbow]

Hi fellow fisherman;
I very seldom get skunked because I follow the 2 fishing rules!!!
Rule number 1
Try to be smarter than a fish.
Rule number 2
Remember rule number 1
Good luck.
Rainbow

[Walleyedude]

What it comes down to is that it's still all about luck and always will be.

Aren't luck and chance the same thing?

In some ways I agree with you, fishing is a lot like playing poker, the player with the best hand doesn't always win. There is always an element of luck involved.

That being said, I generally disagree with your statement. The experienced poker player, playing the best hands and the best odds, comes out on top far more often than not, and the same is true about fishing. You can all but take luck out of the equation with the right equipment, the right experience, and the willingness to adapt to what the fish are telling you at all times.

Consistently going out and catching fish has very little to do with luck.

[walleye guy]

10 % of the fishermen catch 90% of the fish I think, If your wife is out fishing you try doing the dishs before fishing next time might be the smell of dish soap on her hands , Who knows for sure :thinking-006:

[Blairh]

I think its luck and confidence, I swear when I'm out fishing if I don't think I'm going to catch fish, I don't. But days I go out thinking "I have a good feeling about today" or "I really like this spot" I catch fish. Maybe its some human-fish connection o.O, or I may just be crazy

[bobalong]

Aren't luck and chance the same thing?

In some ways I agree with you, fishing is a lot like playing poker, the player with the best hand doesn't always win. There is always an element of luck involved.

That being said, I generally disagree with your statement. The experienced poker player, playing the best hands and the best odds, comes out on top far more often than not, and the same is true about fishing. You can all but take luck out of the equation with the right equipment, the right experience, and the willingness to adapt to what the fish are telling you at all times.

Consistently going out and catching fish has very little to do with luck.

X2

[Speckle55]

Good day fellow fishermen, I am a advid reader of Alberta outdoorsmen and have always enjoyed the stories,picture's and comments,but do have to comment on those who complain about and in regards to poor fishing or a lack of fish at pigeon lake.I have always wanted and dream't that some day i will live by a lake and do what i have grown to love from my childhood years is to fish. 10 years ago that dream came through and now i reside at Mulhurst Bay. I do believe that fishing is all about luck, but to gain a greater chance of luck one must learn where,how and when to fish.I have fished every square mile and all times of the day on Pigeon and can say that there have been days where i have been skunked,but there have been days where its been "FISH ON" all day long.Over the years i have taken my knowledge and can honestly say that its very rarely i do get skunked.I have learned when to fish, where to fish and what to fish at certain time of the season and day.But with this all said,i do have a ice cabin on the lake that stay's at one location that does not produce fish all the time and i have fished for hours and not seen anything but here's the kicker.After all the years of fishing and the knowledge i have gained my wife say's to me that the best fishing is between 3 to 7pm. This is coming from a person that does not nearly have the hours of fishing as i do and has her own thoughts of how to fish but yet we sit 5ft away from each other in our cabin and she is pulling pike,walleye whitefish through the hole with little effort as i look down my hole to see nothing and wonder to myself what the $#@*.What it comes down to is that it's still all about luck and allways will be.

Nice Post:sSig_nicethread:

a Humble Master Angler:waiting4:


David:)

[BIZJAY]

Most of what you descride as in you know where to fish and when and how are more skill involved then luck in my humble opinion. I do believe there is a little luck involved with fishing but ultimatly it comes down to skills and knowlegde, if your going out time and again using only the same presentation in the same areas theres a good chance ur relying on luck. If you go to the same areas and try different presentaions until you start catching fish thats skill, again in my opinion. As to why one person catches the majority of the fish while the other person gets nothing ive seen it time and time again and the less the one person catches the more aggrevated or sressed they get and present baits the wrong way, ive done it myself, once I calmed down started catchin more. I read something about women having an attractive scent and when handeling lures and bait makes them more attractive, like gulp spry does i guess, or maybe it because they werent handling the gas for the auger or sled or boat.

[bentley]

Luck or skill ? We have fished from our boat with one side producing walleye & pike the other side nothing . Same bait / lures , line & depth . It was silly to the point that we traded sides , 6 feet apart . Bang , bang , bang the other guy skunked . No drop off , no explanation ?

[fish gunner]

Go to any stocked trout pond . Men with 100$dollar outfits. Little girl with Barbie out fit . On a one day fish the little girl is my odds on winner . After time on the water the angler will adapt and learn, on day two the Barbie outfit starts to lose the advantage. New day new pond Barbie starts anew with the advantage. Imho.

[EZM]

Fishing is all about "managing the variables" (some could call it experience, skill or whatever). I generally disagree with the OP.

1) Understand your quarry's need for cover, forage, preferred temperature etc... know where they are most likely to be at a certain time of year or certain time of day.

2) Use the best presentation in the proper application - run the lures, at the right depth, at the best size, and color and/or flavor at the right speed, jogging pattern or retrieve.

3) Find other conditions that maximize your chances - structure, bait-fish, your target species etc...

Manage those variables and luck plays a much smaller part in determining your success.

I too, have been in a boat, where one of three guys is pulling in all the fish. It's funny because often we are using the same techniques and lures presented the same way. There is a element of statistical chance, some call it luck, in those cases.

Chances are, if "luck" is the biggest condition leading to your lack of success, you are probably not exploiting all of your other options to reduce the variables.

[huntsfurfish]

Agree.
And could carry that a little further.
Frequently when one angler is out fishing the other, he frequently is doing something just slightly different then the other angler. Maybe just holding the jig steady a little longer or slower movement.

The better on one side could be just a difference in where the walleye are actually holding. Yes it can make the difference even where you think its just a flat, or the same cover.:)

As said you can manage your luck to a large extent.

That said, some days I wonder.:)

And sometimes your just better than the guys your fishin with:);):evilgrin:

[BEL]

A buddy and I were walleye fishing one time, actually on more than one occasion, I'm catching fish on one side of the boat and he isn't. He says it is because I have the shaded side. Sometimes switching helps. BEL

[BeeGuy]

Fishing always has an element of chance.

However, when Ms.Bee comes fishing and out fishes all the boys, she does so by fishing harder.

If it was entirely chance, one of us would have out fished her by now.

Often it is an issue of preparing to succeed. I'm often surprised by people who haven't prepared the night before.

[bentley]

A buddy and I were walleye fishing one time, actually on more than one occasion, I'm catching fish on one side of the boat and he isn't. He says it is because I have the shaded side. Sometimes switching helps. BEL

The shaded side ? it's worth a try , fuel for an afternoon discussion in the boat . I love it , thanks .

[Buck9]

I've tried to rely on luck in the past, but more and more I find myself looking for information to try and give myself an advantage to catching fish. Just look at this site people are looking for information, not lucky charms. In derbys the knowledgable angler usually ends up on the top.