JACK WOLLITZ Looking back at high points

December marks the official beginning of the end of my fishing season, so it's time to dig back through the past year's highs and lows to see what might be learned.
If we are paying any attention at all, we become smarter anglers every time we are on the water. It's a good idea nonetheless to conduct a thorough inventory periodically to catalog our on-the-water experiences and analyze what was hot and what was not.
Mental exercises
I've learned mental exercises can improve my fishing fitness. Whether it's running an upcoming tournament day's tactics through my head or recording details after successful trips, brainstorming sessions help me focus on the things that contribute to putting more fish in the boat.
Here's one example.
After an outstanding day on Lake Erie's Presque Isle Bay last June, I took time to jot notes. My review began as a simple log in which I recorded each fish and what bait it hit.
This was a full 24 hours after my trip, but as my brain worked to remember all the details, I noticed I almost felt as though I was back on the water.
Soon, my list gave shape to a mental image of that acre of Presque Isle Bay that had yielded more three-pound-plus largemouth bass than any place I've ever seen.
I began to sketch the bottom contour as I recalled it and drew in the weed lines and wind direction. I then transferred my written notes as fish marks on the drawing.
With all that detail in place, it was easy to visualize how the fish were positioned and why they were responding to my lures.
An exercise like the one I conducted immediately after that trip also is valuable at the end of the year. Details that you took for granted while the day was fresh in your head can become distorted or altogether forgotten by next July.
Great days
Think back to your great days last season. What tactics did you employ? What were the air and water temperatures? Depth and bottom composition? Weather and sky conditions? Wind direction? And most importantly ask and answer the big question: Why did the fish hit?
If you really focus on the past experience, you'll be amazed at how much detail you can recollect (and how much you might have forgotten had you not engaged in this activity).
So far, we've been examining positives. It's also a good idea to look at the failures. Think about the bad days and ask the same questions above, with one major addition: What should I have done differently?
Bad memory
In fact, I'm sitting with one particularly bad memory right now. It was a beautiful day on a fish-filled lake. Everybody was catching fish. Everybody but me, that is.
You can bet that won't happen next year. I may have been fooled there once, but not twice. How am I so sure?
jwwollitz@aol.com