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Totally agree i love having time to think and drift off on a tangent, people always seem to think you need to be with others to be happy and the old dont you get bored or lonely while your fishing on your own? and I think nah its when I am most at peace sitting with my thoughts,

I suppose everyone has their own way of dealing with a lost fish... I have "The Short Informal Walkabout" and woe betide anyone who interrupts it... strangling fenceposts has a lot going for it too

I think you are probably right. Perhaps the EA should have a Blue Badge system for handicapped anglers.

if you think about it all fishing gear is technology but some people see certain things as going to far. like dynamite is technology, but I don't think many people would like it rocked up and blew the bejesus out of a lake to catch some fish. I know that's a bit of an extreme example but I like the thought of blowing sh*t up

Not knocking it... if that's your bag, fine, crack on... just saying it's not for me... and yes I do wear glasses (hardly new tech... they've been around since 1600) and my casting skills come from doing it since I was a nipper...(fishing for 57 years) to me a lot of the tech is just more stuff to cart about... if in the future I need to use it... then so be it, but for now... I'll toddle on as I am

slowly and carefully...😋😎 40 years of shift work in a heavy manufacturing job take their toll, plus a couple of bike accidents and playing cricket up till my late forties... I'm 61 now and yes it hurts getting up in the morning... that's why I retired last year... my old employers have just gone back to a 12 hour day and with an hours worth of travelling each way there was no way I was going to continue... the times of me working 12 hour days and nights are long gone

And to top it off a speech impediment! Only jesting buddy😁

With all the talk of technology flying about, I have to admit to going the other way (oo-er missus) I have reverted back to split-cane rods, center-pins, or Mitchell 300/400 reels and optonics.... what next...??? milk bottle tops... a penny placed on the spool with a hubcap below it...? Gotta say since I went traditional I have caught more... dunno why, can't put a finger on it... perhaps it's because you wouldn't expect to catch using such antiquated gear, but that said, subconsciously the pressure is off... if you are not expecting to catch, then you put less pressure on yourself... and the results come... Lets get one thing clear... I still use carbon gear occasionally and I am not advocating that everyone uses cane and pins to up their catch rate.... what I am saying is that we anglers can be our own worst enemies when it comes to hunting down that biggun.... Once I started in on the traditional side of carping, I used my watercraft skills to stalk carp out of margins, more often than not just using one rod to lay traps and picking up the odd good fish and relying less and less on bite alarms and chucking to the horizon, leading about, marker float trips, swim mapping and the like... even down to using just a hook with a bait, nothing else, no line clips, no leads, or fancy rigs... as soon as I started to fish purely for the enjoyment of the day, the pressure on myself was off and my catch rate went up.... nowadays I think too many anglers are putting pressure on themselves to pick up that magical fish... too much time spent planning and not enough time just grabbing a rod, reel, bag, net and chair and fishing purely for the fun of it... and the proof of the pudding has to be the smile when you do get a chunk.... All too often I see pictures in the angling press of some bod with his sponsor's tee shirt and hat and a serious whacker in his arms and a face like a bulldog licking pee of a nettle... they are probably thinking" where's the next big hit coming from" What I will say is, take the time to enjoy the journey... even smell the flowers along the way and when you get that lump.... for god's sake.... smile...😁 Tight lines all

I'm off to France at the weekend and will be using a boat. Mainly because the distance is probably just outside my comfort zone for casting but also because it will make my life easier. At the end of the day I've spent a lot of money on this trip so want to give my self the best chance to catch a whopper.

I could of wrote that myself.

Myself and 3 other mates are giving Beacon View ago on Sunday...im Carping and my mate is trying out his new Match gear.

I guess what it all comes down to with tech is where you draw your own personal line, I don't really have an issue with others using it, I don't really see someone choosing to map a lake with a deeper as cheating, in fact I wouldn't really say its cheating to throw out a fishspy on a spot you have found to check what's really down there, however driving a bait boat to a spot you couldn't cast and bait to is a slightly different thing, and maybe using a bait boat to map the lake may be different again, I guess I've decided if you cast it, then it's kind of OK

I've always been my own worst enemy tbh, I tend to get obsessed with things way too often, I struggle to juggle everything and don't always get the balance right, that being said I dont think I am being unreasonable wanting to have a hobby, without something else to focus on my depression would be much worse I think, I've felt like just going to work and everything else day in day out becomes a real grind,I love my family and feel lucky but sometimes It all gets tough to deal with, My family does always come first but you have to remember sometimes you need to put yourself first, I sometimes need a break to get my head back together and fishing allows me to detune and refresh, I tend to not go out boozing or socialising much these days so I love to stare at water it's therapeutic for me,

I think that sometimes the pressure is subconcious and you are not really aware of it... I have seen marriages fail due to the desire to be out on the bank and I've seen some real tantrums on the bank over lost fish... sometimes you just have to take a step back and try to be philosophical about it... the turning point for me came after losing my parents... I vowed that my sport was going to be enjoyed no matter what... and once the pressure to compete (match fishing) went, along with the desire to take a step back from work.... I began to take stock out of what I really wanted out of my sport now the match fishing has gone by the by, the serious side of carping has evaporated for me and I go carping about once in every 5 sessions... maybe it's an age thing but sometimes you just gotta slow down and watch the world rush by... still nice to get a lump now and then though👍😎

The definition of angling is "the sport or pastime of fishing with a rod and line". I think that just about sums up my approach.

I'm not sure about that mate. Anglers angle for enjoyment. Some guys enjoy a relaxed approach, some guys enjoy a more focused approach. I am one of those anglers that struggles to relax on the bank, always looking for an opportunity, up trees, on the move, staying up late, getting up early. I'm absolutely knackered after a fishing session. But it's not pressure that sees me angle like that. It's just what I enjoy. I'd get bored just sitting next to the rods for hours. I am always looking to make something happen (and normally it works). I always chuckle when I see those miserable shots. But make no mistake those guys are absolutely buzzing regardless of what they might look like. They are thinking only of getting the shots they need then returning the fish they spent a long time chasing back in the water safely. It's good that we have these choices, but it has to be said; the most effective angler is the one that knows when to do all of the above.

There seems to be a misconception that technology makes it easier to catch fish. Bluelabel says he is “as blind as a bat” but can still cast within a gnats whisker of overhanging trees on the far bank. I am guessing he wears spectacles. That is advanced technology that helps you see more clearly. (I am NOT having a dig at anyone here just trying to demonstrate a point). Imagine two identical lakes, one is like pea soup and the other is crystal clear. On the clear lake you can see every patch of weed, gravel bar deep hole and watch the fish patrolling around. You may want to take some binoculars for a closer look. Is that misuse of technology? On the pea soup lake you can see nothing except for the odd fish jumping or patch of bubbles. An echo sounder would reveal much more information but it would never give you as much information as you would have fishing the clear lake. What on earth is wrong with that?

and that's where the tech comes into its own, for when you cant stand there chucking a spod out 150 times a day or don't want to annoy everybody by chucking the marker out 50 times on a day ticket venue so if theres gizmos out there that let people carry on fishing when otherwise they would have had to call it a day then nobody should look down their noses at you for choosing to fish the best way that you can

Absolutely spot on mate. 👍 Each to their own on how they fish, where they fish, what they fish for etc but like you @yonny, it's all about doing it for yourself and hearing that alarm sound . What a buzz. As for all this tech, so you find the spot ,you find the fish, it still doesn't mean you will catch.

Seemed as good a place as any to post this!