Do “How to fish” books or other forms of info get out of date say in fishing a particular body of water? Can they end up actually being misleading assuming things can change over time?
Do you think the information remains accurate and useful enough to buy a book when looking at something that was written say 10 years ago?
This crossed my mind in the thread mentioning "Bill Schiess “Fishing Henry’s Lake”…published in 1988 and out of print.
That particular example may still be useful but it seems to me many of the books like " Fishing [you name the state] Water’s" that are very old can be obsolete???
I guess that it is true that books get absolete when they are too precise in the information. Lets say, this fly pattern for this river during such time of the year, at dusk… Well, it could be true that this worked for the author of the book at least 1 time, but who knows what is going to happend there next year.
Books that deal with more generic information are more likely to last for ever. Just an example, The soft hackle fly from Syl Nemes. I guess it is from 1975, you can get a lot of fish fishing those patterns in the way he describes them to work
Malevo
“It is not our differences that divide us; it is our inability to recognize, accept, and celebrate those differences” Audre Lorde
Not FF related, but I have read articles that indicate spinnerbaits and buzzbaits are not as effective as they once were, when it comes to LMB. I do not know if that is true, but some of what I read theorizes that bass are losing their instincts to hit on such lures because they are learning that going after such lures will result in their getting caught. No idea if this has any merit or if the multitude of different spinnerbaits and buzzbaits is actually causing this (i.e. perhaps there are enough “bad” designs of such baits that actually don’t work but they are getting bought in such numbers that people are getting the impression that such baits in general are losing their effectiveness) phenom. However, it tends to lend traction to what you are referring to.
My best guess is that in areas where the pressure is fairly high, you need to use something different to stand out, so if there’s a fly/lure/whatever, in a book about a particular area or body of water, use something different and assume that everyone else has read the same book and chances are those same flies/lures/whatever will not be as effective. If pressure appears to be low for a particular body of water, then what is in the book may be just as effective now as it was when the book was written. Of course, if you can’t tell if the water is heavily pressured, try out the flies/lures/etc. recommended and see how that does. If it works, good, if it doesn’t try something that the book indicates does not work, if it does indicate anything like that.
An aside, I read articles in the local fishing magazines that are available at the sporting goods shops and elsewhere for free, and I wonder if some of the information written by some of the tournament fisherpersons is not really mis-information. Not saying that a book may have been written for that purpose, but you never know.
I know that Bill Schiess book is not out dated by any means.
On fact mine was falling apart, so he sent me an autographed copy last year and we have stayed in touch since.
I do think the books that list the basics for certain waters don’t get outdated, maybe stating the odvious for new fishing holes.