There have been many writers, be it Norman Mclean and his River Runs Through It, or Ted Trueblood blathering about his exploits in Field and Stream, but really the only way was to have been there and actually seen some fishery in its pristine state. But to do that we'd have to be 150 years old.
In my case 68 years is enough to have some recollections but still even then in , say 1957, things had already been altered. However, I suppose I could use that as a baseline because I did fish all the time, but then I was young and had no real skill and only marginal equipment---like no fish finders---we still don't have one as we believe they are immoral.
The baseline is only a 1957 baseline and nothing else. So if I say, "Back in my day we would get 10 strikes if we went out on Montello Lake in an afternoon." There might even be some question as to my actual memory, and just maybe a tendency to exaggerate a little. So presently if I go on a regular basis to Montello pond and only get two strikes on a Silver Minnow, then I might say things are not as good. Generally, this is my attitude. Not as good.
And again this base line is a shifting thing, or maybe it is called the Shifting Baseline Syndrome where one only can compare something to what one knows and not to an old baseline of 150 years ago.
Anyway, I believe we just found a better way to check the way fishing used to be, that would be back in the old days. It seems we have found a place where no one else fishes because they do not know about it and it is very difficult to reach. It is a bitch and believe me, there will be no $50,000 bass boats in there. It is like it was.
The truth hurts, I am afraid. Hurts bad. In a few hours, it is possible to catch 10 bass, 5 Northerns and maybe a Tiger Musky (we did see a big boy). The fish are large, strong and fat. The message clear, there was a time.
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