Re: Forward facing sonar
 

Interesting topic. Personally I believe we're going way too far with electronics and technology. And yes I agree spot lock and other navigational advancements will be the death of black fishing and other structure oriented stocks. Fresh water, smaller impoundments and fisheries that tend to have predictable migration patterns which frequent the same habitat year in year out will be most vulnerable and feel the greatest impacts.

Would be interesting to poll people on this thread and ask why they fish. Make up five categories, i.e. love of the outdoors, the challenge, catching for consumption, trying out new techniques, fishing with friends and family, sanity etc. Then compare the results to what forward facing sonar does to recreational fishing and what attracted us to the sport to begin with and see if what FFS offers lines up with why people enjoy the sport.

On this site, more than occasionally, we talk about great fisheries that existed in past that no longer do for one reason or another. FFS and advancements in technology are going to accomplish exactly the same thing and make fisheries that we enjoy today obsolete 10 to 20 years from now if not sooner. So the immediate benefits might be phenomenal but the long-term impacts will be devastating. Is that a trade off everybody's willing to accept because personally I feel it's a very short-sighted and risky approach to fisheries. We're not fishing anymore, we're cheating and for the manufacturers of this equipment the focus is strictly profits. For the users of this equipment the goal is immediate gratification which is everything other than what sport fishing and recreational fishing has been about for most people in their lives. I'd rather fish 8 hours in a day for that one bite, learn something whether the fishing was good or bad and enjoy being outdoors, observing nature while taking in the peace and solitude of the day. As opposed to fishing a half hour to catch 20 fish because all those unknowns which used to exist in the sport that we had to personally figure out beforehand through trial and error no longer exist. If we weren't jonesing about the need for technology years ago, why the need for it today other than a basic fish finder, GPS and a radio for safety.

Tournament angler's will love it, tournament sponsors, equipment manufacturers and people running tournaments will love it because of the millions they'll make but these groups are becoming the commercial fishing industry of freshwater and their impacts of year-round pressure on these stocks as well as tournaments conducted during the spawn will ultimately catch up with every important fishery recreational anglers enjoy. And just like we discussed about the ASA or manufacturers lack of give backs to the recreational community, what do these tournament anglers and sponsors give back to our freshwater fisheries. We're taking what is arguably the most important recreational sport we have in this country and commercializing it. That's probably the best I can describe how I feel about FFS and all these other technological advancements to our sport that are making it into a commodity as opposed to an opportunity to enjoy the outdoors and a learning tool and priceless time spent with our children, family and friends.

Re: Forward facing sonar
 

Makes you wonder if technology is the main culprit in declining fisheries or if its over population or social media bragging or something else

Re: Forward facing sonar
 

I'd speculate that its some combination there within plus poor watershed/waterbody management and shoddy building practices.