Wait a minute! If I have a fishing blog then why aren't my stories......

...the most popular posts on my page?!



You fish every chance you can, take pictures to capture the "moments" of the day, do your best to provide a narrative that paints a picture.....

Logic would tell you that all of that hard work would mean that readers from all over the world want to share in your experiences, right?

Maybe; maybe not

Despite the fact that your blog is all about fishing, the posts that often have the most views aren't always your stories. For instance, I have many many fishing stories on this blog but my top 3 posts of all time (in terms of pageviews) are not those. This is clearly a fishing blog so you might be surprised that the top three posts of all time are a review on Maui Jim Sunglasses, St. Croix fly rod/reel review, and the removal of the Hoffman Dam - I know that I was.

So what gives? Why spend all the time on fishing reports/stories when they aren't even the most popular posts?

Here is why I continue to do it though your reasons might be different.

1. I enjoy fishing
2. I like taking pictures of the world that is around me. What I see all the time may be different than what others get to see. Remember that as routine as your world is to you, it is different than what is routine to others - insert the old "the grass is always greener on the other side" mantra.
3. I enjoy writing the stories.

So with that list, one might wonder why even bother with the gear reviews and non-fishing related stories then?

For me it's simple...I have used this stuff and others may not have had a chance to. They could be on the fence about going for one piece of equipment versus another. I know that I have found a ton of gear reviews on other blogs to be quite useful in making a choice about one thing vs another so I feel that I should pay it forward by providing reviews for the stuff that I use. It might help someone else who is just like me.

In terms of non-gear related posts like the Hoffman Dam removal, I find some things quite interesting and I enjoy documenting them. It appears as if others happen to be intrigued by the same things that I am - whudathunkit? Plus, the removal of that dam is definitely fishing related.

What I have learned from all of this is that a successful blog (and I use that term loosely) is a well rounded blog that still has a clear focus. I generally keep everything related to fishing and the outdoors. A post about the new carpet I have in my house just wouldn't really relate to what this blog is about and therefor wouldn't make sense. So if you are just starting out as blogger or have been going for a while and want to increase traffic and comments, focus on one central theme and if a post can't be reasonably tied to that, then don't put it up - perhaps a separate blog would be a better option.

Musky Snack

6 inch musky snack for the weekend!

Bye-Bye Stick

The wife had a work dinner last night, so it was just we men folk at home. The weather was spectacular and despite picking him up late from daycare, eating dinner, and working on Mommy's Mother's Day present, there were still a couple of hours worth of day light left!

This seemed like a great chance to spend some time outside and go check out the creek. To me, checking out the creek means seeing if there are any fish visible. To Landon, this means throwing rocks in there and so we did!

After twenty minutes of changing structure the creek bed, we moved downstream a couple of blocks and took a walk into the woods where we discovered a new favorite thing to throw into the water.......STICKS!

It was a proud moment as a dad to watch him walk the trail and pick up various pieces of wood to throw into the water. After each one splashed in the creek, he would wave bye bye as it floated on down.