What do you guys think? What a world we live in today. Info is just right at our finger tips by the touch of a button. Where ever we go its there right in our pocket even, let alone an office computer or home computer...
Dsr corrected themselves for a semi inaccurate report...is that what its come too??? What a PC world we live in. Even as little as 7/8 years ago an early run would go thrRough like this past one and there would be tops 1 or 2 guys in sight at most anywhere you fished. Mike miller had his daily recording for Douglaston which was always honester than could ever be honest... now, its up to the minute reporting from multiple resources... what a concept. Runs of fish were mostly a word of mouth thing. When you went fishing for a few days payphone was the only thing you had for contact. Back in august 98 which was now fifteen years ago, I hit the largest run of kings I ever saw in front of me at one time. After an all day onslaught with two newbie friends I brought up, I brought myself to a payphone and called my father... "You have to get up here now!!!" I told him... sure enough, his car was at out campground just before first light the next day. Dsr was more or less empty first thing, so we ventures up...for two days after we followed fish from lower black hole to the ball park and the best part about it was very few anglers... call me selfish in saying this, but the worst part about it was times will never be like that ever again. Man I miss those days of just going up for the sake of it... no planning no nothing... just that gut feeling of hearing that real scream... this is gonna be a great season. I hope all the kin folk enjoy!!!

How bout those arguments you and a buddy would get into about something, but had no real way to figure out who was right.   Now you just get on your (not mine) phone and look it up.   I do not have and will resist to the last minute getting a "smart phone".   Hell,  I really do not even text.   
Technology is here to stay as with the PC world of Ball games where no one loses and contests where every one get a ribbon.   I feel that is a HUGE issue now a days with the younger generation,  everything at their fingertips and not taught that if you don't work hard you can and will lose.   In my day my dad taught me is was not  OK lose and if you did you learned from it so it would not happen again.   We lost, cried and played harder next time.
I will go off on a tangent and tell a story about a Babe Ruth baseball game (13 to 15 yr old).   I was playing first base and a with a runner on second a deep fly to right field on the line.   My play should have been go out for the cut to relay home.  Thinking a guy on second and no play at third for the tag  I just  meandered out and took caught the ball and took my time turning around and coming in.   Guy tagged from second and never stopped as I was in shallow right when I got the ball.    After the play  my dad rushed on the field pulled me to the bench yelling at me the whole way and sat me down because a run scored because I was not paying attention.   You have to realize we played baseball in my house by Ty Cobb rules, spikes up, sliding hard.   Finished 3rd  in the state  I think that year.   How far would that go now a days???
Point is we were taught to play hard, not accept losing and learn.    I NEVER, EVER let another guy score from second on a tag again.   
 
Wow that was a tangent that may or may not have anything at all with this post.  
 
As far s fishing I would spend the night at my friends house in Pineville and we would walk to the river on  Saturday mornings.   Carry around 5 gallon pails and  get eggs and sell them at the corner store.   There was some # we called to get info back in the day, but according to it there were always fish in the river 
 

andy i could not agree more . even down my way at the cape cod canal the same thing has happened . Once a pod of fish move in you can count on a mass of people. I think in general the fishing industry has grown , but the days of having to put your time in on the water has changed .. there is still no substitute for time on the water , but the internet has even the field a little which has allowed people to be productive , without the effort of years passed. I miss the old days, when you had to work for em and you really did not know what you were in for until you got there. I have had guys postpone trips in the past few years because reports of tough conditions , years ago that would not happen. if I ever delay or postpone a fishing trip because of some online report , please shoot me lol looking forward to seeing the salmon river soon but I will wait for the circus to move out of town , even though there are circus like days even in Feb nowadays .

Dime,
 
2B and I used to walk from Pulaski to the Estuary and encounter no one in August, and, while we listened to Mike and then Connie, I remember listening to Fred when the line first went in.
 
L13

No trails along the bank back then.
We waded downriver then had to decide to either bushwack thru the bamboo forests or waded back in the full gate (900-1000cfs) thay would hit below town around noon.
A good nights sleep was a sure thing after that.
 
I miss those days.
Sometimes we even found a fish or two.

Great stories guys. Yup, even in my early days there were no trails along the river bank on my first trips. Wed hike the river from dsr stairs to the meadow. Always a fish or two like you said twobob. Even in the lowest of water which in those days it would be nothing sometimes. Seeing no one at all was common and if rumors of said pods came through you'd see a guy or two.
Lucky, my first few years Fred was around with mike. Then just mike.

Clint, my fathers friend played a spoof on that hotline after fishing for a full week with no fish. He called em from a payphone across the street and they told him to come on up the river was loaded...lol

Scott your right about February. Pretty sad sight to see.

Well here is my view:
Many moons ago there seemed "more" people . At least from the typical sept -15 > oct -15 ( aka snagging season.
All pre- Internet .. As Clint said eggs were paying at 1 point a buck a pound and every parking lot had a portable cleaning station and carvival food stand.
The dsr line ( when it became a pay area) always said there were fish as well as the tackle shops ( Tonys) . When we come come to town for a weekend and catch none it was always the same story, " shoulda been here yesterday '.
That was my salmon experience which was 5 years later from my first love of fishing here, steelhead.

For sure there were far LESS folks around during steelhead from Nov - April then these days.
I think the Internet put way more people into steelhead .
Will things change ? I think it will . As Clint said also, a lot of the younger folks agree more into the instant gradafacation and more into computer games instead of hands on so I think there will be a gap between us and them.

Ah well , I'm sitting here in the cabin listening to waves crash on shore.
Blue cans early, maybe a trip to see some river and hope she lyes down later.

Spot on with past sep. 15th tuna. I was mostly referring to "early season"... I'd say as you said with steelhead that the early salmon season got exploited from internet as well.

 
Some things are different with the net but some say the same too-
    In the old days with the tele the shop reports were generally spectacular- till ya got there and found out the truth. Most had to pre arrange their rooms and went when it was historically to their liking though. Rain -shine- fish or not.--ya got the room 6 mos in advance and that was IT.
 Today ya read about 50 and 60 hookup mornings and then ya go and FISH for much lighter action.
 Agreed some  today respond to the net overnight however the Cricket days are over and those kind of pool crowders are gone.
 For those who walk away from the lot crowds and Fish it really isnt much different- cept for Steel which have become a real crowd pleaser in the recent past as their numbers recovered.
 Personally got away from the o'dark 30 thing long ago and can still find a spot or two that suits me even with the crowds.
 Time passes and some things and expectations  do change- dont need to drag out 3 anymore- or any for that matter- to have a great day  lol.
 Kind of odd though that Hunting tag sales are dropping all over yet the Sr fisher person numbers are reported to be back to historic highs.
   Tunas 'instant gratification' theory is likely the reason. Great putor reports equal higher fisherman numbers. Steel were so low not so long ago that a couple of fish a trip was noteworthy and nobody was around when ya fished. Now guys report hitting them real well-- more fishermen.
 .

Tuna you are right about the crowds for salmon before the webs.
Of course they were stocking a million more a year so the runs were freaking huge and you didn't need any knowledge or talent to get your 5 to drag out.
 
I was talking steelfaces and I think the googles denenatly has had an affect on it.
The salmon jalorms of the early days wanted nothing to do with nasty weather or fish you couldn't spot pods of to rip thru.
They wanted meat and bragging rights.
The innertubes brought a new, much more knowledgable crowd but a crowd none the less and with it came the me first me me me mentality.
While I don't begrudge others getting the enjoyment of this fishery  I do feel a bit sorry for them that they will never have to learn it themselves with no vids, magazine articles, books, guides and the .coms for info and the satifaction that comes with the learning and with the year round pressure of the present times they never will have that opportunity.
I feel blessed to have been in my prime at that point in history.