BLOG: Are Fishing "Gadgets" Counter-productive?

I REMEMBER one of my earliest fishing memories with utmost fascination. I was sitting on the end of a pier in Port Kembla trying to manage a handline laid untidily over my legs while chasing yakkas and slimy mackerel. To my right was my grandfather, who with perfect timing and proficiency was wrapping his line around a Coke can and reeling in fish hand over fist using minced meat wrapped around a long shank hook for bait.

At the time it seemed like poetry in motion. It was a simple technique combined with minimal equipment refined and honed over time. There was no fanfare, no fuss. No gadgets to get in the way of the goal: get a full bag of fish to take home and eat.

This scene is now world's away from how I go about my fishing. I took delivery of my new Minn Kota iPilot last week and took it for a test run. I was amazed at how technical fishing has become for those at the cutting edge of the sport. The iPilot is so technologically advanced from my last electric motor that it seemed I had recouped 20 per cent more fishing time than previously manoeuvring the motor constantly to counter the wind and tide. The GPS functionality programmed in the motor basically did all the work for me.

Early indications would suggest this new piece of equipment will become a vital cog in my overall approach and success on the water. I relied on my electric before but this may take my obsession with using one to a whole new level. I have been quoted as saying "if my electric is not working my boat doesn't leave the garage". I believe it is that important to my overall success. But is it really?

While I am excited to be using a new gadget, the use of ever-improving technology raises some interesting questions. When does the reliance on technology become counterproductive? Does the use of technology actually distract us from the task at hand i.e. catching more fish? And, have we overcomplicated the whole process?

These questions are difficult to quantify on face value, except to say, using the technology for some fishermen is as rewarding as the actual fishing itself. I enjoy the feeling of sounding out schooling fish, trying to identify what fish they are, using my electric motor to hold me in position and then choosing a lure to catch them. It merges a number of faculties that combine to increase the overall pleasure of catching a fish.

This is not too dissimilar from the satisfaction fishos receive from using the minimalist approach. By keeping things simple...pure...the feeling of accomplishment can also be heightened. However, I do believe things are a trade off. While we become more educated to using electronic gadgets to fine tune our fishing techniques and become more reliant on the information we receive from them, we inadvertently favour that information in preference to other sources such as natural signposts we once used to read the environment. I believe this is especially so for younger anglers that have grown up with fishing technology. The grass roots knowledge we once gained from watching our grandfather wrapping line around a can or dig a trench knee deep in mud to get a bucket of bloodworms for bait has completely shifted to staring at a sounder and trying to read a blob on a screen.

We live in a technological society. We are accustomed to pushing the envelope of development to assist us in our pursuits, regardless of what they are. While I embrace any new technology that will provide me more intelligence to catch more fish, I never want to lose focus on what made me a competent angler to begin with: the ability to read the environment like I read my sounder. If my technology fails me or breaks down I can still catch fish.

Do you think the modern day reliance on fishing "gadgets" is a good or a bad thing?