Fish Dope or Fish Nope?

[bazzturd]

So I specifically joined fish dope for spotter plane dope. I think I joined a year ago and since have literally only seen enough spotter plane reports to count on one hand. With fuel prices what they are, there is no time like now people paying for "fishNOPE" could use spotter plane dope. When there is a spotter plane report, you minimal reporting, nothing on if any swordfish, marlin or other things were seen. Maybe a little about kelp but honestly there has been so few and so minimal on info when they fly I can't speculate what could or could not have been said. I have driven through areas they flew through on the same ay and saw more than they reported.

Furthermore, you can source all the information on the reports that are posted by knowing your landings, using vesselfinder.com, reading 976-tune.com and other various FREE sites like tempbreak.com, jdsbiggame.com and simply turning on your boat VHF if you live close enough to the beach like me.

The SST/Chloro updates are lame because you really have no idea if it is the most optimal image. They will post a cloud covered image from the morning which would be ideal because it wouldn't be all confused by daytime warming, but I would like to have an afternoon clear sky image to compare with what could be seen from the morning. What you get instead is a clear sky from a day or two ago and today's morning. Now you have to buy terrafin for better images??

You get more updates on bdoutdoors than from members on fishNOPE. Now I am guilty of not providing them a reports, but why would I when I am paying them and certainly don't feel like I am getting anything I can't get on my own. They don't even take the time to write new reports in many cases an copy paste the same thing which might be true but I have verified personally that it isn't in some cases.

I know this has been bitched about in the past and I did not bother to search it. I know the powers that be will see this and hopefully some improvements come of it especially since it costs twice as much in fuel to run than a couple years ago and their slogan was something about saving time and fuel. So spend some of your fuel and fly your plane instead of relying on us to spend our fuel for you to report.

This is where I get hate speech to rain on me, don't worry, I am prepared. Go ahead and let the BD lynching commence...........

Oh and sorry about the grammar. I have been on the wagon for a while and just had an IPA.

 

[JohnnyK87137]

This should be interesting .. many valid points here.

 

[Hismosa]

You pretty much nailed it. But for the person who doesn't want to scour all of the internet for current reports and locations it is pretty convenient to have all the info when you want it by simply logging in.

The thing that bothers me the most is that they will post reports as if they are current but really they are a day or two old. Wish they would just not post if they don't get a report from a certain area.

 

[18parker]

I’m not bashing at all but I think Fishdope was designed to give you the most up to date info on what’s going on and inevitably that is going to be one or two day old info. I don’t think it was ever supposed to be an “X” marks the spot type thing telling you exactly when and where to go to guarantee you catch fish. You will have to take that info and combine it with other info and make an educated guess on where the fish are or going to be and then go and put your time in. I do agree that a lot of similar info can be obtained through other free sources but I can see he benefits of Fishdope. I do not subscribe to Fishdope so no favoritism towards them I just think you have to understand the design intent of the service to know what to expect and not feel disappointed. Just my 2 cents.

 

[Tunahead]

Well, fishing tuna since 13, early 1960's...spotter planes, tuna towers, binos ALL spot breaking schools of tuna, bluefin, yellowfin, for years Albacore too. ALL the sources of info in the world we now have STILL are no guarantee that spotted tuna will bite. Getting them to is your/our job. Tuna can move 40-80 miles in mere hours after being spotted by plane.
It's called fishing....hasn't changed in 100's of years...even with space age technology/tackle.
Getting spooky bluefin to bite when they're jugged full of bait is a tough task. It happens.
All I can suggest, like many, is follow the fishcounts, get offshore and GO CATCH SOME!

 

[surf launch]

Nothing colder than two day old "Hot" fishing info

 

[bob_marlin]

"follow the fishcounts" ? WTF ?

 

[watersdeep]

You forgot laughing all the way to the bank.

 

[Invictus]

I like it, all the info in one spot and a little research shows patterns, and then there is the “on the water” reports as summer gets going. To each his own, but pays for itself.

 

[bazzturd]

I’m not bashing at all but I think Fishdope was designed to give you the most up to date info on what’s going on and inevitably that is going to be one or two day old info. I don’t think it was ever supposed to be an “X” marks the spot type thing telling you exactly when and where to go to guarantee you catch fish. You will have to take that info and combine it with other info and make an educated guess on where the fish are or going to be and then go and put your time in. I do agree that a lot of similar info can be obtained through other free sources but I can see he benefits of Fishdope. I do not subscribe to Fishdope so no favoritism towards them I just think you have to understand the design intent of the service to know what to expect and not feel disappointed. Just my 2 cents.

Word up and thanks for the response. Not being a member yourself, I am not sure how you can speak to the design and purpose of the sight. You have valid points that should be common knowledge for the seasoned angler, but maybe jump on the site and have a look. The first thing you see is SPOTTER PLANE DOPE and literally thgere has been fove or less reports in a year. The rest of the information on the site is not up to date or the latest. Not innovative in any capacity.

 

[18parker]

Word up and thanks for the response. Not being a member yourself, I am not sure how you can speak to the design and purpose of the sight. You have valid points that should be common knowledge for the seasoned angler, but maybe jump on the site and have a look. The first thing you see is SPOTTER PLANE DOPE and literally thgere has been fove or less reports in a year. The rest of the information on the site is not up to date or the latest. Not innovative in any capacity.

I have thought about subscribing to Fishdope but have talked to a couple friends that are members and previewed it through them and decided it was not something I personally was interested in. I was just stating my personal view of what I think the design intent was for the service and I may be way off but just thought I would share my thoughts. Again I’m am not bashing any opinions or thoughts in any way. I understand and it sucks when you purchase something just to find out it wasn’t what you were expecting.

 

[skipjack]

I live on the central coast,I’ve never had Fishdope.
They don’t have coverage up here.
I think it’s great for the begginers and for fishermen who don’t know how to read temp/chlorophyll charts.
I subscribe to Terrafin,it’s the best
thing to use to find the fish.
I look for the biggest temp breaks (temp line where it gets hot next to a cooler spot.
I then look at the chlorophyll charts to see the clean/dirty water breaks,I then I overlay them on top of each other.
The spots that match up together (temp break/clean-dirty ) are the areas to fish,either on the clean/warm side of the break,or the cooler/dirty side. Stay close to the breaks.
You can look at these areas then check the newest reports and you will see these areas are the latest areas having action.
Terrafin is $99 per year. Good luck!🍀

 

[crowman]

I would advise you to watch and read Erik Landesfeind articles and video's on how to find your own fish with all the tools you have to your disposal.

 

[megabyte26]

From the perspective of a total noob, I like Fishdope a lot and think its worth the cost. Its simple to understand and if you are not on the water daily, once a week or even once a month you can quickly get back in the game to plan a trip.

 

[yakdout]

OP, lock your doors at night. The mods will be coming for you.

 

[enfish]

My 2 cents... I had FD for a few years. It was pretty good and convenient to quickly point you in the right direction. It's a great tool if you're new to fishing offshore in SD or don't have or want to spend the time searching around for information.

But I discovered I got lazy just going to the numbers posted from yesterday and was always fishing in crowds... I don't like fishing in crowds. So I stopped using FD, canceled my membership, and went back to what I was doing before... using all the other free information tools on the internet. I have to go to a few different websites to get all the info I need, but it's free, and I'm rewarded more because I have a better shot at finding fish in locations without crowds.

 

[wkk]

I don't think FishDope is for someone like yourself who is able to research, has the time to research and has ability to take the information they have gathered and use it to guestimate the location they want to fish. It's more for the average guy who wants the information quickly at a moments notice.

To me it seems more like using a Thomas Guide vs a Garmin GPS. Both will provide you the information needed to get you where you want to go but the Garmin GPS just requires less work.

My buddy uses fish dope while I use the internet to research conditions, swells, current, temp, weather, breaks, chlorophyl, etc. We both end up with information leading to the same zones. I get what you're saying and it sounds like you probably don't need the service so at this point the cost can only be justified to you if you felt that it was still benefitting you in one way or another.

Now once in the zone getting bit is a totally different ball game. That's going to depend on the angler, their techniques, knowledge and ability to adjust to on the water conditions. Good luck out there.

 

[Fast1]

I used to be a fan of fd, I always posted reports from our day and they typically got posted later that day or next day. One time we were out fishing came across a hot squid nest with nobody else around but had to head in for the day reluctantly I posted the info on fish dope they Reported a week later that there is a bite going on. Asked about the issue in the forum there post deleted. Needless to say that was the end of our relationship

You pay them, post a report, them and their friends fish your spot til it’s dry then share the ‘hot’ info w all their ‘valued’ customers.

 

[Long Beach Bob]

...Irregardless of the source, the name of the game is to take available info....THEN, don't head to yesterday's hot spot...instead project a line to where the fish are most likely to be today, based on the latest info you can find....
...I also never head in a straight line from point A (a bank) to point B (another bank)...Doing that just puts you behind boats that have already traveled your route...I go in or out a few miles, then, change course to work a (hopefully) new area not already picked over...Most info is only good for yesterday....

 

[jason]

Here's some insight into the airplane and what happens at Fishdope on a daily basis.

Spotter Plane
Our airplane flies from mid-July to the end of October on days that we can spot. Conditions have to be perfect or we can't see anything. Conditions consist of no wind (can't see through wind caps, sun overhead from 10-2 is ideal, clouds above 1200' if any, no fog or marine layer) We try to stay within 60 miles of land as most members polled can't use the info past that. We already know where the fleet is fishing so we try to look at breaks and anomalies elsewhere where we think there could be fish.

Now the fun part besides the first plane that someone rammed with a truck to keep us grounded, totaling the plane...
Current Plane - New engine (had too many hours couldn't certify), New nose cone (first one flew off and hit windshield and tail causing for emergency landing), New wheels (someone tampered), New fuel bladders (leaking fuel into the wings is no bueno), Grounded for annual inspections right in the middle of the season that no one can get to for a month (thank you COVID), same with oil changes (See COVID). All things that have delayed us in getting up besides poor weather/windy seasons as of late.

For the first half of the year, there is nothing to see during that 10 am-2 pm timeframe. The anchovies have not schooled up yet and the fish are generally at 250-300', we can only see maybe 15' below the surface. Kelps are torn up due to wind and the overcast makes it impossible to see anything other than sheen even with polarized glasses.

The plane doesn't find everything while doing 100Knots. When commercial fishing with an airplane the pilot is often called in to an area by the boats already on the fish. The plane helps optimize their time in a single area while the fish are up to get wrapped or harpooned. What we are trying to do is find multiple areas in one flight for the members, away from the fleet. Many times we strike out.

There is nothing we want more than to bring back 2016-2018 where every flight was a score for the members.

And we are in Annual again for the next 2.5 weeks with more repairs being made. Hopefully, smooth sailing for the rest of the season as we started early on it this year.

Daily Reports
Members send in reports when they get in, some are the next day. If we don't post them the members think we don't appreciate the effort they made.
Fishdope is about trending bites. I think part of the problem is we don't explain the chart to new members. Most members when polled only wanted the numbers, they didn't care about the charts and many of them don't use the charts still to this day. The charts are where all the good stuff is. Yellow to Red hot bite icons show where the fish were and are currently being caught and what water they are in. Other than the professional AIS chasing captains on this thread those that we have explained it to have been highly successful in finding fish in the same conditions, away from the fleet by a simple look at the SST and Chlorophyll charts mixed with the hot bites.

Yup looks totally worthless to me

FYI the SST/Chlorophyll charts are the same times/data as others mentioned. Accept Fishdope is in HD as we interpolate the data differently. The time stamps on others are off in Southern California which makes it look like Fishdope didn't get a shot when it was actually the shot from the night before labeled as an early AM shot.

Copy/Paste - Bites, especially inshore and winter rock cod are the same thing every day. When we skip an area for the day due to the same thing or no info we start receiving 20+ emails that evening asking about those areas. So we started the redundant posting of areas on a daily basis to cut down on the questions and concerns that we had nothing for those areas. The single blog format was decided by members years ago. We had broken up the sections from inshore/offshore/islands. The comments were that it was too hard to navigate and that when sections were updated that they were not notified and didn't know to look in the section.

Our ears are always open and we are willing to take anything into consideration. This thread has some posters that do not have an account and I could not find them ever having an account on Fishdope... Take into consideration when reading some of these comments as well. Either they stole the info from a friend or they are talking crap trying to poo poo the member's advantage they receive from Fishdope.

 

[marlyn]

Most important thing i learned in this thread is that i should never fly in the fishdope airplane,that MFers falling apart!

 

[vegasandre]

I have been a FD member since the beginning. It is just another info tool (and I dont even own a boat now for a few years-fish on friends boats/sportboats.) that I incorporate with the other tools:
-marine traffic (AIS)
-bd reports
-fish dope
-knowledge & experience
-good gyros
-being able to read the water(more knowledge and experience)
-windy weather
-friends..etc...(the best info)

there have been several times when I was on LR boat coming back into local waters for bft etc that I got the early heads up on things from FD so I was ready to go when we hit the zone..

its not too expensive -so not a big deal for me.

if it is WSB info you are looking for you most likely will not see it for "awhile" unless its sportboat channel isles stuff...

good luck..

 

[rimack]

Most important thing i learned in this thread is that i should never fly in the fishdope airplane,that MFers falling apart!

LMAO.

 

[gecsr1]

Here's some insight into the airplane and what happens at Fishdope on a daily basis.

Spotter Plane
Our airplane flies from mid-July to the end of October on days that we can spot. Conditions have to be perfect or we can't see anything. Conditions consist of no wind (can't see through wind caps, sun overhead from 10-2 is ideal, clouds above 1200' if any, no fog or marine layer) We try to stay within 60 miles of land as most members polled can't use the info past that. We already know where the fleet is fishing so we try to look at breaks and anomalies elsewhere where we think there could be fish.

Now the fun part besides the first plane that someone rammed with a truck to keep us grounded, totaling the plane...
Current Plane - New engine (had too many hours couldn't certify), New nose cone (first one flew off and hit windshield and tail causing for emergency landing), New wheels (someone tampered), New fuel bladders (leaking fuel into the wings is no bueno), Grounded for annual inspections right in the middle of the season that no one can get to for a month (thank you COVID), same with oil changes (See COVID). All things that have delayed us in getting up besides poor weather/windy seasons as of late.

For the first half of the year, there is nothing to see during that 10 am-2 pm timeframe. The anchovies have not schooled up yet and the fish are generally at 250-300', we can only see maybe 15' below the surface. Kelps are torn up due to wind and the overcast makes it impossible to see anything other than sheen even with polarized glasses.

The plane doesn't find everything while doing 100Knots. When commercial fishing with an airplane the pilot is often called in to an area by the boats already on the fish. The plane helps optimize their time in a single area while the fish are up to get wrapped or harpooned. What we are trying to do is find multiple areas in one flight for the members, away from the fleet. Many times we strike out.

There is nothing we want more than to bring back 2016-2018 where every flight was a score for the members.

And we are in Annual again for the next 2.5 weeks with more repairs being made. Hopefully, smooth sailing for the rest of the season as we started early on it this year.

Daily Reports
Members send in reports when they get in, some are the next day. If we don't post them the members think we don't appreciate the effort they made.
Fishdope is about trending bites. I think part of the problem is we don't explain the chart to new members. Most members when polled only wanted the numbers, they didn't care about the charts and many of them don't use the charts still to this day. The charts are where all the good stuff is. Yellow to Red hot bite icons show where the fish were and are currently being caught and what water they are in. Other than the professional AIS chasing captains on this thread those that we have explained it to have been highly successful in finding fish in the same conditions, away from the fleet by a simple look at the SST and Chlorophyll charts mixed with the hot bites.

View attachment 1396124
Yup looks totally worthless to me

FYI the SST/Chlorophyll charts are the same times/data as others mentioned. Accept Fishdope is in HD as we interpolate the data differently. The time stamps on others are off in Southern California which makes it look like Fishdope didn't get a shot when it was actually the shot from the night before labeled as an early AM shot.

Copy/Paste - Bites, especially inshore and winter rock cod are the same thing every day. When we skip an area for the day due to the same thing or no info we start receiving 20+ emails that evening asking about those areas. So we started the redundant posting of areas on a daily basis to cut down on the questions and concerns that we had nothing for those areas. The single blog format was decided by members years ago. We had broken up the sections from inshore/offshore/islands. The comments were that it was too hard to navigate and that when sections were updated that they were not notified and didn't know to look in the section.

Our ears are always open and we are willing to take anything into consideration. This thread has some posters that do not have an account and I could not find them ever having an account on Fishdope... Take into consideration when reading some of these comments as well. Either they stole the info from a friend or they are talking crap trying to poo poo the member's advantage they receive from Fishdope.

why would someone crash your plane.. that's insane... to say the least..
fish dope always has been good to me when I had my boat... no intel is perfect, I had friends fish the day before load up, tell me that evening where they caught the fish and numbers go there the next day a ghost town...it's a crap shoot..
but even so Fish Dope is solid and a good service..
And thanks Jason for your explanation.... very interesting ..

 

[drew stephens]

Yo @Fishdope members who are defending you should get discounts