Why is fishing so Expensive these days?

[MuskieBait]

Exactly my point...so simply trying to optimize CPF doesn't really work.

Some can catch bass all day and every day but will not be happy until they catch a personal best bass. They are still catching bass, and optimizing the CPF...but their utility factor is different.

Some people can do the same thing over and over again and find the same utility...while some just get bored and don't receive the same utility.

The utility factor is different for every situation...so it can't really be quantified.

How do you compare catching a 5lb Brook Trout vs. a 100lb Tarpon? How do you compare catching a record 60lb Northern Pike after a 30 year dedicated pursue vs. a guided and chartered 1000lb Black Marlin depending on the captain and mates expertise?

If CPF is the metric for measurement, then I would have had a piss poor time last weekend in Quebec. But instead, I had a good time because of the company and the surroundings. I already knew it wasn't a prime time for burbot...but I do want to fish with Eli at least once this winter since he gave me the invite.

Like Nick's signature says:

Many men go fishing all of there lives not knowing that it's not the fish they are after.

As I've said in our past conversations...nowadays, I get the most enjoyment either:

1) sharing new fishing experiences (helping people catch new species or sharing a new technique, especially with foreign visitors or new arrivals)

2) visiting new areas AND meeting new people AND catching new species of my own

3) meeting up with old friends I don't see often and having a good time

Simply catching fish just don't really do it for my anymore...unless there is good company to go along with it...

Why do you think I'm so particular with my fishing trips these days? Unless I'm maximizing my utility, I would rather save that money and time for something else that will maximize my utility. Simply getting out "as much as I can" to "maybe or maybe not get skunked" on a trip to Simcoe for "species I've already caught plenty before" in "places that I'm familiar" is very low on utility for me...even if it is close, available and potentially exciting...because I'm not satisfying either one or the other of my above criteria...