In our fishing travels around the country and around the world, Hanna and I meet new people every year, but sometimes the same faces show up again and again and again. Paul Fisler was one of those recurring acquaintances – he seemed to pop up everywhere there was something bass-related going on. There are plenty of people who would like to marshal Elite Series events, attend seminars and mingle with the top pros, but Paul is one of the few who’s actually out there getting it done.

We got to know him even better when he joined us on a trip to Anglers Inn in November of 2020. Both Hanna and I made sure we got to spend time in the boat with him at El Salto, and we cannot wait for him to come back with the next generation. Here’s his story and some great advice for people who are equally obsessed with bass fishing but have not yet stepped it up to Paul’s level:

HPFC: How did you become such an obsessed fan of the sport?

FISLER: I grew up in Wayne, New Jersey, and there was a little lake in our community. I spent every summer walking down to the lake. My dad had a jon boat tied up and I would go down there with my pole – the only thing I really used as far as lures was a Rapala jerkbait. I’d walk down to the lake at least three or four times a week and I’d row that boat from one end of the other. Back then it seemed like a monster lake but after I was in the service and came back about 15 years later and realized it wasn’t as big as I thought.
HPFC: How did you end up in Texas?
FISLER: When I got out of the Marine Corps I spent two years up in Minnesota, which is where my wife at the time was from. I worked up there for a couple of different places, and ended up in a steel plant bending rebar. Two weeks after my daughter was born I got laid off of that job for reasons I never understand. My dad had moved down to Texas from New Jersey and he had some contacts in the chemical business. A guy that he knew for a long time was a plant manager for Union Carbide in Texas City and getting the job was pretty much a formality. That was 1981, which also happened to be the same year that my dad passed.

HPFC: So after 40 years in the state that has some of the best bass fishing on earth, what are some of your favorite places to fish down there?
FISLER: I finally crossed Falcon off my bucket list. I booked a trip with Matt Reed and took my brother from Oregon down there. I asked him to come along because for my 50th birthday he chartered a bay trip down in Galveston. The Falcon trip was a couple of years ago and I think the lake was still recovering from the drought. We caught some fish, which is better than not catching them.

HPFC: Where do you fish the most?

FISLER: We’ve got a lake house on a community lake called Camp Creek Lake, which is similar to what I grew up with. My dad had the house there.

HPFC: How many events have you marshaled for over the years?
FISLER: If you count PAA stuff – at that time they had co-anglers for the first two days and you went out with someone else the third day as a marshal – I started back around 2008. I try to do at least one or two a year.

HPFC: What are some of your favorite marshaling experiences or places?
FISLER: I’ve marshaled on Guntersville a couple of times. I’ve marshaled on the Sabine. Up in Oklahoma, I was at Tenkiller, the one that they basically switched on the guys. That was interesting, because I think of the guys that were fishing the Elite Series that year, not many of them had been there before, so it was great to see how they all approached a new lake.

HPFC: Who is a fun angler to marshal for?

FISLER: I marshaled for Cory Johnston. I marshaled for Lee Livesay. The first year they were on the Sabine I marshaled for James Elam on the first day – I was his first marshal in his first Elite event and he ended up cashing a check that week.

HPFC: Would you recommend the marshaling experience, and what does someone who signs up need to be prepared for?
FISLER: Go for it. It’s even cheaper than it was just a few years ago. Go there with an open mind. These guys are very open and glad to talk to you.

HPFC: You’ve also been a big supporter of The Bass University. How many of those events have you traveled to and where?
FISLER: I’ve been to at least one of those every year, too. The first year it was in Dallas I can even remember all of the instructors: It was Pete Gluszek, Ike, Peter T, Fred Roumbanis, Ish Monroe and Byron Velvick

HPFC: Who are some of the most talented speakers?

FISLER: I’d have to say that Byron was great. He gave a talk on swimbaits that taught us everything you’d ever want to know. Any question you might have asked, he answered it.

HPFC: What is your advice to someone who is on the fence about attending a live Bass University session? Is it worth the time and money?
FISLER: I think it is. You get up close and personal with the pros and they have the breakout sessions at the end of the morning where they’ll show you how they set up their tackle, what knot to use, pretty much everything. As a side note, I finally bought my first bass boat a few years ago and before that I’d backed up little utility trailers before, but the first time we went to the Sabine I marshaled for James Elam, Chris Lane and then they gave us our pairings for the third day and I got to ride out with KVD. I have to tell you, I was so excited I danced a little jig when I got back to my hotel room. He fishes like a well-oiled machine. He was throwing a swim jig most of the day. He wasn’t even watching it most of the time – he just knew where that rod was going to throw that swim jig. The funny part of that day was that when we got back he threw his keys to me and said, “Go get the truck.” I didn’t have the heart to tell him I had never backed up a boat trailer before. You want to talk about pucker factor. I got the truck over there, and the worst part was that there were 300 people on one side of the boat ramp watching me and 300 on the other side.

What I’ve learned the most from marshaling is that I don’t need every color of every lure in the rainbow. I’ve found out from riding with these guys that they all have five or six set colors that they rely on and that’s where the bulk of their tackle is. They can have every lure under the sun, but they trim the amount that they use. I still stock up, but I don’t feel like I have to buy everything out there.

HPFC: Let’s switch gears. What inspired you to go to Anglers Inn El Salto the first time?
FISLER: I had always heard about what a mecca El Salto was. I bust my tail and I said to myself that I deserved a good vacation, and watching the stuff that you guys write, and what I’ve read from other people. When The Bass University went down there for a couple of days that got the wheels turning a little bit. I didn’t have the funds at the time but I made sure it happened sooner rather than later.

HPFC: Now that you’ve been twice, what was the difference between the first and second trips?

FISLER: On the first trip I really didn’t know what to expect or how to approach the guys. I needed my granddaughter to come down and translate for me. She’s 8 years old and in a dual language program in school. It was all so new to me. I didn’t realize how much they would bend over backwards for you for anything. The second time around it felt like, “I’m coming home!” I went to Picachos for the first half of that week while you guys were over at El Salto the whole week. I felt almost guilty with how much they did for me, because I was the only one over there those first couple of days. And then getting back over there to El Salto, having other people around that I knew, that helped out.

HPFC: For people who may be hesitant to travel there, is there any reason to be hesitant? And how do you enjoy your enjoyment of the trip?
FISLER: No reason to be hesitant. Go there ready to enjoy the hell out of yourself. It’s like one of the articles you wrote, about coming back before you even leave. My biggest concern is when I can get back again.

HPFC: Do you have other bucket list destinations, either international or domestic?
FISLER: Okeechobee is one. My dad, when he was still alive, he went down to Lake Guerrero. I’d like to go down there and fish at least once. It would be like I was fishing with my dad.

HPFC: Are there other things you want to accomplish in your fishing life? A 10-pound bass, 30-pound limit, some particular place you want to take your granddaughters?

FISLER: Both of those girls can catch the hell out of the fish. The oldest one hauled it two 6- to 7-pounders off of the dock down at the lake house. I wish I was there at the time – they were there at the lake during the whole coronavirus thing last summer. My son-in-law tied a frog on her rod and the first time she ever threw a frog it blows up on her as she was reeling it back in. My son-in-law said her eyes got as big as silver dollars.

HPFC: What is next on your agenda?
FISLER: I tell my kids that when it’s time for me to go, just put me out there on the dock with my pole and a cooler and let me drift off into the sunset. But the one thing I really want to do next is I’m taking my granddaughters to Grosse Savanne for a fishing trip. I got them that for a Christmas present. Hopefully one of these days my daughter and son-in-law will let me take them down to Mexico.