Weather, moon, rising, falling, clarity, current, barometer

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Joel Alinen on February 18, 2014 at 9:01pm

I've really only been seriously bass fishing the last three years so feel free to set me straight here...but one of the observation I've made over the last couple years is the importance of water depth. Granted structure such as points and cover such was weed lines or wood are very important but if that structure or cover doesn't have some depth/deep water access near by it's not going to hold tourney winning fish in my opinion.

Snake did the area you were fishing when the water was dropping have a deeper section or deep water access?

Permalink Reply by Abbottola on February 18, 2014 at 10:02pm

I have noticed the bites on new moons or dark nights always seem to be a little bit better. Outside of the spawn of course. Personally I think the bass have a distinct advantage over prey at night with moonlight. In my experience fishing hasn't been dynamite the following days. Not saying the fish turn off because like Don said earlier the same conditions don't always reflect the same way on bass. I just think more fish have a full belly and aren't as willing to take a bait.

Ronald Hobbs, Jr. said:

I honestly don't know any wise tells other than big female bass come up to spawn on the full and new moon phases... It seems my best largemouth days are the nastiest weather or approaching thunder storms, my best smallmouth days I have no idea. Seems to me wind is always good.

Permalink Reply by Jake Anderson on February 18, 2014 at 10:09pm

Yes, plenty of deep nearby. I could see not tourney winning fish, but I saw a slug of 4lbers cruising around. I saw 2nd place fish... :-)

You know what is sort of funny... People get all riled up about excuses and how ridiculous they are. Yet if someone catches em, then a big bag somehow makes their reasons for success valid.

When I do rope the piss out of em, i have no more understanding for why I could do no wrong, than when i struggle. People hate those who guess why they failed, yet dont mind if someone tosses up a hail mary as to why they caught 5 good ones.

Permalink Reply by Joel Alinen on February 18, 2014 at 11:02pm

Don did open my eyes with this statement...

"Bass seem to have a negative reaction to certain wind directions on certain sections of a lake or river. In other words a north wind on this section is bad, but on another is good. I noticed that mostly with north and east winds. I helps to know what a prevailing wind is during that season on that part of the water."

...guess I need to be paying more attention to the wind direction on the high percentage areas I fish!

Permalink Reply by Josh Potter on February 19, 2014 at 10:38am

That is a very good point and an interesting look into human behavior. When someone performs poorly the explanations are considered "excuses" but an explanation to a superior performance is considered a "reason" rather than an excuse. However interesting; not helpful in solving the puzzle.

 

I have a tendency to be a very "structured" thinker. It's how I'm wired and it is very helpful to me in many facets of my life but it is a huge hindrance when it comes to fishing. There are days when I believe I have the situation wired for success. About half the time I'm wrong.

I end up feeling like Dennis Green when he was with the AZ Cardinals after the loss to the Bears and that famous post game interview where he rants, "They were who we thought they were....and we let them off the hook" 
 
Jake "The Snake" Anderson said:

Yes, plenty of deep nearby. I could see not tourney winning fish, but I saw a slug of 4lbers cruising around. I saw 2nd place fish... :-)

You know what is sort of funny... People get all riled up about excuses and how ridiculous they are. Yet if someone catches em, then a big bag somehow makes their reasons for success valid.

When I do rope the piss out of em, i have no more understanding for why I could do no wrong, than when i struggle. People hate those who guess why they failed, yet dont mind if someone tosses up a hail mary as to why they caught 5 good ones.

Permalink Reply by Tag Watson on February 19, 2014 at 12:33pm

I have found this to quite often be the case as well. When looking to choose what I feel is the best lake on a particular day to hunt for a big fish, I look at 3 or 4 different weather sites to try to get a gauge of the wind direction and velocity throughout the day. Most important to me is how this wind direction and velocity will likely cause a big fish to set up on certain structural features and/or cover, as well as the possible positive or negative effects on sections of the lake I feel have the best big fish potential. This information, along with the weather forecast (clouds, sun, rain, air temp, etc.) and factoring in recent conditions, can really help you prepare for your outing when targeting a trophy fish.

Joel Alinen said:

Don did open my eyes with this statement...

"Bass seem to have a negative reaction to certain wind directions on certain sections of a lake or river. In other words a north wind on this section is bad, but on another is good. I noticed that mostly with north and east winds. I helps to know what a prevailing wind is during that season on that part of the water."

...guess I need to be paying more attention to the wind direction on the high percentage areas I fish!

Permalink Reply by Mike Bess on February 19, 2014 at 5:05pm

Half?  Really?

Josh Potter said:

That is a very good point and an interesting look into human behavior. When someone performs poorly the explanations are considered "excuses" but an explanation to a superior performance is considered a "reason" rather than an excuse. However interesting; not helpful in solving the puzzle.

 

I have a tendency to be a very "structured" thinker. It's how I'm wired and it is very helpful to me in many facets of my life but it is a huge hindrance when it comes to fishing. There are days when I believe I have the situation wired for success. About half the time I'm wrong.

I end up feeling like Dennis Green when he was with the AZ Cardinals after the loss to the Bears and that famous post game interview where he rants, "They were who we thought they were....and we let them off the hook" 
 
Jake "The Snake" Anderson said:

Yes, plenty of deep nearby. I could see not tourney winning fish, but I saw a slug of 4lbers cruising around. I saw 2nd place fish... :-)

You know what is sort of funny... People get all riled up about excuses and how ridiculous they are. Yet if someone catches em, then a big bag somehow makes their reasons for success valid.

When I do rope the piss out of em, i have no more understanding for why I could do no wrong, than when i struggle. People hate those who guess why they failed, yet dont mind if someone tosses up a hail mary as to why they caught 5 good ones.

Permalink Reply by Marc Marcantonio on February 19, 2014 at 7:06pm

I do agree that Florida Strain bass act differently than northern strain.  I also believe that weather conditions affect each species of bass differently in each region, and in different habitats.  I also believe that there are different populations of the same species, within the same body of water (i.e. large smallmouths behave differently to outside conditions than small smallmouths in the same water).

So as Tag was hinting, the "rules" that apply to San Diego lakes will likely not apply to Washington lakes or New York lakes.  That isn't to say that there won't be common traits shared between different geographic regions or populations of bass.  

The one rule that I do believe is universal is that the best day to go fishing is any day you can.

So all that being said, I do observe everything I can on each day on the water, and I log the information in my fishing log.  When I have very little data about a particular lake, I try to review my data on similar lakes and use this data for a starting point.  However, if I have a lot of data on a specific lake or river I plan to fish, I only pay attention to the data I have collected for that body of water, and for that season or water or weather conditions.  Paying attention to details is almost always useful, though the results are not always predictable.  

The point is to keep thinking, which should encourage you to try something different when what you are doing is not working, so that you remain optimistic and therefore capable of potentially solving the daily puzzle.

I do believe there is a "normal" situation on every body of water, but "normal" will be different on every body of water.  Once you learn the best conditions and patterns for those conditions on that body of water, success will be more predictable until something changes what "normal" is (like loss of weeds, aging reservoirs, etc.).

It is fun to believe we have figured something out, and maybe we did, but when we quit trying to figure things out you get complacent and likely ineffective.  Capito?

Permalink Reply by Zach Chandler on February 20, 2014 at 8:37am

I always enjoy reading through these types of threads. I get that you more seasoned guys probably get tired of talking about some of this stuff because a lot of it is second nature to you and may appear to be common sense. From a more amateur view a lot of little nuances stick out in this thread.

Just the way of looking at success on a certain day and breaking down what small things youre doing right is huge. I used to only evaluate the days I struggled, which is tough because what info can you gain when the fish aren't giving you clues. On good days I was having too much fun and at the end of the day couldn't recall how long my d shot leader was, what baits seemed to be more productive than others, was I dead sticking or actively moving the bait. I just knew I was getting bit. These types of threads have given me a better idea of things to key on.
Example. In windy conditions I used to go along docks with the wind because it was easier and less demanding on the trolling motor. Then I actually started looking at what the wind does to water movement in relation to the docks I was fishing. I realized I was not casting to the most productive areas because of my direction of travel.
I guess my only point is that these theory threads go a long ways for more amateur bass guys if you start to apply the lessons given

Permalink Reply by troy kelly on February 20, 2014 at 4:30pm

I think fish bite better on mon-fri then they do on sat/sun :).  I think while there are a lot of good baseline tendencies of bass be it seasonal or conditional I still think that time on the water is the only way to really get that "natural" gut feeling instinct.  My best days fishing are the ones where I'm driving down the lake heading to a waypoint and I get a feeling that I should stop and fish a bank or point that just looks "right."  Days I struggle are the ones where I get locked in on what I want the fish to do and never change until I've already spun out. 

Permalink Reply by Jake Anderson on February 22, 2014 at 9:55am

Troy,

I gotta say...I hate the concept of "gut feeling".  Always have.   If you look and see a bank or point that looks "right" that isn't your gut.  That is your brain, eyes, and experience saying that "in these conditions they could be on a spot like that."

Sorry for splitting hairs a bit, but the word "gut feeling" to me is akin to making decisions blindly and without any real rationale.  To me it implies some psychic stuff.  The only people who talk about "gut" are those who are so experienced they think faster than they explain.  They are usually better at thinking than they are explaining how they think. 

I go with my gut when it tells to eat a burrito, when it tells me to go to the bathroom, and when it tells me to push my girls head under the covers.

Permalink Reply by Ronald Hobbs, Jr. on February 22, 2014 at 7:54pm

Are bass not allowed to have gut feelings? Maybe they do stuff just because they want to, not because a book tells them what they are suppose to do.
Regurgitation of old wise tails and what books say why and when, only get you so far...Jake you are already past this point in my opinion, it's time to get past this and create your own "book" thought processes that can only be attained and perfected to a point where only you can understand what you are thinking because there are too many variable to describe accurately, you do this by time on the water.

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