The Great Equalizer

 

No matter what your skill level, there is one factor that affects everyone fishing. I call it the Great Equalizer and that's the weather. I've witnessed firsthand many times how Mother Nature can shut down even the most talented anglers on the water.

 

Understanding how the weather can affect the fishing will help you get a couple keepers in the boat. It's never a guarantee but it will sure increase the odds. At Guide's Choice Pro Shop in Eagle River, WI, there's a 16,300 gallon aquarium full of native fish. Being 12 feet deep, it's actually a little lake and you can learn a lot about the fish just by watching. And I can tell you that changes in barometric pressure and system fronts have quite an effect.

 

Watch the local weather patterns, especially those approaching fronts and the barometric pressure. If that barometer begins to drop and a significant change in the weather is imminent, get out there! These conditions warrant a more aggressive approach. While you may have been lazily retrieving a jig/minnow combo for that walleye, now's the time to rip a crankbait across the rocks or outside the weeds. Bass anglers want to scream spinners or topwaters, same for muskie hunters, just upsize the lures. Panfish are likely moving into the shallows to feed and they're doing it quickly. Remember, where the smaller fish are, so are the bigger fish!

 

Allow me to explain something at this point. The "science" of fishing is what, in my opinion, turns a lot of people off. I can devote the next several paragraphs to what happens when microscopic organisms rise out the comfort of the lake bottoms under certain conditions, changes in water temperature, light penetration water clarity, yada, yada yada. But we "regular" anglers don't have the time (or patience) to deal with all that. So here are a few general observations and I encourage you to test these out. Most of you have a finite window of time to get on the water. Maximizing that time will make any trip more enjoyable and put some fish in the livewell as a bonus.

 

So, your local weather guy (or gal) says we're in for a pleasant week with steady temperatures. Listen and look at what they're not saying because the details are in the graphics they display on television or on the Internet. That "pleasant" weather may mean a steady or slowly rising barometer which means the fish will continue eating actively. The higher the barometer goes the deeper the fish will head and many times into cover. If that pressure begins to plummet, along with approaching warm and/or cold fronts, that signals a change and in the summer that can mean storms, so be aware of that. My grandfather had a saying about such times too. "If you hear it, fear it and if you see it, flee it." Believe me, the advice has saved my life. As the barometer falls the fish become much more active in the shallows.

 

I mentioned the huge aquarium earlier. While the water temperature remains fairly constant all year, the pressure effects are interesting to note. High pressure finds the walleye parked on the rock edges, literally laying in the crevices of a wall. The pike and muskie are suspended, the panfish are in the deep cover. As the pressure falls the entire tank is active. This is when it's really fun to watch because the big girls are on the prowl and routinely visit the bottom to vacuum up the perch. Bass and northerns are all over the place and the only time the panfish come up is when it's feeding time. As in nature, they rarely make a public appearance because instinct says if they're away from cover, it's lunchtime for something bigger. We see it all the time.

 

So, what's the simple answer here? Stable weather, reliable fishing. Impending changes, short bursts of activity. Immediately following a change, things are usually tough.

 

Again, these are simple observations made through trial and error. But there is some predictability for fishing. Do those "fishing forecasts" actually work? Should you worry about moon phases? The short answer is, probably. But never in isolation, they depend on other factors, too. For me…when the knee I had surgery on years ago begins to stiffen up, I'm on the water.

 

See you on the water...