Best Time To Fish

[roadwarrior]

The question is: When do you generally catch your biggest bass?

 

For me it's either side of noon, 10:00 AM - 2:00 PM.

 

 

 

 

[flyfisher]

to me it depends on the season.  When it's cold i seem to do well mid day, 11-3 but warmer weather i seem to do well from about 6pm till midnight or so.

[BrettD]

It varies alot for me but pond fishing its usually the first hour or so of daylight and the last hour of daylight. When fising at the the lake the first hour of light and then 12am-2pm lately with the colder nights we have been having.

[SPEEDBEAD.]

Later in the day, say in a late spring/summer pattern from 3pm until just before dark then about an hour after dark when the fish have transitioned to nighttime feeding.

[JellyMan]

Early morning till 10:30am afternoon till dark. Prime time.

[slonezp]

On my home water, daybreak, between 12-2 during high skies, and during the crappiest of weather.

[Hyrule Bass]

most of my luck has come between about 6pm - 10pm...

[MarkH024]

On my lake, I have the best success in the late afternoon to early evening. 3:00-8:00 pm. My PB was caught just before the sun was off the horizon.

[Matthew Veillion]

3 of my top 5 fish out of ponds have been night fishing soft plastics slow

[00 mod]

The question is: When do you generally catch your biggest bass?

 

 

When they bite! 

 

Jeff

[J Francho]

That mid day bite is tough, but it's usually a good one.  Bass are crepuscular feeders, meaning they are active at dawn and dusk.  They aren't so much on the prowl often at midday, but the big ones are often settled into predictable locations, and will not pass on an opportunistic bite.  If you have a lake with docks, especially docks close to strong weedlines and deeper water, then there will be fish under them on a sunny day.  Same goes for flats with thick weed beds.  Target holes in the weeds, or punching through the canopy, and you'll find success.

[11justin22]

Totally depends on the time of the year for me. Daylight, noonish, and afternoon to late afternoon all produce depending on the time of year. My pb came right at sunset, my pb before that one was right at noon. Go figure.

[PABASS]

My PB came at dusk/dark.  Largest fish of this season came around 1:30PM last weekend, 3# roughly.

[SENKOSAM]

Depends on season, cloud cover/weather and water temp. Spring - anytime from 8-8p; fall - anytime after it's warm enough for me to be out there; summer - 10-3pm and one hour before to one hour after sunset.

[wademaster1]

Cold weather: Midday

Normal weather: The first and last couple hours of daylight each day

[aharris]

Middle of the day...when you're least expecting it.

 

[Hi Salenity]

Depends on the lake, I fish one lake that you may as well go home at 9am and come back for a couple hours before dark.

[J Francho]

I bet that lake is deep and clear....

[Snakehead Whisperer]

On the Potomac I usually get the biggest fish in the late morning (10-11am) or in the mid afternoon (3-4pm.) My PB Potomac bass was caught about 5:45am, however.

[38 Super Fan]

Once it gets warm, within an hour of dusk, almost without exception. Better mid day in the cold months though.

[AK-Jax86]

This year it has been between 11am and 3pm last year I caught my bigger fish in the afternoon from 4:30 to sunset; and yes 4:30 I would go out in my backyard religiously at 4:30 and it always seemed like a 3lb would be waiting it was like clock work. So far this year I haven't caught anything of size in my usual back yard honey hole

[streamwalker]

really anytime throughout the day for me.. depending on weather and locations. 

[senile1]

My current PB was caught at approximately 11:30 AM.  The one before that was caught between 4:00 and 4:30 PM and the temperature was 103 degrees outside.  I have listed my results below. 

 

1. Late fall, winter, and early pre-spawn:  In the late fall and Winter period here (water temperatures from 45 down to freezing) I catch bigger fish from 1:00 - 4:00 PM.  In fact, I sometimes don't get a bite until afternoon when the sun has had time to warm things a bit.  During early pre-spawn the afternoon time seems to be the best as well. 
2. Late pre-spawn through spawn:  As the waters warm into the 50s and 60s I catch my bigger fish between 10:30 AM - 2:00 PM. 
3. Post-spawn:  Not sure.  The times for the big fish are quite variable for me.
4. Summer:  Same as post-spawn.  I do catch more fish at dawn and dusk which might skew my thinking a bit, but for really large fish it seems variable.  My previous personal best was the one caught at 4:30 PM on an extremely hot day.
5. Fall:  Bigger fish have been caught at dusk and dawn. 

[Avalonjohn44]

My PB came at 11 in the morning mid summer, clear blue skies, no wind. Previous personal bests all came in the evening or late afternoon. 

I guess long story short, is just fish whenever you can. We can plan and apply science and knowlege to every situation, but we can never control every variable.  A big fish can decide to inhale your bait at any time. Clear morning, deep night. It doesn't matter. Maximizing time on the water (or on the bank...) is the key.

[ww2farmer]

Anytime. I have caught big fish at first light, dusk, mid day, and just about anywhere in-between. Depends on a lot of conditions, weather, water, and season. I probably spend more time on the water in late afternoon till dark than any other time, so if any one time gets a slight edge, it would be that. But it's simply because I have more time on the water in those hours than the rest of the day.