Cold Muddy High Water

[clayton86]

How long does it take for high muddy water to clear up and go down? It's been raining all week and everything is flooded now how long before it clears up usually. It's supposed to rain today and tomorrow then sunny and 63 Sunday then sunny 55 Monday and 60 Tuesday with 30% chance of rain. I'm trying to plan when to go out next I'm thinking Tuesday give it a day or two to settle a bit. The water temps were 41* last Tuesday when I went out though idk if it will be much warmer we had freezing rain all yesterday an some of today. All the rain is gonna bring in some fresh steelhead/rainbow trout but that's not what I'm after but they have been hitting everything I toss in the water nothing is safe from them it seems. I'm hoping to get into some more big smallmouth iv gotten 4 so far this year all in the last week smallest was 3# biggest was 4-12 they have been getting bigger with each one caught.

[Sam]

Clayton, don't wait to go fishing.

 

The bass eat and spawn in clear or dirty water.

 

Now that the Dogwoods have bloomed your quest is to find the bass on their beds or in shallow water getting ready to go to their beds.

 

So what do you use? OK, let's think about that.

 

First, with muddy water they can't see very well so a noisy lure is best. Something with a rattle or a thud-thud or thump-thump (spinnerbait or chatterbait).

 

Second, when they hone in on the sound they need to see something. So you can go with white, white/chart or a dark color, like blue and black.

 

If you think they are on the bottom resting before moving up you can throw a shaky head or Texas-rig with a dark colored bait such as junebug, purple or black.  Remember, bass' eyesight can see better in the water than you can.

 

Can you check the water temperatures? Bass do their thing based on water temperatures. I would think your body of water is in the middle 60's meaning it is time to move up into the shallows and find a place to raise a family.

 

And in dirty water you want to fish slow. If you throw a jig and pig you bring it back to you very slowly. You use a 5:1 ratio baitcaster to retrieve your crankbaits. You may also want to throw a chrome with blue back Rat-L-Trap. They do well in dirty water.

 

Now with this knowledge go out and do some fishing, make a log of the day and keep it in a three-ring binder, and let us know how you do.

[Sam]

Of course, if the water temps are in the 40's they are staging and you will have to go deep for them.

 

Try a crankbait, spinnerbait or a Carolina rig with a dark plastic.

 

And the fishing will be slow. But they are there waiting for you.

[J Francho]

The creeks your talking about, day and half to two days, but it's got to stop raining.  I bet they are blown out now anyway.  There are still a few fish, but they hit the deeper holes where the water is less muddy.

[clayton86]

Well if I go where I got all the trout and small mouth that is the deep spot without going onto Lake Ontario it's maybe 500yards from the mouth of the big lake when the water levels were down I was fishing in 8-10 FOW.

[J Francho]

Just fish it, loud, noisy baits that have a steady cadence.

[clayton86]

Well you seen what the Xr50 lipless got me......... Ill be in geneseo all weekend for drill maybe ill swing up to Henrietta and pick up some scroungers on the way home at gander. All my spinners are willow blades I need a few with Colorado blades and some chatter baits.