Who Else Has Trouble Fishing In The Wind?

[Catch and Grease]

Went to a funeral early today and after I decided to head to the lake and fished until sundown, didn't get one fish! Only a few strikes at a top water.

The wind was around 15 mph the whole time... I spent just as much time keeping the boat straight as I did fishing haha let's just say my trolling motor skills aren't the best....

Who else has trouble in the wind? I love a little wind to put a chop on the water but after it gets around 10mph or more I start to have trouble.

[tcbass]

Yep. Hate the wind. Especially since I love topwater fishing. I also like fishing docks so skipping Senkos under them can be hard with waves and the boat moving. My next boat will have 2 Power Poles, that's for sure.

[Mainebass1984]

Sometimes the wind can really get the bite going. I have to deal with the wind way to often in the lakes I like to fish. I usually anchor when the wind gets bad.

[Catch and Grease]

Yeah, I have a 10lb anchor in the boat I was using in some places, it's too light I need a heavier one because it was still getting drug around haha

[QUAKEnSHAKE]

Went to a funeral early today and after I decided to head to the lake and fished until sundown, didn't get one fish! Only a few strikes at a top water.

The wind was around 15 mph the whole time... I spent just as much time keeping the boat straight as I did fishing haha let's just say my trolling motor skills aren't the best....

Who else has trouble in the wind? I love a little wind to put a chop on the water but after it gets around 10mph or more I start to have trouble.

 

thats a light breeze where Im at

[desmobob]

I had two windy days of fishing this weekend and it can be frustrating.  The wind was gusting and I was constantly adjusting the trolling motor speed to try and maintain forward motion.  Not really relaxing at all.

 

I was fishing the windward edge of a shallow weed line with a crankbait and would occasionally catch a pickerel or pike.  It was a challenge trying to get two trebles out of their maw and keep the boat from being blown into the shallows/weeds at the same time.  

 

I caught a couple of nice bass though, and it beat the heck out of a day at work!

 

Tight lines,

Bob

[Catch and Grease]

We'll my trolling motor is crappy because my good one got stolen, the slightest bit of grass gets on this one and I have to pull it up and clean it off and there is a lot of grass in this lake, by the time I got it back in the water I would be all up in matted grass because I was fishing the edge of the mats..

[mjseverson24]

Wind with a cable drive ==> SUCKS!!!

 

Wind with a minn kota + I-Pilot ==> EASY FISHING!!!

 

Wind with dual shallow water anchors ==> PERFECT!!!  ( soon i hope )

 

 

Mitch

[tcbass]

We'll my trolling motor is crappy because my good one got stolen, the slightest bit of grass gets on this one and I have to pull it up and clean it off and there is a lot of grass in this lake, by the time I got it back in the water I would be all up in matted grass because I was fishing the edge of the mats..

 

 

What you could do is get a bigger anchor for the front and a smaller one for the back and use one of thse cheap anchor pulleys for each so you can use them both from your sitting position and it's better on your back.

 

 

 

 http://www.cabelas.com/product/Anchor-Pulley/700040.uts?Ntk=AllProducts&searchPath=%2Fcatalog%2Fsearch%2F%3FN%3D%26Ntk%3DAllProducts%26Ntt%3Danchor%26Ntx%3Dmode%252Bmatchallpartial%26WTz_l%3DHeader%253BSearch-All%2BProducts%26form_state%3DsearchForm%26recordsPerPage%3D80%26search%3Danchor%26searchTypeByFilter%3DAllProducts%26x%3D0%26y%3D0&Ntt=anchor&WTz_l=Header%3BSearch-All+Products

[QUAKEnSHAKE]

Do you put enough line out for your anchor to grab the bottom? There is a suggested ratio for line out to depth of water, something like 8:1. 8 feet of line for every foot of water depth. So 10 feet of water you should have 80 feet of line out.

[Catch and Grease]

Do you put enough line out for your anchor to grab the bottom? There is a suggested ratio for line out to depth of water, something like 8:1. 8 feet of line for every foot of water depth. So 10 feet of water you should have 80 feet of line out.

Ouch, I guess I need to put a longer rope on mine. I was fishing 6 feet of water and with my anchor touching the bottom there was maybe a couple more feet of rope left...

[QUAKEnSHAKE]

Yeah thats a lot of line out I dont follow that suggestion much myself.

[einscodek]

Love the wind.. heavy spinnerbait unaffected

fish love it

[RSM789]

Do you put enough line out for your anchor to grab the bottom? There is a suggested ratio for line out to depth of water, something like 8:1. 8 feet of line for every foot of water depth. So 10 feet of water you should have 80 feet of line out.

 

I think the ratio must be less.  In 10 feet of water with 80 feet of rope out, it would be as if you didn't have an anchor at all.  Any minor shift in the wind would have you swinging all over the place.

 

I don't believe a set ratio would work, it most likely involves the wind speed & weight of the boat.  In my little pond prowler, I can't imagine having more than 20 feet of rope out in 10 ft. of water unless the Santa Ana winds have kicked up.

[Bluebasser86]

Man I pray the wind will ONLY be 15mph when I go fishing. If I stayed home every time the blew above 15mph I'd rarely get to go fishing, part of life in KS and all of the Midwest for that matter. If you're running a transom mount trolling motor off a light weight johnboat I can truly feel your pain though. 

[Fishes in trees]

In olden times when I fished out of a borrowed row boat, with a Minn Kota 65 for positioning I often drifted.

Figure out the direction of the wind, go upwind and let it blow you past your structure.  It makes you think a lot about positioning your baits because you often only get one cast and then you drift past.  Too good a cast and you hang up and your drift is spoiled.

 

Back to the point of this thread, I often deployed a drift anchor.  I had a set of 9 or 10 window weights and I could add or subtract one or two and just drag behind the boat to slow the drift.  I never did get it hung up so bad that I couldn't get it back.  Use heavy rope.  3/8 minimum, half inch is better, it is easier to handle in colder water.  If you are messing with the drift anchor a lot, wear gloves.

 

The boat I fished out of at the time had several tie off points.  If you are fishing out of a pond boat, like a Water Scamp or a Bass Buggy, finding a tie off point could get problematic.   I guess you would use one of the handles on the side of the boat.

 

Bottom line, like Jimmy Houston says, "The wind is your friend."  Sometimes fishing in it is a pain.  We all have friends that are a pain sometimes.  There is a learning curve to dealing with wind, most days though I have found that the wind is a part of the pattern.

 

Changing the subject slightly, one time at an in store promotion, pro fisherman Dion Hibdon (son of Guido) told me that he always carried a wind sock in his bass boat and that functions similar to a drift anchor.  He went on to say that he used it more on practice days than on tournament days, but he always had one in his boat.  Furthermore, now that he had 36 volt trolling motors and better batteries it often wasn't his first choice.

 

For your situation, I'd rig up some kind of drift anchor to try to slow down your drifts as you go by your targets.  Use your trolling motor to position yourself upwind and then drift, saving your batteries somewhat.

[Oregon Native]

Love wind......especially on the Columbia...turns the ol smallies on.  Norris too.  Have caught many smallies with waves breaking over back of boat.  Spinnerbaits or cranks...sometimes a heavy jig.

[Brian6428]

I like to fish with my boat into the wind. That way I can just put the TM on constant on and fish nice and slow. Fishing with the wind makes me go too fast for my liking. Fluorocarbon helps a lot, too.

[geo g]

I will plan a trip according to which direction the wind is blowing. I try to fish with the wind to my back so I can stay off the trolling motor as much as possible. This allows me to stay in stealth mode, and give the fish no indication your in the neighborhood. If the wind is above 15 MPH I will put out a drift bag that really slows the boat down. If you haven't used one of these they are a great tool on windy days. In the man made canals all through the everglades this really allows for some easy fishing even on windy days. Casting with the wind to your back makes for long casts and no backlash problems. Let the wind be your friend and don't fight it.

[desmobob]

 If the wind is above 15 MPH I will put out a drift bag that really slows the boat down. If you haven't used one of these they are a great tool on windy days. 

 

I just put a drift sock on my (huge) list of things I need.  :-)

 

Thanks for the tip,

Bob

[geo g]

I just put a drift sock on my (huge) list of things I need.  :-)

 

Thanks for the tip,

Bob

If you get one make sure its not too small, they come in all sizes. For my 18 foot bass boat, mine is about 5 foot diameter. When it opens up you will feel the brakes put on. Tie off a back cleat, and you can still use the trolling motor to maneuver. Good luck!

[desmobob]

If you get one make sure its not too small, they come in all sizes. For my 18 foot bass boat, mine is about 5 foot diameter. When it opens up you will feel the brakes put on. Tie off a back cleat, and you can still use the trolling motor to maneuver. Good luck!

 

 

I'm thinking I might buy a pair of 36-inchers.  That would give me more flexibility for drift speed, orientation, various wind conditions, etc.

 

Thanks again for the information,

Bob

[Glenn]

As the ol saying goes, "The wind is a fisherman's friend".   I would add onto that, "at times". 

 

I've had many a day where the bite was bad until the wind kicked up, and then it was on like donkey kong!  However, it's not always a sure thing.  Sometimes it does the opposite.

 

It's like any other weather condition, really.  Sometimes a boon or bust, always try it out before cursing it.

 

That said, there are methods and tactics that work better than others in the wind.  These articles should help you:

http://www.bassresource.com/fishing/wind.html

http://www.bassresource.com/fishing/bass_fishing_wind.html

http://www.bassresource.com/fishing/wind_fishing.html

http://www.bassresource.com/fishing/wind_bass.html

http://www.bassresource.com/fishing/wind_fish.html

http://www.bassresource.com/fishing/fishing_in_the_wind.html

[geo g]

As the ol saying goes, "The wind is a fisherman's friend".   I would add onto that, "at times". 

 

I've had many a day where the bite was bad until the wind kicked up, and then it was on like donkey kong!  However, it's not always a sure thing.  Sometimes it does the opposite.

 

It's like any other weather condition, really.  Sometimes a boon or bust, always try it out before cursing it.

 

That said, there are methods and tactics that work better than others in the wind.  These articles should help you:

http://www.bassresource.com/fishing/wind.html

http://www.bassresource.com/fishing/bass_fishing_wind.html

http://www.bassresource.com/fishing/wind_fishing.html

http://www.bassresource.com/fishing/wind_bass.html

http://www.bassresource.com/fishing/wind_fish.html

http://www.bassresource.com/fishing/fishing_in_the_wind.html

Thanks Glen, that is exactly why you have to love this site!

[ColdSVT]

A lot of times if the wind gets blowing real hard i will stick to moving baits like a spinner bait, jerkbait or crankbait.

If the wind has been blowing to same for multiple days ill go the the most wind hit shoreline and work a jig or a spinnerbait, especially if the shoreline has muddied up some from the waves. Bass like to hide in that muddy water and ambush prey