Night Fishing?

[Neil McCauley]

Going to give it a shot this week since it will be clear with a full moon, what can I expect? Any tips or advice?

 

[scaleface]

I usually dont start catching them good until an hour or two after complete darkness .

[WRB]

There is enough threads on this topic to write a book, search night fishing.

Tom

[Neil McCauley]

There is enough threads on this topic to write a book, search night fishing.

Tom

There are always new experiences/opinions to be heard, whether from people who weren't here for those threads or who have learned new things since then. Or would it be better to necrobump one of those old 5 page threads to the top?

[BASSPATROL247]

First off if its your first time night bassin i would recommend fishing a lake you are familiar with as to where hazards,trees etc.. are located so you dont tear your lower unit off the boat(shouldnt never go fast enough to actually have that happen at night, not safe!) Or hit something and damage and or eject anybody from the boat..make sure all ur nav lights r working,you have tpfd's,life vests etc...try to keep the boat floor/decks clear except for just what you need out, sucks cracking a rod or crushing guides because you step on them.. personaly i keep all lights off when fishing as long as theres no other boats around, if i can see one or hear it they go on until its gone..i use a headlamp with red bulb to tie and unhook fish other than that im blacked out. I also like to be as quiet as possible even running the tm only when necesarry, you would think theyre less spooky at night wich i suppose they may be at times but at night everythings quieter and calmer so their senses are working at their best, as apposed to during the day when theres more boat traffic and more things going on above the water to distract them... other than that i like dark baits most of the time and fish like its daytime fishing....cooler is why i like it, that and the peacefulness..

[Shanes7614]

Black buzz baits and bladed jigs with large profile trailers. Slow moving topwaters like spooks work great also.

[WRB]

There are always new experiences/opinions to be heard, whether from people who weren't here for those threads or who have learned new things since then. Or would it be better to necrobump one of those old 5 page threads to the top?

Bump another night fishing, see fishing tackle forums.

Tom

[HoosierHawgs]

what can I expect?

PIGS. And the best time of your life.

[A-Jay]

First off if its your first time night bassin i would recommend fishing a lake you are familiar with as to where hazards,trees etc.. are located so you dont tear your lower unit off the boat(shouldnt never go fast enough to actually have that happen at night, not safe!) Or hit something and damage and or eject anybody from the boat..make sure all ur nav lights r working,you have tpfd's,life vests etc...try to keep the boat floor/decks clear except for just what you need out, sucks cracking a rod or crushing guides because you step on them.. personaly i keep all lights off when fishing as long as theres no other boats around, if i can see one or hear it they go on until its gone..i use a headlamp with red bulb to tie and unhook fish other than that im blacked out. I also like to be as quiet as possible even running the tm only when necesarry, you would think theyre less spooky at night wich i suppose they may be at times but at night everythings quieter and calmer so their senses are working at their best, as apposed to during the day when theres more boat traffic and more things going on above the water to distract them... other than that i like dark baits most of the time and fish like its daytime fishing....cooler is why i like it, that and the peacefulness..

 

X2 ~ Nicely Done.

 

A-Jay

[RoLo]

There are enough threads on this topic to write a book,  search night fishing.

Tom

 

Tom, your response to a brand new member was neither congenial nor ambitious.

It goes without saying, every single topic and subject has been revisited uncountable times. 

If the survival of the BR forum depended on new & unique material, the time has come to close these corridors.

 

Mr. McCauley rightfully pointed out: "There are always new experiences & opinions to be heard,

whether from people who weren't here or from those who've learned new things since then"

 

Kudos Neil 

 

Roger

[BASSPATROL247]

Tom, your response to a new member was neither congenial nor ambitious.

It goes without saying, every single topic and subject has been revisited a countless number of times.

If the survival of the BR forum depended on new & unique material, the time has come & gone to close these corridors.

Mr. McCauley rightfully pointed out: "There are always new experiences & opinions to be heard,

whether from people who weren't here or from those who've learned new things since then"

Kudos Neil

Roger

x2

[Bankbeater]

I like to take a look at the water and the area while the sun is up. You never know when a storm has pushed a log around.

[bigbill]

Early mornings,

Up at 3:30am on the shore by 4am. In the dark the bigger bass are at the shoreline ambushing anything that they can. Stealth is the key as to not to spook them. Be as quiet as the area is. No noises at all like your not there. I find the bass are bigger in the morning.

As the sky starts to light they get ready to start moving from the shoreline to there deeper haunts. I start off with floating baits and shallow running baits. As it gets lighter I go deeper c rigs, inline spinners, spinnerbaits. Follow the bass out.

Evenings,

They turn on around dusk. Crankbaits, spooks, propbaits, inline spinners.

About 9 to 10pm when the place settles down they feed again. Sometimes sooner or sometimes later they will feed again.

It's knowing about the area where your fishing with the depths and structures. They we know how to fish it.

Be stealthy, do not step on rocks or roots sticking out of the ground near the waters edge. This sends vibrations or harmonics into the water. It's the basses alarm system. Walk softly, handle your tackle quietly. I use a spinning reel and close the bails by hand quietly no click. Stealthy, quietly, your not there.

It's not luck it's skill.

I believe the bass are within 2' from shore feeding on freshwater eels. My pb 10lbs was caught two feet from shore when I casted parallel to the shoreline.

I'm in ct and seeing bigger bass. I believe every state has big bass there smart. All these bass frys aren't coming from the smaller bass. It matters how we target them.

I use a hummingbird portable cast out fish finder because there are no topography maps for the smaller places I fish.

It shows me the flats, deeper areas, transition points. The weeds if there shallow or deep. Then I know what depth to fish it.

I fish swamps with stumps from shore too there loaded with bass. I never pass up a small body of water.

[bigbill]

Ok why the bass turn on.

The basses eyes adjust to the changing light conditions faster then the baitfish eyes do. At this time the baitfish are easy prey. This happens in the early morning at pre dawn dusk and at the early evening at dusk pre darkness.

At 12pm the sunlite let's the plants give off plankton which the baitfish feed on. At this time there easy prey for the bass again.

This is what causes the 12 o'clock lunch time midday bite.

Don't forget to factor in the water and light conditions too. The hues in the water can also affect what colors the bass can see at that time.

I'd go more but my one finger is sore and I won't bore you anymore.

[WRB]

Neil,

Bumped a few threads up for you and hoped you got something out of them.

It takes me several hours share bass fishing techniques, presentations, new or old and having the search tool allows every member access to archieved threads. I think of achieves as time savers when I don't have the time spend restating what has already been repeated many times.

Reading the last night fishing threads you learn that Catt is expert on this topic and has spent over 30 years fishing world class bass lakes at night....listen to ole Catt!

My experience lacks regarding night fishing, our local lakes are not open very often to night fishing, except for a few charity tournaments, where I fish.

I am a jig and worm fisherman most of the time at night. I like bigger profile worms after dark, using Upton's Customs 9" and 13" straight tails, T-rigged, in dark high contrast colors. Fish the same jigs at night as a I do during the day.

Tend to fish shallower at night most of the time, between 1' to 25'.

Tom

[Angry John]

I cant believe it hasn't been said yet but use gear that your very comfortable with and have dialed in.  This is not the time to try out your new bait caster that is not dialed in.  I use both spinning and casting but dial up my mag brake a few notches at night.

[smallies24/7]

Not to steal the thread, but can any lake be night fished? I live on a deep smallie lake in WA, (Fish in 20~25FOW) and have never heard of anyone fishing this lake at night. Seems the bite always shuts off around 30 mins after sunset, and never stayed any later than that. So can this lake, and any lake for that matter, be fished at night with success?

[Shanes7614]

It sure can be a great place. After sunset there always seems to be a small transition time when fish move from deeper water to the shallows and vice versa.

[WRB]

Not to steal the thread, but can any lake be night fished? I live on a deep smallie lake in WA, (Fish in 20~25FOW) and have never heard of anyone fishing this lake at night. Seems the bite always shuts off around 30 mins after sunset, and never stayed any later than that. So can this lake, and any lake for that matter, be fished at night with success?

Being a smallmouth angler you know they roam around during the day time and prefer more active or faster moving lures than LMB most of the time. They don't change at night and tend to locate deeper water than LMB, usually around 7' to 10' around rocks and stumps located at breaklines near that depth.

Clear water or lakes with good visibility have been better for me for night fishing. I have had good success with single spin short arm spinner baits and metal lipped deep divers like a Mud Bug worked along the breakline.

Dr. Jones of Berkley lures claims bass go through eye adjustment between dusk and total darkness, that may explain a slow down during that period. Contrary to that thought is my best night bites have occurred during that transition period, so keep focused and continue fishing.

Tom

[Canyon explorer]

Night fishing large highland lake reservoirs for bass is my favorite for locating and catching large bass consistently. Takes a lot of hard preparation as per the attached.Brushpiles LOZ.DOC

[SiJones012]

Be prepared to wait a while- I usually don't hook anything till about 2 hours after dusk. Complete darkness is best but it is good to familiarize yourself with the water before dark (different hues etc). Also look out for signs of a storm.

[lectricbassman]

I cant believe it hasn't been said yet but use gear that your very comfortable with and have dialed in. This is not the time to try out your new bait caster that is not dialed in. I use both spinning and casting but dial up my mag brake a few notches at night.

X2

Also limit the amount of gear you take. I take 2 rods, a spinning and a bait caster. Its easier for me to tie on a new bait than to keep up with and fight 4 or 5 rods tangling up etc. Night fishing has become my favorite recently. Go out, catch some hogs, have fun, and BE SAFE!