Fishing Report: It's Hot Outside

[Koz]

I'm bummed out that it's just too fricking hot to be out fishing. The heat index has been in the low 100's for weeks now and for the next few days it will peak at 108 each day. There's no relief in the mornings with the humidity being at 100% at the start of the day, dropping to the 70's by the afternoon. We can't bank fish at night because there are just too many alligators around.

 

For the past month we've tried to gut it out, between biking to our fishing spots and working the banks it's no fun being drenched in sweat. With the high humidity I'm worn out by the time we get home. That's too bad because I've really enjoyed fishing with my son this year.

 

While a lot of the country is going to cool down soon, we still have hot, hot weather for another month. Even in October we're in the mid 80's but thankfully the humidity is lower. I can't wait for the cooler weather.

 

Speaking of humidity, I think it has got to me reel. The chrome on the crank of my Pfleuger President is all pitted and the crank feels brittle. I'm going to contact Pfleuger and see what they say about it.

[soflabasser]

South Florida has also been extremely hot/humid for the past couple months and we recently had a day where the heat index hit 111 degrees. Most days the temperature is +90 degrees with +100 heat index values.There's plenty of alligators in South Florida and I beat the heat by fishing at nighttime, dawn, dusk, cloudy days,etc. I also bring lots of water to make sure I stay hydrated.

[JustJames]

SoCal will get pretty mild weather for next week especially where I live will be below 90 day time and down to 60 night time. I took opportunity of overcast forecaster last few days and went out bank fishing which turn out not that bad caught 2 pretty good size ones. Can't wait until September when big bass start moving back in.

[Bluebasser86]

We've been really fortunate the last couple weeks. Normally would be very similar weather to the OP this time of year, but we've had lots of days in the 80's and even 70's with very mild humidity, it's been great. Looks like that's changing now, and the T-storms today are a pretty sure sign of that, but it was nice while it lasted. 

[Koz]

14 hours ago, soflabasser said:

There's plenty of alligators in South Florida and I beat the heat by fishing at nighttime, dawn, dusk, cloudy days,etc.

 

Our primary fishing locations are the lagoons of a defunct golf course. In just 5 years trees and foliage have overtaken these lagoons. When you look at historical satellite it's amazing how quickly these went from open lagoons to being nestled in the woods.

 

That being said, fishing in the dark with lots of alligators around is not an ideal situation at these lagoons. There are too many areas where they can covertly stalk you (some do that in the daytime as well) and there are not always quick escape routes should one try to ambush you. So for me and my son it's not worth the risk.

 

The other thing that's been depressing lately is that even when the weather is somewhat bearable, by the time early evening rolls in and I have time to fish that's when the thunderstorms also roll in. We're still under a heat advisory this week. Cooler weather can't come soon enough.

[soflabasser]

We have heat advisories as well in South Florida but it hasn't affected my fishing since I focus on low light conditions like I described in my last post. Does every single body of water you fish have alligators? How about fishing in a park without alligators or another lake where they get rid of the alligators? South Florida has millions of alligators but you will rarely see alligators in many of our urban waters since they take the alligators out as soon as they are seen in many of our urban waters. There has to be a couple alligator free bodies of waters where you live, I recommend you find them and consider fishing them at night, dawn , dusk, cloudy conditions since its not safe to fish in the middle of the day with the high heat, high humidity , and high UV index we are having now.

[Koz]

4 hours ago, soflabasser said:

 Does every single body of water you fish have alligators? How about fishing in a park without alligators or another lake where they get rid of the alligators?

 

Yes, we have a lot of gators and they are in most bodies of water in our area. We nearby fished Jarvis Creek Park on Hilton Head last month and the gators were calm until we caught something. Then they went into a frenzy and were slamming into the concrete fishing pad. We left when that happened and the gators went up on that pad. I called the town and they said they would have the bigger ones removed because they were very aggressive.

 

The only time that the town or the local critter removal companies will remove alligators are if they are really big, show extreme aggression towards humans, or eat someone's dog. The only exception is if a local business purchases a gator removal tag (which is hard to obtain) and that business is willing to pay for the removal.

 

If you're not familiar with the Hilton Head area, we have very strict laws and covenants regarding the local flora and fauna. The Island was built with restrictions and safeguards to protect the natural surroundings. For example, when most people build a house they clear the land and plant trees afterwards. Here you need to submit your building plan and show which individual trees you would like to remove in order to build your home. Heck, we don't even have street lights, lighted signs, or backlit signs. So removing gators just because they show up in a neighborhood is impossible in this area.

 

Again, I don't mind the alligators in the daytime when I can keep an eye on them. But in the high grass and wooded areas at night it's just not safe. We can hear the gators thrashing and feeding in the nearby lagoon at night and if you shine a flashlight you see the orange reflection of their eyes. Creepy. I'll wait until it cools off a bit to fish again.

[Catt]

Because of the heat my normal day is first light till about 10 °clock!

 

We are also dealing rain, lots of rain!

 

Yesterday we got 2 1/2" in 35 minutes but not long enough to cool anything off, just turns it into a sauna!

[soflabasser]

Sorry to hear you can't find a alligator free body of freshwater in South Carolina and that you can't fish at night.That has to make fishing much more difficult in this intense summer heat we have been having. You can always get a canopy for your boat to give you some shade while bass fishing, fish under the shade of trees if your fishing from land, and try to fish more at dawn, dusk, cloudy weather to avoid the high UV index that occurs during the middle of the day. Make sure to bring plenty of water to stay hydrated and do not over exert yourself if your not feeling good while fishing. Fall is right around the corner, so soon the temperatures will drop and make it more enjoyable.

On 8/16/2017 at 11:37 PM, Gundog said:

Trade ya....

 

Wow that's a lot of snow, glad I don't have to deal with that and it makes me realize our weather isn't so bad.

[MichaelCopeland]

On 8/18/2017 at 7:57 AM, Catt said:

Because of the heat my normal day is first light till about 10 °clock!

 

We are also dealing rain, lots of rain!

 

Yesterday we got 2 1/2" in 35 minutes but not long enough to cool anything off, just turns it into a sauna!

You got that right. I love the overcast but all the rain kinda sucks, unless it rains while I'm at work. Then it cools it off in the warehouse I work in. I'll fish in the rain as long as it's not too heavy and no lightning. 

[Koz]

On 8/18/2017 at 10:19 PM, soflabasser said:

Sorry to hear you can't find a alligator free body of freshwater in South Carolina and that you can't fish at night.

 

 

We have fished Lake Murray and there are not gators there, but it's a 3 hour dive. I'm not sure about the Santee Cooper lakes, but we're going there this fall and rent a bass boat for the day.

 

Close to home we mostly stick with lagoons that we can bike to, Today the heat index dropped below 100 after 6 pm so we went out for a bit. My son wanted to go to the one we call Baby Bass Lagoon to try and catch the big channel catfish we have seen in there. He came up empty and I managed three dinks.

 

Headed to another we call Hidden Lagoon because it's off in the woods and 99% heavily wooded except for two small casting areas. I had picked up some Zoom Flukes today and gave them a try for the first time. Third cast and pulled one that was probably just over a pound. The fish breached a few feet from shore and as soon as he hit the water an 8 foot gator came barreling in to shore and stopped 3 feet from the bank. We high tailed it up the bank and released the fish in another spot. Some days we can fish there and the gator will cruise on by and other days he let's us know that we're in his territory.

 

Weather forecast cools down next week. I can't wait!

[SuperCorona]

@Koz I know what you mean about the gators.  Even fishing from a boat they are not as spooked as they used to be.  One of the lakes I fish in the Charleston area, Goose Creek Reservoir, is where the city dumps nuisance gators.  I wouldn't do any bank fishing at night there.  They love my frogs and will chase them through the grass.  Obviously that kills the fishing in that spot.  

 

I'd be glad to take you and your son out in my little Tracker boat anytime you want to come up here.  We can fish GCR, Cooper River or Santee Cooper.

[Koz]

6 hours ago, SuperCorona said:

@Koz I know what you mean about the gators.  Even fishing from a boat they are not as spooked as they used to be.  One of the lakes I fish in the Charleston area, Goose Creek Reservoir, is where the city dumps nuisance gators.  I wouldn't do any bank fishing at night there.  They love my frogs and will chase them through the grass.  Obviously that kills the fishing in that spot.  

 

I'd be glad to take you and your son out in my little Tracker boat anytime you want to come up here.  We can fish GCR, Cooper River or Santee Cooper.

 

Thanks for the offer. We may take you up on that sometime. We usually come up to your area a few times a year for travel baseball tournaments.