big storms? how they effect fishing

[Mr. Aquarium]

so up here in MA we have been dealing with tropical storm Jose. its been blowing 25 plus since tuesday with a mix of dry and heavy rain periods. today was the worst of the rain.  how does something like this effect fishing? will they stop feeding during the storm. hows the fishing after the storm. i always hear about cold fronts in the spring but what about change of season like summer to fall 

[the reel ess]

I've been on a few days after tropical storms. Normally it's typical bluebird skies after any front. Not the best and it takes a while for the fish to adjust. Add to that high, muddy conditions and debris and it can be downright tough.

 

However, ahead of a tropical storm or any storm can be awesome. 

[Mr. Aquarium]

yea thats what i figured as much. 

[WRB]

Storms generated by hurricanes are technically a low pressure front on a massive scale.

Consider that hurricane Maria could follow Jose next week and you could have more of the same very wet weather. Good week to watch football.

Tom

[Bluebasser86]

We had big storms here the day before my days off that dropped tons of rain. Fishing was terrible both my days off. 

[Mr. Aquarium]

43 minutes ago, WRB said:

Storms generated by hurricanes are technically a low pressure front on a massive scale.

Consider that hurricane Maria could follow Jose next week and you could have more of the same very wet weather. Good week to watch football.

Tom

aint that the truth! wish it wasnt just on sunday monday and thursday

17 minutes ago, Bluebasser86 said:

We had big storms here the day before my days off that dropped tons of rain. Fishing was terrible both my days off. 

still gona get out tho! id rather get skunked on the water then stuck home. goin sunday for a pre sunrise trip, hoping they'll bite big topwaters. if not ill sweet talk em with some plastics, luckily this water is always clear and theres no run off or creeks all ground water. the water shouldnt get to murky 

[MassYak85]

I'll be going out tomorrow as well to either enjoy some catching or share your frustration. Any day with a line in the water is a good day though. I do expect it to be tough as others have said though.

[Koz]

We fished the early evening before tropical storm winds from Irma hit our area with the wind blowing 20-30 mph and the fishing was very good. We fished the next afternoon where one minute is was breezy and no rain and the next it was blowing 45 mph with buckets of rain and nothing was biting. We spent the next few days cleaning up so I didn't get to fish post-storm.

[Fishing_FF]

I asked a Florida FLW tournament guy this question, as Hurricane Irma was the first storm to come through here since I started fishing again. He said that the fish know something is coming by pressure changes, and will feed heavily starting a day to couple days before the storm. After the storm passes, he said it will be about a week before the fishing are ready to feed again. 

 

I got got out to one of my favorite spots 8 days after Irma went through. I got a bite, but wasn't able to hook up. Spent 2 hours working the lake. I tried topwater, Senkos (T-rigged and wacky), jigs, and crankbaits. What I noticed was the lake went from being clear to muddy/murky. Several tree fell into the water. The lake was also higher by about 2 feet and the water temp dropped a good 10 degrees. The hurricane wrecked their home, so I kind of get them being skittish and not wanting to eat. 

 

[davecon]

My experience is that you have to be in just the right spot. A friend of mine has a place around Kissimmee and has fished one of the lakes for over 30 years. Saw him Tuesday and he told me of a small ditch entering in to his lake where the water was flowing tremendously fast. Said they were throwing flukes into the current and letting the flow take them. They caught over 100 bass in one morning with most of them between 2 and 4 pounds. This guy is very dependable and not known for exaggerations.

 

I have had similar experiences in the past (many years ago) but again, you gotta be in just the right spot. If you don't know of such a spot, just wait until the water calms down, usually a week to 10 days, before you give it a try.

 

Normally I spend this time catching up on stuff around the house so when the water calms down I can fish with a clear conscience (not that that is required for going fishing).

[Mr. Aquarium]

i went out yesterday morning. lots of surface activity. fish busting schools of perch fry in shallow water. i didnt haven any topwaters with me. i caught a little smallie on a texas rig senko. missed a few nice fish. a big fish broke me off. 

got a call saying that saltwater fishing is on fire with fish blitzing, hauled ass home, jumped on the boat with my buddy and smoked the stripers! 

[MassYak85]

2 hours ago, swamp hawgs said:

i went out yesterday morning. lots of surface activity. fish busting schools of perch fry in shallow water. i didnt haven any topwaters with me. i caught a little smallie on a texas rig senko. missed a few nice fish. a big fish broke me off. 

got a call saying that saltwater fishing is on fire with fish blitzing, hauled ass home, jumped on the boat with my buddy and smoked the stripers! 

I was out Saturday morning and the surface activity was crazy. Schools of perch or bluegill were just erupting everywhere in the morning but I couldn't get a single bite on topwater or subsurface lures. There were also some trout leaping all the way out of the water all day long. 

[bigbill]

I've witnessed the feeding frenzy that happens before storm hits. One time what turned me on to use lures a bass was hitting my night crawler as I reeled it in. I put on a mepps inline spinner and the rest is history. It was two hours before the rain storm hit.

Another time this feeding frenzy happened was during a warm light rain. It was non stop action. I caught 19 bass standing in one spot. Crazy action.

 

i wish there was a meter to tell me when this feeding frenzy is going to happen. It's tied in with weather fronts moving in and during the rain.

 

After the rain they shut down to do the bacteria stirred up in the water it throws off the PH.

[soflabasser]

Last year I caught a +26.5'' trophy bass from land on a topwater right after a nasty storm. It was raining heavily throughout that day, very gloomy, and windy. It was the type of weather that 99% of bass fishermen would of given up but I know better not to leave when I know theres a good chance at catching a bass thats worth the effort fishing for.

[geo g]

Big storms with high winds effect everything in our shallow bowl lakes here in Florida.  First of all they blow floating vegetation all over the lake, changing the entire look of the place.  Places you could not fish may be clear of all vegetation, and your favorite spots can be totally blocked by floating stuff.  They blow down trees on the shore, and blow them right into the lake.  They tear up docks and structure on the shore, that can become hazards while running the lake.  Then the water rises big time, sometimes doubling the quantity of water in the lake.  The winds stir up the muck bottom turning clear water to a chocolate milk.  With all the run off from roads, parking lots, and septic tanks it sometimes leads to fish kills from pollutants.  

A good hurricane can screw things up for a long time!!!!!!!

[Mr. Aquarium]

12 hours ago, geo g said:

Big storms with high winds effect everything in our shallow bowl lakes here in Florida.  First of all they blow floating vegetation all over the lake, changing the entire look of the place.  Places you could not fish may be clear of all vegetation, and your favorite spots can be totally blocked by floating stuff.  They blow down trees on the shore, and blow them right into the lake.  They tear up docks and structure on the shore, that can become hazards while running the lake.  Then the water rises big time, sometimes doubling the quantity of water in the lake.  The winds stir up the muck bottom turning clear water to a chocolate milk.  With all the run off from roads, parking lots, and septic tanks it sometimes leads to fish kills from pollutants.  

A good hurricane can screw things up for a long time!!!!!!!

that sucks!! we only get nor'esters and tropical storms! high winds heavy rain but nothing like that!  most waters stay clear maybe a little murkiness. the harbor i live on gets really murky after heavy rains and the saltwater fishing gets tough

[geo g]

On 9/22/2017 at 3:51 PM, swamp hawgs said:

so up here in MA we have been dealing with tropical storm Jose. its been blowing 25 plus since tuesday with a mix of dry and heavy rain periods. today was the worst of the rain.  how does something like this effect fishing? will they stop feeding during the storm. hows the fishing after the storm. i always hear about cold fronts in the spring but what about change of season like summer to fall 

25+ is just a afternoon rain for us.  Should have been here for Irma with 125 MPH for hours at a time, and numerous tornadoes in the outer bands. The tornadoes did a lot of the damage.  They said it will take 4 to 6 months to pick up all the debris from this little storm!!!!  Now that's a storm!

[DINK WHISPERER]

Before the storm can be great! But, I've never had any luck immediately after. We've been getting pounded even after Irma here in S FL. I got out this weekend and it was horrible. High muddy water, horrible wind and one bite that i missed all day! 

[Mr. Aquarium]

wow that sucks!!! the saltwater fishing picked right back up again