You don't have to be a scientist to be successful with a rod and reel, but a little knowledge of science can be helpful.
You might start with meteorology.
"Just from the guys coming in here, fishing last week was really slow with those windy days," said Mike Crowell, co-owner of Rose's Bait & Tackle in West Burlington. He found a rhyme depicting the good and bad of windy fishing days.
"Wind from the west, fish bite the best. The winds from the south blows the bait in their mouth. The wind from the north does not go forth."
There is certainly some truth to that. According to Fish Tackly, wind can be both good and bad.
Watch out for wind blowing toward the shoreline. It can blow smaller bait fish toward the bank and larger fish will follow to feed on them.
When the wind is blowing away from the bank, particularly in spring and summer, it can blow insects, spiders, insect larvae and vegetation into the water, creating a feeding frenzy. Cast your bait into the mix.
Strong winds can affect the currents in small and large lakes. The current often goes with the wind and fish usually like to swim against the current because it's easier for them to maneuver. The current will carry bait fish toward the bigger fish.
But don't cast into the wind. You'll get less distance and more chances of tangling your line. Anchor your boat so the wind doesn't push it around.
"The wind direction itself may not be as important as the accompanying climate factors," Crowell said.
Wind from the east normally signals that bad weather is approaching. When the wind blows from the east and the barometric pressure drops, the decrease in air pressure can cause fish stomachs to shrink slightly. It could be enough that the fish's will and need to hunt and feed decreases.
Winds from the south and west tend to improve fishing.
"People are catching crappie big time now," Crowell said. "They're having a lot of luck in the 9 to 14 (inch) range. A couple guys came in (Wednesday) morning and they've been having good luck in farm ponds, but most of the guys coming in here have been on the (Mississippi) river.
"Even though baseball and football can take up a lot of your time in fall," Crowell said, "you might benefit by doing a reappraisal. These months are prime times for fishing. While there's never a guarantee you'll find prime time fishing, spring and fall are your best bets. That's so true."
Crowell offers some advice for landing that big catfish.
"Try flooded stock ponds, old river channels and flooded creek channels, flooded road beds and stump and timber flats, especially those near deep water, The guys going out to catch catfish are catching catfish. It's more on like night crawlers and shad. Even stink bait was working a week ago, but right now they'd probably have better luck with shrimp, shad and worms."
The water is probably too cool for stink bait right now.
"Last fall, some guys came in here and they were taking a blow dryer and putting stink bait in tubes," Crowell said. "They were warming up the stink bait and they were catching channel cat.
"This colder weather is going to cause a major feeding frenzy," Crowell said. "It already has. Guys have been coming in and they were catching 12, 15 crappie at a time. A lot of guys are using a jig and a minnow or bobber and minnow. Minnows are always a good bet.
"The colder weather doesn't stop the fish from biting at all. It helps this time of year until it gets super cold."
The Link LonkOctober 24, 2020 at 04:03AM
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FISHING REPORT: A little science might help catch fish - Burlington Hawk Eye
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