In-Bound Front Impacting Feeding Windows

We all know changes in weather can impact fish behavior so that part certainly isn’t news to anyone. This last front that rolled through Sunday – Monday was a real doozie and altered the timing of the “typical” feeding window so significantly I thought I would talk about it a bit.

Pat and I were planning to share hosting duties for the show that will air Dec. 10. During our planning we were keeping a keen eye on the weather as forecasts called for a major change in conditions near Bemidji, MN with highs dropping from the Upper-30’s to the Low-teens over a span of 36 hours or so.

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Our plan was to target a small lake that is notorious for kicking out big gills with those gills feeding almost exclusively during low-light periods.

Last Sunday we hit the ice at sunrise and found the fish to be completely negative to the point where we didn’t ice a single gill during the AM feeding window. Conditions were pre-frontal with light winds and high skies.

About 10 AM we start to see the clouds start to roll in and I took this photo as the frontal line was directly overhead. Suffice it to say the conditions, and the bite, changed dramatically as the front moved in!

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What happened next will likely be one of the best examples of weather overriding an existing feeding pattern I’ve witnessed in a long time. The lake we fished, as previously mentioned, is notorious for the big gills feeding only during low-light periods. The water clarity is exceptional and the gills in this lake will actually feed under the cover of darkness while it is next to impossible to catch a quality fish from this lake mid-day.

But the strength of the front that rolled through late morning on Sunday sure changed all that! As soon as the clouds rolled in and the barometer started to drop… the fish went nuts. Even the bigger fish fed hard with the best feeding window happening from 11 AM – 2 PM.

The fish that typically are found to be incredibly wary and require ultra-finesse presentations actually preferred bulky, large profile 1/32 oz. VMC Flash Champ spoons loaded with spikes over all the jig presentations we tried.

What made the impact of the front even more interesting was that there was absolutely NO lowlight bite at the end of the day. The fish had adjusted the timing of their feeding window in response to the front and had gone back into a negative mood as the front settled in and the winds started to pick up.

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Those aren’t Gils, those are Toads!
I can’t wait to see the show.

Did you have good Ice up there?

Eelpoutguy wrote:

Those aren’t Gils, those are Toads!
I can’t wait to see the show.

Did you have good Ice up there?

We had 5″ on the small, protected lake we fished. Most of the larger lakes were in tough shape. The cold temps this week will get things headed back in the right direction.

Explained to perfection how bite windows can be dramatically altered by changing weather patterns. Great description and what a helpful tool for anglers, well done.

Great info James.
I’m assuming you are referring to Sunday, Dec 3rd.
Just because I’m a huge fan of cross-referencing Lunar Major and Minor times for finding the most aggressive bite windows, I see you were in the middle of a perfect storm.

Major Time for Sunday, Dec 3rd was 11:57am to 1:57pm. Usually you see activity pick up in the 1/2 hour to a hour before this. Add in the front coming through at 10:00am and the effects of cloud cover, barometer change, and going into the major – KILLER TIME to be had.

I see the minor was after sunset 5:17 to 6:17pm with a 100% full moon. Makes for a tough bite in the evenings from my experience.

Congrats on hitting the prime time window! Many guys don’t stick it out and reap the rewards

BTW – same can be applied to open water. Few years ago I was up Door County and hit the exact same conditions. Front rolling in just ahead of a major. Went from hitting a few dink smallies here and there to a serious pounding on pig Bronze, and Eyes!

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Randy Wieland wrote:

Major Time for Sunday, Dec 3rd was 11:57am to 1:57pm. Usually you see activity pick up in the 1/2 hour to a hour before this. Add in the front coming through at 10:00am and the effects of cloud cover, barometer change, and going into the major – KILLER TIME to be had.

Yes sir, December 3rd. It was a very intense midday bite, no doubt!

Danged! I was on a large lake to the NW of you fishing for whitefish and got off the ice at 10 a.m. fearing for my safety. It sounded like a severe thunderstorm on the ice with all the ice cracking in the warmth and sunshine – twice cracking under my feet. Tiptoed off. Got back on the ice about 3 p.m. after the clouds passed through and the lake quieted down, but surprisingly the bite was pretty dead even into dusk. I missed the opportunity! Oh well, better safe than sorry I suppose.

Great post.

Brian

Good stuff, thanks James! This is what I enjoy most about IDO versus so many other fishing media sources out there…you guys are actually willing to teach and share insight.

Really cool you dropped in for a forum post on this…I’d say it adds immense value to the forum vs us just yapping about the latest gear all the time.

Great info!! Glad I was on the water Monday to enjoy the fishing as well.

I encourage every able bodied fisherman to bank one work sick day for fishing these big early winter cold fronts. Some of the best angling times I’ve had is watching these from a week out, plan accordingly and then cash in when she rolls through.

No boat, about an hour worth of scouting new territory from shore and winner winner, sauger dinner.

Jamin wrote:

Good stuff, thanks James! This is what I enjoy most about IDO versus so many other fishing media sources out there…you guys are actually willing to teach and share insight.

Really cool you dropped in for a forum post on this…I’d say it adds immense value to the forum vs us just yapping about the latest gear all the time.

I’ll do my best to contribute in this way more often.

Now on the flip side our time on the water Monday did NOT go as planned!

We attempted to film on Monday but we had a drizzly rain to start the day that forced us to take the camera gear inside the Otters. Once we started to see the lightning and hear the thunder in the distance we decided to head for town.

We stopped in Bemidji for a bite to eat and parked in the Gander Parking lot when it started to hail like crazy. Combined with all the thunder and lightning it was a pretty crazy weather event for December!

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Interesting James…I had been getting nice crappies/gills from 6am-9am but found the crappies “not in the mood” before sun up Sat and just ground it out to pick up enough for a meal…and I was just south of Bemidji in the Det Lakes area. What I attributed it to was the Supermoon Sat and Sunday and the fish possibly feeding all night…what affect does a full moon have on Panfish if any?

And thanks for the great info you provide!

Slabhunter wrote:

Interesting James…I had been getting nice crappies/gills from 6am-9am but found the crappies “not in the mood” before sun up Sat and just ground it out to pick up enough for a meal…and I was just south of Bemidji in the Det Lakes area. What I attributed it to was the Supermoon Sat and Sunday and the fish possibly feeding all night…what affect does a full moon have on Panfish if any?

And thanks for the great info you provide!

Water clarity plays a huge role and, generally speaking, crappie are more likely to feed after dark than bluegill in my experience. But in exceptionally clear water crappie and gills will feed actively after dark, particularly when there’s some moonlight shining down overhead.

Now if the water clarity is poor that will reduce the potential for feeding after dark.

Looks like you need to get out there in front of the front.