Effects of the Moon on Fishing?

[JMailbox8]

I was fishing yesterday with tip-ups, which I rarely do and something odd happened. I know the moon has an effect on wildlife, but I rarely pay attention to it. However yesterday, nearly to the minute, right at moonset I had a storm of flags go off. I was fishing with medium heavy shiners near the bottom at around 18 feet, looking for walleyes, but ended up with a couple bass and a few drops. The barometric pressure was pretty high, and flags were actually quite few except for that moment.

[TroutWhisperer]

A few weeks ago I was fishing a tough bite when all the sudden the fish turned on big time at 12:30pm.   Don't know what caused it, but it only lasted about 15 minutes.

[JMailbox8]

I'm curious to know what day it was.

This is a short article on it that I just found: http://www.moonconnection.com/moon_phase_fishing.phtml

And here is a site that can help you find those times. I think this will definitely be my go to website as it is specific to zipcode. I might find myself planning special trips based on this, although I do try and get out locally whenever I can regardless of fishing forecasts. http://www.solunarforecast.com/solunarcalendar.aspx

I've never deeply looked into this, but now has spiked an interest.

[fishy1]

a full moon has always been a bad fishing time for me. dont like fishing on a full moon at all but when i do its usually a long day but when they do bite it does seem to be all at once. no matter what the species the results seem to be the same. i always found the best time for fishing on a full moon is noon to 1 am and midnight until 2 am. the walleyes bite through the ice seemed to be at 1 to 2 am. also when you do catch fish on a full moon and especially at those times they seem to be the bigger fish. cant explain any of this but this is what i have experienced for years.

[spot]

Strangely during the summer I've actually found the fish to be more active during a full moon than the other way around. Since my ice fishing is confined to certain sporadic days off I've never had the liberty to choose which moon phase to fish in so I haven't explored the phenomenon in winter.

[Troutmagnet]

Since I am using my phone I do not know how to add a web link. So a site that I use for getting the moon rise and moon set times is aa.usno.navy.mil.  I like it because you can get months at a time and enter where you want it to be for. When I have options for fishing times I like to use this info to help sway my decision.

[spot]

My time off is chosen according to a combination of important dates like birthdays and spaces between time off chosen by coworkers, so moon phases end up being a part of the landscape.

[thefishingweatherman]

Strangely, the fish never seem to bite real well when I moon them..

[perchhauler]

When there is a bright moon at night, the next day is usually a slow day for panfish.

[spot]

Ever been mooned by a fish?

[fishingidjit]

Barometric pressure with the moon phases

[TroutWhisperer]

I'm curious to know what day it was.

This is a short article on it that I just found: http://www.moonconnection.com/moon_phase_fishing.phtml

And here is a site that can help you find those times. I think this will definitely be my go to website as it is specific to zipcode. I might find myself planning special trips based on this, although I do try and get out locally whenever I can regardless of fishing forecasts. http://www.solunarforecast.com/solunarcalendar.aspx

I've never deeply looked into this, but now has spiked an interest.

I think it was Feb 20th.

[JMailbox8]

I think it was Feb 20th.

Neat, that falls within the major fishing time on the website I posted.

Barometric pressure with the moon phases

I've found the bite to usually be slow when the barometric pressure is high.

[Arctic Addict]

I usually start to moon during fishing when the bite slows down.

[bootstrap]

I moon the other fisherman when they fish too close to me and the bite picks up.

[vermont mike]

Walleye fishing during soft water season, clear moon nights poor fishing.
Overcast moon nights complete difference.
I think it's more of a light thing then a lunar effect. IMO.

[JMailbox8]

Walleye fishing during soft water season, clear moon nights poor fishing.
Overcast moon nights complete difference.
I think it's more of a light thing then a lunar effect. IMO.

That could be a barometric pressure issue. Clear skies are a sign of high barometric pressure. From what I understand walleyes are sensitive to high barometric pressure (anything over 30.1 and it's slow).

[VTMatt]

Lol this crap again. 

[vermont mike]

Lol this crap again.

Your a legend in your own mind.

[JMailbox8]

Lol this crap again. 

Hey, anything to increase my chances helps. I only get limited opportunities.

[Troutmagnet]

Strangely, the fish never seem to bite real well when I moon them..

Maybe you need a bigger moon! HaHa

[VTMatt]

Still remember last year I had some old guy show up in St Albans at like 2 PM. The bite had just shut off, and I was heading out. He stopped me and told me all about how he checked the Lunar tables and saw the fishing wasn't worth it until after 2 PM that day. He sat home and waited for 2 PM to come around, meanwhile I'm pulling in over 150 lbs of perch.   There are way, way more important things to focus on when it comes to fishing than what phase the moon is in.   

[JMailbox8]

Still remember last year I had some old guy show up in St Albans at like 2 PM. The bite had just shut off, and I was heading out. He stopped me and told me all about how he checked the Lunar tables and saw the fishing wasn't worth it until after 2 PM that day. He sat home and waited for 2 PM to come around, meanwhile I'm pulling in over 150 lbs of perch.   There are way, way more important things to focus on when it comes to fishing than what phase the moon is in.   

Nobody said anything about sitting at home and waiting for a special time to fish until you did. Obviously you aren't going to catch anything unless you are out there. I think a fool would rather wait at home than be out there fishing, so congratulations on figuring that out too Matt. I simply brought up an interesting coincidence and figured I'd ask other people if they had this experience as well. Kudos to you for shooting someone down when they are trying to increase their odds when they only have a limited number of opportunities to go out. So give yourself a big old pat on the back.

[VTMatt]

Nobody said anything about sitting at home and waiting for a special time to fish until you did. Obviously you aren't going to catch anything unless you are out there. I think a fool would rather wait at home than be out there fishing, so congratulations on figuring that out too Matt. I simply brought up an interesting coincidence and figured I'd ask other people if they had this experience as well. Kudos to you for shooting someone down when they are trying to increase their odds when they only have a limited number of opportunities to go out. So give yourself a big old pat on the back.

So you have limited opportunity to fish but yet you still get to choose exactly when you go, so how's that much of a limit?  Why not just fish whenever you can?  Might increase your odds the most. You happened to start catching fish when it coincided with something else , big whoop.  Fish don't care if we have a full moon or half a moon....probably care about the amount of light in the sky which is affected most by cloud cover. The sun has more to do with fishing than the moon, which is one way our Atlantics know it's time to migrate in the Fall (shorter days)  Like I said in my previous post, there's plenty of other things to focus on when it comes to fishing other than the moon. 
I caught my biggest salmon when it was raining out this Fall, and I have a friend that strongly believes salmon won't bite in the rain...

[varmonter]

For years I have seen lunar fishing tables in mags
And websites.I have heard that fishing before,during
Or after a major weather change is good/bad.
If I use a certain bait cut a certain way on a certain
Type of hook..while holding my mouth a certain way..
Well I'm certain to catch em.I found it all interesting
And educational.
     People want to attribute their success to something
Other than being in the right place at the right time.
As if the forces of nature have these mystical effects
On what we pursue.
    I look at the calender.hmm next Thurs dentist appt
Friday the dogs vet appt...sat wife wants to go to sears.
Sunday my buddy can't make it..hmm Mondays raining
But Tuesday looks good.  Yup Tuesday it is... 

[spot]

I find that I catch more fish when work isn't expecting me to be there. The fish seem to bite better when I'm not at work.

[thefishingweatherman]

I think if the moon does affect fish feeding, it's by virtue of light levels. I could see fish feeding more during a clear moonlit night - at least the species that depend on sight more than smell. I can't see any other way the moon could affect fish behavior, at least in lakes and rivers. In the ocean, the tides come into play.

[mudchuck]

Fish are like humans, some are predictable whiles aren't...there's no rhyme or reason to fish habits or humans for that matter, any given day (or night or time of day or night, or month, season...whatever) what is perceived to be predictable isn't...

[vermont mike]

All my biggest pike have been caught winter or summer in nasty weather low light rain and the barometer fluctuating.

[JMailbox8]

So you have limited opportunity to fish but yet you still get to choose exactly when you go, so how's that much of a limit?  Why not just fish whenever you can?  Might increase your odds the most. You happened to start catching fish when it coincided with something else , big whoop.  Fish don't care if we have a full moon or half a moon....probably care about the amount of light in the sky which is affected most by cloud cover. The sun has more to do with fishing than the moon, which is one way our Atlantics know it's time to migrate in the Fall (shorter days)  Like I said in my previous post, there's plenty of other things to focus on when it comes to fishing other than the moon. 
I caught my biggest salmon when it was raining out this Fall, and I have a friend that strongly believes salmon won't bite in the rain...

Having a toddler, and with my wife and I both working, I don't get a lot of time to get out, especially since my wife works till 7 and works some weekends. Most of my vacation time is spent with the family, but I do have some time I can take off to get out, but I have to schedule it in. Obviously there are other factors involved in catching fish. I never asserted that the moon dictated their actions. If there is a trend that might increase the odds, albeit little, why not. I think the weather may have a bigger effect, but that is much more difficult to predict a couple weeks in advance.

My best hour of fishing was in the summer right after we were hit with a sudden thunderstorm out on Bristol Pond. As soon as the storm passed we were catching pike left and right.