Moon Phases - How does this affect salmon fishing

[TyeeTanic]

I know this has probably been discussed before, but how does the moon phase affect salmon fishing in Lake O?

My mercurey calendar said this weekend would be great for fishing - I went 6/6 this Saturday but nothing to write home about.

Met up with a fisherman on Sunday and he landed over 30 fish. He said Saturday was a bad day to fish because of the full moon

on Friday night, causing the fish to feed all night, so nothing was all that interested on Sat morning.

I'm sitting there shaking my head - everytime I get off the water, it seems there's another excuse for not being able to land more

than 8 fish.

Anyhow - if there is truth in this, when is the best moon phase for fishing in the morning and evening?

Thanks.

[dewey123]

on a bright full moon the fish can see real good all night and eat all night

[JakeyBaby]

Try skipping the mourning fish when there is a full moon.Head out in the evening and the fishing can be very hot. It has produced for me many of times... Good luck

Matt

-Jakey Baby-

[Tim Bromund]

Actually with the full moon and the kings feeding all night, yes the first light bite is usually pretty weak as they fish are full, however, they typically get hungry again mid day, so that 11:00am-2:00pm period can be super hot the day after a clear sky/full moon.

Tim

[salmonite]

Actually with the full moon and the kings feeding all night, yes the first light bite is usually pretty weak as they fish are full, however, they typically get hungry again mid day, so that 11:00am-2:00pm period can be super hot the day after a clear sky/full moon.

Tim

yep happened to us sunday

[SHAKE-N-BAKE]

Last Friday we hung in there for the moon underfoot around 1-1;30 and the bite was on! I use Prime Times calender and believe in it. I still try to put all the time I can on the water or in the woods when I get to go.

See you on the pond!

[TyeeTanic]

Hey Shake n Bake,

Do you have a link to the Prime Time calendar?

[momay4000]

Mark,

I fished all last weekend from sun-up til about 10:30 or 11 AM both days and it was the best fishing I've ever had on this lake with fish biting the minute we set the rods in the water. I talked to a few of my buddies on the water Saturday and Sunday and there was no shortage of bites early on.

I would focus more on speed and your set-up rather than the moon phase.

Good luck,

- Chris

[danno]

Mark, you're getting very spoiled this year. 6-6 ain't shabby.

[TyeeTanic]

I think my setup is okay - I am getting hits from all kinds Kings, Coho, Atlantic, Steelhead, etc.

The one thing I can't control is down speed - I don't have a rigger to test this, I use dipsey wire rods. Annyhow the other issue is my boat goes at the slowest 2.8 mph on the gps - I can't go any slower. This might be an issue, am somewhat worried about it, but I have a 20 ft ski and fish boat with a 4.3L IO Merc engine, and there's not too much I can do. There is an electric trolling motor but it's a bit of a pain to hook up.

Do you think 2.8 mph is too fast and it is worthwhile for me to go to the electric trolling motor, or is this a good enough gps speed. I was told that in general down speed is 0.5 mph less, so that would make my downspeed around 2.3 mph.

[Paul Czarnecki]

A consistent GPS speed of 2.8 is fine for most situations. However, to slow your boat down in a following sea get yourself a 28 inch trolling bag from Amish Outfitters.

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[salmonite]

I think my setup is okay - I am getting hits from all kinds Kings, Coho, Atlantic, Steelhead, etc.

The one thing I can't control is down speed - I don't have a rigger to test this, I use dipsey wire rods. Annyhow the other issue is my boat goes at the slowest 2.8 mph on the gps - I can't go any slower. This might be an issue, am somewhat worried about it, but I have a 20 ft ski and fish boat with a 4.3L IO Merc engine, and there's not too much I can do. There is an electric trolling motor but it's a bit of a pain to hook up.

Do you think 2.8 mph is too fast and it is worthwhile for me to go to the electric trolling motor, or is this a good enough gps speed. I was told that in general down speed is 0.5 mph less, so that would make my downspeed around 2.3 mph.

yep a bag will work fine but if you are not looking to spend money.. a couple 5 gallon buckets work pretty well too!

[TyeeTanic]

So can I simply attach a 5 gallon bucket to my ski rope hook on the boat? Isn't there a danger that it gets stuck in the propeller? I have an IO engine.

[TyeeTanic]

So can I simply attach a 5 gallon bucket to my ski rope hook on the boat? Isn't there a danger that it gets stuck in the propeller? I have an IO engine.

[tangleweed1]

Drill a 2 inch hole in the bottom of the bucket and attach it to the side of your boat you could put one on each side

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[Knotlost]

Buckets can beat up your boat, I would just get some bags most places have them, and they are not that expensive.

[TyeeTanic]

Okay, some weekly feedback on my topics. I loaded Prime Times Lunar Calendars - it said fishing would be good today from 6:30 - 9:30. Sure enough we hooked into 13 fish during this time - after 9:30 it all went quiet. Then it said at about 2 pm it would pick up again, and at 10 mins to two we started getting bites with 17 lb and 19 lb kings in the order.

I really do think this moon thing works.

[SHAKE-N-BAKE]

Mark,

I use it all the time for hunting and fishing. Another tool in the arsenal.

See you on the pond!