Best Time of Day to Fish

[thomaskgrosvenor]

Just really got back into fishing over this past summer. Used to do different outdoor things but my knees are beginning to feel their age. Anyway, perhaps a bit of a newbee discussion, but during my last fishing trip I was starting to reflect about the times when I caught the biggest bass that I caught and about the times of day that I caught them. I thought it might be interesting if other fisherpeople shared what they thought about the best time of day to fish.

Regardless, while shorefishing, I fished both the early am to about 11 am and later afternoon into the evening time frames. I never bothered fishing around lunch time because my research indicated that's not the time to fish.

Interesting to me is that while I caught bass at 6:30 am, I didn't catch the big guys until about the 9 - 11 am time frame. In the afternoons I'd catch them at around three pm but on most occasions, I get the bigger ones in the evening as sunset approached.

Maybe it had to with time, maybe it just had to with the time I reached the right spot, or other conditions (such as where the sun is shining on the lake). But I think its a little interesting.

[Skunk City]

I've always done best at low light or no light.

[Chrisper4694]

anyone can feel free to throw their 2 cents into this and i'm sure it's been talked to death in multiple places but to sum it all up for me...

it's my understanding that big fish have bigger eyes making them much more efficient hunters in low light conditions. that being said, plenty of big fish are also caught during 'non-peak' fishing times. It may be harder from shore but if i'm fishing during bright sun, I know the big fish are most likely going to be A) under structure or B) deep on/under structure.

If a lake has a lot of deep structure, it may be difficult to target large fish from the shore during mid day. If you're fishing a shallow lake with a lot of surface cover/shade, the bigger fish in that water will most likely be there (getting them to bite may be a different story, but you can be pretty confident the big fish usually won't be cruising around in shallow open water middle of the day hunting...it's just not efficient) some of my best catching is done in mid day conditions, but you have to fish deep under cover or in the thick surface cover (skip deep under docks, weedless lures, punching a jig through pads, etc.)

For me i've found that in the spring time late afternoons seem to be better as the water cold from winter is a little warmer on the surface from the daytime sun. In the summer and early fall, mornings are much more productive for me as the surface is a little cooler from the night.

all that being said...a lot depends on the specific species you're targeting and usually, i fish whatever chance i get no matter the time and just make the best of it haha. You never know when that monster will hit your hook, sometimes they don't follow the laws of nature!

[buzzbaiter]

Originally Posted by Skunk City

I've always done best at low light or no light.

Yup. Cloudy/overcast days are best. You can fish all day and fish don't go into a midday funk.

[JDTuna]

There are a multitude of factors that determine when is the best time of day to fish.

The biology of the species you wish to target plays a large role in when you want to fish. As a general rule, most predatory fish (in fresh and saltwater) are usually active during crepuscular (low light) periods of early morning and evening. This is partly because the predator's have better vision during these periods than baitfish. However, there are exceptions to the rule. When I lived in south Florida, I frequently fished for peacock bass, and they always bit best during the hottest, brightest part of the day.

Depending on the time of year, different times of the day may be more productive than other times. This is especially true with bodies of water that have high amounts of boat traffic during the summer.

However, the best answer in regards to the best time of day to fish is whenever you have time to go, like Chris per said. Fish will always surprise you. I have had great days during times that were considered less than optimal.

[Lard Almighty]

I think there's already been a lot of good info posted already. I will just add that there are always hungry fish around, no matter what time of day. Fishing around dawn or dusk, or prior to a storm will probably get you more bites because more fish are actively feeding and are pretty spread out. During off-times, like a cold front or a hot sunny day, fish are more clustered and may be more reluctant to bite. Change locations and experiment with lures until you find what works.

FYI, my biggest bass of the year so far came from about a foot of water on a hot July afternoon, so sometimes fish don't follow the rules.

[NJ219bands]

Best fishing is at night.