Freshwater Fishing News

Across North America, the arrival of fall usually means a sharp increase in the number of cold fronts. These powerful weather systems affect fish behavior and can have major impacts on fishing. Cold fronts are often fast moving systems that bring sudden drops in temperature, low barometric pressure, cloudy skies, and rain or snow.

During the fall season, cold fronts can trigger a number of environmental changes. High winds, sudden temperature changes, and precipitation often carry an influx of leaves and other organic matter into streams, creeks and ponds. This sudden introduction of materials into aquatic environments can affect ph levels, visibility, oxygen levels, and other factors.

Cold fronts can also drive temperature inversions during the fall season. Inversions occur when sustained high winds cool and transport surface waters across estuaries. As surface water is pushed across an estuaries, Water from below is pulled upward. This process, called upwelling, can benefit ecosystems by bringing nutrients, plankton and baitfish closer to the surface.

In many instances, fair weather follows a cold front. When anglers return to fishing, they typically find decreased visibility, cooler water temperatures, and other changes.

Before a front arrives, fish often feed aggressively. Species such as largemouth bass, striped bass, pike, and others are known to prey heavily on schools of baitfish as a cold front approaches. Some species even feed in the worst weather, including rain squalls or snowstorms.

After a cold front passes, anglers often complain that fish have scattered and refuse to bite. In some cases this assumption is true, but in many waterways, fishing opportunities still exist. When surface temperatures drop, fish may move into deeper water and suspend until conditions improve. Locating fish in these conditions can be easier for anglers that have fish finders and water temperature readouts.

Cold Front Fishing Techniques

Although many species become less active, many can still be taken on lures or baits. Largemouth and smallmouth bass anglers often switch from surface lures to slow moving, deep rigs such as Texas rigged worms, dropshot rigs, football jigs.

Perch, sunfish and other panfish can also be caught during or after cold fronts. Like other species, these small but tasty fish often move into channels or along drops during bad weather. Some anglers target them by vertically jigging small spoons, jigs, or other lures. Others switch to baits such as insect larvae, grass shrimp, nightcrawlers or other choices. During low visibility conditions, scent or color may be critical factors for both lures and baits.

When targeting ponds, lakes, and other smaller impoundments, anglers may have the luxury of covering a wide range of habitats and experimenting with a variety of techniques. This method works best when a weather system is moving out and fish are still scattered.

Habitat to be covered may include shallow grassy areas, overhanging limbs, dropoffs and other areas. In situations where direct sun has returned, fish may avoid open areas but may orient nearby to take advantage of warm currents.

As clear skies return and winds subside, visibility may increase considerably. These periods can bring a host of changes to fish habitats and can trigger fish to feed heavily. When anglers find these conditions, fishing can be excellent.

Floods can affect fishing in freshwater lakes, reservoirs, ponds, rivers, creeks, and streams. When floodwaters move thru fishing habitats, fishing is disrupted for days or weeks.

Eventually, water levels recede and anglers return to their favorite body of water. When fish habitats are exposed to flooding, their topography often changes. By visiting traditional fishing areas after floods recede, anglers can gain valuable insight into how a waterway has changed.

In creeks, and streams, areas where water flows tend to be restricted can change dramatically during flooding. Although some habitat is destroyed, important new structure is often created. Along the shoreline, vegetation, soil, rocks and other materials may be ripped away and carried downstream. Some objects move a short distance, while others may move for miles.

In some areas, partial damming occurs as logs and other debris are piled up by floodwaters. These structures can change dramatically during floods. Old debris may be cleared by rushing water while new buildups may occur in other areas. When live trees are taken down by high winds or raging floods, their branches often trap objects that float by, causing significant pile ups of debris.

Rocks, gravel, and sand may also be deposited or exposed during floods. These materials often create important habitat for fish and invertebrates. Rocks and other large objects create eddies where fish can rest and feed. Gravel beds become important as feeding areas. In most bodies of water, gravel beds also provide important spawning habitats for fish.

Many man-made lakes and reservoirs are created by damming streams or creeks. Flooding can have impact these structures considerably, often affecting fish populations, behavior, and distribution. During major floods, logs, brush and other debris may be deposited on the bottom where creeks and lakes converge. In some areas deltas are formed by the buildup of gravel, sand, mud or a combination of materials. Small islands may even appear in these areas.

Initially, fish and other wildlife may be displaced into the main part of the waterway. At the dam, water continues to flow at higher than normal rates until the water level stabilizes again. During this period, the lake or reservoir may experience some beneficial flushing as surface scum, trash, oils and other contaminants are washed downstream.

In the first days after flooding, fish may feed erratically. Food supplies are often abundant, especially along shorelines where insects and other small prey have congregated. Eventually, the incoming water flow returns to normal and visibility will begin returning to normal. Some lakes will see experience algae blooms and insect hatches following flooding.

Anglers usually choose to cover a wide area initially, looking for the presence of fish. For lake fishermen, this usually includes areas near the dam or along shoreline vegetation. In some cases, fish can be found in much shallower water than normal, feeding on an abundance of prey that has been displaced by flood waters. When fishing after floods, snags, floating debris and other obstructions can hamper fishing. Weedless lure designs are often essential. In some cases, experimentation with a few simple lures can result in excellent fishing.

In deeper lakes, boaters with sonar may locate newly deposited logs, debris or other bottom structure. As the waters settle down, these areas may begin to attract fish that have been swept into the lake. Fish finders may also detect suspended fish that are sulking in habitable areas.

Many of the same techniques that work in lakes and reservoirs apply to streams and creeks. Finding slow moving water may be critical for success as fish may avoid strong currents or areas where silt is suspended. Some anglers will use fly fishing tackle, while others may employ conventional lures or even live baits. As with lake fishing, paying attention to the behavior of fish and forage species can be critical for success.

Despite the challenges, a fishing trip following recent flooding can be a valuable experience. Depending on conditions, anglers may experience poor fishing or outstanding success. In either case, a trip following a flood can provide anglers with valuable knowledge about fish habitats.

Forecasters at NOAA’s National Weather Service have warned that many rivers in the upper Midwest and northern Plains remain above flood stage, and the threat for more flooding will continue through the summer.

With rivers running high and soils completely saturated, just a small amount of rain could trigger more flooding, including areas that have already seen major to record flooding.

NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center is forecasting above-normal rain in most of these vulnerable areas in the next two weeks, and above-normal rainfall in much of the region in the one- and three-month outlooks.

Adding to the flood threat will be the rising temperatures over the Rockies, which will release the water from the remaining snowpack.

“The sponge is fully saturated – there is nowhere for any additional water to go,” said Jack Hayes, Ph.D., director of NOAA’s National Weather Service. “While unusual for this time of year, all signs point to the flood threat continuing through summer.”

Forecasters say this season could rival the Great Flood of 1993, when the upper Midwest endured persistent, record-breaking floods from April through August, impacting nine states and causing more than $25 billion in damages (adjusted for inflation).

As flood threats continue in these areas, NOAA’s partners at the Federal Emergency Management Agency are continuing to support the response efforts in all of the impacted states. And they continue to urge all residents to take steps now to get ready for severe flooding and other hazards.

Throughout the rest of the summer, the highest flood risk areas include:

- North Central U.S. including Souris River (North Dakota) and Red River of the North (border of North Dakota and Minnesota), Minnesota River (Minnesota), Upper Mississippi River (Minnesota and Iowa), and Des Moines River (Iowa)

- Lower Missouri River from Gavin’s Point (Nebraska and South Dakota border) downstream along the border of Nebraska and Iowa, continuing through the borders of Kansas and Missouri then through Missouri to the Mississippi River

- Tributaries to the Lower Missouri including the James and Big Sioux Rivers in North Dakota

- Lower Ohio River Valley including the White, Wabash and lower Ohio River

- East of Rockies: North Platte River in Colorado, Wyoming and Nebraska and Yellowstone River in Wyoming and Montana

- West of Rockies: Utah and Colorado

Many factors set the stage for this year’s ongoing flood threat, including persistent rainfall last summer and fall, a large winter snowpack across much of the upper Midwest, an unusually cool and wet spring adding additional snowpack in the higher elevations of the Rockies and further saturated soil in lower elevations and in the northern Plains, and above-normal to record river levels for this time of year in the at-risk areas.

source: NOAA press release

A variety of factors are known to influence fish behavior. Through experience and study, anglers learn to adapt their fishing activities to changing conditions.

Weather is perhaps the most important factor that can affect fishing. Not only does weather impact the angler’s comfort, but it can also have critical effects on fish behavior. Wind, temperature changes and light levels are all weather-related and these factors combine in a myriad of ways to influence fish.

Barometric pressure is widely regarded as one of strongest factors that affect fishing. Sudden changes in barometers often coincide with fishing activity. Some species are said to stop feeding during certain barometric conditions, while fishing for other species may actually improve.

Timing is often a critical factor to fishing success. For some species, the first and last hours of daylight often trigger feeding periods.  Seasons also have tremendous impacts on fish and angling success. Although many people associate fishing with summer, much of North America’s best freshwater fishing occurs in the spring, fall and even during the cold winter months.

Spawning runs are critical periods for freshwater fishing. Several species of anadromous fish migrate from saltwater into North American rivers. Other spawning events occur in inland lakes or mountain streams.

Insect hatches can trigger excellent fishing. These usually occur in coldwater streams and northern lakes when aquatic insect nymphs emerge from the water and morph into adults. Perhaps the most famous quote in fishing is “match the hatch.” The term refers to the act of selecting a fly that mimics the correct species of insect during a hatching event.

When forage species migrations occur, gamefish usually gather to feed. These events can be triggered by weather, seasonal influences, food availability, or other factors. A variety of other food source events can trigger good fishing. Many of these are not widely known and are often known only to local anglers.

A large swath of the country is at risk of moderate to major flooding this spring, from northeastern Montana through western Wisconsin following the Mississippi River south to St. Louis, National Weather Service flood experts are forecasting.

NWS has released an initial spring flood outlook for this high risk region and will release a national spring flood outlook on March 17.

For the third consecutive year, forecasters predict moderate to major flooding along the Red River of the North, which forms the state line between eastern North Dakota and northwest Minnesota and includes the Souris River Basin and the Devils Lake and Stump Lake drainages in North Dakota.

If the current forecast holds, the main stem Mississippi River is at risk for moderate to major flooding from its headwaters in St. Paul, Minn., all the way to St. Louis.

Areas of greatest flood concern include:

Devils Lake, N.D.

Devils Lake at Minnewauken has about a 40 percent chance of exceeding 1,455 feet, which could partially inundate portions of the town of Minnewauken, including critical infrastructure and roads across the lake, emergency service routes and possibly a small section of the Amtrak train line.

Red River of the North in North Dakota and Minnesota

Fargo, N.D., has about a 95 percent chance of exceeding major flood stage of 30 feet where portions of downtown Fargo begin flooding and temporary dike construction is necessary; and a greater than 20 percent chance of reaching or exceeding the 40.84-foot record set in 2009;

Grand Forks, N.D., has a greater than 95 percent chance of exceeding major flood stage of 46 feet and near a 10 percent chance of exceeding the 54.35-foot record set in 1997.

James River and the Big Sioux River in South Dakota

The James River at Huron, S.D., has about a 90 percent chance of exceeding major flood stage of 15 feet and a 30 percent chance of exceeding the record 21.28-foot level set in 1997;
* The Big Sioux River at Brookings, S.D., has a greater than 95 percent chance of exceeding major flood stage of 12 feet and nearly a 30 percent chance of exceeding the 14.77-foot record set in 1969.

Upper Mississippi River in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, Illinois and Missouri

St. Paul, Minn., has about a 95 percent chance of exceeding major flood stage of 17 feet where secondary flood walls are deployed to protect St. Paul airport; and a 15 percent chance of exceeding the record 26.4 feet set in 1965.

According to NOAA’s flood forecasters, there are several reasons for the anticipated floods. The ground in much of the north-central United States is frozen, water-saturated, and snow-covered. Forecasts for much of the region continue to call for persistent below-normal temperatures and above-normal precipitation for February, with an expectation for the snow pack to grow.

In March and April, as temperatures rise and the snow melts, frozen ground and saturated soil will enhance runoff, causing streams and rivers to swell. The timing and the rate of snow melt and any rain that falls during snow melt contribute to the magnitude and extent of flooding.

“We urge residents in risk areas to closely monitor NOAA’s river forecasts and warnings, and prepare now for flooding” said Lynn Maximuk, central region director of the National Weather Service.

For complete details, see the spring flood outlook at http://www.weather.gov/oh/hic/nho.

Aware of the likelihood North Central U.S. spring flooding months in advance, forecasters from National Weather Service field offices began coordinating with United States and Canadian agencies in December to get an early jump on flood mitigation efforts. Several federal, tribal, state and local partners on both sides of the border routinely coordinate to communicate flood potential, plan and prepare.

To help people and communities prepare, NOAA offers the following flood safety tips:

Determine whether your community is in a flood-risk area and continue monitoring local flood conditions at http://water.weather.gov.

Visit http://www.floodsmart.gov to learn about FEMA’s National Flood Insurance Program and for flood preparedness advice to safeguard your family, home and possessions.

Purchase a NOAA Weather Radio receiver with battery power option to stay apprised of quickly changing weather information.

Study evacuation routes in advance and heed evacuation orders.

Turn Around, Don’t Drown – never cross flooded roads, no matter how well you know the area or how shallow you believe the water to be.

Anyone can visit http://www.ready.gov to learn more.

source: NOAA