When Should You Book Your Guide-Trip?

Clients often ask me when the best time is to book a guided fishing trip. I consider weather conditions to be the most significant factor and a challenging aspect to predict. Here is my take.

Water Temperature – The Dominant Factor
Water temperature is relative to the time of year, but you are looking for trends. Is the water cooling, stable, or warming? These different conditions have an impact on fish behavior.
Fish are cold-blooded; their metabolism and feeding activity is based on the trending water temperatures. If the water is cooling, such as during winter, fish tend to eat less and reduce their activity to conserve energy and body mass.
If water temperatures stabilize for days, fish will acclimate and return to feeding. However, the frequency will reflect the water temperature and a fish’s metabolism. It does not matter if the water is forty or sixty degrees, just that it has been stable.
As the water begins warming, feeding windows expand as a fish’s need for more food increases. These tend to be some of the best days, especially in the early spring.

Wind and Wind Direction
Everyone has felt the bitter cold of winter north winds. These winds cool the water, producing a negative feeding response from fish.
West and South winds typically are warmer and are conducive to better fishing. A string of warm days results in stable water temperature and consistent fishing.
So, ask yourself, “when have I experienced great fishing in the past?”
Most likely, your answer will be in the late summer or early fall when the water temps have peaked, and the weather is stable for long periods.
Anglers should fish whenever they can. There is good fishing throughout the year if you adjust your presentations and thinking about what the fish want. But most people tend to fish from spring to fall, forgoing the colder months for other activities like snow skiing.
I hope this helps you pick a good day to be out on the lake. If you see me out on the water in my Green Lund, please stop and say hi, we are out there for the same reasons!
Jim – 661Fishing.com