Barometric Pressure & The Interaction Of The Sun & The Moon Wow

[jewgaffer]

hi everyone.

i read a very interesting post by a fellow raider. i thought i would start this new topic and bring this members article to your attention

would like to hear your views and experiences on this very important aspect which i consider a major part of the riddle of knowing when to fish, being productive and with a bit of fine tuning being more productive and with a bit of thinking getting yourself absolutely brilliant fishing results every time you go out on the water!

this article by dv8 is as follows :-

QUOTE(DV8 @ Jul 6 2007, 12:37 PM)

After reading the post on barometric pressure I was prompted to post this link.

When it comes to troutin', I swear by the moon phases, and so do the blokes in the know down the snowy.

Worth a read anyway!

http://www.kingsoutdoorworld.com/hunting-g...0FISHING%20DAYS[/ur

OR (added by jewgaffer) if that link doesn't work http://www.kingsoutdoorworld.com/hunting-g...0FISHING%20DAYS

A good almanac or a casio bitin time watch can make all the difference.

Interested in hearing from some of the other freshwater fishos.

davo

my reply to this article by davo, dv8 is as follows:-

hi davo,

i grew up in cowra on the banks of the lachlan, fished the lachlan every other day and quite a few times a year fished the willandra billabong near hilston.

the moon and sun relationship as i read it on your link does indeed coincide with frenzy times in freshwater fishing when i think back on it. that article in your link shows a good comparison as to the moods of humans, animals and fish in conditions due to the atmosphere which i can relate to and fully agree with and i reckon it works brilliantly in saltwater and there are far more fish there!

being a lad at the time and being so close the the river, i fed the chooks and set the crayfish traps and checked them after school. we used to supply yellow belly and cod to the local cafes the garden of roses and the golden key.

i remember playing them on solid rods or dragging fish in on springers and lines which my family had set overnite . my father and mentors were adamant it was first and foremost barometric and it was always, "the moon's just right', every nice evening on the river when there were a zillion insects hovering over the water and in the surrounds.

i sooned learned as a youth down here in the city it was far more challenging to study and target the organ grinders, the jewies and have the monkeys as the secondary catch to them.

i followed the moon phases but coudn't get a constant factor. the barometer, the tides, rain wind and location became my bible for jewfish.

after all the moon is the controller and on reading your link i am now certain that if fishos synchronize the sun and the moon's interaction and the barometric pressure with fishing times, the success rate will improve out of sight, "if we only had time, only had time".........

i feel strongly about your guiding others to this link and your thoughts behind it and i'm glad it works so well with your trout as catching those in numbers is more than an art.

i'll try to be be there when it all coincides and will take notes over time.

thanks and cheers. the link you passed on will be extremely helpful to fishos

i enjoyed these wise words at the end of the article on the link too which says "But always remember ... the BEST time to go huntin' ... is whenever you can!"

i would like to hear from everyone about their experiences and/or views on the effects of the barometric pressure taken into account with the interaction of the sun and the moon so that all members will be able to fish smarter and have a rod or two in the water at the very time the most lively fishing action occurs.

and i thank dv8 for his very interesting post.

for those of you who haven't read my post on the effects of barometric pressure and best fishing results here is a link to that:-

http://fishraider.com.au/Invision/index.ph...c=22530&hl=

blimey i think i'm getting pretty good at learning a dang fangled computer and pasting links now

and davo may you always catch heaps of trout

jewgaffer

fish on

Edited July 7, 2007 by jewgaffer

[DaveD]

All part of working together to get the best results and increase the competition in the end

I've been looking at that synoptic chart on the BOM lately and trying to see the moves in the weather patterns. So hard to predict but it's interesting to observe.

[jewgaffer]

All part of working together to get the best results and increase the competition in the end

I've been looking at that synoptic chart on the BOM lately and trying to see the moves in the weather patterns. So hard to predict but it's interesting to observe.

hi amateurdave. good to hear from you again.

great you're looking into it all and an important thing is seeing the hardy pre-historic hairtail arriving in mass this particular winter and getting among the hardier baitfish.

very large yellow tail around in rivers right now is a sign that the usual river fish are still hanging out down deep at the entrances with pelagics and other "marauders" arriving in close to clean up.

wait till this low and the steady southerlies go and you'll have a bonanza near the mouths and close to inshore reefs. i am a bit of a veteran at this and going out about the end of next week when it all comes together, you know what i mean for business as usual.

hope i have helped you in the riddle of how to get good fish regularly for the time, money and effort you put into it. but do remember they have to eat other than soft plastics and hard bodies and they ate still ate real well before and after technology came along.

as it takes a lot of good time up getting live bait it is a good idea to have a kid with you as i do , my 10 year old grandson to fiddle around be happy at getting different live baits all day long.

cheers

jewgaffer

fish on

[DaveD]

as it takes a lot of good time up getting live bait it is a good idea to have a kid with you as i do , my 10 year old grandson to fiddle around be happy at getting different live baits all day long.

Talk bout someone getting to do the dirty work for ya.

[Guest DV8]

Thanks for your kind words.

A few months ago I posted a question about the CASIO "FISHIN Time" watch and a few people posted back a few wise cracks about mickey mouse watches etc.

When it comes to the freshwater stuff, the bite time predictions are spot on. There is no doubt in my mind that fish are governed by the phases of the moon, and I believe that they are preprogrammed (In their DNA) dating back to their ocean going ancestors.

However, there is one drawback to the whole solunar thing - the barometer. If it is on its way down, or reached its peak tyhe fishing will be slow no matter what phase the moon is in.

thats all I know anyway.

davo

[arpie]

Hi Davo & Jewgaffer

I don't have much experience on the use of barometric pressure & fishing, other than always hearing - the fish bite better on a rising pressure. Assuming that low pressure systems usually cause big winds & huge sea swells - I know that a lot of fish come on the bite as the weather is correcting itself, but before it settles back to dead calm again. Especially drummer & blackies. Other places may be unfishable, but some rock platforms would be going off. In the few weeks following the big seas of the Long weekend this year (when Pasha Bulker got beached) my neighbour caught over 80 blackies & drummer off the rocks - even bagging out one day. This was after the long weekend when most of the wind had dropped, but the seas were still huge, he was restricted to only fishing an hour or 2, when the tide and safety element allowed him to do so. I joined him a couple of times & also got into some fish.

This is also the time to scour the beaches for any washed up cunje, to slice open, remove the meat & take home & either salt down or freeze for your next outing! Usually, then & there is the correct time to use it, as it is the rough seas that tosses it onto the beach, when the fish are hiding in the quieter water, riding out the storm.

Re moon & tide phases - I have been using my Casio Fish n Tide watch for over 6 years now. It is my bible & I check it upon waking up & many other times of the day, to see what the tide & moon is doing. If the tide, moon, weather etc is good, I am out of bed in an instant, grabbing my yak & out on the water. I have found the hour or 2 either side of high tide to be the best for my fishing up here in the lake & likewise bottom 2 hrs of the falling tide for worming. Off the beach, depending on the gutters, it can be either side of each tide. Off the rocks, it usually just depends on the swell first, then the tides & moon. For blackfishing, my tide watch is invaluable. As my time is my own, I just check my watch & plan my day around the tides. I can normally go down to the breakwall or other spots & expect to be into fish within a few casts for an hour or two, before the run becomes too fast to fish.

As I virtually wore my first watch out, I am now onto my 2nd one (got my first from the US as Aussie prices for the same product were just so stupid,) but now you can get them for $60 if you are prepared to wait for a certain shop to have their 25% off fishing sale! The 30% one is even better! The watch is included in the fishing section. Otherwise for $80 it is still a cheap, fantastic fishing aid.

You can get barometric watches as well (most yachties have them), but most of them don't have the tide & moon phase as well - or are just so expensive (like over $500) that it becomes a bit of a luxury.

Getting out & about when the elements are most favourable usually ensures you get a feed.

Once you have it set up to your area's lattitude & longitude, it is a wonderful fishing aid. It is not a Mickey Mouse Toy to be scoffed at - much the same as fish finders & downriggers used to be a luxury item, they are now necessary aids for fishing. You should all be putting one of these on your wish list for Xmas!

(Please note that in some areas with excessive tides, eg far northern Qld, WA & NT the tide times indicated on the watches are not as accurate as the rest of AUstralia!)

Cheerio

Roberta

[jewgaffer]

.....However, there is one drawback to the whole solunar thing - the barometer. If it is on its way down, or reached its peak tyhe fishing will be slow no matter what phase the moon is in.

davo

yep dv8 that sums up barometric fluctuations and feeding frenzy in a nutshell.

i woud only add If the barometer is on its way down to a low pressure below 1006 milibars and going into a big low or having reached its peak after a rise and then remained steady at a high say above 1028milibars for days on end, which means deightful boating and outdoor weather but it is a fact fishing will be slow no matter what phase the moon is in. [/color] unless you target sunrise and sunset action exactly at the time the sun and the moon interact with the next moving barometer.

i have no doubt the best times to fish are always according to the atmosphere - (barometric pressure creates an atmosphere) - from the re-action of the moon and the sun at sunrise and sunset times, but on the right barometric pressure days.

the barometric atmosphere on balmy days and balmy nights does influence the activities of humans, animals, insects and of course fish.

dv8 thanks for your valuable input on a subject which i have believe in and used for over 40 years to determine the best times to give yourself every chance of getting the best fishing results in the limited leisure time in which we have to do it.

jewgaffer

fish on

Edited July 9, 2007 by jewgaffer

[DaveD]

But the moon phases dont necessarily affect ALL fish do they? I've been going by the assumption that only the bigger fish such as Jews would go by the moon phases.

[Davemmm]

I fished the Hacking on Saturday night. There was a light westerly blowing that was constant from the time I got out.

Fishing action was quiet for most of the night with only a couple of bites and a small shovelnose landed (and released). I could hear the blokes on a boat on the otherside of the river near the flats and they seemed to be quiet as well.

Just before the moon came up the wind dropped noticeably and the river went dead still. After ten minutes of no wind I heard the blokes in the other boat grab a rod (hooked up) then my baitrunner clicked a couple of times. The other rod with a squid bait buckled over and I grabbed it and struck just as I did so the baitrunner on the first rod took off big time.

The rod I held wasn't running hard so it went back into the holder and I grabbed the one that had a livey on it.

Long story short I dropped something reasonable at the boat on one rod when it busted me off on my bottom hook and landed another small shovelnose on the other rod.

The point is it had been a quiet night and then both my rods go off at once and the boat only forty metres away had a hook up at the same time. It was no coincidence that this happened right when the wind dropped and the moon was rising.

Wind is a product of air pressure but I dont believe you can predict a change like that you just have to be there at the right time. The moon rising didnt change the brightness of the night as it was mostly covered by cloud but I believe the moon position itself did have an effect on the bite.

Dave

[jewgaffer]

But the moon phases dont necessarily affect ALL fish do they? I've been going by the assumption that only the bigger fish such as Jews would go by the moon phases.

dave. i don't believe moons have much of an effect on jewies. a lot of fishos will disagree. jewies can come out of nowhere particularly when nothing else which is thought to be moon governed is taking baits.

it seems a fact from a couple of replies, our trout experts go on the moon phases and i believe they are right but would need them to differentiate what the actual atmosphere (barometer reading and fluctuation if any) was like when they were getting good results on those "right moon days"

i would like to hear from the albury and mildura people on murray cod, redfish and catfish activity going on moon phases as well, and if they consider the barometric pressure fluctuations or lack of.

the only time i have had anything to do with moon phases is for general fishing. when the rising or setting of the moon coincides with the sun at sunrise or sunset definately does have something in it but other sunrise and sunset days can also work well if the barometric pressure alone is right .

as to comparing one to the other i haven't, but somebody else who takes a note of things like roberta does may like to comment.

on those days i make sure i fish those periods but only when i consider the barometer is fluctating rapidly up or down but when it is going down i will never know whether not it willl bottom out in a good area above say 1006mb untill it stops falling.

if i am there at say 1016milibars (normal) and it quickly drops to 1012 and steady i will hunt harder particularly if it showers. i will stay on if it gusts hard towards the south for a short while and then calms again. you know what i mean.

i find jewies are very active when those forecast southerlys that hit hard then peter out to nothing in a very short period.

but i find if the southerly continues for days on end during almost any reading this affects freshwater fishing far more than it does saltwater fishing which becomes fairly poor at those times anyway.

anyone else like to comment on their own experiences ?

as i said before low pressure systems have almost no adverse effects on deep sea fishing in that the rougher it gets the better it gets i.e. the bermi co op longliners and the narooma blokes go north in november when the y/f move up and also search for blue eye and albacore as far as maroochydore. it is not uncommon for them to have to run for cover into any port along the way.

jewgaffer

fish on