water clarity / visibility questions

[chewynoeyes]

I'm new to spearing and will be trying a lake tomorrow that doesn't have great water clarity. With rain/snow overcast skies i assume visibility (in water) will be less.

My question is, what is the difference in visibility on sunny day and a overcast snowy day.

When trying a new lake what kind of water clarity are you looking for? dnr lake info report does have # of feet of clarity. is that accurate or does that number vary with weather condition.

[bassNspear]

It's a huge difference with sun then without, even more so on lakes with dirty water. 8-10 feet IMO is best depth for spearing, so you would want to have water clarity best up to 10 feet

[Gordie]

Water clarity is an issue much like a Ford, Chevy debate . What I mean is some guys want it crystal clear and some want a little stained. I think the clearer the water the more skittish the fish are. I have speared where you can’t see the bottom in 7 foot of water and have done very well. last year the lake I normally spear on was really dirty with water clarity and 2.5 at best and I speared a couple of pike in it then moved to a different lake and the couple of guys that stayed and speared it did very well with one guy spearing 30 plus pike.

The dirtier water does put strain on your eyes because you have to really focus on your decoys and the water itself in order to spear.

Finding crystal clear water for spearing is great but it not necessity.

[mrklean]

I would say lakes change year to year for clarity so I don't put much stock in the dnr report

[MJ1657]

I would say lakes change year to year for clarity so I don't put much stock in the dnr report

+1

[pikestabber]

I would say lakes change year to year for clarity so I don't put much stock in the dnr report

I agree for the most part (some lakes with secchi disk readings of 15' are only clear to 8' on a certain year, or what have you, but it is a good place to start. If the secchi reading is 3' you can bank on it that the lake is stained and not a good candidate for spearing. If the secchi is 25', that's likely gin clear water most of the time. I wouldn't rely on it 100%, but it's a basis for comparison between new lakes and a place to at least get a good guess as to what you are up against. Basically (and this is not a professional understanding, just what I have researched) the "secchi disk" literally is a disk (think of a pie cut in four pieces with alternating black and white quarters) that is lowered into the water until it cannot be seen. The point where it disappears is the secchi disk/water clarity reading the DNR reports. Is that done on a sunny day? Under a hood? During cloudy days, too? If so, the results would be all over the place. I don't know what controls are in place for these readings, but I assume it is somewhat streamlined and consistent. In any case, I don't rely solely on these readings, but I'm not afraid to use them to help me decide where to start and then I go from there.

As for sunny or cloudy, once you have speared awhile you'll be grateful for sunny days...when it's cloudy and the sun pops out, you'll know in an instant by how your hole lights up on the bottom.

[terrible_fisherman]

Easiest to just go drill a hole and drop a decoy on a line down to determine if it is clear enough. Put your head over the hole and if you can see the decoy more then 5-6 feet down you should be good to go. I do agree with the above post on murky water though. As long as you can see your decoy, the water does not need to be crystal clear. It is a lot more fun when it is though so you can see all the little fish moving through and everything else going on down there.

[chewynoeyes]

thanks for the helpful info.

[kobear]

Fortunately clarity measurements are taken monthly by concerned lake residents.

And yes there is a protocol that must be followed. Semi clear day, mid morning, shady side of boat, etc.

So those values are accurate to the current year, or you could just go with your inherent distrust of any measurement you didn't take yourself and ignore everything else.

[Spike76]

I'm old fashioned, I make my hole and set up my house. Now I start spearing. Sometimes I can see the bottom and sometimes I can only see three or four feet. If I don't see any after awhile, I probably move, maybe to a different lake if visibility is real poor. Some years I've had to stop spearing because visibility was so poor. For years I've only speared on one lake, but because of the slot limits on this lake, I've been forced to go to another lake so I wouldn't make a mistake.

[terrible_fisherman]

I am not that old fashioned. A couple years ago I cut a hole through 20 inches of ice on a lake that had been clear two weeks before. I got all set up and the hole looked like chocolate milk and could not see down even a foot. Ever since then I always check before I make the big hole and set up.

[Gordie]

I am not that old fashioned. A couple years ago I cut a hole through 20 inches of ice on a lake that had been clear two weeks before. I got all set up and the hole looked like chocolate milk and could not see down even a foot. Ever since then I always check before I make the big hole and set up.

I have done simalar only finding that the hole was weed choked

If You ever get a chnce to spear Rainy Lake you will be amazed at that water it is so tanic stained that it is hard to see the bottom in 6FOW but when the pike comes in to the hole WOW does that pike light up the hole.