Another Cold Front!!!

[panfried]

Sounds like we will be dealing with another cold front this weekend. Do cold fronts really have that big of an effect on fish activity? It seems that some times it shuts them down and others it can actually turn them on. Any opinions on this? I heard ounce that fronts aren't really that big a deal, it's the consistency of the weather that counts. Three days of clouds ( low pressure) or three days of clear and sunny (high pressure). As long as you have at least three days of consistent weather the fishing can be good, not all this back and forth stuff we have been dealing with lately. What do you think, is there any truth to this? Lastly, what about those game activity graphs in the paper? Is there any correlation with them and actual game activity? Bottom line i guess, is get out when you can, you can't catch them on the couch right? ( unless you have one in your shack of course).

[CrappieJohn]

If anything keeps me from going fishing when I get the urge, it is wind. I can deal with fronts, rain, snow, cold, heat....but the wind really can screw things up big time. At any time of the year.

I find that fronts are less of an issue on moving water, meaning river systems, than on slack water as is found in lakes without current.

The most immediate effects on the fish shows up in the pannies and crappies. The larger predator fish will often get a yearning to feed hard when the smaller varieties get lethargic, though so it is hard to really read how fronts come into play with them.

I think water depth and clarity have an impact on how fish react to barometric change. Once the barometer is at a stable point for a number of days though, the fish are going to be back on an obvious feeding pattern so your reference to three days is a good one.

I also find that going from a high pressure cold front to a warmer low pressure front has way less of an impact on the fishing and will at times make it unreal.

[Matt Johnson]

I've found that the recent cold front actually increased my productivity on larger fish. The quantity of fish took a dive, but the quality increased. The smaller fish seemed to be less aggressive, but those larger fish have seen it all and they know they still have to eat. Some of my bigger sunfish on the particular lake I've been fishing came within the last week...

However, this might not be the case on other lakes, and I did have to make a move towards deeper water in order to find those larger fish. They were not in their usual locations. I mean, who knows, they could have been there all along but I just never made the move out before the cold front moved in. I can't say for sure...