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| Message Subject: Understanding Lake Ecology | |||
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| The weather is always a hot topic for muskie fisherman. It is interesting to see the affects of weather on various water types from a "mixing" perspective. TURNOVER is a something most spring and fall musky men are always watching and they adjust their tactics and lake choices accordingly. Well, that is fine and dandy on lakes that only "turnover" on a seasonal basis (Dimictic = 2 mixes per year) but what about lakes that are polymictic (many mixes per year). For example, Lake Minnetonka is Dimictic but Mille Lacs Lake is polymictic. Based on that info, I would think that a good storm or windy frontal system would have a much more dramatic affect on the musky in Mille Lacs. If you don't have a clue what I am talking about, check out this link that can be found on my website (www.esoxresearch.com) and see for yourself. http://wow.nrri.umn.edu/wow/under/primer/page5.html The seasonal change in THERMOCLINE location is also a very intersting topic that I am sure has a MAJOR influence on musky location. I bet some of your favorite seasonal and weather related patterns can be explained by these common occurrences in lake ecology. What have you seen? Do more fish hunker down into the shallow weeds after a windy cold front due to the mixing of the main lake? Are a few guys like me tapping the suspended fish pattern in EARLY spring because the thermocline is so high in the water column? Are there other patterns that you see that may be explained by these occurrences? | |||
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| Man, if I hadn't read the stuff at esoxresearch I would have posted something here. Now I feel way too incompetent. As far as wind goes, I've always thought about it from a food chain perspective. The wind blows the plankton, the minnows eat the plankton, the smaller fish eat the minnows; you get the idea. That's why most people fish the windy sides of structure. The early season suspended thing I've known about, but never really thought about why. BTW, your site is very informative. Keep up the good work. I'm definately going to be a frequent visitor. | |||
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| Bob, glad you enjoyed my website. Your food chain logic makes sense and certainly is a valid theory.... one I believed for years. The idea that wind concetrates plankton (minnow food) is a good one but may not always hold true. For example, a smaller island may not hold water on the windward side and the plankton actually will build up in the slack eddy on the downwind side of the island. If you are only moving fish on the upwind side... there must be a reason. Is it increased oxygen from wave action on shore "charging" the fish up? Is it decreased light penetration due to wave action which makes the musky more vulnerable to our presentations? Does the wind break up schools of baitfish, making them an easier target to feed on? Are there active fish on the leeward side too and you just don't know it because you are focusing on the windblown side? Is it all of the above? And if you are targeting fish relating to the thermocline, then the leeward side of the lake should be better than the windblown side. Wind will push the upper layer of water to the other side pushing the thermocline deeper on that end and possibly breaking it up completely. BUT, on the leeward side of the lake the thermocline will be raised closer to the surface. When this happens, muskies are now much SHALLOWER than before and more accessible to casting presentations. An interesting observation I made on LOTW the past few years. A certain narrows that I travel to get to an area I like to fish can have a strong current to the north when a south wind is blowing. When the wind calms down in the evening, the current reverses and travels south. There are no nearby basins for plankton or baitfish to get pushed into this narrows... but there is plenty of current. If muskies like current, you would think this spot would be a goldmine.... but I've never seen a fish there. Interesting stuff..... | |||
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| The small island theory is good, but here is my take. While there may be a build-up of plankton on the leeward side, the plankton must first filter through the windward side. I personally don't fish spots just because the wind is pounding them. They have to be decent spots to begin with. Most decent spots have baitfish on them at least some of the time. I suspect that if the baitfish are already using the windward side they will probably stay there and become active. That doesn't mean the leeward side won't be good too. If there is plankton built up there and baitfish too, it could get everything moving. It's probably not a bad idea to try it. I'd rather catch fish on the leeside if that means I don't have to fight the wind. I really haven't gone after suspenders in windy conditions. During those times I usualy try the more classic spots, but what you're saying makes sense and I really shouldn't limit myself. Maybe this year I'll give that a try. Your neckdown area is interesting. I'm of the belief that muskies don't really like current. In rivers they will be found in current breaks. Most of the time they are not fighting current. It's takes much less energy out of current. I don't see why it would be any different in lakes. What all fish do like though is what current offers, which is food. Going back to the first part of my post, I don't fish areas that are getting pounded by the wind if they aren't good spots anyway. If your neckdown area doesn't offer muskies anything good, there is no reason for them to be there just because there's current. | |||
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| Bob, you make a great point. Wind and current don't MAKE the spot... they just enhance the spot. I just watched Steve Heiting's new video this week. It is very well done and quite informative, however in the excerpt with Jim Saric... they discuss how they use the wind to eliminate water. They only concentrate on the windblown areas and ignore the leeward side of structures. This approach makes sense, however, it sends the message to many people that the "other" spots are NOT productive when the wind blows. Surely not Jim and Steve's intent... but I bet many people interpret it that way. They were looking for aggressive fish with aggressive presentations. It doesn't mean that is the only way to catch fish under those conditions... but it is highly effective. Take advantage of the situation, but don't let it limit your options. | |||
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| That's kinda the approach I take when faced with primo conditions. It's also part of the reason I've never really fished for suspended fish during times like this. One thing to note though is this is the time to hit those spots that look good that haven't produced in the past. Location may be everything, but timing is critical sometimes. You could also tie this into the thread about when to try new tactics at least from a location standpoint. If I'm on a lake that I don't know too well and I'm wanting to learn more spots, this is the time!!! Grab a topwater or a bucktail and get moving. I guess I'm kinda getting away from the original idea here, but I like to keep things simple. Wind is good. You did get me thinking about the why. I think a good time to try out some of your other ideas, like the leeward side for suspended fish where the thermocline has moved up and the leeside of smaller island areas where plankton stacks up, might be when there is considerable fishing pressure on traditional windblown spots. Definately things to consider and also what type of lake you're fishing and how much of an affect the wind will actually have. Good post Jason. | |||
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| Hey Bob, another time to try the "other" options is when the wind is actually too strong to safely and effectively fish the windblown structures. Last year on LOTW we had a field day in a small sheltered bay that had a small narrows facing a large main-lake basin. The wind was way too strong to fish the windy side (5 footers), but the strong current rushing through the narrows filled the calm bay with massive amounts of baitfish. What a perfect situation.... we could hide from the wind yet still had a concentration of muskies to work. The next morning when the wind subsided.... we went back to our hotspot to find a bunch of nothing. No baitfish.... and unfortunately no muskies either. | |||
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