Summertime. Kids home for the holidays, barbecues, cottages, boats, fishing and extra long two-four Sundays are all synonymous with summer.
Summer fishing can be tough as compared to spring and fall gatherings during moderate temperatures and schooling/spawning rituals that fish go through at that time. Although hot summer temperatures can drive fish deep or dormant during the day, the water is warming rapidly and the fish's metabolism will react accordingly. Water temperatures will not peak until about mid September but July and August will see the fish migrating to feeding shoals on a systematic basis, and feeding frequently.
Understanding fish movements is a major hurdle in becoming a successful angler. I could write a book on various fish specie movement within systems and turn around the next year and write another from the information I learn in that short period. I will attempt to generalize and summarize movements now in order to put you on plenty of fish...fast!
Speaking generally of warm water species such as bass, walleye, pike, panfish, etc some of the summer fish movements may pertain to the colder trout/salmon species in your area especially if the latter are lake oriented.
During hot weather, fish like to feed at low light occasions. These times usually coincide with early mornings and evenings. Some systems may see fish actively feeding long after dark. Nighttime may not be the best time to get the family out fishing, so concentrating on early mornings or after supper outings should put you in one of the active feeding times. Fish in the active, neutral or dormant state may all be caught by angling but obviously the active fish are the easiest.
As the fish become active and seek food they will usually make some kind of movement to do so.
Fish movements in any system whether it's a lake, river, bay, etc are either vertical or horizontal. Vertical fish movements are generally caused by meteorological changes such as weather fronts, storms, etc. When the fish in any system make a vertical move it is usually responding to atmospheric pressure changes that affect the bladder pressure within the fish. Pressure changes can cause the fish to stop feeding in order to make the necessary biological adjustments to their bodies. Vertical movements can cause despair with anglers.
If you suspect a vertical movement, fish can usually be found deeper in the water. If you were catching walleye in 12 feet of water during the day and that night violent storms are followed by a significant drop in temperatures and you can't find the fish the next day, you may wish to try your efforts in deeper water. Deeper water may include a slight shift to 16 feet in a dishpan shaped lake or 22 feet in a deep, rocky lake with underwater cliffs. Regardless, it will take some experimenting and you probably won't catch near the fish you did before due to a change in the fish's state.
Horizontal fish movements are caused more or less by fish becoming active due to feeding frenzies. These are the ones I watch for. Case in point. A good friend of mine Greg Horoky (a full time cop/part time professional angler in Harrow, Ontario) fishes for walleye during the summer on Lake Erie. He begins early in the morning on one of the many shoals in the Lake, say in 12 feet of water. Sometime in the morning the fish will seemingly quit hitting. Greg scours the 12 foot depth area around the shoal. Greg can successfully continue catching fish once he finds the direction in which the school moved. They are still holding the same depth at which they were feeding although they may now be suspended over as much as 25 feet of water! The walleye are likely in a neutral state but due to large numbers of fish present, he can continue following the school and catching fish all day to the delight of his clients. The fish will eventually go back to the shoal in the evening or after dark to feed.
On my back door is Lake St Clair, famous for it's big smallmouth bass. During July, smallies can be readily caught during low light hours while they feed just off the sandbars in about 10 feet of water. The waters of St Clair are very clear due to Zebra Mussel infestation and anglers can actually watch the fish move off the structure at some point in the morning. Following smallmouth bass moving horizontally over deeper lake water can be very frustrating at best, especially when you can see the small schools of fish.
I have spent many hot tournament days chasing schools of bass around. The catch rate of these hog smallies can rapidly drop to one every couple of hours as they go neutral. I have found them easiest to catch by changing their state to active. This is accomplished (maybe) by ripping a big old body bait across the top of the school. After repeated attempts one will finally rise for a look. Once a fish moves on your fast offering, you can usually catch it with a subtle offering such as a jig, minnow or worm. This "doubling back" method scores best when fishing with someone else. Once you (or your partner) hook the bass other fish turn on and can readily be caught by all with a line in the water. Play that first fish out in order to turn the school active.
Once you become proficient at catching fish, keep a few, throw a dozen back!
