Best Time for Night Fishing

[Bassfever]

One thing I have always heard is to wait at least an hour after the sun totally sets to allow the fish vision to adjust to the darkness the same way human eyes need to adjust. Don't know how true this is but I have noticed a difference.

I somewhat agree with this statement. The fishing does seem to slow down heading into darkness, although, I have had some good fish caught at this time! If I am getting no action heading into dark, then I usually just sit down, grab my headlamp, remove my day baits, tie on my night baits and wait a bit. The late afternoon and well into the night can be absolutely fabulous times!

As far as Astro tables and such go, there are definitely best times. I don't ever feel that one person can look at anything such as a chart, graph, or piece of paper and say, "today is optimum". I am one who firmly believes in one being "in-tune" with any specific body of water. Getting out and fishing, getting a pattern down, figuring out where they're at, what they're doing and eating. Finding out what baits will work, where, and what time of day. This is exactly why the Pros pre-fish. I must also say that night fishing is literally the same as day. Dark nights usually require darker baits, while brighter nights usually require lighter baits. It has to seem natural!

I hope this helps!

[stalking coyote]

Topwater is a blast at night ... I love it !

[cure-hb]

I usually fish between 5-9pm

[dirtygeary]

In Texas, I arrive about 830pm while I have light, then fish till I get tired or fish stop biting. I have only had success in summer may to early September. I also stick primarily to black soft plastics.especially trick worms

[basscattrent]

Hi toddmc,

I guess my question was not clear. What time of night is the best time to fish or does it make any difference? Do I go at 6pm and fish till midnight. Do I start at midnight and fish into dawn. Do I go at 10pm and fish till 6am. Just would like some input about when to go. Is there any time that the fish are more active when it is dark.

Frank

For me I go from sun down till the last of the shade is off the water the next morning. I love to night fish and if they are biting the hours just seem to slip away If I had to make a choice I would look at the weather and allow that to make my decesion. If it cools of drastically after 12am then I would fish till 12am. IF it is going to stay fairly warm most of the night then I would go with 10pm to 6am. For me though it is all night and then topwater in the morning till there is no more shade left to fish. I usually get on the water later than 6pm as the night fishing hours are 7pm to 10am. Also I hate the sun/heat anyway so I do not get onto the water until I can fish in the shade anyway then I do not have to put on sunscreen. Also many people will give up during the night when the bite starts to slow but I find that many times if you stick it out they will eventually bite again.

[toddmc]

Hi toddmc,

I guess my question was not clear. What time of night is the best time to fish or does it make any difference? Do I go at 6pm and fish till midnight. Do I start at midnight and fish into dawn. Do I go at 10pm and fish till 6am. Just would like some input about when to go. Is there any time that the fish are more active when it is dark.

Frank

For me I go from sun down till the last of the shade is off the water the next morning. I love to night fish and if they are biting the hours just seem to slip away If I had to make a choice I would look at the weather and allow that to make my decesion. If it cools of drastically after 12am then I would fish till 12am. IF it is going to stay fairly warm most of the night then I would go with 10pm to 6am. For me though it is all night and then topwater in the morning till there is no more shade left to fish. I usually get on the water later than 6pm as the night fishing hours are 7pm to 10am. Also I hate the sun/heat anyway so I do not get onto the water until I can fish in the shade anyway then I do not have to put on sunscreen. Also many people will give up during the night when the bite starts to slow but I find that many times if you stick it out they will eventually bite again.

What waters are you fishing in the Modesto area at night Trent?

[basscattrent]

In the past I have fished mainly New Melones, McClure, Don Pedro & Tulloch. I took this year off from night fishing but I love to night fish and have done so for 25+ years in the Motherlode.

[toddmc]

In the past I have fished mainly New Melones, McClure, Don Pedro & Tulloch. I took this year off from night fishing but I love to night fish and have done so for 25+ years in the Motherlode.

Nice. I'm from SoCal and I haven't fished much of the Motherlode lakes. I keep saying that I'm going to fish waters other than Clearlake and the Delta in the summer when I head north, but I keep catching plenty of fish. The cooler weather at night in the Motherlode lakes would be awesome at night in the summer. You've got me thinking.

[toddmc]

Did anyone fish this last especially large full moon? It was bright out there.

[Ranger Ron 620 DVS]

The short story is 3 days/nights before the "FULL MOON" and 3 days/night after... And 3 "HOURS before and after "Civil Twilight" ... i.e. This is the limit at which Twilight Illumination is sufficient, under good weather conditions, for terrestrial objects to be clearly distinguished; at the beginning of Morning Civil Twilight, or end of Evening Civil Twilight, the horizon is clearly defined and the brightest stars are visible under good atmospheric ... This gives you 6 hours of the best "NIGHT TIME" fishing... Later Ron

[toddmc]

The short story is 3 days/nights before the "FULL MOON" and 3 days/night after... And 3 "HOURS before and after "Civil Twilight" ... i.e. This is the limit at which Twilight Illumination is sufficient, under good weather conditions, for terrestrial objects to be clearly distinguished; at the beginning of Morning Civil Twilight, or end of Evening Civil Twilight, the horizon is clearly defined and the brightest stars are visible under good atmospheric ... This gives you 6 hours of the best "NIGHT TIME" fishing... Later Ron

Yes, this is when it's easier for humans to see. This is a good time to start if you are new to night fishing. But, don't limit yourself to this time. I live in the Coachella Valley (hot desert with lots of sand) and the golf course lakes with a good water movement (waterfalls) often are gin clear. The fish see substantially better than we do. I can see the newly emerging grass clumps on the sandy bottom this time of year. I often target them. You can see crawfish, bluegill and tilapia on the sand bottoms almost as good as the day. I can even bed fish at night on a full moon this time of year. The fish on a full moon in clear water will tend to hold closer to cover/structure and will chase your bait a shorter distance. It can be better to fish a darker moon if the fish are not committing to your baits.
The fish can see your shadows also. Most of our golf course lakes have a cement erosion barrier poured around the edges of the lakes, and the fish like to hold real shallow on these barriers to attack bluegill anywhere near it. Most anglers that I take out will not notice the fish pushing off to deeper water in front of them. Be mindful of keeping the moon in front of you to limit shadows. The same goes for fishing by boat on bigger lakes. Fish the dark side of objects and try to keep from fishing with the moon at your back. The fish act similar to the way they do during middle of the day during full moons by seeking the darker ambush points. You will catch more fish if you are aware of this.

[toddmc]

One thing I have always heard is to wait at least an hour after the sun totally sets to allow the fish vision to adjust to the darkness the same way human eyes need to adjust. Don't know how true this is but I have noticed a difference.

This is especially true during the warmer months when it will take a while after dark for the shad to get up shallow in big numbers. The bass aren't as active until the shad have moved up shallow. I don't know about the shiners where you live. This is usually less of an issue on lakes that have mostly bluegill.

[gailt]

The night tournament on our local lake is from 6PM until 2AM I believe most of the fish are caught before 11PM.