# full moon catin?



## Mando (May 22, 2004)

does the full moon get the catfish bitting at late night like it does in saltwater? ill be on the lake fri. sat. and sun. i gotta get some cats in


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## NightTrain (May 21, 2004)

*Mando...*

I've always believed the 3 days before or after a full or new moon theory....of course other factors come into play too...Barometric pressure(storms/fronts),current,thermocline,etc.---What do the rest of ya'll look at as pluses or negatives?


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## Trophycats (Jun 6, 2004)

I am probably going to get some heat from this one but....I have been guiding for several years..and fishing for cats a lot longer...I have not noticed a difference in the bite according to the moon phase. I have noticed that there seems to be certain times of the day that the blues bite better. Now this does not include flatheads, they might be different..


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## NightTrain (May 21, 2004)

*T-cats...*

Hey dude...no heat here,that's why i come to the board, to learn from others what they think!!:mpd: 
I _HAVE _noticed that the bite picks up @ certain hrs. of the night,also.


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## Catfish (May 21, 2004)

When fishin for scaly critters (Crappie to be exact) I have found the full moon to be awful ... It is my belief that fishing under a light , does no good when they have light everywhere .... hmmm ... A thought -- I need some Crappie ...


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## Hawkeye (May 21, 2004)

Trophycats said:


> I am probably going to get some heat from this one but....I have been guiding for several years..and fishing for cats a lot longer...I have not noticed a difference in the bite according to the moon phase. I have noticed that there seems to be certain times of the day that the blues bite better. Now this does not include flatheads, they might be different..


 It's hard for me to give "heat" to someone for posting observations based on many years of fishing experience LOL... but I'll give it a try... just kidding. In tidal water, the fishing seems to be better when the water is moving. It doesn't appear to be too "phase" specific as far as the moon is concerned, but it does vary based on how close the moon is to the earth. The closer the moon is, the greater the fluctuation in the tides... higher AND lower, so there is a greater difference, more water gets churned up and the fishing in general is better during those periods. Having said that, I like fishing the tide when it's coming in... the rising water always makes ME more confident and I am more successful when I fish with confidence. I don't know if it affects the fish (incoming tide, not their confidence level) to as great a degree. In fresh water, non-tidal situations or in lakes, I can't say... I'm still green in those conditions... well, I am in tidal waters too, but I have a little more experience there than in lakes and such.

The bottom line for me, Warren, is that if you told me you caught more fish when you fish with white fishing rods then you do when you use black ones, I'd believe you....


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## MUDHOLE KID (May 21, 2004)

Full Moon.................ummmmmmm........let's See............yeah.......bite Or No Bite I'm Going Fishing


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## NightTrain (May 21, 2004)

:biggrin: :biggrin: :tongue: :rotfl:


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## Trophycats (Jun 6, 2004)

Well Mudhole..i will give you one more word of advice..you dang sure can't catch a cat while sitting in the living room <grin> full moon or not, the more TOW (time on water) you spend the better your chances are. And Nighttrain..you are right too..the bite seems to pick up from 2am till 4am..then from 6am till 8am..then from 2pm till 4pm..then from 6pm till 8pm..give or take a little depending on other factors. But then again..there is no telling when Mr Big will take a bait..White Poles Vs Black Poles..hmmm <grin>


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## NightTrain (May 21, 2004)

I used to have a T-shirt(wore it out)that I got in a marina at Rock's Pond(Santee-Cooper)that said,"YCCFSOYATAT"....Got asked all the time what that meant.........."You can't catch fish sittin' on your ***** talkin' about them"!:mpd:


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## mudd_catt (May 22, 2004)

All I know is that I catch more fish when I am on the water that sitting on the couch. LOL But I personally like a full moon, cause I can see better without having to worry about a light. It ain't gonna matter this weekend, cause I figure we gonna have clouds all weekend. But I still gonna fish!


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## Nikonos (May 22, 2004)

I'll tell you from my experience when the fish usually start biting...late at night when fatigue is setting in and I'm fidgiting about with my reel and have an out-of-this-world backlash....I'll get a hit. When I've used all but 2 or 3 of my shad because they keep dying on my hook...I'll start to get hits. When I used to drive my little Toyota Corolla down to Lake Barkley to fish, the channels would turn on in the canal and then I'd make the 3 hour drive back home with a trunk full of cats and then the sweet smell of victory wouldn't come out of the car for a month. 

On a more serious note, I have never noticed a difference in the fishing from a new moon to a full moon. As long as you're on the water you're going to have a better chance at landing a fish than trying to decide on which day to fish. I go out whenever I have the time in any weather except when there's lightning around (I don't have a boat and 12 foot surf rods double as great lightning rods in the right conditions.) Get out there and let us know how it goes man.


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## Mando (May 22, 2004)

*thanks guys*

thanks for the responce guys. i know a certain spot in my saltwater holes (a spillway) that a full moon night u will tear up the reds no matter what but when day comes u wont have a bite. i just might have to pull an allnighter on the water to see what i come up with.


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## Trophycats (Jun 6, 2004)

Now that is my kind of shirt


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## Mando (May 22, 2004)

cool were all on at the same time ...wish there was a chat room...


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## mudd_catt (May 22, 2004)

I would love to try it Friday night, but if I do, I know I won't be able to go with Pops Sat. Decisions Decisions Decisions. WAIT, why not go both? Surely I can function on three hours sleep? We do need a chat room. Nite nite everybody.


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## NightTrain (May 21, 2004)

*Did ya'll realize...*

...that this full moon is a"blue moon"?2 in one month.


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## mudd_catt (May 22, 2004)

I believe it is a full moon, but i didn't see it all last night due to the cloud cover. but, I had more big fish break me off last night than I ever have. They were bitin, but I wasn't prepared for such biguns. I had one that completely spooled a Quantum 1430 free of line all the way down to the arbor knot.

But the full moon showed it/s bad side today, when my water pump went at about 30 mph full blast down the river. Guess what the next sound I heard? if you said "clug clug clang" you would be correct. guess my catin is over for a few weeks.


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## Hawkeye (May 21, 2004)

I hate it when that happens :-( 

I have never been spooled by a fish. It must be exciting, frustrating and intense as heck watching that spool getting emptied, and not being able to do anything about it... I've heard stories of Amberjack, Cobia, Big Red Drum ("Reds" as they call 'em in Texas), Black Drum and a few other "big game" fish... I bet those "trophy" fishermen would wet themselves if a CATFISH spooled 'em LOL.... 

I'm very sorry to hear about the motor. Keep your fingers crossed it's just shut down from overheating and there's no significant damage... 

TT


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## mudd_catt (May 22, 2004)

It probably wouldn't have happened, except for the fact that I was in my brothers boat (a 16 ft Polar Craft jon), drifting down the bank float fishing, and standing in the bow. Knowing better, I had too much stuff in the boat, and couldn't get to the motor fast enough. You can imagine trying to climb to the back of the boat, holding the rod from getting pulled in the river, and then trying to crank and shift and turn with one hand. If it wouldn't have been so dis-heartening, it would have been funny.


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## Bigcat (Jul 11, 2004)

My 2 cents.

Fish bite sometimes and sometimes they do not. IMO fish always feed at least some every day. If your in the right spot you catch fish. If your not catching fish that does NOT mean they are not biting(for the most part).

I ***-u-me this not because I can see underwater but thru years of fishing and castnetting. Ever notice how you catch nothing in your net and then 20 minutes later stop at the same stop and say "one more throw" and end up with a **** load of fish?

Sometimes they school up real tight is all I'm getting at I guess. lol

As far a BIG fish, who knows? the last big flathead was at one in the afternoon middle of this summer. The last big blue was the same right in the middle of the day. So I have no idea. I do believe in general the big ones bite more at night (flats for sure). But am unsure if this is due to less boat traffic or what.

Tides, moons, fronts, I do not even look at anymore. Unless it's something dramatic that may make me stay home. But that's rare.


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## mudd_catt (May 22, 2004)

The cats here USUALLY bit pretty close to the same day or night, but at night you don't have all the fools running around in pontoons, jet-ski's, ski-boats, and believe it or not, CIGAR BOATS. IF You can find them during the day, you can mop up, but you have to be a very patient person, cause they will make you loose your religion FAST! but night is also cooler.


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