What Is the Best Time of Day to Go Fishing?

When it comes to fishing, there are many factors to consider before shooting the bait to the water. You’ll have to know several things from temperature to moon phases, spawning times, and even the season that the specific fish you want to catch likes.

As we know this can be hard, especially if you are a beginner when it comes to fishing – here we are going to explain not only the difference of time of days but also additional factors that matter.

Come and take a look before preparing your fishing gear!

Best Time of Day to Go Fishing | That You Need To Find

Temperatures, Seasons and Spawning

Temperature is what matters the most when it comes to fishing. Most fish love eating when it is warmer in the day, while others love it when it is fresh or cold.

But as fish are cold-blooded animals, they won’t like it when it is hot or when it is too cold. So you’ll have to be attentive.

    • Winter

As the temperature is deeply linked to seasons, it is important to note that during the coldest seasons, fishing large fish can be hard. Bass, crappie, walleye, pikes, and even salmon detest winter so it can be difficult to fish them during these times. Without a proper ice fishing bibs and gears, angling can get really tough. 

But while winter closes one door, it opens another. The hottest part of the day when it’s winter is midday. This is where most fish go out to eat. And of course, this is when you’ll find better opportunities to fish.

    • Fall

In autumn, catching fish can also be a little tricky as temperatures are starting to go down, so they aren’t the ideal ones anymore. Luckily, some fish like to spawn in fall, so you’ll find yourself with way more opportunities if you can find them.

Fishing temperatures in fall are between 30 and 60ºF, lower than that will make it tough.

As a general rule, though, fishing at dusk in this season can be the best idea with sitting on a portable fishing chair with ease. Many fish species, such as bass, for example, love to go out to eat around 6 PM because this is when water starts getting colder.

But apart from that, the sun doesn’t hit weeds and brushes anymore that eventually produce pH. Around midday, for example, bushy waters are low on oxygen from pH-creation by the sun that bass hate.

    • Summer & Spring

If you want to improve your chances exponentially and get the easiest catch, you’ll need to fish in summer or fall. While summer (between June and September) can bring the most food, fish are the most active in spawn season, which for many fish in is spring (April to June).

Fishing temperatures in these seasons can range from 40ºF up to 90ºF if you’re lucky.

In both summer and spring, finding fish at any time of day can be easy. But in summer middays, temperatures can rise exponentially and suction too much energy out of fish. They will likely hide and find cooler places when this happens.

So you’ll find fish more easily in the morning and afternoons (before 11 AM and after 3 PM).

Sundown and sunrise times (last and first hours of light) are often pretty active for most fish in summer. But in spring, it all comes down to finding spawning times (of the specific fish) and trying to avoid climate factors such as rain.

As most fish love to spawn between April and May, and that increases overall fish activity by mating and feeding during or afterward – they will end up biting anything.

For spring, however, you’ll find that fishing in the last few hours of light is better (between 4 PM and 7 PM). This is when fish start going out because they can leave their nests and look for food in colder water. The larger fish may eventually go out early in the morning, and go back to the shallows after 9 AM.

Knowing how fish act depending on the seasons and temperatures can give you a better idea on the time of day to fish with more effectiveness. Still, there are a few more factors you should consider.

Weather Conditions

As said before, spring is one of the seasons most affected by weather quirks such as rain, wind, clouds, and so on.

Here we explain the relation they have with fishing times;

    • Winds

Fishing in windy days is all about using the wind in your advantage. Wind doesn’t scare fish much, but it pushes them (especially the ones in the shore) towards the direction the wind is blowing.

So if the wind is against you, it is very likely you’ll have trouble casting your bait. Otherwise, if the wind is on your side, you’ll throw farthest away than normal.

When it is windy, however, the water will get a little cooler than usual. So in midday, for example, you may start seeing fish where they wouldn’t be if the wind weren’t there. Especially if you trying on a fishing kayak, there are many chances of good fishes in the middle of the lake. 

Another thing to consider is that wind can harm the experience of fishing from a boat, so be careful not only because it is challenging but because it can also be dangerous. Try to look for a sheltered shore or somewhere safe to fish.

    • Clouds

Something most fishermen love is when clouds prevent the sun from heating up the water. This makes fishes and their food crazy, especially when the temperatures go down exponentially.

When this happens, you’ll have excellent chances to catch the ideal fish. You can catch practically at any time in any body of water when it is cloudy, especially in food-rich areas of the waterway.

    • Rains

Rain harms fishing exponentially, but it depends on how severe the rain is. In spring or summer, a light rain can make fish go to the surface in search of dying food or insects ready to be eaten.

This is where you’ll enter to catch them. However, rain can make it a little hard to watch in the water, even in the shore – so you’ll have to be a bit more careful.

When it rains hard, fish have a hard time. This means they not only look for places to hide or to feel more secure but also forget about eating completely.

Hard rain also tends to make water in rivers and lakes muddy or disturbed, which makes it hard for fish to watch. So, when it rains hard, you may have it pretty tough to catch any fish, even the ones who like turbulence such as salmon.

It is important to note that light rains can eventually become hard rains, and these may subsequently scale to difficult times and winds. If you are not careful when fishing when there’s rain, you may finally get fished yourself.

We recommend fishing afternoons when there’s rain so you can catch hungry fish coming out to eat dying insects.

    • Storms

This is the worst thing that can happen when you’re fishing. It will make all the fish go as deep as possible and make it nearly impossible to catch something juicy. However, fish always know when a storm is incoming so they will start eating crazily a few minutes or hours before the storm comes.

Here you can fish well, but you’ll have to know when a storm is coming, and fish before it reaches your place. Also, wearing safety clothing, fishing life vest is very important. 

Whatever happens to the climate, just remember that there’s always an opportunity. So be careful above anything else, but also be attentive to get the most out of every situation.

    • Tidal Shifts

     • Feeding Times & Bugs

While fishing is mostly about knowing when fish go out to eat, it is also about knowing when bugs are the most active. Insects are the primary food of fish of all kinds, so finding out about one is probably finding out about the others.

Here we can say that most bugs love dusk and nights. So fishing at these times will be easier for you, especially with the right bait. But some bugs also prefer going out early in the morning, which can give an advantage if you are an early bird.

But fish act different depending on their species. Some like to eat in the morning around weeds & brushes, while others prefer deep water in sundown.

That’s why it’s important to know when insects are the most active, this way you can find out when fish will start eating the most making it easier for you to fish.

Remember that all bodies of water (beaches, rivers, lakes, etc.) have different kinds of bugs, so they will act differently accordingly and please different fish species as well. Do your research and learn.

Best Time of Days for Fishing: Concluding Tips

Sitting for hours in the shore or on your boat waiting for fish to bite can be pretty frustrating. But when you know exactly how to prevent this, you’ll have a fantastic experience. Check our breakdown for the best fishing time;

• In summer and spring, you’ll find the most fish early in the morning and at dusk.
• In fall you’ll find the most fish at sundown.
• In winter you can fish at midday without problems. Winter’s dusk and sunrise can be pretty cold for fish which makes it almost impossible to catch.
• Spawning times of fish are always feeding times too. Make sure to know all about the fish you want to catch; it may give an edge if you fish when they are spawning.
• Different climate conditions produce different behaviors in fish which may eventually improve fishing or worsen it.
• Fishing at the beach can be easy if you have a tidal schedule or somewhere else to learn about tide movements.
• When bugs start to mate in shores and deep water, fish begin to resurface to eat them. Use that in your advantage.
• There’s really not a better time for fishing, it’s all about finding out about your specific fish species, the season, temperature, and eating schedules.

This is a summary of what’s the best fishing times. Above anything else, just remember to do your own due diligence before fishing – it will help you exponentially.

What is The Best Time To Go Fishing

Bottom Line

Whether you an expert or a beginner, fishing can be hard when you don’t know what you’re fishing and when.

That’s why it’s important to do as much research as you can (or bring someone experienced about the place and fish you want to catch), so you can prevent the issues from being a fisher out of sync with nature.