Fishing with Rod Discussion Forum
Fishing in British Columbia => General Discussion => Topic started by: corgi on December 05, 2013, 05:19:19 PM
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Tomorrow is like -2 with maybe up to 20km/h winds. That's equivalent to about -9 windchill?
Is that too cold/windy to do some float fishing?
Will the fish be less willing to bite in these temps?
Thanks for the help!
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Sure , they will bite if you do everything right. Tight line and good luck ;)
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one thing I learned was that fish will bite if everything comes together. always worth a shot in any scenario.
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Tomorrow is like -2 with maybe up to 20km/h winds. That's equivalent to about -9 windchill?
Is that too cold/windy to do some float fishing?
Will the fish be less willing to bite in these temps?
Thanks for the help!
Its never too cold! I've caught plenty of fish in sub -15 when most anglers are sitting at home, thats when you get the water to yourself
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I was out on the vedder today. Conditions were quite nice. As long as you're dressed warm you should be fine. I even got into a few fish today.
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Temperature isn't a concern. Wind on the other hand can put a nasty bow in your line when drifting making a decent hook set difficult.
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The wind wasn't an issue on the upper river today however there were some gusts of wind on the lower river that would effect your drift.
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Just float jigs and let the wind work for you :p
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My guides had to be de-iced every fifth or sixth cast today on both my pin and fly rods.
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iced guides are the problem
X2
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Biggest indicator is rod guides icing & roe skeins solid = Too cold!!
But if you apply the effort the diehard's still standing will eventually be rewarded
Kh
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But if you apply the effort the diehard's still standing will eventually be rewarded.
So very true. But I still prefer to stay home...hate those numb fingers.
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It's never too windy, too cold.
(http://www.fishingwithrod.com/albums/photoblog/090106_1.jpg)
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While we weren't float fishing (back trolling hot shots), I have been out fishing many times growing up in the middle of northeasterns. With winds of 50-60 mph and single digit temps F. We would go up into the mountains where the wind was blocked better but it was colder. Your guides would freeze as soon as the line stopped going through them. The entire bottom part of the Nooksack was completely frozen over but the upper river was running enough (although huge ice chunks would hit the back of our boat). We caught so many fish those days because there was absolutely no pressure on them as the entire lower river was covered with ice.
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There are some tricks i use for guides icing over. Vegetable oil, canola oil, chap stick, and vaseline. I usualy just bring chap stick as its easy to run it around the guides mid day as well. my friend used canola oil in a little spay bottle. Been out in -20 with windchill worked fine for me.
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There are some tricks i use for guides icing over. Vegetable oil, canola oil, chap stick, and vaseline. I usualy just bring chap stick as its easy to run it around the guides mid day as well. my friend used canola oil in a little spay bottle. Been out in -20 with windchill worked fine for me.
Wind chill has no effect on the speed things freeze, just so you know.
The freezing wasn't a big deal for us as we just had to let the line out and hold on. It caused some amazing ice showers when a fish hit and all the ice shattered and flew everywhere. That was always fun to see.
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the colder it gets the fewer fishers are out more ops for u,
C u on the river
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Wind chill has no effect on the speed things freeze, just so you know.
The freezing wasn't a big deal for us as we just had to let the line out and hold on. It caused some amazing ice showers when a fish hit and all the ice shattered and flew everywhere. That was always fun to see.
Lol... My brain, it hurts! If the temperature outside is below freezing then windchill can and will make things freeze faster, as things freezing is simply the loss of warmth, which wind does well at removing.
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Never.
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There's no such thing as too cold or windy. I fished in the snow many times last year. Love it.
Some people are fair weather fishermen. More space on the river for me
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I was out on the vedder today. Conditions were quite nice. As long as you're dressed warm you should be fine. I even got into a few fish today.
Can I ask what kind of fish are you getting in to? Late Coho and Chum or early Steelhead? I'd like to go Sunday possibly - but be properly prepared if I make the journey.
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Can I ask what kind of fish are you getting in to? Late Coho and Chum or early Steelhead? I'd like to go Sunday possibly - but be properly prepared if I make the journey.
I landed 2 wild coho. Both were chrome bullets. The third one pulled like a truck but spit the hook before i could see what it was. All were caught on spoons.
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Not sure if it can ever be too cold. I was out on the Squamish this morning and blistering ball sacks it was super cold. Guides, float, line and spool were icing up. However I could still fish when out of the wind. On the lower Squamish there were dust devils been blown up and white caps on the river at Judd Road. I had to submerge the rod tip to prevent the wind catching my line. My drifts were not very good, almost unfishable. Had to move higher up on the Cheakemus to try and get out of the wind.
If you go up to the upper Vedder you should be ok.
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Saw a few fish today, no luck
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iced guides are the problem
If the guide gets iced up then he's not rowing hard enough and the client is usually frozen solid.
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I will be out there tomorrow.
frozen snot to my mustache - check
eyes full of tears from cold wind - check
rod guides froze up - check
fly frozen solid after hitting the air - check
listening to my dad whine its really cold - check
thinking to myself (WHY am I out here right now) - check
being toasty warm in my properly layered clothes/waders - check
hooking into a steelhead regardless of the climate - priceless
I have done just this already once when it was -27 from the wind chill. Caught my fish second cast, took me 30mins to gut it due to either my hands or the fish freezing >:(
Its been years since then and I guess I'm getting old because I have been second guessing whether I want to head out tomorrow or not however I have to make a trip into Sumas so might as well do some fishing first :D
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For real steelhead fishers, it's never to cold . I prefer to fish above the vedder bridge when it's windy as that nasty east wind isn't as strong. I remember years ago , it was so cold , ice was floating down the river. The ice was actually forming on the bottom of the river also, and in this particular run you could see the steelhead as plain as day , cause they were laying above the ice. Hooked 9 fish, landed 4 standing in one spot, all were released as it was when the vedder was catch and release only. That was before the hatchery started producing fish.
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When? Tomorrow...stay home. ;)
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I have done just this already once when it was -27 from the wind chill. Caught my fish second cast, took me 30mins to gut it due to either my hands or the fish freezing >:(
I remember a morning like that in my youth as well. It was so cold and windy down in the canal, my brother and law and I had to lie down flat on the ground to get out of the wind.
I will see you out there Hook.
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TODAY! lol.
In all honesty, even the drop from 6C 5 days ago to the now -11C right now (with windchill on top of that getting close to -20), it's too much IMO. I hit 10 steelhead 5 days ago, many on swung spoons. Yesterday went out and only got 1 swinging and 2 on float gear. Today went out and only sight fished 1 steel and missed her, not a single thing on bent metal, and every other fish I saw wouldn't budge for anything. Too cold too fast, not saying you won't get anything at all, but I do believe it has affected them drastically, and that you'll catch way less. Maybe it this temp maintains, they will wake back up again, I just think the shock factor for this first cold snap got to them.
Not to mention you couldn't cast or get a good drift at all with all the ice on the guides. Why am I even going tomorrow? lol.
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Left the house today at 11:30am, and it was -5 still............
Drove past Como Lake on my way to my brothers, and it was frozen over. Guess Im not fishing there today...
Although if this cold holds for a few more days I'll be able to go ice fishing there! lol
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Tomorrow is like -2 with maybe up to 20km/h winds. That's equivalent to about -9 windchill?
Is that too cold/windy to do some float fishing?
Will the fish be less willing to bite in these temps?
The river is frozen!
Thanks for the help!
Corrected above. :o
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Corrected above. :o
I remember being stationed in Prince Rupert about 1966, and I spent all my weekends either fishing or hunting. I had many 3 and 4 day weekends from working over time, and I spent those traveling inland to the Hazelton to Houston area. In those days the Skeena valley highway was still under construction and there were hour long delays going through on the gravel road.
It was late October and I was returning from an unsuccessful moose hunt in the Morice valley, but was stuck in a line-up on my way to Prince Rupert. Although I had been hunting, the guys in the car behind me had been fishing the Kispiox. While we were chatting they showed me what they had in the trunk of their car. They had a limit of 4 steelhead that ranged from 19 to 31 pounds.
That certainly perked up my interest! And, as I was leaving Prince Rupert for Vancouver the following week, I decided to spend 4 or 5 days fishing the Kispiox on my way home. Ha! Ha! Ha! The fickle finger of fate intervened. A few days later a cold front moved in and the temperature dropped to minus 30 in the Kispiox Valley. By the time I got there the river was frozen solid from shore to shore. And, while camping out in the back of my Jeep Wagoneer I almost froze despite my eiderdown sleeping bag. I had to run my Coleman cook stove full blast for 2 hours under the motor of the Jeep just to get it started. Somewhere I have photos of that adventure.
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Lol... My brain, it hurts! If the temperature outside is below freezing then windchill can and will make things freeze faster, as things freezing is simply the loss of warmth, which wind does well at removing.
Ok, after 6 hours in -15 degrees, the difference with wind and without wind on a guide that has no warmth but the friction the line causes when being pulled in is minimal. The guides are already pretty darn close to -15 degrees. Any water that got on them froze almost instantly because it was just a drop at a time. If you want to quibble over a second and three quarters of a second, then fine.
Wind takes away warmth, yes. However, if it is 1 degree outside with wind, the wind chill is well below freezing but nothing will freeze.
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Ah, quit being a spoilsport, TNAngler, we are having too much fun telling hero stories. ;D :)
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Ah, quit being a spoilsport, TNAngler, we are having too much fun telling hero stories. ;D :)
Right, my bad. So this one time, it was like -100 and we caught this 300 pound steelhead. I was fishing for cutthroat so I only had a little spinning reel with 10 pound test line. I had to go swimming after him and the water was super cold but I'm a real man and was able to handle it. I finally had to grab the fish and jumped on it's back. Only because I drink Diet Dr. Pepper was I able to wrestle it ashore. I took a picture of it with my buddy both holding an end like you would a sturgeon but for some reason the camera messed up so there is no proof. It just shows me holding a little 2 pounder and the camera's information says it was only -5, but we all know better. :)
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Right, my bad. So this one time, it was like -100 and we caught this 300 pound steelhead. I was fishing for cutthroat so I only had a little spinning reel with 10 pound test line. I had to go swimming after him and the water was super cold but I'm a real man and was able to handle it. I finally had to grab the fish and jumped on it's back. Only because I drink Diet Dr. Pepper was I able to wrestle it ashore. I took a picture of it with my buddy both holding an end like you would a sturgeon but for some reason the camera messed up so there is no proof. It just shows me holding a little 2 pounder and the camera's information says it was only -5, but we all know better. :)
Your camera records temperature? ...cool!
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Your camera records temperature? ...cool!
Ah Sandman, These new cameras record just about everything EXCEPT the picture you want to take. You can get dates printed right over the picture, GSP recordings, your mother-in-law's birthday, video, and your girl friend puking in the toilet... all posted instantly on Facebook.
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I've fished through some miserable weather, and I let the gear decide when it's too cold to fish. When your fly becomes encapsulated in an ice cube, or your guides freeze solid on every cast, it's probably too cold to fish. Or when the river freezes solid, that might also make it too cold to fish. :o
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One of my best days had 4" of snow on the boat ramp and we were dodging icebergs all day. According to my journal, we landed 15 steelhead that day.
(https://scontent-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/76042_1242019867988_674393_n.jpg)
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One of my best days had 4" of snow on the boat ramp and we were dodging icebergs all day. According to my journal, we landed 15 steelhead that day.
(https://scontent-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/76042_1242019867988_674393_n.jpg)
This is because you were probably the only crazies out there !!!
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You ask a sincere question so it deserves a factual answer.
There's 52 weeks in a year & say a good ratio is one fishes 1 time per week that means there are 52 days one should fish per year.
Of course one may use up those majority of fishing days in the summer & fall.
So maybe ya got 10 days left to fish in the late Fall & early winter.
So use those fishing days on temps over 0 C or 32 F.
This way ya will not freeze your "peanuts off."
Warning: IF ya fish 53 days a year possibly you have an addiction or have become a fishing fanatic.
Stick to 52 days a year or less ...not one hr more.
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One of my best days had 4" of snow on the boat ramp and we were dodging icebergs all day. According to my journal, we landed 15 steelhead that day.
(https://scontent-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/76042_1242019867988_674393_n.jpg)
Looks very similar to my dad's boat that we used to go out in all the time. Back trolling would cause those icebergs to bang into the back of the boat and bump all the way under the boat sometimes. Definitely had to watch to make sure your line didn't catch on one. But yeah, those are the best days fishing since pressure is way down. I remember a couple times where the ramp and bar was so frozen over we couldn't even get down onto the bar and we ended up having to drag the boat probably half a mile over a frozen bar. The frozen parts were easy enough but the parts that hadn't quite frozen yet and were mushy SUCKED.
When I was very young and none of my older brothers could even drive, my mom would drive up with us sometimes so we would have truck at the pull out point instead of my dad having to hitchhike back up (which he did frequently too). There were many times when the weather was like this that we would have a fish on before she even got off the bar.
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Warning: IF ya fish 53 days a year possibly you have an addiction or have become a fishing fanatic.
Stick to 52 days a year or less ...not one hr more.
I'm in serious need of help then lol
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I'm in serious need of help then lol
Don't worry. I don't get near enough so between the two of us I'm sure we are fine.
Maybe that is what I should do. Create a fishing days exchange where those who have extra fishing days can sell them to those that are too close to an addiction and need extras. I'll be rich.
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Looks very similar to my dad's boat that we used to go out in all the time. Back trolling would cause those icebergs to bang into the back of the boat and bump all the way under the boat sometimes. Definitely had to watch to make sure your line didn't catch on one. But yeah, those are the best days fishing since pressure is way down. I remember a couple times where the ramp and bar was so frozen over we couldn't even get down onto the bar and we ended up having to drag the boat probably half a mile over a frozen bar. The frozen parts were easy enough but the parts that hadn't quite frozen yet and were mushy SUCKED.
When I was very young and none of my older brothers could even drive, my mom would drive up with us sometimes so we would have truck at the pull out point instead of my dad having to hitchhike back up (which he did frequently too). There were many times when the weather was like this that we would have a fish on before she even got off the bar.
While fishing that day, I hooked a steelhead and was fighting it as a ten or fifteen foot ice sheet floated by. I couldn't get the fish away from the ice sheet and it caught the line. Thinking I was about to break off, I kept my rod tip high, and watched more and more of my line come out of the water. Suddenly, much to my surprise, the line didn't break, the fish popped out of the water, slid across the ice, and back into the water to finish the battle.
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While fishing that day, I hooked a steelhead and was fighting it as a ten or fifteen foot ice sheet floated by. I couldn't get the fish away from the ice sheet and it caught the line. Thinking I was about to break off, I kept my rod tip high, and watched more and more of my line come out of the water. Suddenly, much to my surprise, the line didn't break, the fish popped out of the water, slid across the ice, and back into the water to finish the battle.
HA HA HA HA HA HA !!
I wish I had been there to see that
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I used to love getting stationed for a month in the Queen Charlotte Islands in the winter. We couldn't scale logs in the snow, and if a significant storm hit the Charlottes in the winter it sometimes came in the form of snow, and the other men sat around with nothing to do but wait. Not me though, I took off with my fishing rod and hit all the local streams. I remember one Christmas season when all the other men were complaining about not being home with their families while I was rejoicing at all the freedom I had. I fished non-stop for three weeks straight before the weather cleared. The Queen Charlotte rivers were fabulous in the 1960s and my fishing diaries are filled with the stories there.
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I used to love getting stationed for a month in the Queen Charlotte Islands in the winter. We couldn't scale logs in the snow, and if a significant storm hit the Charlottes in the winter it sometimes came in the form of snow, and the other men sat around with nothing to do but wait. Not me though, I took off with my fishing rod and hit all the local streams. I remember one Christmas season when all the other men were complaining about not being home with their families while I was rejoicing at all the freedom I had. I fished non-stop for three weeks straight before the weather cleared. The Queen Charlotte rivers were fabulous in the 1960s and my fishing diaries are filled with the stories there.
No wonder ya head for the "Land of the Smiles" every winter after all those stories.
Too much snow to work & other tale of using a Coleman stove to warm your engine on & on.
On PBS station from Bellingham Wa. sometimes has that "Alone in the Wilderness" doc. & it is so very interesting. Guy is in the wilderness in Alaska & he builds his own log cabin.
Snow & ice. He filmed his adventure with some old movie camera 8mm I assume.
But listening to your endless adventures thru the many years ( know Ian your in your young 70s in age ) in British Columbia a thought comes to me that if you could of got it on film, it would be on PBS as well.
Your an inspiration to those to enjoy the outdoors & not to retire to the"rocking chair" because they are seniors.
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During the last cold snap that we had, I learned a hard lesson about having ice build up on my guides. Every few casts my CP reel would end up a huge birds nest..very frustrating!! I guess experience pays off in these colder weather situations.
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Yeah frozen line can be a pain in the @$$ too, but the perseverance when no one else is out there sure pays off