Do fish bite on windy days? Despite some common misconceptions, wind may improve fishing. The wind gets fish moving by stirring up the food chain and reduces their ability to see you or your bait.
Light-sensitive fish like walleye are more active in the wind, as the chop blocks light penetration.
However, without proper technique, wind can harm your efforts. It may make your boat challenging to control or even make fishing dangerous.
Luckily, there are many things you can do to reduce the negative effects of wind when fishing. Let’s look at four of the best tips for fishing in the wind.
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4 Tips for Fishing in the Wind
Below are some tips for fishing on windy days. The wind can be your friend if you know how to use it.
1. Control Drift
On windy days, the wind will push your boat, knocking you out of an area faster than you can effectively fish. When you find the fish, the last thing you want is to be pushed somewhere else.
An easy way to combat this is to drive your boat into the wind using your electric motor. You want your motor to make up for the wind’s force.
However, this method only works when the wind isn’t too strong. Otherwise, you may want to utilize a drift paddle to limit your drift. You can easily install these drift accessories and adjust them as necessary.
Power-Poles can be useful, but this brand also has drift accessories that can help combat the wind. You can also use a drift sock to help control up-and-down movement.
Adjust the direction of your boat so that the current is pushing the smallest part. Put your motor down to help reduce your drift.
The harder the wind, the more motor you’ll want in the water. Be careful about gusts and high winds, which can quickly move your boat before you can react.
2. Add Weight to Your Line
Adding weight to your line makes it easier to control. It doesn’t move quite as much in the wind due to the added weight, making it easier to control your cast.
Windy conditions make lightweight jigs hard to control and decrease the chance of you actually getting it in front of a fish.
Heavier jigs are easier to control and much more efficient on windy days.
3. Use a Thin Line to Cut Through
When the wind is blowing, larger lines will pick up more wind. It’s basic physics. The larger the surface area of an object, the more wind will hit it.
Therefore, to limit the effects of wind, you should choose a smaller line. Smaller lines are easier to cast and less affected by the wind once they’re in the water.
Fluorocarbon works well in the wind because it is heavier. It sinks and helps combat the wind a little bit. Use it for lures that need bottom contact.
Utilize braid if you need a lure to float and move with the water column. (But, braid tends to move around more in the wind, which can be an issue on very windy days.)
4. Change Your Lure Based on the Chop
You may need a heavier lure on windy days. Lures that work on calm days don’t necessarily work on windy days.
Even if you want your lure to stay in the water column, you may need to increase the weight. You may even need a different fishing rod.
Of course, when adding heavier lures, consider how this may affect your casting distance.
Those bass fishing should move to shallower waters and use lures higher in the water column, as bass tend to rise to feed when the wind blows.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it harder to catch fish when it’s windy?
It isn’t necessarily harder to catch fish when it is windy. However, you can’t use the same techniques that work on windy days.
If you approach windy days properly, you can easily catch fish when it is windy.
Where do fish go on windy days?
Bass go towards banks with lots of cover (especially man-made) to attract big fish on windy days. Look for docks, piers, and similar habitats.
What’s the best way to fish when it’s windy?
Move to shallower water, use thinner line, and go heavier when you’re fishing during windy conditions. You can catch fish on windy days, but you must change your techniques a little.
What bait to use on a windy day?
Crankbaits, jerkbait, and spinner-baits work best on windy days. Use heavier baits to reduce the effects of the wind. Anglers should experiment a little bit.
Jigs and drop-shot tend to be harder to use on these days.
What are some dangers of fishing in the wind?
The biggest danger of fishing in the wind is losing control of the boat. You’ll typically have to spend more time maneuvering, so having a partner or two is best.
Always put safety before a good catch.
What are some things you can do to improve your chances of catching fish on a windy day?
To catch fish on a windy day, we recommend decreasing the diameter of your line, increasing the weight of your bait, and limiting your boat’s drift.
You can also add weight to your line, which may decrease the wind’s effects.
Conclusion
Do fish bite on windy days? Yes, but fishing in wind requires some unique techniques. However, fish do still bite. The wind stirs up the water column, making many species more active, including baitfish.
You’ll have to work to counteract the wind’s negative effects. Windy days can also be dangerous, as your boat may drift more than usual.
Use our fishing tips to help stay safe while fishing during strong winds. There is no need for windy weather to ruin your fishing trip.
