 Five
years ago in March, I was blessed with the birth of my
little fishing buddy, Tatum. In an attempt to spend as
much time with Tatum as possible, I cut way back on my
fishing, opting instead to stay home with her. Although
it was a sacrifice I will never regret, I did miss my
fishing.
A fishing partner of mine had a son the same year.
He too, choose to stay home with his child. One day,
we were talking about how we missed going fishing. As
the discussion continued, we explored the idea of going
fishing at night, after the little ones had gone down
for the evening.
Since we lived in Cleburne at the time, we regularly
fished Lake Whitney, because it was close to home. Being
familiar with certain areas of the lake, we felt comfortable
about being able to navigate the water safely in the
dark. What we discovered was a whole new aspect of fishing,
"night fishing".
Fishing at night was as much fun as fishing during
the day. The darkness seemed to add a bit of ambiance
or atmosphere to the trip. Frankly, I got to the point
that I would rather go night fishing, than fishing during
the day. The excitement of having something pulling
on your line in total darkness, not being able to see
what it was until it got right to the boat, was awesome.
Not only did we get to spend time with our children
on the weekend and still get to go fishing, we usually
caught more fish. I’m not sure if the fish bit
better at night or if we fished more intensely with
less running around the lake. Nonetheless, we caught
more fish at night. I guess that is one of the main
reasons I liked it so much.
Another big reason I enjoy night fishing so much is,
the lake is usually not full of other boats. Most folks
don’t ski and ride personal water crafts in the
dark. In the hot summer months, it is definitely cooler
to fish at night than during the daylight hours; another
big plus for we Texas anglers.
The equipment necessary for night fishing is about
the same as for fishing during the day. I usually used
crankbaits, spinnerbaits and soft plastics to catch
fish at night. When fishing soft plastics, I like to
use portable blacklights and Stren clear blue florescent
line in 17 to 20 lb. test. The blacklights light up
the fishing line, which enable me to watch my line better
and detect subtle strikes.
I had always heard about fishermen using solar and
lunar tables and using the moon to fish. Until I started
night fishing, I never paid much attention to them.
After a year or so, we discovered that the fish usually
bit better when the moon was up. I guess there is something
to the tables, since they are based on the position
of the sun and moon. Today, I rarely fish at night unless
the moon is out.
If you have never done any night fishing from a boat,
there are a few things you need to keep in mind if you
plan of giving it a try. It is going to be dark. Know
the area of the lake you are planning to fish. I wouldn’t
recommend exploring unfamiliar water at night. Lakes
look totally different in the dark than they do in the
daylight. It is difficult to judge distances in the
dark. It is easy to become lost, even if you know the
area.
Always use the proper navigation lights on your boat
when operating it in the dark. It lets others know where
you are. Use caution when running your big engine. Obstacles,
such as trees, stumps and other boats, are difficult
to see, until it’s often too late. I highly recommend
that you not go night fishing alone. Always try and
take someone with you. If you get in trouble on the
water at night, two heads are better than one.
Lastly, never, never, never operate your boat without
wearing a properly fitting personal floatation device
and an engine cut-off device(kill switch) attached.
Both could end up saving your life. Use a little common
sense and practice good boating safety so you won’t
become another senseless boating accident statistic.
If you have any questions about night fishing, feel
free to contact me. I’m sure you would enjoy a
night on the water. Besides, if you caught my article
on Women and the Outdoors, you might like it even more
than you think!
Until next time, enjoy the Texas outdoors.
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