The Fish's Point of View
When fish adapt to local conditions, anglers need to as well
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One of the most important things that you can never forget is that from a fish’s point of view, the lake, river, reservoir, pit or pond in which it is swimming is its entire universe.
In other words, to the walleye swimming in Lake of the Woods, Last Mountain Lake or the Bay of Quinte, the lake is its world.
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And it is why often, especially when fishing pressure is heavy, and weather conditions are less than ideal, the fish tend to win more often than they lose.
They’ve simply adapted to the specific lake or river conditions so well, that they can elude capture.
It is also why thinking that a “bass is a bass” or a “walleye is a walleye” no matter where it swims can often lead you down the garden path.
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Take those walleyes in my home Lake of the Woods as a case in point. Since the explosion of the rusty crayfish population over 20 years ago, they’ve taken to dining on lobsters with gusto. So much in fact, that many days if you’re not dragging right on bottom—often with a crayfish imitation like a brown or green pumpkin coloured tube jig—you’re missing out on some exceptional fishing.
Now, compare that to the Bay of Quinte, especially in the fall, when the giant ‘eyes are swimming in the middle of the water column chasing down suspended, silvery, soft skinned pelagic forage like alewives, smelts and shad. On Quinte you’d better be trolling crankbaits behind planer boards.
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Even as we progress into winter and the height of the ice fishing season, you always need to choose your fishing locations and make your bait and presentation decisions based on the fish’s point of view.
Which is the perfect segue to this week’s Fish Talk With The Doc which you can view by clicking on the following link.