[jfeir]

Hey, I don?t profess to be a great fisherman but I generally catch fish if other people are. However, I?m finding CDOW?s reports to be increasingly just plain wrong.  I?m sure it?s hard to come up with reports for dozens of bodies of water but I?m starting to suspect that some of these reports are written with the intent of moving anglers around for economic or political reasons. Several times over the past year I?ve promptly gone to a water body that CDOW said was ?hot? or ?excellent? and found the fishing to be pathetic. Maybe they just use conjecture or are calling local shops which, of course, will say it?s ?hot? in order to bring in business.

I?m sorry, but for this reason and many others I just don?t trust CDOW. The reports on CFF (this forum) are always extremely useful though.

 

[epic]

Re: Credibility of CDOWs Fishing Reports

The CDOW reports come from local shops, rangers, and fisherman from that area. The thing about fishing is fishing conditions change on a daily basis. How many times have you gone out slayed the fish one day then the next barily caught any. Take the CDOW reports with a grain of salt. I have noticed that sometimes these reports dont change so they could be alot older then what the date says they are. But granted if the lake was just stocked its going to have a good report, maybe you are not fishing for the stocker trout they are reporting as good.

 

[1eyered]

Re: Credibility of CDOWs Fishing Reports

Take the CDOW reports with a grain of salt.

WERD!

Any report to me is a suggestion of where to go. But as for the hot bite, I go by my 'supernatural' senses. In other words, if ya got a gut feeling telling you that it's time to be there and then, well then ya better be there.

If you go based on a report of a hot bite, you'll probably get the tail end of it if you're lucky. The hot bite is almost always reported by the person or persons who 1st hit the bite. The report says "In the past week the bite was like......" And on, and on, and on.... You get the drill..

"Exploration requires some desire and innitiative" - Slug of Atmosphere

 

[idratherbfishing]

Re: Credibility of CDOWs Fishing Reports

I have to agree that I seldom find the CDOW reports to be very accurate. About the only time I try to fish a body and find that it is right on is when they say the fishing is lousy!

The problem is like others have said is the reports are dated.

I still look at the reports but place my trust in what I read here.

Dan

 

[IceInTheVeins]

Re: Credibility of CDOWs Fishing Reports

Besides maybe telling water levels and water conditions, the reports are basically worthless. It is nothing more than a ploy to bring more revenue into the DNR through the state parks system or to aid local sporting goods that help fund them.

 

[eric]

Re: Credibility of CDOWs Fishing Reports

did you notice on the cdow page the last time it was updated?

 

[idratherbfishing]

Re: Credibility of CDOWs Fishing Reports

Any report to me is a suggestion of where to go. But as for the hot bite, I go by my 'supernatural' senses

What do your "supernatural" senses say about Jackson next Sunday, Monday and Tuesday.

Dan

 

[jfeir]

Re: Credibility of CDOWs Fishing Reports

Any report to me is a suggestion of where to go. But as for the hot bite, I go by my 'supernatural' senses. In other words, if ya got a gut feeling telling you that it's time to be there and then, well then ya better be there.

If you go based on a report of a hot bite, you'll probably get the tail end of it if you're lucky. The hot bite is almost always reported by the person or persons who 1st hit the bite. The report says "In the past week the bite was like......" And on, and on, and on.... You get the drill..

"Exploration requires some desire and innitiative" - Slug of Atmosphere

You?ve got it right man. Intuition seems to be the best. When I feel the vibes and go, the fishing is often amazing.

 

[idratherbfishing]

Re: Credibility of CDOWs Fishing Reports

I should also add to my previous post that conditions can change very quickly so even a fresh report here might not be accurate (for where the fish are and how and what they are biting) tomorrow in matter of hours.

Manner suble changes can affect a bite, like a slight change in barometric pressure. (how air pressure affects fish underwater I will never know but it does), water temp, flow of water into or out of a body of water, water clarity, angle of the sun, the moon phase and as far as I know whether Mercury and Venus are in conjuction with Jupiter.

So in a nutshell, fishing reports both here and on the DOW are suggestions of what potential is there for when you get there. But there is no guarantee when you get there the fish will be biting.

Has anyone ever seen the guy next to you doing and using the same thing as you and catching fish but you catch nothing?

Dan

 

[jfeir]

Re: Credibility of CDOWs Fishing Reports

I should also add to my previous post that conditions can change very quickly so even a fresh report here might not be accurate (for where the fish are and how and what they are biting) tomorrow in matter of hours.

Manner suble changes can affect a bite, like a slight change in barometric pressure.  (how air pressure affects fish underwater I will never know but it does), water temp, flow of water into or out of a body of water, water clarity, angle of the sun, the moon phase and as far as I know whether Mercury and Venus are in conjuction with Jupiter. 

So in a nutshell,  fishing reports both here and on the DOW are suggestions of what potential is there for when you get there.  But there is no guarantee when you get there the fish will be biting. 

Has anyone ever seen the guy next to you doing and using the same thing as you and catching fish but you catch nothing?

Dan

Exactly. I?ve been out many times when the hit is on for a couple of hours and then absolutely nothing the rest of the day (particularly in stillwater). It?s all very complex and comes down to being at the right place at the right time.

 

[1eyered]

Re: Credibility of CDOWs Fishing Reports

Has anyone ever seen the guy next to you doing and using the same thing as you and catching fish but you catch nothing?

Dan

No.. But I've seen the guy next to me using/doing the same as me and catch nothing while I was catching everything LOL!! There goes the ego again. And you know what kills the bite? When I get cocky about it while I'm at it. That kills the bite almost every time.

 

[1eyered]

Re: Credibility of CDOWs Fishing Reports

Any report to me is a suggestion of where to go. But as for the hot bite, I go by my 'supernatural' senses

What do your "supernatural" senses say about Jackson next Sunday, Monday and Tuesday.

Dan

Well.. I checked in with my "supernatural" senses and it 1st told me to check the weather. --> http://www.weather.com/index.html

And then I looked at the few previous reports on this forum about Jackson.... Folks have been catching fish on and off. "Supernatural" senses then told me the fish are active enough to build some kind of pattern. There has been no reports of folks getting back to back fish, but it's possible. My two buddies went and caught 20 wipers on Rat-L-Traps (blue/silver <-- there's your trend) in one morning during the last two weeks and reported zilch the next morning. One of them, I call my pupil, but I'm his when it comes to highschool street brawls, this guy barely remembers to set the drag and picks some of the strangest "ooh shineys" along with the funniest generic mono-fishing lines. They fished the dam and said the weather was like a hurricane out there. Probably, no one has been at that 'magic' right place and time yet too recently. If the weather channel is correct, it'll be nice and hot during the days you're going (high 70's and low to mid 80's). But we'll just say we don't know about the weather yet cause everytime you're off from work, well....

Just be at the dam LOL!!!!!


I'm willin' to bet that the 'magic' right place and time occurs almost daily, but just not that many anglers are fortunate enough to hit it. Dan, you sure aint gonna come home empty handed. Given three days to work that lake, you better not. My "supernatural" senses say pay attention to dawn and dusk. If the wind kicks up badly towards the face of the dam, I'd leave the boat trailored and head to the dam (if you're wiper huntin). Oh, and it doesn't hurt to go catch a small bucket of some lively crawdads. Even when the tail is ripped off, they still want em fresh sometimes. If ya don't wanna do that, then a bag of mussels will be of insurance. I'm sure you'll have your usual stuff (leeches, crawlers, minnows etc.) and those, especially crawlers, are a must in any situation. You're camping.. Catfish at Jackson can be good sometimes too during evenings and ya don't want to forget that wipers feed at night also.

Sorry, it took me a while to respond.
Good luck to ya,
1eyeReD

 

[idratherbfishing]

Re: Credibility of CDOWs Fishing Reports

1eyeRed,

If I read your post correctly, your "supernatural senses" say, go prepared, fish hard and if I am in the right place at the right time with the right lure/bait I will catch fish?

Dan

 

[epic]

Re: Credibility of CDOWs Fishing Reports

Thats what mine tells me.... Throw everything and the kitchen sink at them if they hit on something then my sense tells me to stick with that.

 

[Mattsabasser]

Re: Credibility of CDOWs Fishing Reports

I think it would help folks alot if the CDOW added a date to the lake info when changed (rather than a date at the top of the page). If they don't recieve an update, the info does not get modified...some areas will have the same condition info for a month or more.

Condition reports from the DOW should be considered a general description and not "where to go that day or minute" IMO. Matching that info against the stocking report, weather conditions as well as a direct phone call to the agency controlling the water may add a few more pieces to the puzzle.

The more research you do yourself may help a lot more than relying on a hot tip. A fishing rule I've heard over and over is..."By the time you get the word of a HOT SPOT, its already too late."

Matt's rant:

Too many folks want prime fishing info on a silver platter before they leave the house. Then want that info to stay "tried and true" throughout the whole weekend. If they don't catch fish, they blame the source of info...that is just stinkin' thinkin' in my book.

Try and get a general idea of what is going on with that water; times, tactics, fish behavoir, etc and go from there. Its called fishing...not "tell me every darn thing I need to know before I leave the house."

 

[kirbydog]

Re: Credibility of CDOWs Fishing Reports

Matt-You of course are absolutely correct. First off, I have enough confidence in my fishing skills that I don't CARE what the fishing report for a body of water is-I am gonna find the fish and catch them. Secondly, I mostly fish for bass and the fishing reports many times don't even mention that species for a given lake.

Half the fun of fishing is locating the fish-I don't want to know, as you say "every darn thing I need to know before I leave the house". If you want a predetermined outcome then play solitaire and cheat. ;D Ed

 

[idratherbfishing]

Re: Credibility of CDOWs Fishing Reports

Bingo! Right On! As true as can be! On the money! Truer words were never said!

Can you tell I agree with you Matt?

Dan

 

[jamiehughes]

Re: Credibility of CDOWs Fishing Reports

matt what you say is soooo true thats why they call it fishin and not just catchin..

 

[jfeir]

Re: Credibility of CDOWs Fishing Reports

I think it would help folks alot if the CDOW added a date to the lake info when changed (rather than a date at the top of the page). If they don't recieve an update, the info does not get modified...some areas will have the same condition info for a month or more.

Condition reports from the DOW should be considered a general description and not "where to go that day or minute" IMO. Matching that info against the stocking report, weather conditions as well as a direct phone call to the agency controlling the water may add a few more pieces to the puzzle.

The more research you do yourself may help a lot more than relying on a hot tip. A fishing rule I've heard over and over is..."By the time you get the word of a HOT SPOT, its already too late."

Matt's rant:

Too many folks want prime fishing info on a silver platter before they leave the house. Then want that info to stay "tried and true" throughout the whole weekend. If they don't catch fish, they blame the source of info...that is just stinkin' thinkin' in my book.

Try and get a general idea of what is going on with that water; times, tactics, fish behavoir, etc and go from there. Its called fishing...not "tell me every darn thing I need to know before I leave the house."

The best part of fishing is the unpredictability of it. However, I still find the CDOW reports to be quite inaccurate on a consistent basis. You?re right ? it?s probably largely due to them being dated. Most of the waters I fish are a long drive and I don?t have very many days in the year to experiment so I need all the help I can get.

 

[1eyered]

Re: Credibility of CDOWs Fishing Reports

1eyeRed,

If I read your post correctly, your "supernatural senses" say, go prepared, fish hard and if I am in the right place at the right time with the right lure/bait I will catch fish?

Dan

I'm sure you knew that already, buddy. Go on brotha.. Good luck out there. I'm guessing I'm wrong about paying close attention to early light and late light. Them cats that's been goin to Jackson has been doing very well during noon of day so far. Just check out the 'reports' category of the forum. Maybe that's THE pattern. Actually, from the looks of it, that IS the pattern. Looks like it to me. Gives me another reason to be proud of being on this forum. Local info from local anglers instead of dated info from dated sources.