How does Winter affect Spring fishing?

[jifigz]

The spring fishing in most of PA should be good. Warm and wet weather is always good for fishing. As long as it’s not too wet.

The spring fishing in the upper Delaware should be okay. Warm and dry weather is usually okay. As long as it’s not too dry.

There’s my PA spring fishing forecast, which is based on three forecasting disciplines: solar science, climatology, and meteorology. In summary, The Old Farmer’s Almanac. BELIEVE IT OR NOT. 🤷‍♂️

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While I put no real faith in the Farmer's Almanac, what's it say about summer? I hope it's wet!

 

[TimMurphy]

It makes sense that winter mortality would be greater during severe winters than mild winters.

It probably doesn't have much effect on streams sections strongly influenced by limestone springs.

But when the weather is very cold, small mountain streams often develop anchor ice (streambed ice) as well as surface ice. When a stream has ice on top and the bottom, those are harsh conditions.

Even in mild winters, trout in small freestone streams get pretty thin. They lose a lot of weight over winter.

Dear troutbert,

I'm glad someone brought this up. I've seen anchor ice a few times and it actually pushed the flowing water out of the streambank and into the woods. It's almost like a flood but with no additional water flowing.

I wonder what effects if any anchor ice has on survival of eggs and alevins. They usually take 75 days on average to hatch depending on water temperature. Does the anchor ice dislodge the eggs deposited in the redd during the fall. If it does what effects does that have on survival to maturity.

I'm not asking you specifically for an answer. I'm kind of hoping Mike may see this and chime in with his thoughts.

Regards,

Tim Murphy 🙂

 

[wildtrout2]

Dear troutbert,

I'm glad someone brought this up. I've seen anchor ice a few times and it actually pushed the flowing water out of the streambank and into the woods. It's almost like a flood but with no additional water flowing.

I wonder what effects if any anchor ice has on survival of eggs and alevins.

I'd think it would likely have devastating results.

 

[Swattie87]

In an ideal world, for Trout angling in PA you want a warm and relatively dry Winter, followed by a temperate and relatively dry Spring, followed by a cool and very wet Summer, and then a wet but temperate Fall.

Is that really asking too much? 😜

Edit: My lawn would also appreciate this long term forecast.

 

[mt_flyfisher]

While I put no real faith in the Farmer's Almanac, what's it say about summer? I hope it's wet.

Since you don’t have faith in the Farmer’s Almanac, I thought you may have more faith in this Experimantal Generative AI forecast. 😀. The forecast is for warmer and drier.

 

[jifigz]

Since you don’t have faith in the Farmer’s Almanac, I thought you may have more faith in this Experimantal Generative AI forecast. 😀. The forecast is for warmer and drier.

I'll give that "meh."

 

[Kyle]

im not educated enough to know how winter weather affects spring trout fishing. but i do hope all this cold weather drops the tick population. those little arachnids costed me alot of time and money. crazy how something so small can ruin something 1,000,000 times its size!

bring on the cold weather and the hot wood stoves.

 

[Broodstock]

One point that hasn’t been mentioned, with the string of a few mild winters the fish had a lot more opportunity for pressure during those. There were times in Jan/feb last year in certain parts of certain limestoners and tailwaters where they were crowded due to the mild weather.
I doubt that those same places are crowded in -10 mornings, so the fish are getting a bit of a break.

I’m not sure if that makes any difference when you compare it to the multitude of other variables, but I thought it was interesting.