curfew?

[jmull65]

ive been wondering this for a while now but why is there a curfew to fish after a certain time at certain places the best time to fish is at night but not everyone will fish at night? probably a dumb question but im just wondering.

[tkwalker]

ive been wondering this for a while now but why is there a curfew to fish after a certain time at certain places the best time to fish is at night but not everyone will fish at night? probably a dumb question but im just wondering.

Great question... and you are right ... Night time is great especially for the Bass and other nocturnal feeders ... my Friend Dillon Mitchener and myself use to schedule our trips to Fla for night time bass in March ... and from the 70's we have caught a 6, 9, 11, 13, 14, and 15 pounder through 1984....

Night time fishing is not for the weak hearted ... Spring... be prepared to spend the night do to fog (can't find your way back to the ramp) or rain ... cold dampness etc ... Summertime isn't to bad but the sandman somehow arrives during the night ...

It boils down to not or when is the best time to catch fish but the creature comforts of the fisherman ... The best time to go night fishing is the week before and week after the full moon .. try not to use any unatural lighting except when you may have to retie a line ... adjust your eyes to the natural night light for casting and use your ears ... ... I threw a cast one night in Lake Russo and never heard it hit the water ... Courious I threw on the Mega candle power and saw where my worm had ended up in an Osprey nest ... Didn't know the tree was even there ??? ... <'TK>< :)

[Travis C.]

I fish more at night than I do at day and some years its 90%-10% day. It's my favorite time to fish any time of the year.

For bass what I look for is water temps to hold in upper 50's-low 60's over night then I will start fishing. Sometimes that is in March or April depending on weather. Remeber its water temps not air that you're watching. Be prepared to get cold and once dew/fog sets in colder especially running around the lake. I will typically layer up then throw my Frogg Toggs on over as they are light and protect me from wind and moving around on a damp boat.

This is my typical fishing through fall once the water hits those temps again. Early in the year you'll catch more good fish than small ones and it will level out during summer then fall swing back to better fish again. March, April and October have gave me more 4,5,6lbers at night than the other months it seems.

I use no light at all unless changing baits. Your eyes will adjust eventually as you cover the same areas you can cast just as well as daytime.

Lures think more along the lines of appealing to the fish's lateral line and smell not visual unless its a full moon. Darker colors will give a better object to pick up against the light that available at night but not a must. A shad doesn't become black a night yet they still find them and eat them. Think Vibration-Sound-Scent-Color in that order picking baits.

Be sure to have a back up plan for trouble as you're not guaranteed to meet someone else out there. Also, night fishing is not the time to go check out that cove up lake where you haven't been in the daytime either. No where you are, going and how to get back.

Wear your PFD and Kill Switch as we are supposed always but you know how that goes sometimes. Night is not one of those times especially if your alone.

[sterling21]

The curfew is just to keep people from doing stuff they shouldnt at all hours of the night if you are just dropping your boat and going fishing there isnt many times they will bother you so go and have fun !

[blr3a]

I would say roughly 8 out of every 10 fish over 4lbs I catch are at night; or at least almost dark or barely light. Once the sun hits the water, I stop catching 4-6lb fish. I love bass fishing at night, and as Travis said it's not a time to go exploring but it can be very rewarding to put in when everyone else is pulling out! I never use black lights... I have never understood people bass fishing in shallow water with black lights. Ever notice you can hide your reel from the light but it still glows because the light travels through the line? Fish see this on the business end as well!

[blr3a]

And what Sterling said has proven true for me as well. I have put my boat in at camp grounds and at city parks that both have signs saying they close at a certain time. When I pull in sometimes their will be an officer doing a drive through and 99% of the time they just wave, even though the park is closed. This is especially true for Sanders Ferry Park in Hendersonville... as for my experience anyways.

[Buccaneer]

The posted curfew is applicable to the park or area facilities, i.e. picnic benches, pavillions, play areas, restrooms, etc. The ramps and courtesy docks are Corps of Engineers property and you can't be denied access to public waters at any time of the day or night. To pull in, launch your boat and park you are not violating the "curfew". The riff-raff hanging around leaving their trash and worm containers and dead fish on the courtesy docks after dark need to be run off by the patrols.

[Travis C.]

blr3a- I always wondered that about Saunders Ferry. I like to put in there from time to time in the summer at night but always worried once I pulled out onto the water due to the signs if a ticket was waiting or worse towed once done fishing. Also, seemed like I was the only one there about every time. At least it's a well lighted area opposed to Station Camp where the single light would be on until you tried to load your boat then it would go off.

[blr3a]

Travis I have never had a problem out of Sanders Ferry Park. I was at station camp one night and when I came back (around 4am) my trailer was on brick-0-blocks, wheels and tires were gone. This could of course happen anywhere, but with Station Camp being right next to Gallatin Rd I think it made me an easy target. My wife (then girlfriend) LOVED coming to pick me up and ride around town borrowing wheels and tires at 4am ;)

[Travis C.]

Travis I have never had a problem out of Sanders Ferry Park. I was at station camp one night and when I came back (around 4am) my trailer was on brick-0-blocks, wheels and tires were gone. This could of course happen anywhere, but with Station Camp being right next to Gallatin Rd I think it made me an easy target. My wife (then girlfriend) LOVED coming to pick me up and ride around town borrowing wheels and tires at 4am ;)

I always try to park under the light with my trailer and luckily have had no problems. Nothing is ever in the truck and its not fancy so they don't ever bother. That would have sucked though.

One of the few times I got around to fishing Percy at night, we put in at Cook's between 8-9pm. Fished until about 2am and as we motored down into the no wake zone a couple guys started shooting at each other. Needless to say we fish a couple hours longer and somewhere else before taking out.

[Reel Tune]

I really enjoy fishing at night. Actually I fished last night from about 1130-3am the ramp said closed at 10 or 11, but I wasn't causing any trouble. I didn't catch anything, but it was peaceful, and I got my fishing fix for the week. The Closing times are posted for people who aren't using the area like it should be used.