It is important to understand the weather impact on bass to:
Find More Bass: Weather changes can result in bass movements either getting closer or further away from cover, roaming, or moving deep or shallow.
Select Best Lure: Some weather changes cause increased bass feeding activity while others reduce bass feeding activity as such impacting when to fish fast or fishing slow.
Understanding Weather Impact on Bass
Barometric Pressure: Barometric pressure, also known as atmospheric pressure, measures the atmospheric weight. Some suggest it impacts bass behavior significantly while others say it has no to limited impact and it is the other weather factors that impact behavior.
Lateral Lines: Some suggest bass can identify changes in barometric pressure with their lateral lines. Some suggest bass can detect changes in barometric pressure with their swim bladder, albeit swimming down or up a foot would have more impact on their swim bladder. They also suggest:
High Barometric Pressure: Typically combined with clear skies and calm weather which some suggest bass are less actively feeding. Some suggest the extra atmospheric weight will push the bass to the bottom and result in less movement. Some suggest high barometric pressure has a limited behavioral impact when water is warm. Some suggest the bass go deep.
Low Barometric Pressure: Typically combined with wind, cloud and rain which some suggest bass are more actively feeding. Some suggest the bass go shallow.
Drop in Barometric Pressure – Coming Cold Front: Some suggest that a drop in barometric pressure is an indicator to them that a cold front is coming which triggers bass to more actively feed. One potential explanation is the water may get cooler, another is the bass are anticipating a storm. Some suggest that bait fish will go shallow when a cold front is coming and the bass will follow. Some suggest that a coming cold front is typically accompanied with wind and it is the wind that increases the bass’ feeding activity.
Cold Front: A sustained cold front with reduced air temperature will decrease the water temperature.
Increase in Barometric Pressures – Post Cold Front: For example, after a storm, some suggest bass are inactive – lethargic for a few days after a cold front. Some suggest the bait fish move deep and the bass follow.
Expression: Some say: “As the barometer rises, Bass will move to deeper water. As the barometer falls, Bass will move to shallower water.” Some say it is the weather that accompanies the barometer changes that impacts bass behavior.
Wind/Waves: Some suggest wind positions bait fish on the wind blown side as the wind stirs up the plankton and algae their food source.
Wind Current: Sustained wind in open water creates some current even in deep water.
Bass Movement – Structures – Break Points: Some suggest bass will go to structures that maximize wind current for example points, funnel/saddles,shorelines as it pushes or stirs up the most zooplankton resulting in the heaviest concentration of bait fish.
Bass’ Direction: Bass will point towards current to minimize the energy required to stay in the current and the highest identifying dead bait fish and other forage pushed by the current.
Moves Warm (and Cold) Water: Wind can push cold water into warm bays which some suggest in the spring could cause bass moving to the warmer bays not impacted by the wind.
Eddies: [Figure 1 an above surface of a river eddy] Bass sit in eddies made from rocks and other solid cover as it is a break in the current requiring less energy from the bass and a viewing point to ambush passing forage.
Resulting Waves:
Reduced Water Clarity: Waves reduce bass visibility for both distance and clarity.
Reduce Surface Visibility: More challenging for the bass to identify forage on the water surface.
Oxygenation: Some suggest the increased oxygenation in water contributes to increased bass activity.
Mud Lines: Some shorelines the water will stir up the silt reducing the water clarity and bass visibility. It also can create mud lines which are distinctive divisions in water clarity and bass will stay in the lower water visibility and look to ambush forage in the higher water visibility.
Bass Feeding Activity: Some suggest bass become start actively feeding when wind arises presumably as forage is more active. Forage may be more active as what they consume was stirred up by the current.
Shallow – Windy Banks: Some suggest bass move shallow to follow the bait fish or shallow bass get more active due to the increased bait fish but too much wind will push the bass off the shallows.
Figure 1: Eddy courtesy of Cali Paddler
Brightness: Brightness refers to the amount of sunlight based on atmospheric conditions, time of day and geographical location.
Sunny:
Visibility: Sun is a major factor for forage visibility.
Surface: Forage moving or stationary are more identifiable on the surface especially when bass look through floating/matted grass cover.
Murky Water: Forage shadows more visible.
Clear Water: Forage can be identified from a long distance.
Ambush Locations – Shadows: Shadows provide bass locations where they can better ambush forage. The term “tight to cover” often refers to bass behavior in sunny conditions.
Shorelines: Morning and evening shallows bass
Docks:
Bridges:
Activity: Some suggest smallmouth are more actively feeding in sunny conditions presumably because of the increased vision.
Dawn & Dusk: Some suggest bass are actively feeding at this time partially due to the reduced brightness.
Overcast: Reduced visibility.
Off Cover & Roaming: Bass are no longer “tight to cover” some referred to as “off cover”. Also, some suggest that bass will tend to roam in overcast (cloudy) conditions.
Move Shallow: Some suggest that deep bass will move shallow in overcast conditions, or at least when there is a transition from sunny to cloudy conditions. Where shallow bass, for example bass on docks, will move off the very shallow water to somewhat deeper water. Some suggest that sustained cloud for multiple days some bass will move deeper (and close to bottom).
Deep Bass – Move to Bottom: Some suggest that bass that were suspended actively feeding in the sunny conditions will move to the bottom with the reduced visibility from the overcast conditions. In other words, reduce feeding activity.
Forage Activity: Some forage species become more active, for example the more nocturnal feeding crayfish and the shad spawn.
Activity: Some suggest that bass will become more actively feeding when it goes from sunny to clouding, which could be due to a decrease in barometric pressure.
Drift Paddles when Deployed Slow the Drift or Control the Angle when Spot Locked.
Rain: Precipitation typically in cloudy conditions.
Initial Rain: Some suggest that that rain that is often accompanied by a drop in barometric pressure is an indicator to them that a cold front is coming which triggers bass to more actively feed.
Run Offs: Creeks and some lower level shorelines the run offs will attract bait fish and thus bass. In other words, bass moves to murky water.
Activity: Some suggest that bass will be more actively feeding during the initial rain.
Surface Commotion: In light rain some suggest bass can identify surface forage in distress, forage that makes a lot of noise and commotion.
Additional Considerations
Wind Doesn’t Blow Bait Fish: Bait fish are shallow on the wind blown side as the wind stirs up zooplanton.
