Fall officially began Sept. 21. I welcome these cooler air temperatures. Looking at the future forecasts shows most days will bottom out with temperatures in the 40s. It is nice to go outside in the mornings and feel that cool, crisp air, knowing that the leaves are slowing changing and yet another season of fishing is upon us. As fall temperatures approach us, anglers must remember a few key things to keep their fishing success going into the fall season.

Fall here in Central Iowa is a mystical time. The water in our lakes and ponds become very clear, the backdrops of our favorite fishing spots are picturesque, and the fishing can be as good as any other part of the year. Most outdoors people turn to hunting this time of year, ducks, geese, and soon deer will be the target of our free time, but fishing will stay in the forefront for those of us that do not partake in the annual fall hunts.

Fishing in the fall can be feast or famine for a lot of anglers. Those anglers that seem to be on the famine side of this equation more than not, forgot that Mother Nature turned the dial to fall. Anglers sometimes use the same baits that they relied on during August and July to catch their favorite species of fish. This can be a big mistake. Anglers that read each day and look at weather patterns can really fine tune their presentations and give the fish a bait that they might prefer a little better.

Even though the weather has been fantastic and somewhat warm lately, Mother Nature has already cooled the water greatly. Nighttime temperatures have been dipping into the fifties quite often and even into the forties a few times. This window of 8-10 hours a day of cooler air temperatures has brought the area water temperatures down around 70 degrees. Summer might be hanging on strong, but one day, we will wake up and fall will be here. With these cooler temperatures, the water will continue to drop, and drop quickly. This can do two things to all fish species.

The first thing that happens with fish species is a mode of panic, they eat as often as they possibly can. They know that winter is around the corner and their bodies need to “stock up” on food. This is basically the “honeymoon of fall,” when everyone seems to be catching fish, and it serves as one last frenzy for the year. Fish species tend to be less finicky during this time, and will often hit a variety of baits all in one day. During this time is a great chance to throw faster baits for crappies, bluegills, walleyes and bass. Faster baits like crankbaits or spinnerbaits, smaller for the panfish, and larger for the bass and walleyes can be great choices. Fish also tend to come up shallow, use points and sandbars to eat as much food as they can. This provides anglers fishing from a shore a great opportunity to have a spectacular fall fishing day. This, however, doesn’t last very long.

Once the water temperatures get around that fifty degree mark, the fish tend to get very lethargic. This is the time when anglers need to make big adjustments to their baits and presentations, if they want to catch fish on a regular basis. I’ve always said, no matter what the circumstance, fish have to eat. I’ve caught just about every species available in the area lakes ice fishing, so that proves that no matter the species and no matter how cold it is, fish must eat. The key to getting bites after the temperature drops below fifty degrees, is slowing down, or surprising the fish into biting. The first, slowing down is a tried and proven method that works more than it doesn’t. The surprise technique, or reaction bites are less predictable, but can be great in the fall too. So, slow down, or try to get a reaction bite, that is the key to fall fishing.

Slowing down, again the best technique for fall fishing can be done with soft plastics and jigs for most species. When choosing the baits of choice, remember the color of the water. It will most likely be the clearest it has been since early spring. The fish can see things much better, so make your baits more natural colors when you see clear water. Using live bait is also a great choice for panfish during this time of year. Minnows and small worms are a crappies and bluegills favorite target this time of year. If you don’t get bites quickly with live bait, then you are probably in the wrong area, or have your bait at the wrong depth of water. Vary your depth using a slip-bobber or move locations to find those lethargic fish. Using plastic craw baits, and tubes are favorites this time of year for bass. A slowly hopped tube is sure to tempt a bass into biting in the cold month of October like no other plastic bait.

I hope you find the time to try a few of these techniques in the upcoming weeks. Just think…ice fishing is only 10 weeks away, I hope!

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Contact Todd Reed at treedbass@yahoo.com and visit www.fishingwithtoddreed.com