One of the most important factors in Ocean Fluke fishing
is the weather. No wind and too much wind are both detrimental
at times. Learning to interpret the weather can help you
plan better trips, and also help you understand why a trip
can be otherwise unexplainably poor.
You must start with an informative forecast. The Coastal
Waters Forecast from the National Weather Service is the
most consistent. The most direct negative effect weather
has on the trip is too fast a drift due to excessive wind.
You can assume that a forecast of wind over thirty knots
will usually result in too fast a drift. Wind from the south-east
or east in excess of fifteen knots can build a sea in our
area that is un-fishable. North-east winds in the twenty
knot range can have the same effect. East winds, therefore,
are usually a cause for concern and warrant a phone call
to us if you're not sure of how it will be. The northerly
and north-west winds, however, come off of the beach, so
we are usually able to fish in shallow waters, in a comfortable
sea. The usual limitation in such a case is the ability to
keep the rigs on the bottom, as the faster the wind blows,
the quicker the boat drifts. West, south-west, and southerly
winds are more common during the summer months, and usually
are moderate. Often they calm down before the sea has a chance
to build.
The actual sea developed by the wind is the secondary factor
of the trip. Although it doesn't sound big, four to six foot
wind seas are about the limit for most boats to drift in
comfortably. When reading the sea height in a weather report,
keep in mind they not only forecast the wind wave height,
but any swell that might be anticipated. For fishing, swells
don't have much effect on the bite or the drift, until they
get big enough to stir up the bottom and bother the fish.
These are the swells associated with big storms, such as
hurricanes. A four or five foot swell usually doesn't have
a noticeable effect on the fishing. When dangerous rip tides
and beach erosion are forecast, this usually indicates that
the swell is powerful enough to affect the fishing.
Wind seas don't have much of an effect on the fishing, but
can make it extremely uncomfortable for the fisherman.
These are just a few guidelines to help you understand the
weather. There are many other factors involved, and it is often
easy to see when a forecast will be inaccurate by taking other
factors into consideration. Therefore, if there is any doubt
as to what effect the weather might have on a fishing trip
you have planned, please call and ask our opinion. It is important
to us that you understand what you might expect to encounter
on a trip. We do not want to have someone spend a disappointing
day with us if they can choose a more appropriate day and enjoy
it.
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