Perch - in the wind or out of it?

[Anderoo]

You may have seen from another topic that Rich and I are currently fishing for perch at a club lake. So far we have worked out that the perch can be caught very close in, either from our own margin or from the margin of an island. This is not that surprising, especially as the margins are deep. However, another pattern is beginning to emerge and I wondered if others had found the same thing.

When there is no wind or very light breeze, most perch are caught under our feet. However, on the last few sessions it has been extremely windy, and pretty much all the perch have come from the island margin. We've been fishing into the wind, so our own bank is on the end of the wind and the island margin sheltered.

We've been catching plenty of other species like carp and tench and roach under our feet, but very few perch.

Anyone found the same?

[Steve Burke]

It may not just be the wind itself, although that can effect the underwater light intensity. Rather it may be the undertow. I've found big perch like to be where the undertow peters out, rather like them being just out of the current on a river.

[Rusty]

I've found exactly the same pattern, my canal perch hot spot (which is pretty much like a stillwater) is much less productive when there's even the slightest ripple on the surface. It is a sheltered swim and can only be got at by an easterly so I don't know whether it's wind direction or the ripple but if those conditions are present I expect to struggle until dusk when the wind usually dies down. I haven't really caught enough Thames perch to notice a wind related pattern on flowing water though.

[Anderoo]

Undertow - of course! Thanks Steve!

[Vagabond]

It may not just be the wind itself, although that can effect the underwater light intensity. Rather it may be the undertow. I've found big perch like to be where the undertow peters out, rather like them being just out of the current on a river.

 

Yes, the undertow can be very important. I remember a bag of Perch at Wingham where I was using the undertow to trot a bunch of worms out against the wind into open water . At the point where the undertow petered out and I could trot no further, there the perch were. This was the case for three consecutive days - perch to over 3, and I thought I'd cracked it. ! Then the wind changed..........

[Phone]

All,

 

Do Brits ever use clouding agents? In big water I often use a bubble float and a feeder.

 

Phone

 

Well, not often - probably haven't used one if 5 - 7 years