ILLUSTRATION BY JOE MAHLER the mysteries of the bite window
Your magic honey hole might just be a carriage-turned-pumpkin if you don ’ t hit it at the right time .
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
As a freelance writer and photographer , Rob Newell has been reporting on fishing tournaments for 20 years , finding the stories between fish and angler to be a stretched line of heroes , heartache , triumph , torture , inspiration and exasperation .
S ometimes people ask what separates top bass fishing pros from the “ average Joes .” Why is it that pros tend to catch more fish no matter where they go ?
There are a lot of reasons pros are consistent fish catchers , and one of the most important is that their best “ spots ” on a given fishery aren ’ t necessarily spots at all . They ’ re “ bite windows ,” and top pros know how to identify and utilize their bite windows effectively .
Bite windows as a concept is tricky to explain because it ’ s more about timing than it is fishing an actual area . In fact , what makes bite windows so elusive is that they ’ re created by a perfect combination of conditions to trigger bass to feed – or at least make them more aggressive . They ’ re also temporary ( hence the “ window ” part ) due to their opening-and-closing , finite nature .
Much like seeing a rainbow , bite windows have little to do with the exact spot you ’ re seeing the rainbow from and more about the perfect combination of moisture , clouds and light direction that forms the colorful phenomenon . You can see a rainbow from a particular spot one day and then return 100 more times to that same spot when there ’ s no precipitation and not see one again .
Fishing specific spots certainly has merit , but over the last 15 years , the incredible technology of GPS , digital mapping and GPS-lock trolling motors have made many anglers spot-oriented .
22 MAJORLEAGUEFISHING . COM | DECEMBER-JANUARY 2023