First Day Carp Fishing in 2014

I headed out about 8 a.m. intending to fish a new spot. Five or six others arrived ahead of me, so shoreline access was too crowded. There were too many ice chunks further away from the ideal spot, with no clear access to water. I punted and headed north in search of another spot.

I stopped by Sterling State Park first. The lagoon I like to fish was iced over.

I ended up trying Erie Metro Park today. The water level was down a lot. It's the first time I fished there so it took a few casts to find water that was deep enough to actually fish in. A few snags later, I settled on a spot.

I fished from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. with no luck. My wife came by later for a while and snapped a picture. She calls it "The Grumpy Fisherman". I'll admit that when I'm not getting bites or catching fish, I probably look like this a lot.

I did make a valuable observation today regarding solar lunar activity. The best time for fishing today was between 11:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. I am not 100% confident that solar lunar theory is accurate, but interestingly the water fowl nearby started becoming very active at 11:45 a.m. and stayed active until shortly after 1:30 p.m. The geese, ducks, and 9 trumpeter swans nearby were very, very active during the solar lunar window. But the water fowl must not have told the fish they were supposed to start biting.

It is warming up though because that chunk of ice in the foreground behind me was almost completely melted when I left for home.

I think I'll try a spot closer to home tomorrow after work. It's on Belleville Lake and very near my house. I hope my luck improves.

The forecast this next week is in the 50's and even a few 60's, so things should be improving soon as spring arrives with a little warmer weather (and water temps).