Many inexperienced anglers usually leave the shore when the nighttime is approaching, most satisfied and others disappointed for not catching anything at all.
However, what they fail to recognise is that it is best to catch fish, especially trout, at night.
Like the vast species of fish in the sea, trout come out in their numbers and sizes usually at night because their predatory sense tells them that their prey would likely not see them coming.
So, can you catch trout at night? The ultimate answer is YES! Night fishing for trout has proven the most effective way for a successful fishing expenditure. However, this method comes with a whole lot of multiple obstacles when you compare it to daytime fishing.
If you’d love to know more about night fishing for trout, continue reading.
How To Catch Trout At Night
This section contains an explicit guide on how you can catch trout at night effectively. Carefully follow;
- Know Where You’re Wading – Scout Ahead.
- Get a Head Lamp with White and Red Light.
- When in Doubt, Fish Streamers (And Don’t Be Afraid to Go Big).
- Add a Stinger Hook. Large streamers appeal to large trout.
- First, start by making short casts.
- Then you make More Casts.
- Use a Heavier Fly Rod.
- Use Short, Heavy Leaders.
- Invest in Glow in the Dark Fly Line.
- Fish Deep Pools, Slack Water & Transitions.
- Adjust for Depth.
- Work the Bank Hard.
- Appeal to the Lateral Line.
- Cast Straight at Your Target.
- Make it a Splash Landing.
- Fish Slow and Twitchy.
- Fish the Swing.
- Make Safety Your First Priority.
What Lures To Use For Trout At Night?
Below are the top three lures to she to catch trout at night;
1. Top Lure for Tail-Outs: Rebel Jointed Minnow
When seeking to catch trout, look out for tail-out that are 2-4 feet deep and have an impressive flow. These areas are most likely to be filled with trout fish.
Assume that when you show up for your night fishing, there has been a massive amount of bug activity in the water. Expectedly, the trout must have had their spoils of it, eating up the mayflies and caddis, they might still be present lurking around.
The trout have had their appetizer, what’s left for you now is to give them their little chunks of last meal.
Typically, any thin-profile, shallow-diving plug can be used, but you’d have to arm yourself with one that has a stronger swimming action and fixed retrieve. The best for tail-out lures is Rebel Jointed Minnow, it is particularly effective.
So, how do you go about using the rebel jointed minnow? Simple it’s as follows;
- Cast it downstream across the current, at a very unique angle. Ensure that the rod tip isn’t low but help up high, then you reel slowly.
- Remember that you want the current of the water to do the work, so allow the lure to swim in an arc.
- In all you do, don’t get rough with the retrieve, so that the plug doesn’t end up above the surface.
- Finally, when your line straightens out, don’t zip the lure in.
2. Top Lure for Deep Holes: Basstrix Paddle Tail Swimbait
Another lure that can work at night in deep holes is Basstrix Paddle Tail Swimbait.
Those deep holes in rivers and lakes largely hold big trout fish.
However, due to the large fishing activity of anglers in deep holes, it makes the trout a little bit picky. This makes the number of trout that can be present in the deep holes reduced.
So, how do you set up a lure in deep holes?
If you’re fortunate to have an obstructing blocking of the deep holes, then you can use a soft-plastic swimbait that puts off a strong vibration.
3. Top Lure for Slow Stretches: Black Jitterbug
Ever looked at those super-slow, medium-depth stretches of river that you consider ss nothing? They are invaluable during the night.
When the trout finds its way up, looking for crayfish and easy prey, then it becomes easy to lure them and catch them.
Tips To Catch Trout At Night
1. Wake Them Up
Ever present in lakes is the trout which goes about its activity of searching for food to gain massive weight.
How do you ‘wake the trout up?’ We’ll, by leaving a stick bait at the surface, do all the magic.
Nothing does it more than stick bait, it’ll get them all fired up. When the trout sense the presence of a presumed prey, they go for it, meanwhile, they’re going to eat the stick bait.
When fishing for trout at night, ensure that you wait for the crunch sound before pulling out your rod, else, you’ll be making a fruitless withdrawal.
This is because trout often have an awful aim when it is nightfall, so they may miss a bait a couple of trials before finally hooking.
2. Be in the Dark
One invaluable tip to know on how to catch trout is the fact that you have to be in the dark.
It makes no sense fishing under a crystal clear Moon. So, ensure that you fish under cloudy conditions when the trout would come out in their numbers to eat.
Even if you try fishing on a well lit night, you wouldn’t be able to go home with your dream trout fish.
This is because the big trout fish are less likely to come to the surface under highly lit conditions.
When you’re considering how you can catch trout, try to take a clear analysis of the condition. Focus your night fishing on cloudy nights, or nights surrounding the new moon.
3. Crash the Creek
The creek is the most likely place you’d see huge trout after rainfall.
Most anglers limit their search for trout to the mud bottoms and shoreline cover, leaving out the creeks.
Ensure that when you’re going to catch trout, you ‘crash the creek’ entirely where they enter the lake.
There, you’d find the desired sized trout you’ve always wanted.
4. Draw Parallels
If you’d like to get a productive fishing expenditure, then you should cast your rod parallel to the seashore or towards it.
Keeping your bait in productive waters is germane in every outing, so ensure that your cast is made at a parallel angle that’ll lure the trout to your bait.
5. Go All the Way
Trout fish are known to swipe at a bait as it is coming from the water. This is their habitual nature when it’s nightfall.
Therefore, ensure that you fish each retrieve to the rod tip, going all the way.
6. Bank on It
Fishing at night doesn’t come with the usual stress of calculating where and when the trout will surface to the sea.
At night, they find it more suitable to hunt prey and gain more body weight, enjoying the cool waters.
If the bank of the water is clear, you don’t need to venture deep into the sea to get trout fish.
What Is A Good Time To Catch Trout?
When you want to consider the best time to catch trout, you should consider the time of the year, time of the day and temperature.
Time Of Day
Since trout don’t have eyelids and can’t dilate their pupils, they do everything they can to hide from extreme sunlight and a bright environment.
So, when you set out to catch trout, ensure that the day is either cloudy or the water temperature is cooler.
Commonly, you see anglers fishing hours before dusk until dark.
By Temperature
The best time to catch fish during the day varies according to the temperature of the atmosphere. Below is a range of the best temperature spectrum you can fish under:
- 34-49 degrees; 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.
- 50-55 degrees; 12 p.m. to 5 p.m.
- 56-60 degrees; 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
- 61-65 degrees; 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
- 66-70 degrees; 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
- 71-75 degrees; 8 a.m. to 12 p.m.
- 76-80 degrees; 7 a.m. to 11 a.m.
- 81-85 degrees; 7 a.m. to 10 a.m.
- 86-89 degrees; 6 a.m. to 9 a.m.
Time Of The Year
Generally, it is believed that the late spring is the best time of the year to catch trout.
It is particularly significant because it is late spring that you can catch larger and big sized fish.
Conclusion
Trots are another set of elusive fish that requires a lot of both expertise and the best and quality gears to catch.
Most anglers are oblivious of the fact that night fishing of trout is the best. However, in this article, that secret has been exposed.
You can catch trout at night. This is the best time after other anglers must have gone home with their rods.
Follow every tip in this article on how you can catch trout at night, and be rest assured of a productive catch on your next expenditure.