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2. Freshwater Sportfishing: The Lifetime Enjoyment
3. Still Water Characteristics

Still Water Characteristics

Each lake is unique. Most of a lake’s water is barren because its fish seek specific areas to reside.

Shallows

A lakes great depths harbors little food or oxygen for fish to exist. A common mistake is to fish a lakes depth instead of its shallows.

Weed Beds

The quality of angling and the abundance of aquatic plants are usually directly proportional. Extensive weed-beds provide the best fisheries.

Shoreline Vegetation

Shorelines with heavy vegetation can be difficult to fish; however, wading or float tubing can provide good access. In addition shade and cover is afforded in these places.

Drop-Offs

Fish are driven into the drop-off areas by birds of prey and boat traffic. Here the drop-offs shelter fish from these annoyances.

Channels

Channels are similar to drop-offs in concentrating fish. These are usually caused by an inlet stream.

Shoals

Shoals are submerged islands which fail to reach the surface. In deep water area shoals provide a sudden littoral zone, and aquatic life is attracted to them.

Cliffs

Cliffs are great vantage points to look for weed beds; drop-offs, channels and shoals. Cliffs afford shade, more favorable water temperatures and collect float some which includes drowned or struggling aquatic and terrestrial insects.

Outlets

Outlets gather food like a vacuum pump; consequently both surface and subsurface foods are concentrated by its’ gradual but increasing current actions. Outlets are usually open areas with little hiding places for protection.

Inlets

Streams entering a lake provide a food supply and a change in both water temperature and oxygenation. Also, inlet streams concentrate fish at spawning times.

Springs

Wind Direction and Drift Lines

Leeward shorelines collect windblown surface debris. In these foam lines are trapped insects and nearby bait fish.

Ice Cover

For a short time each spring the shoreline shallows lose their ice lid first while the deeper water is still ice covered. This is a prime time for foraging fish.

Plant Cover

Lily pad covers are found in the shallows around irregular shorelines.

Reservoirs

Reservoirs are man made lakes constructed by damning up a stream. The flooded canyon or valley provides a widely varied habitat.

Natural Lakes

Mother Nature creates natural lakes. Sometimes man enhances them by a strategic placement of a dam.

Fishing Strategies

The angling strategy is to start fishing the weed bed areas first, because this is the most likely spot to find feeding fish. Take into account the lakes temperature, light intensity, and oxygen content.

Beaver Ponds

Beaver ponds are capable of providing outstanding fishing. They can unexpectedly appear on stretches of small canyon streams that are too small to provide much of a stable fishery.