Whats best, early morning, midday or early evening?????

[Just Paul 1]

Does anyone know what is the best time of day to fish, canals especially.

 

[no-one in particular]

Some will have more knowledge than me but I would say evening, early morning and midday in that order. When I used to do long days on commercials we would break midday, have a snack, have a sleep and then resume later. However, a fish can appear anytime, it's just a general thing. And this may be mainly summer, winter it might be totally different.
I don't like early morning, your fighting to get there, fishing against the clock, rushing things and fish badly as a result and before you know it, it's gone anyway. Evening is a lot better, you have set up, been fishing for a while, got your eye in and everything ready, your relaxed and you can just fish into it and fish well.

 

[rich66]

Canals will depend a lot on your boat traffic.
Generally if you can miss the boats it’s easier.

 

[108831]

Early mornings on the cut,no question,up with a sparrows fart...

 

[markcw]

As what whitty says, also less boat traffic, when I fished the Bridgewater Canal at Lymm, a shoal of bream always seemed to patrol along the far side turning basin at more or less same time each morning. A bit of pre baiting the night before and when I was packing up during the day ensured some good sport.
I was lucky my house at the time was about 100 yards from the canal on far side, so it was out of the house onto bridle path and into field where turning basin was, No tracking down to the village to get on the towpath and walking back up the canal.
@wethrough may know where I am on about,

 

[rayner]

For me the afternoon is best, I use to prefer early mornings but those days are gone I don't leave home now until the roads are aired. The fish now have to accommodate me, if they don't it's simple they don't get fed. If they refuse my offerings they get none because I go home. If the fish feed, I'll fish.
There's always another day.

 

[wetthrough]

I was lucky my house at the time was about 100 yards from the canal on far side, so it was out of the house onto bridle path and into field where turning basin was, No tracking down to the village to get on the towpath and walking back up the canal.
@wethrough may know where I am on about,

I do but I've never fished there. My experience has been that I generally get better results in the morning than later on but I don't fish evenings.

 

[Keith M]

Either the early mornings before the boat traffic starts or the late evenings when the boat traffic has started to cease; Which is best out of the two? I think it depends on the prevailing weather conditions and the temperatures at the time.

Keith

 

[mikench]

In my experience the middle of the day is usually the most disappointing but you are there so may as well stay.

 

[markcw]

I do but I've never fished there. My experience has been that I generally get better results in the morning than later on but I don't fish evenings.

Ii used to go there early morning, pack up in the afternoon, then if nice day weather wise I would go back after tea for a couple of hours.
Another good spot along there is opposite the boats at the cruising club.

 

[Paste paul]

On canals I’d go for early morning but I suppose it depends on the canal and weather......
In the past I’ve had some lovely early morning fish from canals.....
but don’t discount evenings the can be just as productive.....
As said the middle of the day seems to be the least productive ?

 

[chevin4]

On most of the gravel pits I fish first light and late morning are the best times particularly for tench and pike in winter the evenings tend to be poor. On the rivers I fish last knockings seems to has worked best for me. In very cold weather mid day can be good particularly for chub

 

[barbelboi]

The fish are there 24 hours of the day - you just have to adapt to the different timings/behaviour....

 

[peterjg]

On the canal dawn is best because of the boats.

For roach, dawn in summer, late afternoon and after dark in winter.

For big carp, evening through to around 10.30am.

 

[sam vimes]

There isn't much in the way of canals in my part of the world. However, I've found the best times of day to be very dependent on the specific venue in question. Fortunately, the venues I tend to frequent are usually better from late afternoon into the evening. On the evidence of returns from the early risers, I'll not be rushing to join them at 0400. Good job really, whilst I love being on the water at dawn, I hate getting up that early.

 

[S-Kippy]

In my experience early mornings beat any other time of day by a distance. In fact I know a couple of places where a dawn start virtually guarantees a fish or two whereas you'd do well to get a bite in the evening.

But as Chris says I am finding it harder and harder to get up for an early start. Its a wonderful time to be bankside but oh how I pay for it now. Give me late summer when you dont have to get up at half past silly o'clock to fish the best part of the day.

 

[108831]

I tend to be up early,but motivating myself to get ready,ahhh thats another matter entirely,I was thinking of going today,but here I am at 8.10am unmoved and unlikely to go after getting up at 4.15am,the forecast is for 13degs tops,heavy showers,nahhh....

 

[nottskev]

I can barely make myself fish canals now, so busy have they become, both on the water and on the towpaths. But I hardly fished anywhere else for the first ten years I fished. Early mornings were so good in comparison to any other time that I'd often be trying to tackle up in the dark, squinting and fumbling to get the line through the rings. Living at home, I'd often get straight out of bed, pick up my gear and cycle off , pausing to splash some milk in a bowl to kid my mum I'd had some breakfast - I just couldn't wait to get there. Nowadays, I can do "early" once every few weeks, and late afternoon into evening is favourite this time of year. Not only do I want breakfast before I get out, some lunch is nice too. I have a preference, too, for air that's cooling down from warm rather than warming up from cold. On many waters, the fish behaviour in the evening mirrors the early morning, so it's often no loss to wait til later.

I can hardly believe the lengths I use to go to as a kid, but there's no doubt the canal before 8am or so was a different world, and a rather beautiful one, too, and you could catch fish you'd never have thought were in there if you only turned up during office hours.

 

[dorsetsteve]

Evening and the first two hours of dark are often my go to times. However it often pays to try a time and day that few others do, Monday lunchtime for example if you can.

Think about how your venue changes. For lakes, the margin at dinner time as the fish pick up bait thrown in by pleasure anglers going home for tea... for example.

One of my local venues fishes it nuts off on a Saturday morning before 9am, after that it dies.

 

[Paste paul]

There you go .... catch fish all day long ????