Conditions Reports

Dave wrote a blog a year ago about conditions reports originally for the California site. It's a good one though and applies universally.

And Jim (anglerwannabe) got a good thread going about them about a month ago too.

As the season ramps up and we start getting out there more, we thought it'd be a good idea to remind folks about what makes a good conditions report. So here is Dave's blog again. It's hard to improve what the old curmudgeon has to say. Especially the first and last bit.

If you have any questions or thoughts about reports or anything else about the site, please don't hesitate to contact me thought my admin link.

Good luck out there and have fun!


Conditions Reports
by: David Coulson, 4/7/2015

FishExplorer.com has always been about anglers helping anglers, which is what attracted me to the website originally. One of the best ways to assist is through conditions reports, which are only viewable to members.

While many see FishExplorer.com as primarily a forum, the reality is, we're a whole lot more and one of our key features is condition reports.  Condition reports provide anglers with some of the most current information on any given body of water before heading out to fish. At least that is the concept, and admittedly we've a ways to go here in California, but we're working on it.

Note, I mentioned conditions, not fishing.  Many confuse the two.  While we accept "fishing reports", the truth is we much prefer to see information on the water, not how you did fishing.  Some of the best reports I've read don't breathe a word about the fishing.  Information we like to see includes, water levels, clarity, temperatures, aquatic vegetation, algae, noted bird/animal activity, noted hatches, ramps open/closed, etc.  Simply, we're looking for information that will help fishers determine what to expect before heading out.  It's the devil to drive a couple hours, only to find the water is so low you can't launch your boat and with the drought that's a distinct possibility at some reservoirs.

The problem with fishing reports is that many view them as hot spotting and giving up one's favorite spot.  If you do decide to share about the fishing, I think it's more useful to tell what tactics you used, why, they types of areas you fished, but not specific locations, and if desired a bit about success in general terms, no need for specifics.  When I mention fishing, I share what equipment I used, terminal tackle in general term, what I was fishing for, and the types of cover/structure I fished.

Here's an example of what a conditions report I give might look like for water XYZ:

I fished from 8 to 4.  Water temperatures ranged from 64 to 68.  Water clarity was about 5 feet in the main channel, muddy along shore due to heavy boat traffic.  The reservoir is down about 10 feet from the high water mark and appears to be dropping.  Lots of vegetation out of the water.  Weather was calm and clear at the start of the day, but by the afternoon we had stiff breezes out of the northwest. I was fishing for bass primarily, using a 7 wt rod and a sinking line with larger streamers.  Found bass holding on small points just inside cove mouths in 5-15 feet of water.  Lots of anglers out, both along the shore and from boats.


Just remember Fish Explorer is about anglers helping anglers.


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