Why don't the fish bite in the fall.....

[rivesjct]

First off, I am not new to fishing, just fishing in the north (SE Michigan). I am from outside of Houston and only fished saltwater. Why do the fish quit biting in late fall here in Michigan? When will they start biting again? I was doing fine till about October, then I couldn't give a worm away, they all died by drowning. My husband, who is from Michigan, says that the fish don't bite in the fall.

[matt s.]

yeah,fall fishing can be tough.They do however bite,just have to find the right bait for them to bite.I been out the last 2 days and the past 3 weeks the fish were basically just slapping the lure with their tails.yet not a single one hooked...fusturating it is.

Right now start heading for deeper water...that's where more than likely where they are now.Crankbaits and jigs are the popular choice for the winter bait...something that goes deep.

if i can figure out where at in lake erie by the shore that's deep enough,i'd like to fish for yellow perchs before it ices over here.

[Fishing4life]

First off, I am not new to fishing, just fishing in the north (SE Michigan). I am from outside of Houston and only fished saltwater. Why do the fish quit biting in late fall here in Michigan? When will they start biting again? I was doing fine till about October, then I couldn't give a worm away, they all died by drowning. My husband, who is from Michigan, says that the fish don't bite in the fall.

I caught some blue gills and crapies in mid October in SE Michigan. Since then, the bites slowed down. I am going to have another try next Tuesday because I will have a day off for the Election Day (I am gong to cast my vote in the early morning and then go fishing).

[cstyle]

Yeah, the fall bite can be difficult; however, like it's already been stated, you have to fish a little deeper. I really haven't done a lot of live bait fishing, but I know when the bite is tough a smaller presentation can really do the job. Try using some wax worms or small minnows and see how that goes.

[crappie_mad_man]

this time of the year i used ice fishing jigs with waxxies with pretty good success fishing between 5 to 10 feet over drop-offs

[slabsrus]

Fall crappie can be tricky but when you hit it can be very rewarding. Going deep has already been said and that is often truly the key. You may need to go deeper than you realize, like 20 feet plus. We have caught some nice slabs as deep as 35 feet in some lakes. I like to use tear drops and micro jigs in the 1/32 - 1/80 oz range tipped with wax worms, spikes, or tiny minnows. The specks are quite notorious for suspending over very deep water at this time of year so use your graphic ar get a good lake map and look for likely spots to suspend. Check the wide open spaces.

[FishCrazy]

I live in the Raleigh North carolina area and down here the Crappie run off to deep water in the summer because it gets so hot here and the surface layer on the lakes warms up a lot. So they are seeking cooler water. When the fall cool down starts the upper layers of water start to cool down and this sets the crappie free from the depths to roam the shallower areas that have cooled and are feeding up for the winter. Sooooo I love to fish in late fall and into early winter down here. You still find the fish deep though at 8 to 15 feet mostly. Right now here the water is cooling down and the crappie are starting to feed up. I would imagine that there is a similar pattern that exist up there but I would think the initial feeding frenzy has already occured since I hear there is ice forming on the lakes. You can catch them through the ice though. Im going to try and target some on Fletchers this year.