I think there's a change in the weather!

[Detour66]

It appears that the weather is seriously changing be it due to mother nature, industrialization or a combo of both. This post is not about that! Warmer/shorter winters ...less rain...lower water...warmer water temps all add up to a needed change in strategy in fishing. What are your thoughts on how you are going to adapt to these conditions and how they have affected your fishing.

[Esox Luciano]

I love the cold! My body needs it, can't stand the heat and humidity, and will literally get nautious if the conditions are too much. That being said, besides missing out on some great moments and memories on the ice because there is a lack of it...not too much adapting to while fishing running water here. The predators are still out and about & way less lethargic than they usually get especially now into February. Gives the open-water anglers more time.

[Lard Almighty]

I need to buy a bigger car! I have to carry enough gear to be able to fish the ice in the morning, and transition throughout the day to get to the topwater bite in the evening.

[thmyorke1]

Isnt it normal for winter in nj to be very snowy in the later months, and often it hitting 50F once every few weeks?

I remember shoveling a lot of snow one year in march, think it was 1-2 years ago

[acabtp]

They had to drill holes to stock trout and we still had ice on the ponds opening day two or three years ago.

It's NJ, we never have consistent weather... just gotta fish whatever is happening.

[Jigman13]

3&4 yrs ago...ridiculous ice season. Last 2 yrs...mediocre at best. Weather patterns are cyclical. We had a really dry spring, summer and fall in 2016. We're definitely making up for it so far this year. We've had a couple snow storms and a significant amount of rainfall since the calendar year flipped to 2017. Use the same tactics you've had success with in the past. It's not just the 'how' part... it's also the 'when'. I think things are going to start about 2 weeks earlier this yr due to the relatively mild winter we've had. Tuesday we're halfway thru Feb. Won't be long once March is here. Water hits 50 and it's game on!

[AndyS]

We had a string of winters with no ice at all, for like 4 years in a row. Then I remember standing on Round Valley frozen solid the 1st day of spring. It's the weather, we just deal with it.

[tycomps]

one of the biggest things I've noticed with winters is ice skating. grew up in New Providence and used to skate on Surprise Lake. got used skates at Archies in Meyersville every winter. bonfires and hockey games in the woods of Chatham. NP had two rinks, one for hockey one for general with lights and music. first they stopped filling the hockey rink then the main rink.

[Chrisper4694]

Originally Posted by AndyS

We had a string of winters with no ice at all, for like 4 years in a row. Then I remember standing on Round Valley frozen solid the 1st day of spring. It's the weather, we just deal with it.

when were there four years of no ice? had to be awhile ago, there is a cycle of some kind, that's just the way it goes. We had two hard core freezes and now 2 garbage ones, next year will probably be average.

[Mikey topaz]

Just keep fishing!!!!! always trout all year long to play with worst comes worst.... i have noticed that with the extreme weather changes past two years where we normally catch fish they are not their in the normal patterns and have found them in new areas some of which u never really would have thought they would be there....