I wish I had some fabulous fishing reports for you to salivate over, but as you know this is the month of February and rarely does the weather permit much fishing — or catching, for that matter — unless you are able to head offshore. With the plethora of cold fronts and low-pressure systems and wind and rain, then more rain, the fishing has taken a thumping and unfortunately the upcoming weekend doesn’t look much better. With lots of wind and even the possibility of some wintry weather, Mother Nature is once again showing anglers who is in charge of whatever fun we might have had. Water temperatures are reading in the lower 50s although that will likely go even lower in the coming days as temperatures are expected to plummet over the weekend. Whatever the case and whatever the weather, as mentioned, the good news is we’re almost halfway through the month and while March can also give us some brutal wintertime weather, it will definitely be a welcome light at the end of the tunnel.
Since the weather outside is so wintry now, it would be the absolute perfect time to start organizing that box or bucket of fishing tackle that’s been neglected since the last time you wet a line. There’s no better feeling to have your things put in their proper places for when the fishing really starts taking off. Plus it is really irritating when the fish are biting and you can’t find your favorite secret super duper fishing lure. Obviously the conditions outside will probably prevent you from dumping everything out in your driveway or on your patio where you can meticulously go through every rusty hook and corroded swivel. With that said, use extreme caution if you decide to do this in your living room or den, as hooks have a way of disappearing like socks in a dryer and they tend to show up when someone is barefooted. They also create havoc with vacuum cleaners.
Getting the main terminal tackle like rods and reels cleaned up and ready for the season is also important. If you aren’t a savvy reel mechanic, then taking them to a reputable person to do the dirty work for you takes time and there’s no worse feeling than having your reels in for repair or cleaning only to learn that they’ll be ready about two weeks after your first major planned fishing trip of the year. Making sure your fishing rods are in good working order is also very important and checking the guides for signs of wear could just prevent that fish of a lifetime from escaping. Replacing guides that have signs of nicks or broken bases or even those that just look a little out of sorts could be the difference between a happy anglers landing a fish or a very irate angler.
Hopefully the first two weeks of the month are not a sign of what the last two weeks will bring us, but if in fact there’s more nasty weather stuff, that will give you that much more time to get your things in order for the upcoming fishing season, that I promise will arrive before you know it.
