OK, so what goes into the "educated guess"? The basic idea is to find the days which statistically should be better for fishing. In the areas that we fish, we historically relied on tide tables and moon phase charts. We'll describe the process we've used in the past, then talk about some new ideas (new to us, anyway) which we ran into recently that we're really excited about.

Keep in mind that what we do may not apply to fishing in your area. However, it might trigger some ideas, and help you organize your thoughts. If you have any suggestions or comments, please feel free to post them to our discussion forum, or email them to us.

Our starting point is a moon phase chart.

For us, trying to fish offshore during these periods doesn't work well. We can't get out of the house early enough to reach the fishing grounds before the bite ends, and we can't stay out long enough to catch the afternoon bite. So unless we have an iron-clad report that the bite is going off during the day, or we intend to fish close to home, we try to avoid going out from two days prior to full moon, to two days after full moon.

The other rule of thumb that we follow is that fishing tends to be better during periods when the differential in height between low and high tides is fairly large (say over 3.5 feet, 1.25 meters). This typically correlates to periods around the spring tides (full or new moon). Since we've ruled out full moon periods, this means we tend to fish sometime around the new moon.

Does this mean we only target one or two days to fish during a month? No, of course not. In reality, there are typically 2+ weeks during the month that are in a reasonable moon phase, and have tides that would meet this rule of thumb. To narrow things down a bit further, we pull out the tide charts for a closer look at when the tides change during the day.

Why do we care about the tide changes?  Captain Conway Bowman , a well-known guide in the San Diego area, notes that many times, fishing offshore picks up in the hour or two prior to, or just after, the tide change. Why the change in tides should affect activity far offshore is not clear, but many people concur with Captain Bowman.

The timing of tide changes is a factor because the distances traveled offshore place a premium on being in the right place at the right time. It only takes 5 minutes to be a hero offshore - but you have to be in the right place at the right time, with a line in the water. The last thing you want to be doing is running to a new spot when the bite goes off, or to arrive at the right place 2 hours too late.

As a result, we make our final choice of days to fish based on the timing of the tide change. If the tide change occurs too early in the day, we may not be able to reach our desired area in time. If it occurs too late in the day, we may not be able to stay out long enough. Since the tides advance roughly an hour a day, by moving a trip up or back a couple of days, we can usually allow ourselves enough time to get to the right place at the right time.

Another aspect of the fishing the tide change has to do with deciding if you should move. As Captain Bowman points out, if you are out on the fishing grounds and the fishing is slow, but you see a lot of fish on sonar, and a tide change is coming up, you might want to stick around and fish the area through the tide change. The fishing might take off.

What if your schedule prevents you from getting out at optimal times?  Should you stay home and mow the lawn? No, of course not - GO FISHING! We're a firm believer in the following truisms:

• More time on the water = more fish
  
  
• Practice makes perfect
  
  
• The worst day fishing beats the best day working

You can always use the information above to help focus on the best times of the day to fish, even if the moon phase and tide differentials are not optimal.

And of course, as mentioned at the start, there are no guarantees. There are a slew of other things, such as weather changes, fishing pressure, and water temperatures that can disrupt the fishing (see the next section "Maps&Stuff"). But this will give you a start

courtesy Pacific Edge Press

Some of Captain Wisch's observations include:

• Currents caused by tidal movement seem to be strongest when the two tidal cycles in a day are asymetric, that is, when they are different in shape and height to each other.
  
  
• Fishing seems to be better on the 3 - 4 days after the 1rst or 3rd quarter, leading in to the full or new moon , as the tide differentials start to increase from those seen during the Neap tides. Focus on the biggest tidal swings during these days.
  
  
• Captain Wisch is a firm believer in the Solunar tables for predicting periods of peak activity during the day. First publicized by John Alden Knight in the early 1900s, the Solunar tables predict periods of wildlife activity based on the position of the moon and sun in the sky.
  
  Captain Wisch notes that the Solunar table periods of maximum activity correlate to periods when the moon is directly overhead or underfoot (keep in mind that the moon is often in the sky above us during the day, but we can't see it due to the brightness of the sky). The Solunar periods of minor activity correlate to when the moon rises or sets. The major activity periods are the best times to be fishing, the minor periods of activity second best.
  
  
• If the position of the sun lines up with the moon during a major activity period (that is, if the moon is directly overhead at noon, or midnight), that enhances the activity even more. 
  
  
• If the moon is crossing in the northern sky (if you're in the Northern Hemisphere), and / or is at perigee (the closest point to Earth in its orbit), the major and minor period activiy is stronger than when the moon is farther away from the Earth.
  
  
• Just because the solunar conditions are ideal does not mean that you will catch fish. Weather or water temperatures can upset the cycle, and the fish have to be where you're fishing! Seasonal migrations may mean the fish you are seeking are not present, even if the Solunar activity periods look ideal.
  
  courtesy Pacific Publishers

If you are interested in obtaining the Solunar tables, go to www.solunartables.com . They offer a number of variations, such as booklets, calendars, e-mail subscriptions, etc. You can also buy an electronic version of the tables from Speedtech.com. 

There are alternatives to the formal syndicated tables. Captain Wisch uses a calendar called the "Tidelog", from Pacific Publishers. "Tidelog"  combines a tide chart and calendar with moon and sun position indicators superimposed on top of the tides (see the picture to the right of a typical week. Click HERE for a larger image). (If you're an astronomer, they also include information on when the various planets are visible to the naked eye).

In any event, "In the Gray" is one of the best and most complete books we have read on the topic of inshore fishing in Southern California. It's highly recommended.

So how have we begun altering our approach to use Captain Wisch's information?

• Unless we're fishing inshore, we still avoid the full moon periods for the reasons mentioned earlier. However, we now tend to target the week leading up to new moon first, before looking at other days
  
  
• We look for days with asymmetric tidal swings
  
  
• Rather than use just the tide changes to determine timing during the day, we use the Solunar major and minor activity periods as the guides.