GREAT OUTDOORS: Blue Moon gives anglers second peak chance for night walleyes

By now, many anglers know that walleyes can be hooked by casting crankbaits in the evening from numerous local shoreline locations during the fall. Scott Stecher, of Marblehead, designer and owner of USA-produced Reef Runner Lures, recommends his 700 Series Ripstick for casting from shore. Blue Hawaiian is currently his most popular color for night fishing, along with dot patterns such as Wonderbread and Confetti. Pearl Ghost, Pink Lemonade and the new Algal Bloom pattern round off his top choices to use. According to the staff at Jann's Netcraft in Maumee, currently popular crankbait lures include 3-½ to 4¾-inch offerings of Bomber Long-A's, Cotton Cordell Ripplin' Red-Fin, Rapala Husky Jerks and the new Spro Madeye Minnow. Vintage Bill Lewis Rat-L-Trap, Rapala Countdown and Storm Thunderstick are still used by those who have these proven fish-catching lures. My #1 lure is a jointed Thunderstick in a Fire-tiger color pattern. I like fishing in shallow enough water that walleyes can see the surface from the entire water column. This lure causes a wake as it swims across the surface at slow speeds and walleyes sometimes leap halfway out of the water like a largemouth bass when they strike it. Casting out from shore, a slow retrieve with occasional pauses often triggers the most bites. Don't quit until the lure comes out of the water, because many fish wait until the lure nearly reaches the shoreline before attacking it. The new moon is one lunar phase period when animals have higher activity rates and many walleyes are caught then, especially where the glow of an artificial light illuminates the water within casting distance. My notes document better nights for me at Put-in-Bay when the moon was full or nearly so. A second full moon of the month, referred to as a "Blue Moon," will occur on October 31. My best evening catches also came when the moon rose just after sunset, extending the natural bite that begins at dusk most evenings. Being able to catch fish earlier is much more convenient for those who have to work the following morning. By looking at the local moon phase, moonrise and sunset charts for this longitude, I try to predict the nights when success may come earlier. However, night owls who have the option and endurance to fish all night can take advantage of less crowded docks, while targeting later moonrise times that occur on dates and times not mentioned on the chart below. Any time of the year, weather factors, such as wind speed and direction and barometer greatly impact fish behavior, too. The moonrise time for the Blue Moon on October 31 is 6:47 p.m. with a sunset time of 7:11, so twilight would provide good odds for a chance for an evening of early successful fishing. Looking ahead to the end of the year, the prime evenings to try include the first few days and end of November and the beginning and end of December. Thanks to the astronomers who provide these calculations for our longitude, the following table lists dates and times on/near the full moon. The boldfaced dates are the ones that deserve special attention, based upon the highlighted moonrise times that falls just after sunset. The "best of the best" dates are marked with an asterisk as the dates that the moonrise occurs at a perfect time to extend and enhance the sunset bite. ----- SANDUSKY DATE&emsp;&emsp;SUNSET&emsp;&emsp;MOONRISE&emsp;&emsp;ILLUM. %&emsp;&emsp;COMMENTSNov 1*&emsp;5:25 pm&emsp;&emsp;6:14 pm&emsp;&emsp;99.6% Moonrise should extend post-sunset bite lengthNov 2&emsp;&emsp;5:23 pm&emsp;&emsp;6:45 pm&emsp;&emsp;97.5%Nov 30&emsp; 5:02 pm&emsp;&emsp;5:21 pm&emsp;&emsp;100%&emsp;&emsp;Moonrise illumination should extend twilight biteDec 1&emsp;&emsp;5:01 pm&emsp;&emsp;6:03 pm&emsp;&emsp;99.3%&emsp;&emsp;Moonrise just after dark extends sunset biteDec 2&emsp;&emsp;5:01 pm&emsp;&emsp;6:53 pm&emsp;&emsp;96.6%Dec 3&emsp;&emsp;5:01 pm&emsp;&emsp;7:48 pm&emsp;&emsp;91.9%&emsp;&emsp;Time for a pause between sunset and moonrise bitesDec 29&emsp;&emsp;5:10 pm&emsp;&emsp;4:46 pm&emsp;&emsp;100%&emsp;&emsp;Moonrise and sunset times overlapDec 30*&emsp;&emsp;5:10 pm&emsp;&emsp;5:41 pm&emsp;&emsp;100%&emsp;&emsp;Moonrise should extend post-sunset bite lengthDec 31&emsp;&emsp;5:11 pm&emsp;&emsp;6:42 pm&emsp;&emsp;98.6%&emsp;&emsp;Conditions favor a long post-sunset bite