Fishing in spring - how to fish in March, April and May

Is it possible to fish in spring?

Spring fishing begins after the wilderness. From March to April, in some regions of Russia, ice fishing is carried out with girders and rigs. The fish begin to prepare for spawning and are active in search of food. Here live bait is used: jigs, maggots, worms, whitebait. But is it possible to fish in the spring?

The answer is yes, you can, but you should be aware of some restrictions. By the way, they depend on the specific region of our homeland. In general, bans and restrictions are imposed on fishermen from late April to mid-June. As a rule, fishing is allowed with one fishing rod, without a double hook, during the daytime. “Hunting” for fish from boats and other watercraft is strictly prohibited.

Regional fishing in spring

When spring fishing begins depends on the region. In 2021, open water fishing will begin:

Fishing in March

March is a time of changes taking place in the life of nature and fish. The daylight hours are getting longer, the sun is starting to warm up the water, despite the fact that frosts still occur in most parts of Russia at night. The snow begins to melt and form banks. Streams flow into rivers, saturating the water with oxygen, which signals the fish that it is time to start biting.

Having had their fill of hunger, the underwater inhabitants begin to actively feed, because spawning is ahead. Therefore, March is the time of active biting, real zhora. At the same time, many specimens unite, form whole flocks, and rush to the mouths of rivers and streams.

Fishing in April

With the arrival of April, the ice is almost completely gone from rivers and reservoirs. In the first weeks of the month, ice first disappears from the rivers of central Russia. In northern latitudes you can still fish from ice. Near the coast, the ice melts faster, forming edges. Be careful by carefully testing the ice for strength and exploring routes to return home.

And now, it seems, it’s already possible to get out the dusty flying gear. But there is no need to rush. April fishing has restrictions established by law. As the water temperature in the rivers rises, many underwater inhabitants begin to prepare to spawn, and a spawning ban on fishing comes into force in many regions. Don't despair, there is a way out. An impatient fisherman will be able to indulge in his favorite hobby after thoroughly studying the Fishing Rules of his fishing pond. Usually, during the April restrictions, fishing from the shore with a fishing rod is possible in places where there is no spawning.

Early spring fishing gear

With the melting of the ice, it is still possible to fish with winter fishing rods, but since it is impossible to approach the edge of the edge, you have to be content with fishing near the shore, where small things are mainly concentrated. For large fish, it is better to prepare summer float tackle. Don't stay in one place for too long. If it doesn’t bite, you can walk along the shore and try to fish in other places. Fishing with a jig in a vertical line has also proven itself well.

For this gear, a summer fishing rod is used, which is equipped with a nod. We can say that for conditions when you have to fish at the very edge, this gear is better than others. Fishing in early spring occurs mainly with maggots and bloodworms. For large fish, larvae are planted in several pieces. If there is a worm, then you can fish with it. When catching a predator in muddy spring water, choose bright baits, as they are better visible.

Fishing in May

In May, fishermen say with relief, “Well, that’s all!” The fish are starting to bite actively, and it’s comfortable to catch them, the weather in May is excellent, it’s already warm, but there are no active midges. You can afford to go fishing with tents for the whole weekend. By the end of May, the fish stop spawning, and the fishermen finally have a free hand (pike bite especially eagerly in May). Although, in many regions the use of spinning rods is prohibited.

In the first ten days of the month, it is better to catch fish in small rivers using float rods or using a line. Every day the fish bite will intensify. Underwater inhabitants are gradually emerging from their winter shelters and moving towards coastal rivers. Many fish join together in schools. In May, many fish stop spawning, for example, bream, ide, roach, and chub. But the rudd, carp, silver bream, and carp are just beginning to prepare for offspring.

What is the best fish to catch in spring?

Spring fishing is different from summer or winter. If you are not sure what kind of fish you want to catch, we can help you. At the end of March, when the water level in the rivers did not have time to rise, but at the same time the upper water column became noticeably warmer, predatory inhabitants began to actively feed: pike perch, pike, asp.

With April the catfish wakes up. Remember that spring is a time when the water is not completely warmed up and the fish tries to stay closer to the bottom holes. So, if your trophy goal is pike perch, throw your bait closer to the holes. In the spring, a regular worm will be good for pecking silver bream, ram, rudd, and sabrefish.

At the end of March, white fish will bite on the float rod, and bream will be “led” to the feeder or elastic bands.

Before the heat sets in, the burbot actively reacts to the worm. As soon as the ice melts from the rivers, pike perch become more active in streams and bays, which, by the way, prefers rapids from the depths to shallow water. In reservoirs with a muddy bottom there are tench, exhausted by winter hunger.

The bite in the spring months may depend on several factors, including water level, time, weather conditions, characteristics of the reservoir, and degree of hunger.

Spring Ide

Active fattening of ide begins after spawning. Why do they swim upstream, looking for optimal conditions? There is a sign that spawning occurs with the swelling of birch buds.

Then they migrate to permanent habitats. The path runs at depths; at night they group in flocks in holes. On the road they feed intensively, getting out into shallow waters. The food is very diverse, from plants to fish. That's why they are called omnivores.

In the spring, they most often bite on worms, maggots, and chafers, preferring animal bait. They catch ides using float gear, bottom gear with or without a feeder. Fishing methods and techniques are chosen according to personal preference. Takes on muddy water at any time of the day.

Fishing for crucian carp in spring

Crucian carp is not a whimsical animal, but it is tenacious. This fish can be successfully caught anywhere and always, regardless of the season. Crucian carp have a habit of staying in the same place for a long period. So if you are lucky and come across a crucian carp trail or its last year’s hole, you know that the fish are somewhere nearby.

But it is worth taking into account the gastronomic preferences of the underwater inhabitants, which tend to change from season to season. Having been hungry enough, the crucian carp will actively look for food in the spring. The fish will react especially actively to live bait: worms, bloodworms, maggots, fry. Even lard can be used.

But with the arrival of April, the bloodworm will lose its effectiveness. At this time of year, bread, dough or worms will come in handy when fishing. In May, it is worth remembering vegetable baits - semolina, mastyrka, peas. In order not to make a mistake, take several options with you.

You can fish with a regular fishing rod and float. But, remember, crucian carp does not completely swallow the hook and the outcome of the fishing will depend directly on the reaction of the angler.

With the melting of ice, crucian carp will stick to small areas - no more than 1.5 meters. It is better to look for crucian carp in thickets, snags, and fallen tree branches. During high water, fish gather in schools, the movement of which is easily noticeable by the vibrations of the water surface.

Features of fishing on ponds and lakes in spring

Photo by Anatoly Mailkov

Fishing with a rod begins some time after the ice melts, when the water is usually cloudy. This year, in reservoirs located in low places, the water remained cloudy for two weeks. Water temperature is of great importance, so fishing in small bodies of water begins a week and a half earlier than in larger ones. It is important to know exactly when the ice and snow along the banks melted and when the water in this particular body of water cleared.

If the water is clear, then the bite can begin even if the last ice floes are still floating.

In any case, the spring bite is unstable, since the water temperature is low, and to this are added frequent pressure surges, changes in wind direction, that is, unstable weather. The most difficult thing to fish is a large body of water, especially if it is new to it. You don’t know whether the fish isn’t biting or you haven’t found it.

The activity of fish of different species varies greatly. The roach are now moving towards the shore in shallow places, weather permitting. There is a mixture of coastal and inland populations. In a coastal zone with hard soil (sandy or clayey) at a depth of up to half a meter, you can count on catching several roaches. In order to be successful, you need to know exactly the topography of the chosen place, the time of fish release and have thin tackle. In the riverbed and near-river zones, roach behave completely differently. It occupies a certain horizon and moves only within it. As the water warms, roaches increasingly rise and play at the surface of the water. Finding the horizon depends only on weather conditions. The roach is now “hunting” for warm and clear water.

Catching roach in ponds should be divided into two options, which differ in both tactics and technique. It’s worth spending time fishing for coastal roach only if you know exactly several promising points and are sure that there are fish here. Groundbait can cause damage if it is not bloodworms. It is possible to catch a roach from a depth of twenty centimeters using the most delicate gear.

Hunting for roach in deeper places is usually more rewarding. Usually the flock occupies the lower part of the coastal edge. It is important that this edge is not right next to the shore, but at a distance of five meters. The fish is careful not to approach the shore itself, even if the depth allows. Bait usually works, but only a little is needed. While the water is cold, I use either winter bait with the addition of bloodworms, or bloodworms mixed with soil, or simply throw in tiny portions of small bloodworms, generously moistened with water.

Hunting for perch is very interesting. There comes a time in the spring when some anglers are surprised to discover that their favorite ponds are home to quite decent-sized perch. You can spot the perch next to the roach or by the splashes of the verkhovka. The perch more or less consistently bites on both bloodworms and worms, but it is not possible to catch more than a few pieces, so it makes sense to waste time only for the sake of catching a large predator. A good time to hunt for perch will come during the bleak spawning season.

The bite of the bream is still unstable, although bream are also increasingly being caught in shallow places. There is no need to talk about special fishing for this fish. The exception is fishing in reservoirs where there is a lot or a lot of bream. The fish accumulate at the lower shore edge, but come out to shallow places only where there are thickets of coastal vegetation, and where a deep ditch or channel approaches directly to the shore. Many underbreeders, together with roaches, rise to their summer camps in the flowing rivers.

An interesting species is the gudgeon, which reaches quite a decent size in lakes. Now he has left the deep places and gradually approached the shore, where he stands directly behind the coastal edge. The bite is very unstable. The sun comes out and the bites begin. In cloudy weather, there may be no gudgeon bite at all.

The tench began to peck. There is a very sure indicator of the beginning of a bite - horsetail. As soon as the sprouts of this plant appear from the water, you can be sure that the tench is somewhere nearby. For several days, the tench will stay and actively peck in the shallows near the horsetail, and then the whole thing will go to the border of underwater vegetation with a depth of up to one and a half meters.

The main target of fishermen on ponds now remains crucian carp. The warming of the water every day activates the bite, which in some places turns into eating. On shallow and small ponds, crucian carp began to bite regularly at the end of April. Usually, within two weeks after this, the crucian carp begins to take almost everywhere. The interest in crucian carp now is due to the fact that in the first days of biting the largest individuals are usually caught. Sometimes you are surprised that such monsters live in a pond where in the summer only small minnows bite. To catch a crucian carp, you have to monitor the reservoir every day, and as soon as you catch the first specimen, you drop everything and go fishing the next day. After all, the bite of large crucian carp in ponds rarely lasts longer than two or three days.

It makes sense to catch large crucian carp using bottom gear if the pond is shallow or very shallow. With the appearance of coastal vegetation, fishing moves to coastal fishing. If the reservoir is deep, then it is better to look for crucian carp in shallow bays, in coastal snags and on the border of last year’s reeds. This fish stays in spots and small groups. It is impossible to predict the parking point, you can only try. It helps that if there is a crucian carp and it bites, then you don’t have to wait long for a bite. If there is no bite, then searching will not help, but active movements with changing places can lead to a school of roach or bream.

The general patterns and features of searching and catching fish in ponds and lakes now include the fact that all fish are looking for places with clear and warmer water. Such places are usually located in bays protected from the wind. However, it is worth considering that such bays may be shallow. If, after the water level drops, the bay disappears in the summer, then most likely there are no fish here now. Places that are illuminated most of the day and located on the leeward side are more reliable. Now, unlike in summer, the surf shore may not be the best, especially with a northerly wind. The fish stay in shallow areas or surface layers, and the warm surface water is moved by surface currents. Based on this, a cool place can be anywhere, the question is how to discover it faster.

I prefer to start my search with a specific fish in mind. If it is a roach, perch, or gudgeon, then the search pace is as fast as possible. Several runs of thin and very sensitive equipment in a promising place, and if there is no bite, then immediately move on. With crucian carp, bream or tench you will have to go to the “pledge”. That is, choose an area and feed a little (one handful of bait each) several points. Within about an hour I check the fed points. If there is not a single bite, then I change the fishing area. The question is in the first bite. If it happens, then it makes sense to change the horizon, fishing distance, retrieve speed, but still achieve a bite. After several fish I feed the fishing point a little. First, a single ball the size of a tangerine. If the bites become more frequent, then I start feeding the point. It is very important to catch the reaction of the fish - whether it immediately responds to bait or with a delay.

Here I am not considering cases when you are simply lucky and you immediately get a bite. But I must warn you that it is very easy to get excited and ruin your fishing. First of all, there is no need to fuss and make noise. You should not throw bait, trying to get rid of it as quickly as possible. Pay attention to the connection between the bite and weather changes.

It happens that the north wind blows and the bite subsides. Instead of waiting for the sun to appear, the angler begins to “bomb” with bait and successfully spoils the end of the fishing trip.

Very often, after the first fish are caught, the bite stops. In this case, I strongly advise you to change the equipment to an even lighter one and start playing with the equipment, making very slow movements over the bait.

Andrey Yanshevsky May 16, 2012 at 00:00

Pike fishing in spring

The toothy predator is the most coveted spring trophy. Catching pike is one of the most exciting activities, because when caught, it actively resists. You can start pike hunting as soon as the snow melts. Pike goes to spawn earlier than everyone else, so it will be ready to eat everything that moves in March. In early spring, it is better to go from the ice to fish with jigs or spinners, and after the ice melts, spinning will be the best option.

Pike is an inhabitant of clean and transparent reservoirs. If the water is not clean, the pike is unlikely to actively bite, so it is better to catch it immediately after the ice melts. In the spring, try to look for pike in fast, small rivers. The fish loves places where there are fry, so it should bite close to the shore, so long casts are not required.

We advise you to choose a spinning rod with an inertial reel, which should be light and compact. The choice of lures for pike is wide, but the best results were shown by a wobbler in the form of a small perch.

In spring, pike bite throughout the day, sometimes at intervals.

Predatory fish

Zander

A rod for fishing for pike perch in the spring does not require special rigidity, since it does not behave aggressively yet. Spinning fishing will be effective. In the case of a relief bottom, a jig is suitable. Classic lures are jigs, wobblers and spinners. Read the article about the best baits for pike perch here.

Pike

The main season for the predator begins after spawning. The most catchy one will be a spinning rod, which can be equipped with a wobbler, spinner, twister, or vibrotail. Read a detailed article about pike fishing in spring here.

Chub

This energetic fish should be caught with a long rod and targeted casts on small streams with a small fly. The chub also bites well on nymphs with rainbow heads. In mid-spring, bait in the form of bugs will be effective.

Fishing for carp in spring

Depending on the region, carp fishing begins at different times. In the south of the country, hunting for underwater animals can begin in March, but in the north you will have to wait until May.

Catching carp in the spring is a matter that requires skill, patience and time. Carp does not behave actively and you will have to work hard to force it to bite the bait. But, along with the increase in water temperature, the fish’s weight will also begin to increase. The most active ic occurs during the period when the water warms up to +14.

In spring, carp will stay at depths, but not more than 2 meters. The most effective fishing will be in small bodies of water. Moreover, in May, when the water is warm enough, the carp will try to go even deeper, hiding behind snags.

The fishing outcome will be successful if you feed the carp. There are some nuances here. For example, complementary foods should not be too nutritious. If the complementary food is too high in calories, the fish will quickly become full and will not rush to swim to this place again. Flavorings should be added to Primac. The smell of garlic received good recommendations.

In March, we recommend using worms or maggots as bait. With the arrival of April and May, you can use pearl barley, corn or hominy.

For carp fishing, it is better to use a feeder rod up to 3 meters long.

Fisherman's calendar for March

In March, the long and cold winter with its snowstorms, frosts and short days ends. The long-awaited spring is coming, but in March it has not yet fully arrived. There is still snow on the fields and in the forest, although the first thawed patches are already appearing. And the reservoirs are still covered with ice, but the rivers are awaiting ice drift.

In March, winter seems to be fighting with spring and does not want to give in to it. The old woman-winter sometimes gets so furious that a blizzard swirls like a winter, cruel and strong, and in the morning there is frost that stings the nose and cheeks. But nevertheless, there are more and more warm and fine days. The sun is shining brighter, melting snow and ice with its rays.

Melt water forms streams, they make their way through the ice shell of reservoirs. As a result, rivers and lakes are saturated with oxygen, which is so necessary for aquatic inhabitants. Roach, perch and pike emerge from their hiding places, dramatically changing the picture of the kingdom of the depths of rivers and lakes. The fish, hungry during the period of loss of appetite in the dead of winter, begins to scour the reservoir in search of food.

In March, many species of fish greedily grab any bait on a jig or hook. In the first month of spring, at shallow and medium depths, predators are caught using spoons, girders and jigs. In clear weather it is better to use dull spinners, and at dawn - bright silver-plated ones made of nickel. At this time, pike roam the pond in schools.

In spring, pikes wake up and actively bite

Therefore, fishermen can catch more than one toothfish. Burbot is a nocturnal predator, but sometimes in March you can even catch it during daytime fishing. At night they set donks on burbots, using gudgeon or ruffe as bait, and in the morning they check whether they have caught a fish with the appearance of a snake.

While there is no ice drift, fishermen fish with winter fishing rods with a float or nod. This month they are biting well on worms, bloodworms and maggots. As long as there is no clouding of the water that is dangerous to the health of the fisherman, roach, perch, chubs, and roaches are successfully caught. The fish bite very well on the last ice, because this is no longer the dead winter.

They fish not only with jigs, but also with small spinners. In a calm current at a depth of three to five meters, pike, chub, and ide take well. From the middle of the month it begins to catch well not only on rivers, but also on lakes and reservoirs. Slow-flowing reservoirs are considered the most productive.

But in lakes where rivers do not flow, the fish bite worse this month. You should watch for changes in air pressure and other vagaries of the weather, which greatly affect the fish bite. When there is a sudden change in weather, for example, when after a severe frost there is a sudden thaw, the pecking stops completely.

On such days, fishermen usually stay at home so as not to spoil their mood with the almost complete absence of bites. But for those fans of ice fishing who consider the process of catching fish more important than the weight of the catch, no amount of bad weather matters. You should remember about safety when entering the last ice.

Life is more important than catch, so even with an excellent bite, you should avoid places near gullies and ice holes. It happens that in the morning it was easy to walk on ice in the frost, but in the afternoon the sun became so warm that returning to the shore in the evening becomes difficult.

Therefore, you should not go fishing on the last ice alone. If the ice seems suspicious, it is better not to go there. At this point, the fisherman’s calendar for March can be considered closed, let’s move on to April.

Fishing on the last ice is very dangerous, so fishermen should not be on the reservoir alone

Advice from Velesovik

During the active period, some individuals rise upward, closer to the ice. Therefore, we recommend fishing at half-water or at a depth of 50 cm from the surface.

To get accurate information about the spawning ban, take the time to find out about the fishing rules in your region. The rules contain a list of spawning areas and the amount of fines for certain actions.

In May, the range of baits is extensive. You can use peas, pearl barley, dough, mastyrka. Some recommend using foam treated with fragrances. Fishing in the spring is unpredictable, so we advise you to take the entire arsenal of bait with you.

• The equipment used in late spring and summer is not always suitable for fishing in early March, because the water is not yet sufficiently warmed up, and the reservoirs are still muddy. Let's give some advice.
• With the arrival of spring, focus on small baits; they will be the most attractive.
• Try to look for small bodies of water, small rivers, and places where the water warms up the fastest.

Spring is a time of improvisation, so fishing in the spring is considered the most long-awaited and interesting. Don't miss this great time to add to your trophy collection. Good luck.