Sunrise Sunset

Fri., Sept. 30 6:36 6:25

Sat., Oct. 1 6:37 6:24

Sun., Oct. 2 6:39 6:22

Mon., Oct. 3 6:40 6:20

Tues., Oct. 4 6:41 6:18

Wed., Oct. 5 6:42 6:17

Thurs., Oct. 6 6:43 6:15

Fri., Oct. 7 6:44 6:13

Striped bass fishermen who fish at night know what lure and what bait to use and the exact time of slack tide in their favorite spot. But there is a clear disagreement over the moon’s influence on fishing. Striped bass have acute night vision and can see all the small fish as they swim through the moonlit sea.

Some fly-fishermen avoid fishing by moonlight, claiming the moon creates “ghosts” in the water that spook the fish away from the shoreline, and trains a spotlight on the monofilament line. Their best fishing is in the dark. For these fishermen, this was the perfect, moonless week.

All this will begin to change this weekend when the thin crescent moon will begin to appear low in the southwestern sky, just after sunset. In the nights ahead, the crescent moon will shift to first quarter.

Of course other fishermen like the moonlight and change their technique to use lures and flies that don’t glitter. Fly-fishermen may wish to use black flies, as the moonlight grows increasingly bright this month.

M.A.L.