There are various reasons why a lake might move

There are various reasons why a lake might move. Perhaps the lake is stream fed and water enters at one end and leaves at the other. More likely is that the effect of the wind on the surface creates movement. Wind induced movement is particularly common on the larger more open lakes, such as the gravel pits dug during the last century. Trees create an effective barrier to the wind, eliminating wind movement. Just like river currents, water in lakes is affected by friction. This means that the wind will tend to only affect the surface of the water. How deep it’s affected depends upon the size of the water and the strength of the wind. Not only will you get the lateral movement as the wind whips across the surface, but there can also be the wave effect to take account of. Often the effect of the waves extends below that of lateral movement. In a relatively deep lake the wind has a surprising effect. Water will be piled up at the windward end of the lake and will push the water below down. The lower water, with nowhere else to go, will start to move along the lake bed in the opposite direction to the surface water. If the wind is strong enough and lasts long enough, then the lake will start to circulate. Depending upon the shape of the lake, the water may also start to flow around the lake, pushed along the banks away from the windward shore. Fish are attracted by the wind. In the summer months the wind will pile the warmest, most oxygenated water at the windward end of the lake. Waves will also tend to colour the water where they hit the bank. The waves will also dislodge and disorientate prey. The undertow can also alert fish to a wind and allow them to find the windward bank really easily. Simply by swimming against the current until they hit the bank they will reach the windward shore. Although it is not always the case, the windward bank can be the most productive. Different waters respond differently, to generalise greatly. I will fish the windward bank from May until early December and then fish off the wind during the depths of winter. If I am catching fish from an area which isn’t receiving the wind then I would still fish there, but expect catches to be reduced. You see, it is often not a case of all or nothing. The windward shore will sometimes have a different make-up to the rest of the lake. In gravel pits, for instance, the lake bed close to the bank will be kept clean by the wave action, whilst the silt and mud dislodged will build-up off-shore where the undertow starts to lose it’s energy. Plants will find it difficult to become established on the wind battered shore and are more likely to be found further out. All of this obviously has a knock-on effect for the fish, which inhabit the lake. Dealing with the effects of water movement in lakes is generally easier than it is in rivers. Rightly or wrongly, our fishing tends to be focused around presenting static baits in lakes, even though we know the water to be moving. Bodied waggler and antennae type floats, which have the bulk of their buoyancy some inches below the surface, combat surface movement. Couple this with keeping the bulk of the shot below mid-depth and a bait can be presented relatively static with little fuss. If the wind is particularly bad, fishing a few inches over-depth, so that the last shot acts as an anchor on the lake bed may help. Presenting moving baits in stillwaters is an area where experimentation might unlock a few more secrets. The problem is, the undertow is generally a lot less powerful than the surface movement. Perhaps using a small float with sail shaped weights close to the lake bed might work?

If conditions become too bad then it is prudent to switch to the ledger, rather than persist with the float. Once again, this will present a static bait, but there is scope for using much lighter weights and rolling the rig along the lake bed. Generally though, when the wind is blowing that hard it can be difficult enough to fish a static bait! Something worth bearing in mind though is your baiting pattern. When using light baits, such as groundbait and maggots the undertow can drag your bait over considerable distances. How many times have you heard people talking about catching fish to the left or right of their baited spot. Perhaps they have just been lucky enough to cast to the spot where their bait finally came to rest! Like all things in fishing, don’t let water movement dominate your approach, but bear it in mind and try to use it to your advantage.