How much do you depend on the moon?

[Rhodes]

To me the most important variable in the equation is the tide differential. That is the amount of water movement from high to low or vise versa. The first thing I do to start the year is download the tide chart where I fish (Jekyll) into a spreadsheet and add a column to calculate the tide differential of each tide each day. I then highlight all the days that have a tide differential of 6.5' or less. The less the tide differential the less current and clearer the water and the better the fishing. I live 3 1/2 hours from the coast and only get to go a few times a year so I pick my days around the least tidal movement. Ideally you want 6' or less of tide differential to give you the best odds to catch fish....IMHO that is.

 

[Hickory Nut]

Another reason I check the moon and tides is knowing when to launch and load. Some spots I fish can be tricky getting in and out on low water.

 

[Darkhorse]

The moon matters. But with tidal changes, dirty water factored in it's tough to figger it all out. I always thought a moving tide was best offshore because I figured it helped flush the little fish out of hiding and the game fish would start feeding.
But when fishing freshwater I use the Solunar tables and start at least an hour before the time listed as when a period starts. I often fish a large private pond and had noticed the fish had periods of feeding and when they stopped it was sudden. I started taking notes but nothing made sense. Then I started applying the Solunar tables and it all fell into place.

 

[Seanote]

Water clarity IS the key to trout fishing and many other species. I have always believed this, but my logs provide further support.The moon controls the water clarity by increasing the tide differential as the pull on the earth increases. The pull is less on the half moon and more on the full and new moons. Since I have been keeping logs I can see that the tide differential is more certain times of the year regardless of the moon stages.