When to go fishing - Review of Rex Hunt's Fishing World

Published June 21, 2009 | Fishing News

Rex Hunt's Book: Fishing World
A while ago I bought a copy of the book "Rex Hunt's Fishing World " and
I though I'd share my thoughts about it.

Rex Hunt is one of Australias most famous fishermen. He became very popular through television and radio shows.
Rex has been out fishing since he was a little boy and his book provides a good overview of the fishing knowledge he has accumulated over the last 37 years.


The book has many interesting chapters, such as

  • When to go fishing
  • The fish, and how to catch them
  • The gear
  • Reading the water
  • Bait, lures and flies

Obviously I was most interested in the chapter on "when to go fishing".
Unfortunately this chapter is only two pages long.

Interestingly Rex mentions right in the introduction to this chapter that the most common question about fishing he is asked about is: "When is the best time to go fishing?"
Obviously one could answer that the best time to go fishing is when fish are biting. And so we have to ask "When is the time that fish are biting?"

Many people know and accept the traditional rule that early mornings or twilight times are the prime times to go fishing.
This is however only a very general rule and many anglers who followi this rule wonder why they return home without a catch.

Besides simple sunrise and sunset times Rex suggests that fishermen should also consider other factors such as: moon, clouds, tides, water temperatures and movements, availability of food and barometric pressure. 

So how is it possible to avoid spending dead time on the water and understand what makes fish start biting?

One thing is the barometer: According to Rex's experience a rising barometer will "turn fish on"
Another factor Rex mentions is the moonphase. For example it seems to be during the full moon periods that tuna becomes very active, as you can see the professional fishing fleets setting out during this times.

Rex says that he cannot emphasize enough the importance of prime time fishing to the average angler. It will give the fisherman the best possible advantage and can make a difference of being successful or not.
In any case it means that an angler should plan his fishing trip if he wishes to eliminate "dead time" on the water.

On the other hand these prime times are no guarantee to catch fish. Even the best angler who fished during those times
might come back empty handed.

The best times will indicate when you will have the best chances to catch fish on a particular day. But fish are unpredicatable and that is one of the great attractions to fishing.

Rex thinks that until you go out and fish at a certain time of the day or until you fish when the currents and tides are right, you will not become a good angler.
It is tremendously important to go fishing during prime times if you want to be successful.

Also Rex strongly recommends keeping a fishing diary to determine feeding habits of particular fish species.

Rex Hunt's Chapter on Best Fishing Times did not really cover as much ground as I hoped, but gave a
good overview of the topic and reconfirmed my own belief of the importance of fishing at the right times.

I believe that fishingreminder can help many fisho's out there to find the best times to go fishing.
It pulls together the information about many of the factors that Rex mentions in his chapter.

As the importance of a fishing diary seems to be recommended by so many different sources, one of the upcoming features at fishingreminder will
be an online fishing diary. This will allow fishermen to keep track of there catches and compare them with the best times.
It could also be helpful to improve fishingreminder's time forecast and make it more specific to certain fish species.

Happy fishing!


About Fishingreminder

Fishingreminder is your go-to source for fishing times, the latest fishing forecasts for your fishing spot and tips and tricks to catch more fish. Our articles are written by passionate anglers for passionate anglers.

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