Flood waters

Mort

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Fishing good or bad, when water is high? Whats everyone's take on the matter.
Went by the little muddy last night and holy batman, water came up again...whooza.
We are in flood warning right now, it may hit 25 ft by weekend
Here copy paste from NWS

Flood Statement
National Weather Service Bismarck ND
1201 PM CDT Tue Jun 18 2019

...The flood warning continues for the following rivers in North
Dakota...
Missouri River near Williston affecting McKenzie and Williams
Counties
For the Missouri River Basin including Williston...Minor flooding is
occurring...With Moderate flooding forecast.

. Water levels along the Missouri River near Williston are again
rising and will reach a little above 25 feet this coming weekend.
After the weekend, the Missouri River near Williston will slowly
fall, and likely be back near 24 feet by late next week.
 


MicLee

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I do not envy anyone in a flood situation, but my fishing feelers get very perked up when the water is high.
 

Allen

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Yeah, with Sak up in its Exclusive Flood Control Zone, the Missouri near Williston is really easy to push above flood stage. It sure looks like the Yellowstone is in a freefall out by Billings over the coming days, so that will help a bit, but the real problem is Sak. Sak is at 1851 now and Williston is at 24.24 (+ its base datum of 1830.2) so in MSL it's 1854.4, or a mere 3.2 ft above the water level at the face of Garrison Dam.

That is a hell of a lot of river miles to go with only a ~3.2 ft change in elevation and it really makes the water at Williston a lot higher than the flow would suggest.
 

WormWiggler

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More water = more places for fishes to hide so the common theory is worse fishing, but more water, more "cover & structure" better reproduction, change my mind
 


Bfishn

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More water = more places for fishes to hide so the common theory is worse fishing, but more water, more "cover & structure" better reproduction, change my mind
Every year the water stays high, means good fishing for at least 3-4 more years on Sak :;:rockit
 

JayKay

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I find that fluctuating levels in the Missouri River give the fish a little bit of lockjaw. However, when the water levels are going up, the fishing is better than when the levels are dropping.

Steady water levels are best. High, low, I don't think it matters a lot, as long as it's steady.
 

KDM

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High water in the Sheyenne means the walleyes will be tight to shore in any small current seam. When I say tight to shore, I mean within a foot or two. If you can find areas that have vertical walls such as clay banks or rocks with a couple feet of water depth right off shore, you're in the money. Forget about the long drive casting. This is a time for the short game. Use small pitch or flipping type casts close to shore. Darker colors shine in this situation as does lots of action type tails. Slow steady retrieves allow fish to hone in on the bait whereas jigging actions will get their attention, but they tend to miss the baits due to the diminished sight pictures of the cloudy water that often accompanies high water levels. Get out there and catch'em. Good Luck!!
 

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