When do you find that the nite bite really turns on? Do you sometimes think that you left prematurely, before they showed up or do you otherwise think that if they're not there early then they're not coming?

Yours is the million-dollar/$1,000,000 fishing question of all time, "Where are the fish?"

I think it all depends. Sometimes I have caught a fish on the first cast then nothing for the rest of the night. Other times, it has taken a while until after the sun goes down until we catch a fish.

One thing I have noticed is that until after the sun goes down, if the fishing is to get good, it is about 1 1/2-2 hours before it really turns on. All depends.

Other times it takes a while, we get a flurry, then have to wait a while, then get another flurry, it all depends.

One night I made my rounds around Gansett picking away at a few fish here and there with nothing special going on. Something drew me back to one spot about 2:30 am. Tide started to come in and like ghosts in the night they showed. 5 consecutive casts 5 fish 25-39lbs on eels 3 of the largest fish and the 39 had a still alive lobster in its gullet. Morale of the story got to put your time in and move around a bit. One memorable 25 minutes.

A lot of people hold to the idea that the fish stage in deeper water that is close to shallow water that holds bait. Once darkness settles in the fish move into the shallows to feed and it is at this time (a couple of hours after sunset) that is generally the best time.

Personally, I've found that the fish are like the Viet Cong - they come through the wire when you are at your most tired and most likely to make a mistake; somewhere around 3:00-4:30 a.m.

Ive always had my best luck, right after high tide for the first 3 -4 hours after.....

Outgoing tide always works for me.

Once the lights go out, it seems a lot depends on conditions and tide.

Or depends on completely nothing in particular.

It drives me mad when I consider that no one is capable of *really* figuring these fish out, even though their brain is less than 1/10th the size of ours.

Ive always had my best luck, right after high tide for the first 3 -4 hours after.....

Outgoing tide always works for me.

same here for me but this year it has also been good the complete opposite.