I usually fish Joe Pool which almost never has rough water, but I started fishing for catfish the last couple months at Lewisville and that lake gets some ROUGH water. I was out there in 22mph winds and got soaked. I have no idea what to do in rough water. I usually hit the waves dead on because if I hit them at any angle I get soaked by the spray. This strategy makes it very difficult to get to where I want to go though. I've been going about 3/4 speed into the wave and then almost idling at about 30 degrees or so to the the waves to get to where I want to go. I have a 23' FishMaster Bay with a 225 Merc on it if that makes any difference.

All boats will ride different so you will get a large variety of responses on this.

Personally, I trim the motor up and lower the jackplate a little more than usual. This gets the bow of the boat up and breaks the waves a little better. I will usually run 1/2-3/4 throttle when doing this, just depends on how the waves are rolling and what kind of load I have in the boat. I am running a 20' redfin. When I am fishing alone and have a light load I can stay pretty dry. When the boat gets loaded down and the lake is rolling it can get pretty wet. With that boat I would think you should be able to experiment with your motor and throttle and keep dry in most conditions.

That boat should be relatively dry. Cut back on the throttle and run just a little off dead on till you find your boats sweet spot. Remember the wind will always blow the spray so the more you make the wetter you will get. Time on the water is your best teacher!!

I think the best bet is dead on. 22mph steady probably means gusts to 30. Lewisville has some big stretches of open water. It isn't always how hard the wind is blowing but from what direction and where you are on the lake. People always make lake specific generalizations. I laugh when I hear stuff like..."20 mph is on limit every lake but Tawakoni". Tawakoni can be rough because it is big...but so can little old Grapevine when the wind is out of the NW.

So if dead on or near dead on is what you want what to you do if the wind is blowing out of the north and you need to go W?

Frogg Toggs

Go NW then SW

If the waves are bad enough that you're not comfortable operating your boat in them, just fish another day. Other than that I would trim the motor up and drop the jack plate to keep your nose up and let the boat's V cut through the waves like was already said. Get the boat on plane and then increase your speed until you find the best speed for those conditions. I took my 21' Robalo out in 20 mph winds just to learn how it rides. I was getting soaked when I went slow. When I planed out I realized that I could run full speed and be bone dry.

+1 I have done this before.

I would get something more durable like H20 express. Waterproof clothing is a must this time of year!

OK I'm not sure ya'll been paying attention. You need to get that boat juiced up if you wanna jump those waves. They have a special propeller and custom lower unit you can put on getya maybe +10mph. 225 should do it. if you look at the waves as your going towards then you will see a path of shorter waves you can follow the path in any rough water and it won't be so bad. Bury the trim all the way down and don't slow down till the center console busts off the deck. Also if you get in too big a hurry you can cause the fuel cell to leak in rough water. Fish won't bite if you can't keep the line still.

I'm serious about the path it's between the white caps I've been there!