Good stories!

I am planning to night fish for the first time this season. I must admit it is creepy---especially alone. I thought I'd use red flashlights to help with night vision. Thought I'd throw a spinnerbait, top water, worm, or jig.

Any other pointers?

Be careful going it alone. Be sure you know the lake area you’re in really well. Wear your life jacket for sure when running. I would pick no more than 3-4 spots and don’t plan to move a lot. Forget the advice that fishes eyes have to adjust to the dark and wait 30 or minutes after dark to start. I’ve caught them right at dark or just after. Fish will sometimes bite in spurts at night. You can go without a bite and then they can turn on. No need for finesse baits. Go with an 8” or bigger worm. Don’t know if I was worn out or the fish but used to have the best luck up until 3:30-4 and then it drops off till daylight. Good Luck.
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Do you guys wear head mounted red lights? Or something else? Or nothing?

Do you run around the lake or mostly stay put?

I am planning to night fish for the first time this season. I must admit it is creepy---especially alone.

If you have a full moon you can almost read a newspaper with no light. You could see the grassline, stumps, shoreline if the moon was bright. It is always best if you know the areas you are fishing before you go out at night. Get a small head mounted LED light to use for tying knots & rigging up or landing fish but that's about the only time you need a light. We never fished lighted docks at night because back then there just wasn't many of them on Fork. We fished main lake humps, pond dams, & grass points mostly with big plastic worms & jigs & single big bladed spinnerbaits.

I've used a super bright spot light for running down the lake at 25-30 mph but when you turn it on & back off it takes a few mins for your eyes to readjust to the difference. I knew the lake well enough that I stopped using the spotlight and just ran slowly on plane from spot to spot. If you don't know the lake well I would suggest you do not run above idle speed at night.

The advice above about bug repellent is very good. The skeeters are horrible for the first hour after dark then they are only bad.

Also we would set our ball cap over the back Nav light when fishing so it didn't glare back at you. The darker your boat, the better you can see out onto the water. State law requires you must have your back light on at night when sitting. Front & back have to be on when running even at idle. On busy weekends the GW would be on the water checking.

I would highly suggest your wear a PFD while moving down the lake. Be quiet while you move around in the boat. Don't slam box lids and try to use the TM as little as possible. It is better if you can anchor (I know some of you guys with Power Poles & Ultrex have never owned an anchor). Your sense of feel & sound is heightened at night & I believe the bass' are too so be quiet as you move around in the boat.

Keep the floor of the boat tidy so when you hook a big fish you can move around without stumbling over everything. Keep the net out with the handle extended & ready. Use big hooks & heavy line!

You now know everything I know about night fishing.

The other issue is I have found that with a bright moon I can fish the exact same color baits I throw during the day. With a dark moon (and I prefer to fish dark moons) I use larger, darker baits the same as I would in heavily stained or muddy, dark water for the exact same reasons.

The two best night fishermen I know have completely different perspectives on using lights. They both agree that light is not your friend and can alarm fish but one uses black lights strategically placed in his boat and the other refuses to uses any light at all.