If you were not on the lakes or Old Rivers this weekend, you missed out on some fine days for fishing.

The high pressure system that stalled on top of us for the past 10 days or so finally gave way to clouds and a slight chance of rain.

The barometric pressure fell, daytime air temperatures rose and the fish turned on.

Many people think a bright bluebird day is the best time to fish.

That’s backwards. Of course, the best time to go fishing is when you can, but if you’re fortunate to be able choose the days you fish, try going just before and during the passage of a November cold front.

This past week, our water temperatures have somewhat stabilized. The average water surface temperature this weekend is about 64 degrees. That’s perfect for bass and white perch.

The baitfish, threadfin shad, bream and crawfish are holding in shallow water for the most part, and that’s where you will find the game fish when the air pressure is low.

Shallow water fishing is much easier than fishing deep water for some people. I was raised fishing deep water so I think just the opposite. My preference is a deep water bite but you can’t fish your strengths if the fish are not there.

Well, you could but you may go home fishless. This is the time of year when the bite, the most active part of the day, reverses from early to mid day.

During the summer the surface water is at its coolest early in the morning so the shallow bite is better early than the mid-day bite. We move to deeper water as the sun warms the shallows during the summer months.

Right now the fish seem to be holding a bit deeper early in the morning and they are moving up by noon feeding in shallow water as the sun warms the surface.

As we move into late fall and early winter this pattern will become stronger. Depending on the lake I like to start early in the 8 to 15 foot depths then move up to thin water as the day grows longer.

There are so many variables in fishing that the opposite could work. I think that’s what makes bass fanatics so crazy about the sport.

Bass fishing is a mental game. It’s all about location simply because you cannot catch what is not there. We have to take in consideration the current weather conditions, water level, water clarity, wind, cover, type of retrieve and then lure selection and lure color.

Many think lure type and color are the first things to consider, but it’s not. You can cast a lure the fish will eat all day but if you’re not casting the lure to a fish, you won’t catch anything. So location is number one.

Find the fish, then choose a lure that covers the depth your fishing and matches the bait fish the bass or white perch are feeding on.

Eddie Roberts writes a weekly fishing column for The Democrat. He can be reached at fishingwitheddie@bellsouth.net.