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James Lake, New Post, WI · Muskellunge · 2026-11-13
ChangeEstimated species — not a state survey
The state hasn't reported Muskellunge in James Lake. This forecast uses the same bite model, but Muskellunge here is an ESTIMATE inferred from nearby lakes with confirmed surveys (based on 8 lakes within 40 mi, 61% confidence), not a confirmed catch record.
James Lake — Muskellunge
Overall rating
Muskellunge at James Lake — 2026-11-13
Poor · 39/100Best window: 2 PM (Fair · 51/100)
- Season
- Fall
- Moon
- 16% illuminated, waxingWaxing Crescent
- Est. surface temp
- 39.4°F
- Pressure
- 30.19 inHgStable
Est. water temp
39.4°F
v1 estimate from air temperature — not a sensor reading
Below Muskellunge's 75-80°F range
Air vs. last week
7°F cooler
36°F now vs 43°F this time last week
Measured air temperature at the nearest weather station — not water
Sun & moon
- Sunrise
- 7:02 AM
- Sunset
- 4:35 PM
- Moonrise
- 11:24 AM
- Moonset
- 7:34 PM
Sky, wind & pressureat best window · 2 PM
- Cloud cover
- 93%
- Precip chance
- 6%
- Wind
- 5 mph N
- Pressure
- 30.19 inHg Stable
Species context
Why this score
Poor (39/100) for Muskellunge: water is estimated at 39.4°F, below Muskellunge's 75-80°F optimal range. Best window: Dusk — boosts feeding activity by about 31%, one of their peak feeding windows. That hour also overlaps a major solunar period. 30.19 inHg and stable pressure modeled flat — no change from this fish's baseline. Light (5-10 mph) wind modeled about 10% below this fish's baseline.
What's driving the 2 PM score
Light window (dusk) is doing the most for this score. The score gives up the most on water temperature — 39.4°F estimated, about 45 points below its best. The whole day is then scaled to 95% for cold front passing through.
- Water temperature · hurting
- Light window · helping
- Solunar period · helping
- Barometric pressure · helping
- Wind · helping
Show the numbers behind this
Water temperature: 39.4°F estimated
0 of 45 pts
Optimal range 75-80°F
Well supportedWater temperature governs a cold-blooded fish's metabolism, so it is the largest term in the model (Christie & Regier 1988). The figure is a thermal-lag estimate built from forecast air temperature and the time of year — not a sensor reading, and not this lake's actual measured water.
Light window: Dusk
30 of 30 pts
Boosts feeding activity by about 31%
Well supportedLow-light feeding windows are the strongest timing signal inside a single day. How much each window is worth is this species' own cited response, sourced in its model file, not a generic curve.
Solunar period: Major period
5 of 5 pts
Not supported by testingPeer-reviewed testing of North American freshwater fisheries found no significant relationship between solunar values, lunar phase or lunar illumination and catch rates (SN Applied Sciences, 2023) — air temperature predicted catch better than any solunar table tested. It is shown because anglers expect it, and it is shown separately so you can discount it. We reviewed this evidence and cut its weight accordingly.
Barometric pressure: Stable (held neutral by the front)
10 of 10 pts
Modeled flat — no change from this fish's baseline
ContestedThe barometric effect is real to most anglers but small and contested in the literature — several of the species studies cited in this model report null results — so it carries one of the smallest weights here.
Wind: Light (5-10 mph)
9 of 10 pts
Modeled about 10% below this fish's baseline
Moderately supportedWind stacks forage on windward structure, but both the size and the direction of the effect depend on the species and the water, so it carries a modest weight.
Then the whole score is scaled
Season: Fall — ×1.00 (100% of the ungated score)
How catchable Muskellunge are at this point in the year. This scales the whole score rather than competing with the factors above — a fish that is dormant this time of year cannot score well no matter how good the hour looks.
Weather front: Cold front passing through — ×0.95 (95% of the ungated score)
A multi-hour frontal pattern read from the day's forecast trajectory. Because a front IS a barometric event, it replaces the single-reading pressure factor above, which is held neutral — the barometer is never counted twice.
Those 5 factors add up to 54 of 100 points, and the two multipliers above take that to 51. The weights are tuning constants — solunar's was cut after peer-reviewed testing found no predictive effect, and the others are adjusted as we validate them — shown here rather than hidden so you can weigh them against your own judgement.
What this score does not know
- Water clarity. We have no source for it and do not estimate it.
- Measured water temperature. The figure in the breakdown is a model over forecast air temperature, not a reading from a buoy or a probe.
- Baitfish and forage activity.
- How much fishing pressure this water has had.
- Where the fish actually are. Depth bands are the species' published seasonal ranges, not an observation of this lake.
- What anyone actually caught. No catch reports feed this score.
Conditions read from the National Weather Service as of Nov 13, 2026 at 2:28 PM CST. Solunar periods and sun/moon times are computed, not fetched.
When best caught
It's currently fall. Muskellunge typically hold 8-25 ft deep this time of year — at an estimated 39.4°F, this looks like a slower time of year to target them, since water temp is outside their optimal range.
Current depth
8-25 ft
This is the seasonal depth band from the species model, based on this species' typical behavior, not this lake's actual structure.
Today's solunar periods
- Major: 2:02 AM–4:02 AM
- Minor: 10:54 AM–11:54 AM
- Major: 2:27 PM–4:27 PM
- Minor: 7:04 PM–8:04 PM
Best times
When do muskellunge feed during the day?
Muskellunge feed most actively at Dusk, when activity runs about 50% above the daily average across all four light windows.
- Dawn0.75x
Suppresses feeding activity by about 25%.
- Daytime0.94x
Suppresses feeding activity by about 6%.
- Dusk1.31x
Boosts feeding activity by about 31%.
- Night0.50x
Suppresses feeding activity by about 50%.
Hour by hour
Hourly bite forecast
| Hour | Bite score | Rating | Light | Wind |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 PM | 51 | Fair | Dusk | 5 mph N |
| 3 PM | 51 | Fair | Dusk | 5 mph N |
| 4 PM | 51 | Fair | Dusk | 5 mph N |
| 5 PM | 48 | Fair | Dusk | 5 mph N |
| 6 PM | 31 | Poor | Night | 0 mph |
| 7 PM | 33 | Poor | Night | 0 mph |
| 8 PM | 33 | Poor | Night | 0 mph |
| 9 PM | 31 | Poor | Night | 0 mph |
| 10 PM | 31 | Poor | Night | 0 mph |
| 11 PM | 31 | Poor | Night | 0 mph |
Pick a lake and species to see a color-coded bite calendar: real hourly scores inside the ~48h forecast horizon, honest day-level estimates out to ~7 days, and clearly marked unavailable days beyond that.
Location
James Lake · 45.9411, -91.1432
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