Waves that Breathe

You may or may not have thought about it, but there are all sorts of different wave types. I’m not going to go scientific on this topic, but if you pay attention to different spots you fish- even in the extreme, like back bay to open ocean- you’ll see that what shows above the surface may be similar, but under the water two different waves that looks relatively the same can be tremendously different. One of my favorite types of waves are ones that “breathe.”

Some of you may not have had the opportunity to experience a wave that breathes, because your spots are more linked to near-shore wind driven waves. Those can have power when they get large, but for the most part even a four- or five-foot inshore wind-wave isn’t going to have the power a breathing wave does. A breathing wave has a lot more weight, and I feel much more stable in a breaking four-foot breaking wave, than in a three-foot breathing wave.

As a “breather” approaches you, the water in front will “inhale.” It’ll drop in front of your rock, or sand bar, or jetty, and pull out out and away from you. Then, the exhale comes- a bulge of unbroken water will surge towards you. It may not break until it’s right on top of your structure- or roll right through you depending on where you’re fishing. These waves reach down further than “normal” waves, and I find their presence alone can be the difference between skunk and glory on any given night.

These breathing waves are generally coming from the open ocean, and related to some more powerful forces at work out in the depths. In my experience, these waves draw out bait from cover with so much more ease compared to any “typical” surf wave. Even animals like tautog and bergals are so easily shoved and yanked from their hiding spots- and it only takes a single errant wave to move one just far enough- just a little bit further- so that a striper can nail it. So stripers will sometimes hang around places with waves that breathe.

Pay attention. That two-foot chop may look very similar to a two-foot breathing wave, but if you’re in the water you’ll feel the difference. And if you track surf reports and weather apps, and log like hell, you can predict when the perfect size breathers will be in your spots, too. That alone can unlock a pattern you may not have noticed before.

Storms can often drive breathing waves. Check out episode 45 of season 1 to hear our thoughts on fish the post-storm “come down”!