Weather deals considerable influence in the fortunes of anglers, especially during the seasonal transitions.

I have experienced good times and doldrums in recent outings as weather fronts, wind shifts and cloud cover messed with my game plans.

Autumn’s cooler temperatures and increased rain are major factors from Lake Erie to the Ohio River and beyond. Our northeastern Ohio and western Pennsylvania region is especially susceptible to conditions created by shifting weather.

Steelhead anglers, for instance, hail the arrival of cold fronts laden with rain, knowing the precipitation creates swollen rivers that pull fish in from Lake Erie.

The weather’s effect is significant, typically turning the tables for anglers who had only modest success during the warmer, drier days.

After Labor Day, the trout migrate from Erie’s depths and meander around the harbors, beaches and breakwaters off Cleveland, Painesville, Ashtabula, Conneaut and Erie, Pa. They are content to gorge on giant schools of baitfish. But when the rains come, it’s as though someone flipped a switch signaling the trout to charge into the tributaries.

Rain also can be a turnoff.

Tyler Woak and I had enjoyed a successful morning last Saturday on the Ohio River. We had boated a nice limit of smallmouth and spotted bass, several walleyes, two saugers and a 6- or 7-pound sheepshead.

Bass were our target, but the other fish kept it interesting as we worked to upgrade our total weight with better-than-average smallies. We had high expectations, considering our last fish was a smallmouth topping 3 pounds.

Then it started raining, at first a sprinkle dimpling the blue-green river water, then intensifying into a downpour as a dark cloud loomed over the hills. We quickly donned our Gortex suits and resumed casting.

An hour passed and we hooked no fish, though we were using the same lures and working the same water that had been so productive earlier.

The only thing that was different was the weather. The puffy clouds and intermittent sunshine had given way to the dark cloud and rain squall – obviously turning off the bass and other species feeding on the prolific shad.

Soon the clouds parted, the sun broke through and the bass resumed snapping up our jigs and topwater poppers.

So, while the steelhead ganged up on Lake Erie’s shore were doing their autumn rain dance, we bass people down on the river were chanting “rain, rain, go away.”

Weather is a factor just as critical in anglers’ tactical approaches as lures and location. Rain is not the only variable. Wind direction, cloud cover, temperature, barometric pressure and even the sun and moon all play a role in influencing game fish and their prey.

Those who pay attention to changes and respond accordingly will enjoy better action chasing their favorite species.

Jack Wollitz has written this column since 1988. His book “The Common Angler” explores the passion of those who love fishing. Email him at jackbbaass@gmail.com.