Want to know what the craze is all about

After going out and spending a ridiculous amount of money for 16 lures and a rod reel combo, I have it in my head to find out what all the craze and hype about musky fishing is all about. Normally I am a walleye/panfish angler but all of the recent articles, pictures and stories of these big toothy creatures made me lift a eyebrow of curiousity. So this morning I am heading out with my new equipment and charged up batteries in search of the great musky, trying to find out if the juice is worth the squeeze.

Mike

For the most part I believe we ought to have our heads examined but that one chance out of those 10,000 casts makes it all worth it You’re not gonna catch fish everytime but when you do it is an extreme addrenaline rush I know it’s probabally easier said than done but don’t get discouraged when you don’t catch fish cause everyone on this site at one time or another goes through a dry spell

Well good luck

Well, when it comes to the money involved, yeah……. plungepool’s got it right. We SHOULD have our heads examined because the return is zero…….. unless an adrenaline rush will suffice as reward!

What’s the craze? It’s not because it’s a big fish with teeth. It’s about the behavior of the fish.

Imagine with me a sec…….

If you’re into whitetail deer hunting, you understand the increased heart rate and mental control you need when a big buck shows himself…….. out of range, but coming in. In deer hunting, you wait and hope the right shot presents itself. You may get involved with grunting or a shout to stop the deer if trotting but for the most part, you sit quiet, in wait, for ambush.

Muskies……… are like that big buck, COMING IN!!! But, the difference is that you’re not holding a gun or bow. You’re pulling a lure. Therefore, you have to control your emotions of excitement AND TRIGGER that fish to bite your lure.

Live bait and trolling almost never give you this kind of a rush and why most guys seem to like casting all over the place to find their fish. The action that follows is unparallelled. No other fish comes right in, fearless of your boat and presence, and ready to simply swim away because you couldn’t trigger the impulse to attack or feed.

Both adrenaline and frustration fuel our passions to succeed and master this mighty predator. Possessing a burst speed of 60mph, one can show up at any time, any moment, anywhere, and challenge your skills and preparations, young and old, novice and pro. The truth is, you never master muskies. It’s a game……… you and them, often played out at the end of your rod tip, at the boat!!! Ever fought a 20lb. fish with only 2-3′ of line out??? You CAN’T win every time……… but the adrenaline rush is beyond compare.

Trolling and live baiting can be fun too……. I don’t mean to down play those techniques. Fighting a muskie from any vantage point can be a thrill but cast and retrieve techniques are far more rewarding for feelings of achievement and personal accomplishment.

What’s the craze about? Do your homework, get some gear, and get with someone that knows something (with success) about these fish and where/how to find them. It’ll speed up your learning curve.

Taking “a stab” at muskie fishing is not a good plan. Rarely does it “just happen”. So if your initial outing is/was a bust, don’t despair, just plan better and get some good know-how going. It’s not always easy learning about techniques and lures from action DVDs but they can be helpful and are always fun to watch so I’d advise getting something on the subject. Aim for “mechanics” content. “Muskies on the Shield” is a great one for discussing some conditions and a couple of lure presentations.

Anyway, I could ramble on and on because I’m addicted to this rush but I’ll shut up now.

Good luck and I hope you experience “the craze”!!!

When I started I bought a few lures and some other gear. It took me 2 years and many cast t actually get one in the boat. I had many follows in the mean time but I started telling myself that these fish never opene there mouth. After I caught my first one things started to get easier. That said I still have not landed a monster but my day will come.

ohhh yeah its all about time on the water. How else do you get better at doing something. Its all about practice

Was out today and had one follow, instead of doing a figure 8 or something I said wow and pulled the hook out of the water. Fishing partner landed a 38 to 40 incher that weighed 17 and one half lbs within the first hour of fishing. On a good note I observed some women in bikinis so summer is not officially over yet.

Mike

I have been dabbeling in muskies for about 4 years now, last Labor Day weekend at about 11 am on Sunday my buddie calls me from the neighboring lake. Soon as I answered he sounded shook said he just landed his first 50″ Said he was all shakey and weak kneed. I kinda teased him about being a shook up over a fish till this June when I had a well over 50″ nibbeling a bucktail trailer on my Wades at my feet boatside. I fully understood what he went through now and even though I never touched that fish with a hook I now know shes there and each time out I try for her again. Its an addiction, some say obsession , whatever you want to call it you are now hooked and there is no help. Welcome to the addiction.

Spent 17 hours casting today for 1 good follow, hope tomarrows as good.

I hear ya Thats what its all about I was unaware that there were muskies in Iaway until I started seein your posts. Do you have many muskie lakes around there

I\\\’m glad to see the beach bunnies are still out and about cause soon enough they\\\’ll be in hibernation

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Do you have many muskie lakes around there

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Big Spirit, East and West Okoboji hold good numbers and fair sized fish. Brushy is a newer lake but should be coming around for bigger fish soon, Pleasant creek and Big Creek also have muskie in them. I have seen them also in the Des Moines River below Saylorvill.

I fish mainly Spirit and West O partner got a fat 48\” off West Sunday. Theres 50\”+ on both the Okobojis and Big Spirit.

That is sweet I was wondering if you guys get the pressure that we get up here, or can you pull your boat out and not worry about everybody and their brother pounding your spots.

We get the pressure but lots of water and tons of structure. Some days are worse than others and on weekends the pleasure boats make things interesting but also make good targets. On West O you have multiple bays, deep water, rock reefs and huge weed beds in each. Also water down to 140\\\’+. Spirits shallower and less structure but seems to kick out big fish ( last 2 or 3 state records) The DNR netted a 47 pounder in their spring gill netting off Spirit heard a bigger one was lost on West. I have seen 2 maybe 3 fish between the 2 lakes that rival the current 50# record.

Want to come give it a shot let me know. Hudsons not that far away.

I would like to get some information on the difference of a musky and the pike. I have seen my fair share of muskies but have not really seen much of a pike. Now a friend of mine has told me and Im still very interested in finding out more about them. I would like to be able to go out and see where they are at. Im from wisconsin and have seen some really promissing spots.

Ok this may sound weird but you see more muskies than pike?? What lakes are you fishing I want to fish there. Pike are far more prevelent than muskies.

As far as baits northerns will eat just about anything. As a kid in MN we trolled daredevils, Thin Fins, original raps, red eyes and Lazy Ike\’s and always caught boat loads. We catch our fair share on about any muskie bait we throw to. Most days its not uncommon to baot a dozen northerns while casting or trolling for muskies.

Locations would include weedlines, points, rock piles or reefs. Bigger pike prefer cooler water so look in the deeper cooler water for the bigger ones. We have also caught them in 23\\\’ of water on the surface.

I could be wrong, but I think you meant you’ve seen more pike than muskies. You can catch pike in any lake and they are easy to catch, but you can only catch muskies in a handfull of lakes and are very tough to catch. Muskies have a defined pointed red tail, that is one obvious feature to compare the two.