Muskie Lure
Muskie Lure
The Great Muskie Challenge
My family and I had arrived at our summer cabin in Mercer, Wisconsin the night before and I was determined to be one of the first fishermen out on the lake that morning.
I rolled out of my sleeping bag and because it
was still dark, grabbed my flashlight and proceeded to untie the boat and push it down the ramp into the water. I tied the boat up to the pier and went hunting for the oars. I found them in the cabin my parents were sleeping in under my mom and dads bed. My parents weren’t into roughing it by sleeping in a tent like me. Outdoor camping was not their thing. By the time I found the oars and got my ice chest filled with ice and a couple of sodas it was light out. If I was going to be the first fisherman on the lake I had better get going.
The boat was a metal row boat and the motor was my back,legs and arms. My mission that day was to catch a Muskie. Of course let it be known that there had only been a dozen or so Muskie caught in Long Lake in the last 2 years. Long Lake was not exactly a Muskie hot bed. But, at age 12 I was one determined young man. I didn’t know Muskie didn’t bite in the morning or when the wind was blowing. Well, it was morning and the wind was blowing.
I headed for a small island that was off shore about 250 yards. There was a large patch of reeds from the shore of the island out about 50 feet into the water. When I got about 20 yards from the reeds I decided that was the perfect spot. It turned out I wasn’t the first one on the lake that morning. There were already two boats about 50 yards away from me.
I stood up on the back seat of the boat and prepared to cast my Pikey minnow lure to the edge of the reeds. I cast that lure about a foot from the edge of the reeds. Patting my self on the back for such a great first cast, I began to reel in the lure.
All of a sudden the water broke and I saw this large tail come out of the water. Instinctively, I gave the pole a big jerk and when I did that the pole almost bent in half. It was obvious that I had hooked a pretty good size fish. I was determined to get that fish close to the boat so I could see how big it was. The fish and I fought each other for about 3 or 4 minutes before I was able to get him close enough to see how big he was. The fish was huge, so I hollered for help from the neighboring boats. One guy hurried over near me and lashed his boat to mine and climbed into my boat. He was obviously an experienced fisherman. He not only had a net, but a small gun also. He netted the fish and then shot him in the head. We hoisted him into my boat and stuffed him under the wooden floor grate in the bottom of the boat. My helper asked me if I knew I had just caught a big Muskie. I answered “yes” and thanked him for his help. He got back in his boat and I rowed for home.
My parents and I took the fish to the Long Lake Lodge to be weighed and measured. He measured 46.5” long and weighed 28 lbs 6 oz. I was a real happy camper and my parents were very proud. I crawled into my sleeping bag that night knowing that I had met The Great Muskie Challenge.This is a true story that took place in 1953
About the Author
Mark Schmitz has just retired and is embarking on a new venture. He has opened a new website called MMS Outdoor Fun which features quality camping equipment and supplies. This goes along with what his family loves to do. You guessed it They love to go camping.
Check us out at camping
How to fish for muskies?
So a lot of people have told me there is good muskie action in the fall! Well I am intrigued and I would really like to get started with fishing for them. I was just looking for a few pointers. What are the best lures to use (please explain type if the name is foreign to most people), where do I fish, what are the best conditions for it. Any and all help is appreciated. Thanks!
oh and also I have a bass pole but I am sure I will need something stronger for muskie, what kind of pole, action, and string strength would i need? Thanks again!
Go Muskie has some great info , (thumbs up dude!). It’s a shame he lost his first answer; I’ll bet it was even more informative.
Here’s my 2 cents:
1. The cheapest outfit I would purchase would be this:
A. Abu Garcia 6500 C-3- Here’s the review on the Abu Garcia- http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Product_10151_-1_10001_74090____SearchResults
B. BPS Musky Rod- Here’s the review- http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Product_10151_-1_10001_44305____SearchResults
If you get a cheaper Rod & Reel than the above outfit you will either have to replace it due to failure or you will end up hating it because it is a nightmare to use.
It’s important to understand that Muskie are big, mean, critters that can make short work of inadequate tackle.
Also, Muskie tend to DIE of exhaustion if you play them too long. Another reason to use GOOD GEAR! You certainly don’t want to KILL the trophy Muskie you just caught because your drag system can’t be cranked down to 10 plus Lbs……….
Line should be Power Pro 12/50 (http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Product_10151_-1_10001_44282____SearchResults), (or bigger if you want- 12/50 always worked for me and I’ve NEVER had a break-off. It’s also MUCH easier to cast.).Remember, using a wire leader is not always mandatory. You will get MANY more strikes using a 30-40LB Fluorocarbon leader. BUT, you will end up occasionally losing some lures. Up to you- Muskie lures aren’t cheap- but once you spend a day casting without one hit you may decide to go with Fluro…
Where to Fish? That’s a tough Q…………and depends on where you are located, whether your in a lake or river system & what time of year it is. Here in MN, lake Muskie “return” to the deepwater weed-edges in the Fall. Musky like a mixture of cabbage, reeds and mil-foil. Anytime you get a mixture of deepwater weeds adjacent to a major drop spend some extra time either casting or trolling that area- esp in the Fall.
Conditions???- Seems like my best fishing days for ole Musky is on overcast, rainy, days with wind no faster than 5-10 MPH. The more “dismal” the weather the better the fishing! (lol) Try fishing the “windy side” of the Lake- wind “breaks up” your image and your lines image in the water so you remain “stealthy”.
Lures???- I think Go Muskie mentioned many good lures. Here are my most productive lures:
1. 5/8-3/4 OZ large colorado-bladed Spinnerbait’s- Amazingly, this sized Spinnerbait would be considered a “finesse” type lure for Musky- http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Product_10151_-1_10001_61483_100006000_100000000_100006000_100-6-0
2.In-line Spinner bait- http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Product_10151_-1_10001_103107____SearchResults
In-line Spinners and large Spinnerbaits are just all around good lures to cast. They cover water quickly and “find fish” for you.
3. Rapala giant Shad Wrap- http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Product_10151_-1_10001_2852____SearchResults
4. Larger 10″ Curly-tailed Grub with a 1 OZ Jig- A “go to” lure that works well.
5. Salmo Floating Pike- Great Pike & Muskie lure- http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/links/link.jsp?id=0029875119478a&type=product&cmCat=SEARCH_all&returnPage=search-results1.jsp&Ntt=muskie+bait&Ntk=Products&sort=all&_D%3AhasJS=+&N=0&_D%3Asort=+&Nty=1&hasJS=true&_DARGS=%2Fcabelas%2Fen%2Fcommon%2Fsearch%2Fsearch-box.jsp.form1&_dyncharset=ISO-8859-1
These 5 lures could def get you started……
Hope this extra info help s ya?? Good luck fishing!