Date: 6-20-15
Body of Water: M Lake
Boat: Numenon
With: A and K (partial)
Target: Muskies
Time: 5:45 - 11:45 AM
Conditions: Clear and calm; bright; 80 F; water 73 - 75 F and clear
As water temperatures climb, the window on local muskie fishing is closing. It will re-open in the fall, but opportunities for catching and releasing a healthy muskie locally will soon be dwindling. I was first on the lake, but soon joined by many of my muskie fans; and I spent a few fruitless hours casting top-waters, cranks, jerks and rubber without even knowingly moving a fish.
When the girls arrived, we elected to troll. That seemed a good option given my lack of success so far. Our lures of choice were Bucher Deep Raiders (one long, one short) and a Rapala Super Shad. These covered about 6 to 13 feet down, and with clear water and consistent marks at about 15 feet, it seemed like these were in the zone. I kept the boat off the distinct weed lines and usually in 20-30 feet; but made occasional forays as shallow as 15 feet and as deep as the lake gets (70+ feet.)
It pretty much didn't matter; after a couple of more hours of trolling, we still hadn't touched a fish.
I dropped the girls off and returned to a few known big-fish spots to cast Big Rubber. I still have never caught a fish on these types of lures, but I suspect if one of these local fish makes a mistake, it will be for a Pounder or Medusa. The fish and I will be equally surprised.
As water temperatures climb, the window on local muskie fishing is closing. It will re-open in the fall, but opportunities for catching and releasing a healthy muskie locally will soon be dwindling. I was first on the lake, but soon joined by many of my muskie fans; and I spent a few fruitless hours casting top-waters, cranks, jerks and rubber without even knowingly moving a fish.
When the girls arrived, we elected to troll. That seemed a good option given my lack of success so far. Our lures of choice were Bucher Deep Raiders (one long, one short) and a Rapala Super Shad. These covered about 6 to 13 feet down, and with clear water and consistent marks at about 15 feet, it seemed like these were in the zone. I kept the boat off the distinct weed lines and usually in 20-30 feet; but made occasional forays as shallow as 15 feet and as deep as the lake gets (70+ feet.)
It pretty much didn't matter; after a couple of more hours of trolling, we still hadn't touched a fish.
I dropped the girls off and returned to a few known big-fish spots to cast Big Rubber. I still have never caught a fish on these types of lures, but I suspect if one of these local fish makes a mistake, it will be for a Pounder or Medusa. The fish and I will be equally surprised.
What do I have to say about this?
I expect more from my fishing, but the girls were super happy with the conditions of the day. So, I can't really expect more than that. We trolled a simple three-rod spread, and at speeds of 3.5 to almost 5 mph, we put a lot of lure-miles in without a strike. Trolling conditions were good, at least, with well-defined weed edges, suspended fish on the sonar, good water clarity and few floating cut weeds. And I left at the right time; while crowded, the lake was still fishable as I pulled lines at 11:30; but the ramp was a grid-locked zoo of arriving recreational boaters.
I expect more from my fishing, but the girls were super happy with the conditions of the day. So, I can't really expect more than that. We trolled a simple three-rod spread, and at speeds of 3.5 to almost 5 mph, we put a lot of lure-miles in without a strike. Trolling conditions were good, at least, with well-defined weed edges, suspended fish on the sonar, good water clarity and few floating cut weeds. And I left at the right time; while crowded, the lake was still fishable as I pulled lines at 11:30; but the ramp was a grid-locked zoo of arriving recreational boaters.
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