Here's an article written by Paul which appeared
in the Winter '08 issue of "The Next Bite - Esox" magazine.
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Vermilion
Things That Make You Go HMMM...
The purpose of this article is to provide some insight into some things that
every muskie fisherman has experienced. The kind of things that make you sit,
scratch your head, and contemplate. Some are serious, and some are humorous,
but most of you can relate:
COMBAT FISHING
I'm going to start this thing off on a serious note, and elaborate a bit on
courtesy. I've been witnessing a lot of muskie anglers pulling up on a spot
and casting when another boat is already on it. I'm not talking about a huge
weed flat or sprawling reef, but rather a small rock pile, island, or point.
I don't know how many times I've seen two, three, or even four boats on the
same rock pile or island area. I realize that some of this may be a guide
with a follow boat, but most of the time this simply isn't the case.
Come on folks, I don't
care if you are the most accomplished muskie fisherman on the lake, with
tournament wins and twenty years of guiding. The kid in the 14 foot boat
with the 9.9 has as much right to fish a location as you! Too many times
I've witnessed people fly up to a reef, and almost swamp the poor soul
fishing it. Or worse yet, they see that the other boat is fishing wallleye,
and they start bombarding the immediate area with casts, much to the dismay
of the gentleman with his wife and kids.
I realize the majority
of muskie fishermen aren't doing this, but the ones who are give muskie
anglers a bad reputation, and trust me it's already happening on Vermilion.
Most fishermen I know don't like combat fishing! I fish every location as
if I'm the first boat on it that day.
I can't count the times I've moved
onto a rockpile or island cluster five minutes after another boat has left,
and caught big fish or multiple fish. Fish another spot, and then come back
and cast until your heart's content.
BACK TO OLD FAITHFUL
Okay, you've sat down in the boat and engaged the gears in the old brain
housing group. You've been beating the water to a froth all day, for a few
days in a row, and there's no discernible pattern that's emerged. You've
downsized, upsized, supersized, and capsized. We've all been there.
What do I do? My answer is simple. Snap on the one favorite bait in your box,
the one that you have the utmost confidence in, and head to one of your
favorite spots. If you are on unfamiliar water, head for the nearest island
complex, reef, weedbed, etc., with multiple structural elements, and fish
diligently. Pay attention to detail as far as cast placement and boat position,
and start casting. Don't "tighten up" and put a death grip on your rod, but
fish the way you know how and keep plugging, and you may be surprised at the
results. I offer an example that happened in October of 2005.
My partner and I had been hitting it hard all day, and to say that we were
frustrated would be an understatement. The high temperature had been about
97 degrees, and there wasn't the slightest hint of a breeze. We had fallen
into the conundrum of multiple lure switches, and it had been an effort in
futility. After casting a crankbait up on some exposed rocks, I took five,
and decided to move a short distance to a big reef with multiple spines
projecting off of it. In a rather vociferous tone I exclaimed, " The big
Eagletail's going on now!" (When casting, that's my number one confidence bait.)
As darkness fell, we resumed casting, and five minutes later, I felt a hard hit,
and rocked the boat with a hookset borne of pent up frustration. My 8 foot St.
Croix loaded up perfectly, and a short time later I released a pretty 45 inch
muskie, and with newfound enthusiasm, began plugging away again. Ten minutes
later, I rocked the boat with another hookset, fighting the identical twin to
the first fish to the net. After a quick photo and release, high fives were
exchanged, and our feelings about muskies and life in general were restored!
One reason for our success may have been the low light, but our comfort level
and confidence in our tactics are just as attributable.
I like to use the analogy of a hitter in baseball who is mired in a bad slump.
After the game, he stews in the clubhouse, watching video of his at bats. He
analyzes everything, talks to teammates and his hitting coach, watches video
of pitchers, and in general obsesses about his slump. When he finally just
steps to the plate, relaxes the death grip on the bat, and swings easy, the
hits come. He wonders what was ever wrong in the first place. The same principle
applies to muskie fishing.
AREN'T MUSKIES TERRITORIAL?
I don't know how many times I've been asked by people, and some very experienced
muskie fishermen, "Aren't muskies territorial?" This seems to be ingrained in a
lot of fishermen's heads. I've watched other boats pull onto a prime reef or weedbed,
cast away, catch and release a fish, and blow doors off the spot. I sat a distance
away, scratched my head, and moved over to that location and caught one or two other muskies.
Sure an actively feeding queen of the hill may have the spot on the spot to herself
for a time. But it's usually a short time, and other fish can be caught in the same
general area. On many occasions, I've motored outside a big, sun warmed reef, and
counted seven to ten different muskies lazily sunning themselves. I've come back
to that reef at first dark, and boated three fish within yards of each other.
Another example occurred in October of 2003. My partner and I didn't get out trolling
until 2 p.m., and we were full of anticipation. The skies were dark and gray, and
there was a light chop rippling the surface. The water temperature was in the low
40's. Before we were even able to settle into our trolling run, his clicker screamed,
and he grabbed the rod out of the holder. After a short battle, which included some
impressive bulldogging runs, he slid her impressive length into the Big Kahuna. After
a couple quick photos, he released a beautiful fall fattie, who measured out at 53 inches.
After the customary high fives and back slapping, the motor was again in gear. A short
time later, his clicker screamed again to the tune of a fat 45 inch muskie. We doggedly
kept trolling that spot, and reaped a bountiful reward. I caught and released a beautiful
47 inch muskie, followed by another 47 inch muskie for him, and as an added bonus, we
boated two 40 inch northerns. These fish were caught within 200 yards of each other,
with a couple in almost the exact same spot. The fish were there for one reason, to
feed on the schooled tulibees. If we hadn't maintained our diligence, look what we
would've missed!
FISHING FOR SQUIRRELS
There I am, Mister Muskie guy, elaborating about location, habits, lure selection,
presentation, and all of the myriad things muskie fishermen converse about. In the
back of the boat; a green rookie, eagerly absorbing the wealth of information being
proffered. This rookie in the back proceeds to launch a topwater at the shoreline,
and the squirrels are taking cover. The bait lands on the rocks, and a little sheepishly,
he pulls his lure over a boulder.
Of course, you know what happens next. The water erupts, the lure disappears inside a
muskies mouth, he stands there with his mouth hanging open, and the coaching begins.
"Set the hook!" Oblivious, he begins cranking the reel, and the muskie slides toward the
boat, the angler mesmerized by the commotion on the surface. The fish gets closer, and
the "knowledgeable" muskie guy exclaims, "Loosen your drag!", which is met with a blank
stare and more cranking. The fish lays alongside the boat, he slides it into the net,
and the Muskie Guy says "Good job, nice fish!"
As a guide and fishing mentor, I love it when this happens. But it really makes me wonder
when I see someone do everything "right", and still lose a muskie. Then the aforementioned
happens, and I think, sometimes it's just meant to be, and sometimes it's not! There have
also been many times where two people in the boat are very seasoned anglers, and the
third has virtually no experience. Yet, at the conclusion of a three fish day, the
inexperienced fisherman exclaims, "what's so hard about this?" All three fish were
boated by the greenhorn! It keeps a fellow's ego from metastasizing too much!
SPEED THRILLS
At times throughout the season, usually in July and August, I like to throw the fish a
changeup. When the muskies are getting really pressured, burning a bucktail with some
bulging mixed in to the retrieve is very effective. A favorite of mine is the Llungen
"In Line." Paired with an Abu Garcia 7000 Big Game, you can absolutely scream this bait
through the water with a minimal amount of resistance because of it's clevis-less design..
However I have a different opinion of why this works than a lot of people. On many occasions
I've heard people say that burning a bucktail is effective because the bait is moving so fast
that the muskie is forced to make a decision. Hit the bait or don't, the implication being
that the muskie cant follow because the bait is moving too fast. Hmm?
I've seen muskies
follow a bucktail being burned as fast as it could possibly be, and look graceful and
effortless in doing so! Trust me, they can follow and close on anything they want.
I believe the reason burning works is because it's a change. It's something different that
the fish aren't seeing all the time. I just don't see a lot of fishermen doing it for any
duration. Without the right reel and bait combination, it can be physically draining. Most
people burn for a short time, and then it's back to the same old retrieve speed again.
Muskies get conditioned to the baits going at the same old speed, and it usually results
in lazy follows. Stick with the burning for a while, and you will be happy with the the results.
CAPTAIN HOOK
This is another subject that I'm sure a lot of muskie anglers have experienced, or were
a firsthand witness to. It just seems that certain people have a proclivity to get hooked
themselves when removing the hooks from a muskie. In the hopes of sparing certain people
the embarrassment, no names will be revealed!
My fishing partner, who we'll refer to as Guido, decided that a net job wasn't necessary
on this mid 30 inch muskie. With the muskie resting on the surface, he dove into the task
of removing the hook from the corner of the fish's mouth. Suddenly, the feisty little
muskie thrashed, and the treble became embedded in his finger, at which time he instinctively
reached for it with his other hand, and became entangled in that one too. Poor Guido was
handcuffed, and after a quick thrash, the fish swam off, unscathed.
I turned my attention to getting the hooks out of his hands. I was able to push one barb
through his finger, and cut it, but one of the hooks was embedded down to the bone. I
removed the hook from the jerkbait, and took off to the landing, and then to the emergency
room. After a few obligatory snickers from the nurses, the doctor removed the hook, stitched
him up, and we headed back to the lake. Adding insult to injury, I boated my third muskie
of the day to his zero when we resumed casting! He has been hooked four times in his muskie
fishing career.
My incident was comparatively minor. While fishing solo with my two Labrador Retrievers,
I landed a beautiful fall muskie. With the fish in the net and resting comfortably in the
water, I became hooked by one treble. Luckily, I was able to remove the hook from the
muskie without the fish thrashing, leaving me attached to a 10 inch Jake. I promptly
measured the muskie at 53.5 inches, and released her unharmed, without the fish leaving
the water. I then removed the hook from my finger. The muskie Gods have been kind to me
in htis department thus far! After the fact, you can look back and laugh, but at the
time it's pretty serious business. Be careful, and always carry cutters!
I know all muskie fishermen have a number of things that make them sit and scratch their
heads, and these are just a few of the things that make me go hmm...
Paul lives in Virginia, Minnesota, and fishes and guides on Lake Vermilion. His website
is at http://pollockguideservice.com, and his email is pauljpollock@yahoo.com. Paul's cell
number is 218-348-3057.
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