Justin Gaudry
09-16-2009, 09:53 AM
The following report appears in the September 2009 trip report thread as well, but I wanted to share it here also.
It was Sunday morning, September 13, 2009 and the forecast was for a hot, sunny high sky with little to no wind. The algae bloom was making some of the most desired fishing spots green and soupy so we looked for cleaner water. The days previous had been really slow for many of the anglers we had talked to, with more than one day of not seeing any fish for some.
We got out about 10:30 Sunday morning and tried some of the most reliable stuff we had. Fishing with a couple of friends (Captain and Middle Man) in Captain's boat, I was camped on the back deck. I lost a fish (after a couple of hours of absolutely nothing happening) in a shallow boulder saddle that came after a purple eagle tail with brass blade and big yellow trailer. After a good hook set, it just fell off. We only got to see the side of the fish when it turned on the hook set. It wasn't a giant, but was in the 40 inch class for sure.
We then made our way to a couple more historically productive areas, but were blanked there as well. At about 1:15, we pulled into a small sand beach area that still has nice green cabbage and started to make a pass through to see what we could find. I have fished this spot twice this year in the last month or so and have had an aggressive fish in the low to mid 40's come and play both times. The first time I had to try real hard not to get it hooked up at boat side. The second trip through there later in the week had a fish eat half way in and give me a great fight; only to be lost at the boat after it was mostly in and then out of the net. OOPS!
Anyway, we pull up to the weed bed. I have not been throwing a DCG yet because I was trying to take it easy on the body (more on that in another post) but I busted it out here because the fish that have come out here have both chased the same DCG (secret weapon colour pattern) and I don't want to mess with what worked here.
A few casts in, a fish comes charging out towards the bait eyeing up the big bucktail...I take it around twice in big turns at boatside with the 9 foot rod and realize I'm crowding Middle Man so I bring it out behind the boat around the 115 HP motor to the other side and it stays with me. Around a couple of more times and then I feel weight as I'm pulling through so I set the hook back at the fish and I get nothing!! It must have been holding on to the tinsel. DAMMIT!! Captains thinks that fish was 44-46 inches. Now, I missed a fish earlier that day and have been beat 3 times by a fish in this same spot so I'm starting to get a little riled up. A few deep breaths, a quick check of my hooks find them razor sharp and I throw the DCG back out as we continue through the spot. At this point, only myself and Middle Man are throwing. Captain is resting and watching so we have two lures going. Middle Man sees a fish about 3/4 of the way back to the boat and it jumps his smaller buchertail. A hook set followed by a couple of head shakes and the fish swims off. Another close call with a nice fish in the 40 inch class.
A couple of more casts and I have another fish coming behind the DCG. This fish spooks about 15 feet from the boat and darts off. I make a few wide turns with the hope that is was faking me out and just wanting to adjust it's attack angle. After two revolutions in the water I saw a flash from under the boat and I'm fighting the fish. It came out of nowhere (under the boat) and tried to destroy my bait. After a couple minutes, it slips into the cradle and we measure it at 41 inches before putting it back in the water.
I get a few pats on the back for "restoring their faith in me" after a few less than stellar results with fish at this spot previously (and the misfire earlier in the day.) As I'm carefully removing my big 7/0 hooks from the cradle, Middle Man says "there's another one", but it rolls on the bait out further and doesn't hook up. With my bait free of the cradle mesh and then straightened out again, I'm now back in the game. Not 10 casts later, another seemingly bigger fish than the one I just caught comes in hard. I take it around one big turn at the boat and then steer it out around the motor to head to the other side where there is more room for sweeping the 9 foot rod. It jumps on the bait just as I lift my rod slightly to go over the motor and I quickly rip the rod back towards the tail of the fish and the fight is on again. This coming only 5 minutes or so after releasing the last fish and barely a couple of minutes after starting to cast again. This fish was a great adversary doing all kinds of head shaking, short bull dog runs and heading 3/4 of the way towards the front of the boat before we're able to slide it into the cradle on the opposite side of the boat than we did with the other fish. It's a nice thick specimen and measures 41" again, but it quite a bite heavier than the other fish. At the point I'm about to bring the fish in for a quick photo I ask if anyone has a camera along and the answer is no. OOPS! Not a big deal since it's not the fish of a lifetime, but I spent a few extra seconds holding the fish in the water and admiring it's girth and previous battle scars on the nose. It looks like it's been hooked at least one other time before it ate my bait. Who knows, maybe I had it on a few weeks ago.
Feeling pretty good about the day now, we make one more run through the weed bed and middle man has two more fish come out. The first is a follow that nipped twice on the way back ot the boat but never got a hook and didn't go around at boat side. The second is a smaller fish (37-38 estimate) that goes around and around at the boat before we see middle man's rod buckle over and we think he's got one this time. But it was not to be on this day. Not 2 seconds later, the buchertail comes flying out of the water as the fish seemingly sucked it in and spit it out just as fast.
Adding it all up made it 7 muskies, we believe 7 different muskies, in one small weed bed in about one hour that all tried to eat. The boat captain is a muskie veteran; fishing many lakes over the years and has fished lake of the woods for 30 years. We ask if he's ever seen anything like that before. He says he's seen it a couple of times on Leech, but not on LOTW. He's has plenty of days and times he's seen multiple fish in the same spots, but never has he seen that many fish in one spot that all wanted to eat. Had we been better anglers, or a little bit luckier with hook-ups, we'd have caught 5 of those fish.
We fish a few more spots and then come back for one more pass through the weed bed, but nothing shows itself this time. I have to be back at the dock by 3 so we head in. Thinking about what I experienced and knowing it was possibly a once in a lifetime event. Sharing that hour and weed bed with a couple of good friends and being able to tell other good friends about it is better than any digital photos of my pair of 41 inchers could ever be. The double 41's made it the best casting day of my short career so far. I have previously caught two muskies casting in the same day twice, but on both of those days, each fish was less than 40 inches. I'm trying not to think about how good a day it could have been if I hadn't missed both those other fish that tried to eat. Or what might have happened if the fish were "on" in general and we hit that weed bed after already having 2 or 3 fish in the boat.
WOW! That's we we chase those big toothy critters. That's how "muskie fever" takes hold of someone and infects them for life. Captain answered a question I posed to him about muskie fever ever getting any better as your life goes on; he smiled and said simply, "No, it gets worse."
I should add, I was only on the crew of this trip after calling to ask if Captain has plans for that morning. He said he had made plans with Middle Man to go muskie fishing that day so I said I would make a few more calls because I didn't want them to stunt their trip to bring me in early or have to limit their area if they had planned to go on a big boat ride. The number of people around at this time of the year is much less so I had quickly exhausted my call sheet without even reaching someone. Wife has decided to pass on this trip so I was going to head out on my own before the phone rang and the Captain asked if I wanted to fish 3 in his boat. Having had them both in my boat on a previous occasion, I was fine with it was ok with them. We already knew we could make it work so it it was a no-brainer when the offer was made.
It's funny how things work out sometimes. Thanks for letting me tag along, Guys.
Afterthoughts:
For me, there is nothing better than a personal best of any kind coming from LOTW. Whether it's a first muskie, a first walleyes, numbers, size, etc. Not every fish is a 30 inch walleye or a 50 inch muskie. Each personal best accomplishment is significant and we celebrate that here as much as we can. Take pictures if you can, but the memories are what's important. Even better if you have someone to share it with at the time.
The secret weapon colour pattern is simply black in combination with another colour. I have caught 4 fish from 41 to 43.75 on this bait and lost 2 others that were in that size class or bigger. I've had to replace both hooks one time and re-shrink tube the bottom hook once as well. It's been bent up badly after each encounter, but straightens out enough to keep those blades churning. Middle Man's fish all came after his all copper buchtertail.
I will likely not get out fishing for the next two weeks because of the way some things are playing out so I'm glad I had a day like that before my hiatus.
__________________
It was Sunday morning, September 13, 2009 and the forecast was for a hot, sunny high sky with little to no wind. The algae bloom was making some of the most desired fishing spots green and soupy so we looked for cleaner water. The days previous had been really slow for many of the anglers we had talked to, with more than one day of not seeing any fish for some.
We got out about 10:30 Sunday morning and tried some of the most reliable stuff we had. Fishing with a couple of friends (Captain and Middle Man) in Captain's boat, I was camped on the back deck. I lost a fish (after a couple of hours of absolutely nothing happening) in a shallow boulder saddle that came after a purple eagle tail with brass blade and big yellow trailer. After a good hook set, it just fell off. We only got to see the side of the fish when it turned on the hook set. It wasn't a giant, but was in the 40 inch class for sure.
We then made our way to a couple more historically productive areas, but were blanked there as well. At about 1:15, we pulled into a small sand beach area that still has nice green cabbage and started to make a pass through to see what we could find. I have fished this spot twice this year in the last month or so and have had an aggressive fish in the low to mid 40's come and play both times. The first time I had to try real hard not to get it hooked up at boat side. The second trip through there later in the week had a fish eat half way in and give me a great fight; only to be lost at the boat after it was mostly in and then out of the net. OOPS!
Anyway, we pull up to the weed bed. I have not been throwing a DCG yet because I was trying to take it easy on the body (more on that in another post) but I busted it out here because the fish that have come out here have both chased the same DCG (secret weapon colour pattern) and I don't want to mess with what worked here.
A few casts in, a fish comes charging out towards the bait eyeing up the big bucktail...I take it around twice in big turns at boatside with the 9 foot rod and realize I'm crowding Middle Man so I bring it out behind the boat around the 115 HP motor to the other side and it stays with me. Around a couple of more times and then I feel weight as I'm pulling through so I set the hook back at the fish and I get nothing!! It must have been holding on to the tinsel. DAMMIT!! Captains thinks that fish was 44-46 inches. Now, I missed a fish earlier that day and have been beat 3 times by a fish in this same spot so I'm starting to get a little riled up. A few deep breaths, a quick check of my hooks find them razor sharp and I throw the DCG back out as we continue through the spot. At this point, only myself and Middle Man are throwing. Captain is resting and watching so we have two lures going. Middle Man sees a fish about 3/4 of the way back to the boat and it jumps his smaller buchertail. A hook set followed by a couple of head shakes and the fish swims off. Another close call with a nice fish in the 40 inch class.
A couple of more casts and I have another fish coming behind the DCG. This fish spooks about 15 feet from the boat and darts off. I make a few wide turns with the hope that is was faking me out and just wanting to adjust it's attack angle. After two revolutions in the water I saw a flash from under the boat and I'm fighting the fish. It came out of nowhere (under the boat) and tried to destroy my bait. After a couple minutes, it slips into the cradle and we measure it at 41 inches before putting it back in the water.
I get a few pats on the back for "restoring their faith in me" after a few less than stellar results with fish at this spot previously (and the misfire earlier in the day.) As I'm carefully removing my big 7/0 hooks from the cradle, Middle Man says "there's another one", but it rolls on the bait out further and doesn't hook up. With my bait free of the cradle mesh and then straightened out again, I'm now back in the game. Not 10 casts later, another seemingly bigger fish than the one I just caught comes in hard. I take it around one big turn at the boat and then steer it out around the motor to head to the other side where there is more room for sweeping the 9 foot rod. It jumps on the bait just as I lift my rod slightly to go over the motor and I quickly rip the rod back towards the tail of the fish and the fight is on again. This coming only 5 minutes or so after releasing the last fish and barely a couple of minutes after starting to cast again. This fish was a great adversary doing all kinds of head shaking, short bull dog runs and heading 3/4 of the way towards the front of the boat before we're able to slide it into the cradle on the opposite side of the boat than we did with the other fish. It's a nice thick specimen and measures 41" again, but it quite a bite heavier than the other fish. At the point I'm about to bring the fish in for a quick photo I ask if anyone has a camera along and the answer is no. OOPS! Not a big deal since it's not the fish of a lifetime, but I spent a few extra seconds holding the fish in the water and admiring it's girth and previous battle scars on the nose. It looks like it's been hooked at least one other time before it ate my bait. Who knows, maybe I had it on a few weeks ago.
Feeling pretty good about the day now, we make one more run through the weed bed and middle man has two more fish come out. The first is a follow that nipped twice on the way back ot the boat but never got a hook and didn't go around at boat side. The second is a smaller fish (37-38 estimate) that goes around and around at the boat before we see middle man's rod buckle over and we think he's got one this time. But it was not to be on this day. Not 2 seconds later, the buchertail comes flying out of the water as the fish seemingly sucked it in and spit it out just as fast.
Adding it all up made it 7 muskies, we believe 7 different muskies, in one small weed bed in about one hour that all tried to eat. The boat captain is a muskie veteran; fishing many lakes over the years and has fished lake of the woods for 30 years. We ask if he's ever seen anything like that before. He says he's seen it a couple of times on Leech, but not on LOTW. He's has plenty of days and times he's seen multiple fish in the same spots, but never has he seen that many fish in one spot that all wanted to eat. Had we been better anglers, or a little bit luckier with hook-ups, we'd have caught 5 of those fish.
We fish a few more spots and then come back for one more pass through the weed bed, but nothing shows itself this time. I have to be back at the dock by 3 so we head in. Thinking about what I experienced and knowing it was possibly a once in a lifetime event. Sharing that hour and weed bed with a couple of good friends and being able to tell other good friends about it is better than any digital photos of my pair of 41 inchers could ever be. The double 41's made it the best casting day of my short career so far. I have previously caught two muskies casting in the same day twice, but on both of those days, each fish was less than 40 inches. I'm trying not to think about how good a day it could have been if I hadn't missed both those other fish that tried to eat. Or what might have happened if the fish were "on" in general and we hit that weed bed after already having 2 or 3 fish in the boat.
WOW! That's we we chase those big toothy critters. That's how "muskie fever" takes hold of someone and infects them for life. Captain answered a question I posed to him about muskie fever ever getting any better as your life goes on; he smiled and said simply, "No, it gets worse."
I should add, I was only on the crew of this trip after calling to ask if Captain has plans for that morning. He said he had made plans with Middle Man to go muskie fishing that day so I said I would make a few more calls because I didn't want them to stunt their trip to bring me in early or have to limit their area if they had planned to go on a big boat ride. The number of people around at this time of the year is much less so I had quickly exhausted my call sheet without even reaching someone. Wife has decided to pass on this trip so I was going to head out on my own before the phone rang and the Captain asked if I wanted to fish 3 in his boat. Having had them both in my boat on a previous occasion, I was fine with it was ok with them. We already knew we could make it work so it it was a no-brainer when the offer was made.
It's funny how things work out sometimes. Thanks for letting me tag along, Guys.
Afterthoughts:
For me, there is nothing better than a personal best of any kind coming from LOTW. Whether it's a first muskie, a first walleyes, numbers, size, etc. Not every fish is a 30 inch walleye or a 50 inch muskie. Each personal best accomplishment is significant and we celebrate that here as much as we can. Take pictures if you can, but the memories are what's important. Even better if you have someone to share it with at the time.
The secret weapon colour pattern is simply black in combination with another colour. I have caught 4 fish from 41 to 43.75 on this bait and lost 2 others that were in that size class or bigger. I've had to replace both hooks one time and re-shrink tube the bottom hook once as well. It's been bent up badly after each encounter, but straightens out enough to keep those blades churning. Middle Man's fish all came after his all copper buchtertail.
I will likely not get out fishing for the next two weeks because of the way some things are playing out so I'm glad I had a day like that before my hiatus.
__________________