# Muskie Techniques & Lures



## mtnman (Jan 13, 2008)

I found this article and its full of great info!!!

Muskie Techniques & Lures 




The best way to show someone how to catch A Muskellunge or Muskie is to eliminate all the folklore that surrounds them.

You have to troll really fast for them - WRONG 
You have to use 30 pound test - WRONG 
You have to use really big lures - WRONG

You can catch Muskie trolling fast with heavy line and big lures but you can catch many more if you refine your strategy. But first a quick introduction to Muskie.

There are two kinds of Muskie . There is the indigenous Muskellunge and the Tiger Muskie. A natural Muskellunge can reach great sizes, and in some areas, the fish has to be 48 inches to keep. Many Muskellunge in the 40 to 50 pound range are caught every year. Tiger Muskie, are a highbred between a Muskellunge and a Northern Pike. Tiger Muskie average around 14 pounds but big ones in the 30 pound range are caught. A 45 inch Tiger Muskie would be a trophy by many but considered a medium sized Muskellunge

The natural Muskellunge is more common in the Great Lakes and the bigger waterways in North Western Ontario. Many big rivers running into the Great Lakes will hold populations of Muskellunge as well. They are making their way down the Trent-Severn Waterway from Georgeon Bay and can be found in some of the big lakes that are connected to the Great Lakes. 

Tiger Muskie have been released in many lakes and rivers in Southern, Central and Eastern Ontario. The Tiger Muskie were thought to be sterile but as the guy said in the Jurassic Park movie, nature will find a way. Tiger Muskie are breeding in the Kawartha Lakes and have basically eaten the lakes clean. 15 years ago, you were lucky to catch 5 in a whole year and now we are catching 10 in a weekend. 

Muskie are like Pike is some ways, they like to ambush their prey. I don't think anyone would disagree that Muskie are considerably more aggressive. Muskie will hang around rock shoals, weedy lines, river current or deep holes. Where-ever there is a large population of other fish, Muskie will be there.

How to catch them.

It's true that you should troll a little bit faster then you would for walleye but don't go screaming down the lake at 15 miles an hour. You can catch Muskie going fast but not near as many as you would going at a slower speed. 


People do catch Muskie using big 8 inch long crank baits and swim whizzes but you will catch twice as many using a nice 4 or 5 inch floating fire-tiger or orange Rapala. The jointed Rapalas work even better. Fire-tiger is best during the day and the orange is best at night or just before dark. If they are not hitting either, go to a brown or silver color. 


Like any fishing, the thinner the line, the more fish you catch. Like most fresh water fish, visibility of the fishing line makes a big difference on whether the fish will strike or not. In a lake that does not have very many weeds, you should use 8 pound dark green line. If you are in a weedy area or an area that has sharp rocks or Zebra Muscles, then you might want to go to 10 pound test. If you use 15 or 20 pound test, you will not get near as many hits. 


Salt and scent - Muskie are very sensitive to human smell as well as other chemicals like gasoline. You should wash you hands with sugar before you handle your lures. Also, you should always use fish scent on the lure. Another trick is salt. Both Muskie and Pike have receptors on the bottom of their jaws which react to positively charged water particles which are created when feeder fish swim through the water. If you want to boost your fish scent, add salt to it. Believe me, it really works. 


Muskie also are very sensitive to motor sounds so when you are trolling, try to have at least 70 yards of line out. If there are a few people trolling out of the same boat, try to have your lures out the exact same distance to give the appearance of a school of fish. This also helps attract attention. 


Crank Baits - In early to lake Spring, Walleyes and Bass are is the shallows spawning. This is when a lot of big Muskie come right into shore and feed in 1 to 3 feet of water. Try casting with a spinner-bait or a Rapala towards the shore like you would for Largemouth Bass. 


In the last couple of years, we found that while using silver leaders, we were losing fish. Actually, we would have a hit and then the whole lure was gone. What we believe is happening is the Muskie sees the lure and also sees the leader and hits what it thinks is the head of its prey. Thus it's hitting the end of the leader and biting through the line. When we switched to black leaders, the problem disappeared. 


For those of you who are experienced Muskie hunters, we have a question for you. Do you ever notice the first Muskie is the hardest to catch. Then after that it seems a little easier. You will notice it in a lake with an extremely high Muskie population. Once we got our first Muskie, we would let the Muskie go but after, rub the lures in the slime that the fish left on our rubber mesh net. It seems to work. Maybe the smell of another Muskie eliminates a fear factor. Not quite sure on this one. 


In conclusion, the best results for Muskie is to use a medium rod and 8 to 10 pound test line dark green line. Use medium size jointed lures with fire-tiger, orange and chartreuse colors. Be very careful to not get any gas on your hands and always use lots of fish scent. Muskie will be found along weed beds, off rocky points, at river mouths or deeper holes that hold good populations of feeder fish. If you have a lot of experience fishing for Muskie, then use your proven techniques. If they don't work, then try some of my suggestions. Just remember, every lake is different with a different food chain, thus techniques should be slightly changed from lake to lake.


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## BigRiver (May 3, 2008)

Excellent Post MTNMAN =D> 

Couple of items I'd dispute, but all in all great job. :shock: 

Love to invite you up here sometime for a Northern (Canadian Shield) Muskie Hunt :wink: 

Cheers, 8) 
Rick (DTR)


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## Captain Ahab (May 3, 2008)

Does anyone wash their hands with Sugar?

And no MtnMan - that does not mean sweet beer!


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## slim357 (May 3, 2008)

Interesting, never heard of washing your hands in sugar. Do you ever use the figure 8 technique?


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## Popeye (May 3, 2008)

You said 70 yds of line out. Are you trolling directly behind you or using planer boards?


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## Jim (May 3, 2008)

slim357 said:


> Do you ever use the figure 8 technique?



I have heard of this, But where? :-k


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## mtnman (May 4, 2008)

Alot of people sware by the figure 8 but I can honestly say that Ive never caught a fish doing it. As for the trolling part, I dont fish from a boat to often. And in this article it says that the muskie is most agressive, I say a pike is way more aggressive than a muskie any day of the week. A muskie normally will only hit only when its hungry or if you put your bait near its nest but a pike will hit bait just to kill something. Well at least thats the way it is around here.
Esquired just for the record theres alot of sugar in beer and also the alcohol helps get your hands very clean and it works great for bad breath in the morning! I must say beer is a must for your tackle box! If you get cut on a muskies teeth and you pour beer on your cut it will take alot of the sting away and if that dont work you drink the rest and it takes all the pain away!!!!


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## BigRiver (May 5, 2008)

When casting I like to use the "figure 8" on almost every cast. I at least use an "L" when I get to the boat. Muskie will follow a bait to the boat sometimes but won't strike until there is a change in direction of the bait. It's a unbeleivable thrill to have a strike with only a foot of line out.
I do use a mask and planner boards when trolling shallow lakes such as Lake St. Clair and always have one bait about 3 ft down and 6 ft back in the prop. wash.
Top water is my favourite method but not always the most productive. Love to see a giant follow behind the bait. When a fish follows you don't slow down but rather speed up to trigger the strike.
Muskie are not line shy at all. I use 80 lb. power pro for casting and 100 lb. power pro when trolling. Terminal tackle is very important also....200 lb minimum.
Trolling speed varies from 2.5 mph in cold water to an incredibly fast speed of 8 mph in summer.
With catch and release you want to get the fish in as fast as possible so not to stress them to exaustion and then measure, photograph and release them as fast as possible.
Early season (season here starts in mid June after the spawn) I use smaller baits up to 8". In the Fall, when they are putting on the feedbag, then I use 10 to 16 inch baits (mid Sept to season close Dec 15th).
That's just my 2 cents worth !
Rick


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## Salmon_Slayer_2008_Lund (May 7, 2008)

The 8lb and 10lb test I probably will never use. I use in the Kawartha's 100lb Power Pro in green. Why so heavy? WEEDS WEEDS AND WEEDS. Plus I don't want to over exhaust Muskie because they are sensitive fish. I hook it and about 2 mins later its in the boat. Plus you never know if a 54" would smack your lure. I got a 45" that was measured wrong, with a little Blue Fox Vibrax #5. The same kind you would use for Trout and Salmon. And yes the theory is true that if you catch 1 Muskie the other comes faster. Maybe the thrashing of the fish that it channels the rest in.


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## BigRiver (May 11, 2008)

Hey Salmon Slayer,
Exactly......big line, no stretch and gett'm in as fast as possible and measure, photo and release them in record time.... =D>


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## BigRiver (May 21, 2008)

Hey SS,
May 7th is the Muskie opener on the French.....was up last weekend for Pickerel (Walleye) on the Pickerel and French Rivers.
Was so cold.....Snowed Friday mid day and Monday morning of the May 24 Weekend up there. They sure do taste good tho !
You'll have to come up and fish here with me. Give me a call. 519-658-3570 cell !
Rick


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## BigRiver (May 21, 2008)

SS,
Make that JUNE 7th for the opening of Muskie Season.  
Hope you can make it....?
Rick 8)


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## mtnman (May 22, 2008)

> I use in the Kawartha's 100lb Power Pro in green.


 I understand the weeds part but isnt the fight of a fish the best part of fishing? 1000 lb test is like hooking up a winch to a lure and just dragging the fish in. In my opinion thats more stressful on the fish than letting him tire some before you land it. Also when a fish is tired out its alot safer handleing it ( for you and the fish).
I know what the say about opinions so ill just leave it at that!


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## Salmon_Slayer_2008_Lund (May 22, 2008)

Thing is though I remember 1 Muskie I caught on 30lb braid and I had to tire it out. She was tired and had to revive in the net. I always unhook fish in the net. Then I grab the Muskie 1 hand under belly and the other on the tail and revive it.




BigRiver said:


> Hey SS,
> May 7th is the Muskie opener on the French.....was up last weekend for Pickerel (Walleye) on the Pickerel and French Rivers.
> Was so cold.....Snowed Friday mid day and Monday morning of the May 24 Weekend up there. They sure do taste good tho !
> You'll have to come up and fish here with me. Give me a call. 519-658-3570 cell !
> Rick



Ya for sure once my Salmon derby's are done. I have another 1 from July to August.


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## bAcKpAiN (May 22, 2008)

I hav never caught a musky, but I have watched alot of Bob Masekomer's "Simply Fishing" and I have seen several episodes where he got bit on the figure 8. He never knew one was following and BAM right at the boat.


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## Salmon_Slayer_2008_Lund (May 22, 2008)

Simply Fishing, I watch that show too. I have never nailed a Muskie on a figure 8. But if you notice he uses very heavy braid and heavy rods too.


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