How was your musky fishing in 2019? Some of you caught your personal best musky, many caught lots of fish, and some of you struggled — especially early in the season when unstable weather and cooler-than-normal air and water temperatures seemed to be the rule.
To help you prepare for 2020, Musky Hunter asked four top guides from popular musky areas to discuss what they experienced in 2019 and the techniques they used to make their season successful. Learn from their experiences and use their techniques if you face similar conditions in the coming season.
Northern Wisconsin Roller Coaster
By Matt Raley
A late ice-out coupled with cold spring temperatures kept water temperatures down and weed growth minimal on many lakes to start the 2019 season in the Vilas and Oneida county region of Wisconsin where I fish. It could best be described as a roller coaster of a year.
Small baits worked over newly-forming weeds and wood was a key to getting musky action when the season opened. Windows of opportunity were short, but afternoon periods when the water temperature was the warmest seemed to produce a few more bites. Success was seen with small twitchbaits, gliders and bucktails.
When trolling before the water stratifies in the early season, muskies can be anywhere and everywhere. I had some success with net-worthy muskies trolling smaller four- to six-inch baits high in the water column. Such early season patterns persisted well into the middle of June.
Our summer patterns started to show up around the third week of June, but it took some lakes well into July to fire up to their full potential. The summer “bite” is my favorite time of year in this area because of its consistency. No matter the day, the water is warm and muskies have to eat due to their metabolism cranking full speed. During this time, I like to fish large baits quickly and erratically.
Denne historien er fra December 2019/January 2020-utgaven av Musky Hunter.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Denne historien er fra December 2019/January 2020-utgaven av Musky Hunter.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
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