Musky caught while targeting other species.

[Sherpa]

Just wondering if anyone has much experience catching muskies while targeting other species. I have caught two this year on small rapalas while trying to catch walleye or bass. I spent the last five days trying to get a musky and didn't get one until I started fishing for walleye with a small rapala. It was around 43" which is way better than my only other musky ever that was 29".

[delcecchi]

I haven't actually caught a musky fishing for other stuff but had one on for about 15 minutes on a leech/lindy rig and 8 lb test and had one miss a 4 inch twister tail on a 1/8 oz jig.

That count? Both pretty nice fish.

Oh, and the one that tried to eat a bass I was in the process of catching.

[muskieboy46]

First two I caught were trolling for northern. 46inch and 48inch. Then I decided to fish for muskie with muskie lures. First summer I did that I only got a 42incher while my friend got a 46 and a 44 casting for northern off the back of the boat. Go figure right?

Also between my dad and I we have lost probably 10muskies while fishing for northern.

Oh and having them crush a bass or northern you are reeling in is pretty sweet, never got one in the net that way yet tho.

[BirddogLabs]

I've caught quite a few muskies while fishing for walleyes using jigs and minnows.

My personal best is a 48" incher, which was caught using the jig and shiner on 8 lb test line (without a leader). It was an incredible fight and I was amazed that we managed to land it. The first time we tried to net it, we found out that only the first half of it fit in the net. It ended up flopping out of the net and going back in the water. Surprisingly it stayed hooked. I managed to fight it back to the boat again without it cutting the line and we ended up sandwiching the musky between our fish net and a large minnow net that we had. It was one of the most memorable fishing moments I've had with my dad. We got the musky mounted so we would always remember that trip....as if we could ever forget!

[PerchJerker]

A few weeks ago I caught a 49 inch muskie on Tonka on a dropshot rig on 12 lb flourocarbon. The fish took off for deep water and we had to run it down with the trolling motor on HIGH three different times.

And two years ago I caught a 48 inch muskie on Mille Lacs trolling for walleyes after dark. They look REALLY BIG in the moonlight

I chase them with muskie gear too at times --- but those two "accidental" muskies are my biggest .....

[hanson]

This topic is right up my alley... can't seam to catch them intentionally.

October 2008 crank trolling walleyes on Cass Lake, Storm Thunderstick chrome/blue

October 2007 crank trolling walleyes on Cass Lake, Rapala HJ-14 Firetiger

[dcmusky]

Boy those Cass fish are pretty!

[Sherpa]

Wow, cool stories. How lucky is that to land one with the lower lb test lines and no leader. I have heard a lot of stories of musky hitting a fish that was being reeled in. I have actually also heard of people using live bluegills to catch them as well. Not sure if that's legal or not, but an interesting tactic nonetheless. I forgot to mention that on the first musky I caught I landed a perch on the same lure that was hardly bigger than the rapala I was using. Not a minute later on the same pass, BOOM a 29" musky nails it. That was pretty cool to me.

[Cold Front Pooch]

Weve gotten into 2 on the mud on Mille Lacs... both snapped us off at boatside... the odds of having a muskie bite on accident arent actually that low, The odds of landing it with inferior gear is slim... There was a guy on a Metro lake that caught a 51 on a chunk of crawler, kept it, went on the news and says I dont fish... so go figure lucky occurances happen

[carpmanjake]

i got my one and only muskie while going for pike during the fall turnover last year

[bemidjibasser]

I have caught two this year fishing for bass. Both 40 inchers. One on a DT 10 and the other just last sunday on a spook. I have caught quite a few while fishing for smallies on opener as well in the past few years. The longest musky I have caught was on a bass trip. I spotted her laying up on a sand flat in about 2 feet of water. I pitched my bass jig at it and she ate it. Measured 53 incher...15 lb test flouro copolymer line and a 7'mh bass rod.

[sbro73]

First muskie I ever caught was off a dock in the metro area, fishing for crappies. Caught a nice crappie on light tackle, bringing it in my crappie was slammed by a hungry tiger, I managed to catch both. The muskie was released, the crappie did not make it. I was consumed instantly by "Muskie Fever".

[dfv87]

My favorite fishing experience was nite trolling for eyes on Lake Alexander sveral falls ago and my neighbor hooking a 45" ski on a #7 jointed rapala. We got it boat side and looked at the net and knew... no way... Mike looked at me asnd asked if I would grab it under the jaw bone... again no way. We had several boats around us watching us figuring out what to do... it was like 2 monkeys doing a math problem. Lucky for us the ski rested enough to run again and straighten the hook and was gone. We still laugh about that night.

We have caught many smaller skis trolling cranks and lost more cranks than I care to admit to them also. I can see how they can give a guy "the Fever".