If you were new to Musky Fishing

[tgruenke]

My parents last year purchased a lake home on Lake Holcombe in WI. We did some fishing last year a few walleyes, crappies, northerns, and one musky while trying for other fish. We want to get more serious into musky's and try to get a few more this year. What tips do you wish you would have had when you started that you would be willing to share. Basic lures or technique. Any help is much appreciated.

[AWH]

Get a subscription to Musky Hunter Magazine. I've been a subscriber since almost day 1 (which was about 1990/91, somewhere in there). And although a lot of the articles are similar from year to year, they're always good to read to give you new ideas. As someone just starting out, it's a great resource. When reading the articles my advice is to not take anything as an absolute, but rather take what is said as simply an idea of different things to try, and allow those ideas to help you create your own ideas. Presentations, baits, types of water, etc.

Aaron

[goblueM]

Tip 1: budget 6 times as much money as you think you need to get into the sport

Tip 2: invest in a good rod and reel if you are serious about it (if you catch one, you sure as heck will get serious if you weren't before). Don't nickel-and-dime it, you will regret it later

Tip 3: You don't actually need that many lures.

Tip 4: There is a TON of info on here and folks are always eager to help out. You might even find someone willing to take you along somewhere in the Metro, which is a good way to learn

EDIT: take a camera! read up on proper release techniques. GET A GOOD NET! Its better to have the release tools (hook cutters, jaw spreaders, net, good pliers, net, etc) and just a few lures than a ton of lures and rods with no release gear.

Lastly, keep a positive mindset. Can be mentally and physically challenging, always keep that positive mental attitude and you'll find success

[Musky Buck]

Easy, maybe. Start as soon as the season opens and keep track of the water temps as you have action from biting or aggressive muskies. Fish prime times. Have the necessary release equipment prior to beginning. Fish hard and time on the water will give you what makes that lake tick. And hundreds of other things, read up.

[AWH]

read up on proper release techniques. GET A GOOD NET! Its better to have the release tools (hook cutters, jaw spreaders, net, good pliers, net, etc) and just a few lures than a ton of lures and rods with no release gear.

Probably the best advice you could get right there. Proper release tools are as important as any of the lures you'll have. Release tools are one thing you don't want to go cheap on, especially a good hook cutters (Knipex!). There's lots of them that look good and might perform alright for a hook or two. But if you're unfortunate enough to ever be attached to a fish by a big treble hook, you're going to want the tool that does the job every time and in the quickest fashion.

Aaron

[Cooter]

tgruenke - I'll get some specific tips for Holcombe to you tomorrow.

[HugoBox]

I'd consider spending some money on a good guide in the area. It would be worth it do a bit of research though and try to find someone who enjoys the teaching asepect of fishing. I did things totally bassakwards - started buying every bargain bin lure I could find and went out and casted like a donkey and lucked into a fish or two. The next off-season I started reading Musky Hunter (good suggestion Aaron - Rob Kimm and Jack Burns' book is really good as well) and spent a lot of time trying to relate what I read to the lakes I fish. I still buy waaaayyy too many lures and cast like a donkey, but I've tried to pay attention to a detail or two and occasionally I get to slime the net up. I don't know if anyone musky fishes a little though so I hope you're okay with going all in!! There are some really good folks on this forum who will help a lot -- no shortage of opinions, just don't ask for the best musky recipe or your PC may start smoking.

[Nick Kuhn]

Good advice so far. Well Holcombe is unique as the two basins are pretty different. I would spend time trying to learn one of the basins first. The water on Holcombe is pretty dark so noise and vibration are important (so bucktails and topwaters are good choices). Oh, and if you see a large fish jumping a ways off, it's a sturgeon. I've seen a couple guys motor over to where a sturgeon jumped. You won't catch much if you try that.

[cbrooks]

I say watch as many musky shows and read as much of the literature as you can. Buy a rod that is atleast 8 feet long(the shortest rod I use is 8'6''). Any reel will do if your a beginner its not the most important thing. Leaders use stealth, get at least 130lbs test. fishing line at least 80lbs. big net frabill or beckman. Hookcutter knipex but any hookcutter(got to be prepared) is better than not having one at all. For fishing lures for a beginner. I say one small bucktail, Double Cowgirl, pacemaker,regular bulldog, a Jake(crankbait),and weagle(walk the dog lure). As for color most guys would say black is a good color especially for topwater but if you fish long enough you will put together your own pattern when to use this color and when not to. If you ever have any question don't be afraid to post a question on here you have a bunch of guys wanting to talk about fishing and will be more than happy to talk fishing:) Hope you get a big one.

[eyehead]

All great advise guys!!!! After your all set-up with your Reel, Rods, Release tools,ect. Join a Muskies Inc. Chapter or try and find a guy who fishes your water that will take you out and show ya the ropes. MOST musky guys are more than willing to help a new guy coming into the sport.......Figure 8 after every cast. I know alot of times you wont see a fish follow, but always figue 8. You will catch more muskys doing it!!!! Other than that, just have fun. Hooking into your first big fish is something you will never forget.

[Comit 2]

With there being no good Musky lakes within 40 miles of me all I can say is, Moon rise. Your Ifinder will tell you when that is.

[50inchpig]

Avoid getting tricked into any serious relationships with the opposite sex, *poof* goes the fishing time

Start buying cheap beer, save some money, you'll need it

Join a local musky club and start communicating with people who are fishing your lake - building a network is the single best thing you can do to shorten your learning curve

Someone else mentioned take everything with a grain of salt, think it was AWH, don't get paranoid about the specifics but try to apply what you read about to your lake in a general sense. SO MUCH OF WHAT YOU LEARN will be lake-specific.

Practice, practice, practice, practice, practice your figure 8. Don't get discouraged by failure, go bigger and faster and practice some more. Once you 'get it' you'll know it and things will start happening for you at boatside.

[tgruenke]

Thanks for eveyone's tips and advice. Sounds like the biggest thing is to make sure that if you catch one you can safely release it without injuring yourself or the fish.

[10,000 Casts]

Not sure if this has been mentioned but make sure you have a good gps. Get one that can take a map chip if you can afford it. Go out before the season opens on a flat calm sunny day and start marking reefs and weedbeds. Think about the prodomanant wind and how you are going to want to fish those spots and build up your preliminary "milk run". Then when you start fishing those spots, mark a waypount or icon on every single fish you see. Don't be afraid to come back an hour or 2 later and revisit that same fish. Certainly comeback the next day. Get to know your fish. Try to find some promising spots that aren't "community spots" but those community spots are a good place to learn.

The second thing that I would mention is that traditionaly, Muskie fishing gets better as the water warms up. 70-74 degrees is a magic number for me and that may not be until July on some of the lakes depending on the spring we have. Don't get discouraged if you aren't seeing that many fish right way on opener but try to find the warmer water durring June if you can...

ANOTHER VOTE for RK's Book, I think it's called Pro Tactics - Muskies. That is a great read for anyone looking to get into the sport. Alot of really good info to get you started and it breaks it down by seasons which is huge imo. It also has alot of good pictures and recommendations.

[guideman]

As you see there are always a ot of opinions on how to get started in Muskie fishing.

The most important thing you can do after you spend all the money and read and watch all the "Experts", is to just pay attention when you're on the water.

You will learn more from just being on the water and doing it, than you can just watching someone else do it. It's not rocket science, it's just fishing man...Keep a log book and pay close attention to all the things happening around you and you will eventually get it.

And by the way, people do still catch Muskies on baits other than a cowgirl....

"Ace"

[bronzeback]

fish at night.

[Tim_Anderson]

tg,

Keep the attitude.

When you leave the water, it's only because you have to. And then in the back of your head, you are already planning your next attack. You're going to get them!

The fish WILL humble you.

Be persistent. Don't ever give up!

[Cooter]

Nick gave some good Holcombe advice, topwaters and bucktails are the bread and butter there. With stained water pretty much all year plus algae in the summer classic musky colors like an orange or green blade on a black bucktail work well. Not that you can't get fish deep on Holcombe but for starting out just fish the shallow weeds and you'll do fine. I believe you stated in the WI forum the cabin is near where the Jump R dumps in? If so you've got a lot of great musky water within spittin distance. Good rules of thumb for there are faster topwaters like a Topraider or Topper Stopper in the day or evening and then a slower one such as a creeper or Hawg Wobbler at last light and after. Be persistent with the figure 8, especially once it gets green and follows are tough to see.

[APCfishing]

You can always do what I did and jump in 50"pig's boat for a 12 hour cast-a-thon!

[hunter991]

there is alot of great advice here in this post. My .02 is get yourself a good rod and reel. Secure a lake map and ask questions. Make sure you have good release tools, good net, and always practice CPR. Learn how to keep fish alive so you or others can catch them later when they grow. Too many times i see people catch a fish and almost kill it because they don't know how to release a fish or take the hooks out.

also, check out musky hunter mag, although its useful, its the answer to all your problems but can help. What really is useful is Jim Saric on FoxFSN "the musky hunter" show. you can learn more in 20 min then reading every article in the mag. Jim does a fantastic job with this show.

I have been musky fishing for years, but that show always teaches me something to try. But what it really comes down to is time on the water and being in the right spot and NO ONE can teach you that except yourself. Understand that it is going to get frustrating at times and you may not catch a fish for months. Try to understand why and chalk it up to "muskie fishing" and learn why you aren't catching the fish. You can try to equate this to shooting a 12 pt buck. Not everyone has shot one, but they still try and when you do, its addictive.

One other piece of advice, don't start out too cheap on your equipment. I did, and i am sorry for it. I have a closet full of beginner stuff that goes unused. Not saying spend $1000 on a custom rod, but buy something that will last and that you don't have to replace every year because you wore it out. A good $100 MI, ToothTamer, Gander rod will work fine. A $200 reel is a good place to start. STay away from the wannabe $40 rods and $80 reels. I know some may disagree, but if you get into this sport, you will spend 3x the money replacing junk and spending time off the water.

[50inchpig]

hey i never promise anything i can't deliver on!

[guideman]

I agree with Hunter, always buy the best equipment you can afford. You'll never regret it especially when you are hooked up to a 40lb'er.

"Ace"

[muskydeceiver]

Didn't take the time to read through all the posts, but pick up a pair of polarized sunglasses. Make sure they are polarized. They cut the glare off the water significantly and you WILL see more follows because of them.

[ole matty]

I don't have anythng else to say since everyone above me had sum It Up pretty good. As for lures I had some luck throwing Minnowbaits and hybrid cranks ie Jake, grandma, slammer, big game, hybrid cranks- shallow invader.. Also a #10 spinnerbaits slowly rollin in bottom on east basin. I didn't catch any on spnnerbait but had few follow and strikes at boatside. I m still learning holcombe. It's really beautiful lake.

Last and important rule; HAVE FUN!

[cjac]

Last and important rule; HAVE FUN!

That's the best advice given yet, by far. All the other information is great and totally relevant in regards to what to do and what you need, etc., but from a "how to do" standpoint...."ole matty" hit the nail on the head.