Couldn't believe what I was hearing

[thatoneguy]

And for the guys that think they are so delicious, if you catch as many as most seasoned Muskie fisherman do (not many) and put in as much time, effort and money as they do, (somehow I doubt it) you are getting SCREWED.. Go catch a Carp or Sucker and smoke it or Cajun season it, you will be way farther ahead in the long run.

Too funny. You assume that those who have eaten muskie - and it is delicious, no question about it - are also spending big bucks and long hours chasing them. Kind of a silly assumption.

I've caught two muskies in my life - one 48" and one 50 1/4", both while fishing for perch. You can see my avatar pic is one of them that I caught the week of Thanksgiving a few years ago. I released both of them after quick photos. I will also CPR any future muskies I catch - intentional or accidentally while pursuing other species. I'm not spending time or money chasing them, although I plan to at least dabble in it a little this fall just for something different. The muskies I've eaten were caught - legally - by others who were kind enough to invite me to supper.

So, no, I'm certainly not getting "screwed" in any way.

[cheddar 86]

Maybe someone can correct me here...but I would think the mercury levels of a 15 year old fish would be something that would deter most people from eating them.

[10,000 Casts]

TOG,

I gathered you had caught 2 in your lifetime by your first sentence.. You, know, I also had guys tell me they eat Eagle and Loon too.

Congrats on the Muskie while ice fishing for perch, that is a hog, just a piece of advice if you get another one on the ice, if you plan on releasing it, protect thier eyeballs so they don't freeze while your getting your picture taken.

And I was wondering on the Mercury part too, I guess they have never had a reason to test it.

[brian6715]

Congrats on the Muskie while ice fishing for perch, that is a hog, just a piece of advice if you get another one on the ice, if you plan on releasing it, protect thier eyeballs so they don't freeze while your getting your picture taken.

What if the temp wasn't below freezing? Assumptions assumptions!

[Nick Kuhn]

Maybe someone can correct me here...but I would think the mercury levels of a 15 year old fish would be something that would deter most people from eating them.

Mercury levels are high enough in Muskies that the WI DNR recommends only men and women beyond child bearing years eat it (no children or potential moms). Even those people should not eat more than 1 meal a month for muskies. Keep in mind these guidelines are meant for fish in the mid to upper 30" range (a fish that's maybe 6 or 7 years old). In Minnesota, those 48"+ fish would be 12 years or older, and would contain double the mercury of those Wisconsin fish. It would not be in your best health interests to eat those fish.

[mrklean]

i remember watching MN bound i think 4 or 5 years ago and a guy was muskie fishing on there and was planning on eating them, thought that was odd

[cheddar 86]

I think that in a lot of cases including this one that just because it's legal doesn't mean it's right. That goes for a lot of things in life. People seem to use the fact that someone else has made a law that says something is ok so it must be good enough right? To me that's a cop out. I feel that muskies should be C&R only based upon their low numbers....I would also guess that the majority of people that are Musky guys probably feel the same way, based upon some of the things I've read on here - i.e. having all the right tools, not fishing in warm water temps, etc.

[Musky Buck]

Remember it's a good idea to eat old large fish. These anti musky or whatever folks should be paying us to fish them,jk, do they really want 250,000 of us to stop fishing them only to punish their favored walleye and crappie holes all the much harder. The musky is the whipping boy, if they can't bellyache the fault toward them it would go to stunted pike and being overfished. Since I started musky fishing 23 years ago it would be safe to assume if I put roughly as much effort into walleyes catching maybe 50 per season or so quick math says I would've maybe kept over a 1,000 eyes in the livewell. Those walleyes are in your livewells walleye folks. Why do many believe that muskies are like constantly feeding, if that were the case we'd be constantly catching them. Minnesota.....Land of 10,000 bellyachers.

[Musky Buck]

Until the 271 acre elk lake, musky catch and release only dries up of walleyes then I'll believe it, 30 years of muskies and somehow has a good walleye population, how can that be ? I like the solution to the problem kill the muskies, instead of fishing non-musky water because they don't have a leg to stand on when their livewell is empty, at least you have an excuse on musky water, if it hurts you that bad minnesota is ripe with real estate agents who'd gladly try to sell your place so you can move to a non-musky water, the answers are fairly easy, but it's easier to grumble about it. But muskies aren't native in these stocked lakes or some of them, well without dnr supplemental stocking you'd have few if any walleyes in time, fish by the law and we'd all be better off.

[mainbutter]

Mercury levels are high enough in Muskies that the WI DNR recommends only men and women beyond child bearing years eat it (no children or potential moms). Even those people should not eat more than 1 meal a month for muskies. Keep in mind these guidelines are meant for fish in the mid to upper 30" range (a fish that's maybe 6 or 7 years old). In Minnesota, those 48"+ fish would be 12 years or older, and would contain double the mercury of those Wisconsin fish. It would not be in your best health interests to eat those fish.

I think it's in everyone's best interest to eat young fish. Don't forget those 15'' crappies can be well over a decade old, and that pike grow WAAAAY slower than muskies. It takes 'em about twice as long to reach wall-mounting potential.

However, at the 2009 Challunge, I recall that one of the attendees had an accidental fish kill (happens sometimes) that he smoked and made a chip-dip out of. He also had some alaskan salmon chip dip made exactly the same I believe, but just different fish. The musky waaaaay outstripped the alaskan salmon in deliciousness, and needless to say I was surprised. Eating musky lots likely has health risks, and not to mention that we'd love to keep more fish swimming so that we can catch more, but I do think that every musky fisherman should have the experience of trying a bit of musky at least once.

[james_walleye]

I've ran into people in the Faribault area who hate the muskies in French because they eat all the crappies. They wont hesitate to slit their bellies or spear them under their dock. I usually ask them 2 questions. I ask them to name the best walleye lakes in the state. What they all have in common is they are all the states best musky lakes. 2nd pertaining to French and the crappies. Usually the conversation starts like this: 3-4 years ago the crappie fishing was excellent and then 2 years ago and last year it just wasnt as good. Darn muskies are eating them. And i ask well how about this year. There are 125 ice houses on a 750 acre lake because you can catch your limit of crappies in less then an hour. These people will blame 2 down years on muskies because that is the easy scapegoat. They either ignore or just dont realize how cyclical the crappies are in these southcentral lakes. Funny how the crappies bit on lake X like mad 3-4 years ago to and the past 2 years hasnt been as good. And there are no muskys in lake X. Funny how that works.

[goblueM]

people always blame the predator fish or the DNR rather than their own harvest practices or just the natural variation in fish populations and fishing conditions

[john skarie]

That smoked muskie at the challunge was very good.

Not that I want to make a habit out of eating old fish, but it died and the guy who caught it had no intention of mounting a 48"er. He's caught many more fish bigger than that.

JS

[SmellEsox]

Seriously, its just a fish, not a child. Some are going to get harvested and eaten, but it won't effect populations much if at all.

[SDS]

I beleive that Minnesota should make it illegal to keep any musky. Fishing and catching fish over the years I have hooked fish to deep for them to release, its a horrible feeling but its also a risk you take. Two of the fish I have accidently killed have been legal fish, over 48, and I left them for the lake to have. I have no intention of getting a skin mount or eatting this ageed giant. People are free to do as they please with legal fish but I do recommend a replica that will look better in apperance ten years from the time of putting it on the wall. Also just to add even the most experianced angler is at the liberty of how deep a fish is hooked, do the best you can to play, unhook, and release every fish. Doing just that requires anglers to bring along the proper tools.

[goblueM]

Seriously, its just a fish, not a child. Some are going to get harvested and eaten, but it won't effect populations much if at all.

+1

Minnesota has done something amazing, and most muskie fisherman have, as well - cultivate a superb trophy fishery and a great catch-and-release ethic.

I personally will release every muskie I ever catch, but people should be free to do what they want, and the few that DO keep muskies probably aren't hurting the population too much

[remington 300]

go blue, ive been dieing to ask,how big is that cat?and is it a channelcat?

[goblueM]

80 pounds, and its a blue cat

[LOTWSvirgin]

Two of the fish I have accidently killed have been legal fish, over 48, and I left them for the lake to have.

I might be wrong but wouldnt that be wanton waste?

[SDS]

Waste? The lake is an ecosystem.

[Jameson]

That's the way I see it, too. If I accidentally spear a muskie I'll just release it as it isn't a waste and it was an accident. (sarcasm)

Their's gotta be some law about leaving known dead fish in the water. Their is one for roughfish...muskie same difference right?

[10,000 Casts]

imo whether it's caught and it died or accidently speared, it is an accident and leaving it in the lake shouldn't be an issue. Wanton waste should only be an issue if it is abused such as 20 eel pout on the ice etc.

Accidents happen, we are all human.

[Trapper J]

Remember back in the late 70's & early 80's when big walleyes were being pulled out of Gull Lake on a regular basis ( 10 to 12 pounders).There were also a good # of big predators then (20+ lbs.Pike).Gull being a trophy factory is pretty much gone but a person can rack up the #'s if you prefer quanity over quality. Just a thought from a guy who would like to have a couple of musky lakes to fish in crow wing co.before this middle age man becomes an old man.Not picking on Gull,just using it as an example.Sorry if I strayed off course with this.

[Yooperguy]

Well in the U.P. of Michigan people eat them all the time, but they may taste better due to the flavor holes in the back of thier heads.

[kapp]

I think a state wide 54" minimum would be a very nice rule