Mille Lacs today

[AWH]

Dan, Muskybug....

Glad you guys were able to get one in the boat. Too bad about the two dead ones you saw. I take it they didn't want the "beans" you were gonna feed them?

Aaron

[SUICK]

Hawgwobbler now thats funny finally someone besides by self sees the talk for what it is

[stayman79]

I just ASSUMED that everyone knew the "134.5 follows" was a joke. I guess not.

[Dano_the_jigasaurus]

I guess I should clarify for those that maybe haven't fished MilleLacs or any other body of water that holds fish shallow. Fishing occurs in under 6' of water on Mille Lacs in the morning and from 17' on in during the day. The fish that being seen are exactly that, being seen. The fish are in the shallows in the morning and throught out the day are up shallow digesting food, in the warmer water and on the warm bottom substrate. This aids by speeding up metabolism since fish depend on the ambient temperature for their interal body temp, which effects their biochemical processes. These fish are typically not active, but as the move out of the shallows to feed again, they become more active (there have been several write ups on this in

ESOX Angler). Mille Lacs is a fairly clear lake so seeing fish isn't out of the question. However, there is no implication of the fish being active, and if the same fish is seen twice there is no account of that. There I hope that it clears up the questioning of peoples accounts and the B.S..

AWH: I think the beans thing was more for muskybug, that really isn't my thing. If you ever want to hook up and go wet a line somewhere just email me: [email protected]

happing musky hunting,

dan

[therancher]

Someone posted that they were upset about how somebody handled a boated fish. What exactly is the correct way to handle a muskie? Just want to make sure I do it right. Thanks.

[Jim Hudson]

Rancher

For handling large esox critters, in my opinion, one needs to have a corral first and foremost... For me that would be a big landing net that has a coated bag, such as a Beckman Fin Saver or Frabill Big Kahuna.. A person can also look into cradles or a hybrid cradle like the Frabill Kwik Kradle...

All of these will allow you to work on unhooking the fish while still keeping the fish in the water... limiting the stress that the fish endures in your contact with it... For the unhooking process, a set of long handled pliers/hookout, jaw spreader, and some sort of cutting device like a Knipex cutter of bolt cutter (always good to have the cutting device to snip hooks on badly hooked fish to make the release go quicker) are kept out and in hands reach by musky anglers.

From there, most people will want a photo of their fish... Where the majority of esox anglers will not use a vertical hold to do so (one where you just lift the fish by the gill plate and hold it straight up and down, a lift like this, especially on bigger muskie can put a lot of stress on their skeletal system)... So instead, use one hand to hold the fishes gill plate and then the other to support the fishes mid-section is what is common to reduce undue stress on these fish....

So for taking the fish from the net, I will usually get a firm grip with one hand onto the gill plate region (your hand will slide into the slot closest to the fishes mouth nicely, but be careful to not hit the gills as you could slice your hand/fingers from the gill rakers and also damage the fishes gills). I lift the head until I get enough of the body out to slide my other hand under the mid-section of the fish to support it's weight and bring the fish into the boat for a quick photo... Then you do just the opposite to slide the fish back into the water for a release.... Or if you wish not to take a photo, you can just scoot the fish out of the net bag and send it free!!!

[MuskyBug85]

suick and Hawg, I never said we had that many follows i said we SAW that many fish. First off let me state that i am a shallow water muskie fisherman meaning i dont fish deeper then about 6 feet unless i am trolling. we saw alot of those fish laying on the sand in a neutral non feeding state. in total we probly had 8 to 12 FOLLOWS both trips. and the part about attacking me about seeing pros, i thought i would be nice for folk to know that they are fishing water that catches the eye of GOOD muskie fisherman that make a living doing play this game, instead of a bunch of wish full thinkers like you and me. if it offends you that i counted the number of fish i saw i am sorry it was my first trip over there and i have never seen fish stacked up like that in shallow water and it was treat to see that many big fish. if you havent been up in 2 to 4 feet on the sand of mille lacs you have no clue, i didnt believe it could hold that many fish either thats why i went and looked. sorry you think i am full of talk i hope you all have a chance to get up there and see it for your selves it truely an amazing area. or you could remain in the dark and attack those of us who seen what i am talking about before running your fingers and making your self look foolish to those who have been up on the sand and know what i am talking about. JONAH

[hawgwobbler]

Money and Means? I wish I could afford a Ranger and a brand new heavy duty pickup then I could witness all this amazing talk on the north end, but until then my poor a$$ will have to settle on seeing very few fish on "not enough money lake"

I'm sorry for poking fun of you I had no idea you had money. Maybe one day that money tree will grow and I could head up there to the north end. I'll call you, maybe we can throw $100 bills at the muskies...Isn't that what their biting on?

Suick:

I'm glad you see the humor. I have an open seat in my boat for you anytime. I live on Mille Lacs but I haven't built up enough equity to fish the north end yet, so maybe me and you could split the bill and head up there sometime.

[CaptainMusky]

Quote:

---

Money and Means? I wish I could afford a Ranger and a brand new heavy duty pickup then I could witness all this amazing

talk

on the north end, but until then my poor a$$ will have to settle on seeing very few fish on "not enough money lake"

I'm sorry for poking fun of you I had no idea you had money. Maybe one day that money tree will grow and I could head up there to the north end. I'll call you, maybe we can throw $100 bills at the muskies...Isn't that what their biting on?

Suick:

I'm glad you see the humor. I have an open seat in my boat for you anytime. I live on Mille Lacs but I haven't built up enough equity to fish the north end yet, so maybe me and you could split the bill and head up there sometime.

---

Yep, it's all talk. You don't see any fish on the North end. NONE. For someone who claims to live on Mille Lacs, you sure no little about it.

I don't live on the lake and I don't own a Ranger or some heavy duty pickup, but I do know the truth about the North end of the lake. I must be too poor to fish there, but I didn't see a sign. Hmm?

It's not a secret, unless you have been sleeping the last 10 or so years.

You don't catch these fish, so take it for what it's worth, but you can see some bruisers. Not often you see SCHOOLS of muskies. I thought it was fun the first time I saw it too, but it got old once you figure out those fish don't eat. They don't even look at your bait. They are up there for one reason, digest food. They are not looking for another meal.

Though muskybugs comments may sound a little arrogant from a kid, but Hawgwobbler, you have some learning to do. So load up your rowboat or dingy and head over there. Find out for yourself, then you won't look like such a goon for not knowing what you are talking about. It's only talk if it isn't true, everyone else must know but you. Jokes on you I guess.

[AWH]

I had a day very similar to Muskybug a few years ago on the north end. I also saw 60+ fish that day, about 10 of which were follows. The fish that I saw just laying up in the shallows showed absolutely no interest in anything I threw at them that day.

Aaron

[MuskyBug85]

AWH it was nice to meet you at the landing. the beans didnt work it took a chatterbait in 2 feet of water. did see fish get caught however and it is fun to see that number of fish. JOnah

[randallt]

When are most of these fish seen? Morning or Evening? I am new to Muskies (haven't caught one yet, seen a few) Was thinking of Walleye fishing next week and would take a cruise up there to see a couple of muskies. Just wondering if am or pm are most likely to spot a couple.

[CaptainMusky]

You can pretty much see them all day. They go to the shallows during the heat of the day to aid in digesting food. So, hotter the better. Of course calmer conditions make it easier for sighting the fish. Don't expect to find any takers though. Food is the last thing on their mind. It is interesting though.

Here is a couple active fish after topwaters... [image] [/image]

[randallt]

Great picture. How did he react to the Figure 8? What would you use for a throwback lure?

[Link]

That looks like a pretty hot fish. In this case my personal choice for a throw back bait would be a can of Miller. In the fall I try to leave one dangling over the side for just such a follow. Funny picture.

[SUICK]

first off i'll apolige to all the fmers out there who get on this site for some usefull information as i do but i have to reply to muskybug as soon as you get off your soup box and quit staring glassy eyed at all the "pros" out there you will relize that when you make a comment like your 1st post there is going to be some feedback i have fished the north sand proberly longer than you have been around so i do have a clue and believe me it is no secert but to see (61) fish in one outing is a heck of a day now if you did or did'nt i really don't care but before you start telling people they don't have a clue or that there looking foolish you might want to think sit back and relax fishing is suppose to be fun