Louisiana Muskies....
Travis Frank
Keeping the streak alive and the muskies in the boat, I was joined on Thursday by a group of southern boys. These fellas have never been on a muskie mission, but they sure know how to pick the right days to try it. The weather was great when I picked up Shawn, Nick and Brett at the dock. A nice breeze and clouds gave us a look that any muskie fisherman loves to see. Our first spot of the day was loaded with ski's. After a quick run down of the how to's, and what not's, they were quickly casting over the toothy beasts with confidence. It didn't take long to have our first encounter. A fish that moved a ton of water but came up just a bit short. This happened again and again until Shawn put the hooks into a dandy. The first muskie for these first timers came a short 45 minutes into their muskie careers. Not quite the fish of 10,000 casts, but hey who's counting! For the next few hours we spent chasing some very large fish. We saw a few that were well over 50 inches, and a couple that made my knees tremble. Unfortunately the fish were smarter than the southern boys and left us wondering what could have been.
It's days like these that always leave me excited for the next trip. I have never met these men before, but learned a lot from them while we were on the water. I learned that there are more intense ways to fish than muskie hunting. I learned that hand-to-hand combat is welcome in Louisiana. I learned that laws don't apply to almost any type of fishing down there, and most importantly, I learned that I really, really, really want to join them on one of their next adventures! Could you image a 120 lb Alligator Gar on the end of your rope? And then imagine battling it with your bare hands? All I can say is that just might top catching a muskie! Thanks for the great day on the water fellas, and congrats on the first muskie! See you next year! From the Alligator waters of the north, keep on livin' the dream!