Muskie Burnt Memories...

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The best part about muskie fishing is that every encounter leaves a memory.  They are an exciting fish and they never dissapoint.  Every catch is burned into our memory banks and the drama that plays out can be retold over and over again.  It's magical how our mind can retain each experience. 

The thrill of the encounter is life changing, and here's why I know this is true - I can meet a stranger and talk with him for 20 minutes.  We can talk about the weather and the latest Minnesota Vikings game.  In less than one hour my mind will have forgetten the stranger's name, and probably have no idea what we talked about. 

But, I can tell you every detail of the first muskie that I caught in 1999. 

It was early August.  I was burning a small black and silver mepps muskie killer over shallow sand in 3 feet of water.  The conditions were cloudy with strong wind (perfect).  My good friend, Dusty Gesinger, was standing in the back of the boat and I was running the trolling motor up front.  We were fishing out of his dad's 14 foot Sea Nymph and I was casting from the wooden platform that we built in the front.  I was burning the small black bucktail as fast as I could through the waves and a mouth appeared from behind.  Crashing through 10 waves, the huge mouth finally caught up and engulfed my bucktail.  It couldn't have been 15 feet from the boat.  After 2 jumps and several hard pulls I hand landed the beast.  The tape measure read 50 inches and I was without a camera.  Still, I remember every detail like it just happened 20 seconds ago.  And, I'm not alone.  Dusty just retold this same story a few days ago.  Proof that this muskie made an impact. 

Since then I've burnt countless stories into my mind.  Every muskie encounter is unique in their own way.  A few days ago I had my good friend, Mike Ernst, along to try to photograph a muskie memory for my clients, Jim and Allen.  It took us a few hours, but we accomplished our goal.  Allen caught his muskie, and Mike captured the memory.  Thanks to Mike's camera skills, part of the memory can be shared.  I hope you enjoy this rare sequence of Allen's muskie memory.

Muskie Smiles...

Muskie season officially kicked off this year on August 9th, 2012.  Well, not technically, but it was for me.  It was the first day that I threw a muskie lure on lake Minnetonka.  Many factors attributed to the late start but I've got no complaints with it.  Life is good and there is more to it than muskies (I give you permission to laugh at me here if you'd like).  I made a goal to cut back before the season started and I've stuck to my guns.  Since the first cast, I've totalled exactly 9 muskie days.  A far cry from what I used to fish during a typical 30 day stretch in August.   Fortunately, each trip has been fruitful and I've been able to split the time between clients and friends.  In our 9 outings we've boated 10 muskies.  Only two of the trips left us fishless and both of those were action packed.  Overall, I'd consider the past month to be above average in the action category.  Every day seems to give us many opportunities.  As usual, we've had many heartbreaking muskie moments, and many high fives.  Pictured above are 8 of the specimens that visited the boat.  The other two were hooked by yours truly, and they never left the water for a picture.  Some big, some small.  The smallest being very small, and the biggest was a 50 plus personal best for a stud named Eric.  I believe he is still smiling.  Thanks to all that made the memories so sweet.  Muskie fishing still rocks and the season is young.  Until the next one strikes, keep on chasing your dream! 

Hot Water = Hot Bassin'

Darn heat!  I feel like I've made that statement a lot over the past 2 months.  It just won't let up.  My muskie sticks are standing nicely in the corner of my garage, right next to all the big baits.  Water temps have held steady in the 80's since mid-june and that has kept me in bass mode.  If you aren't familiar with muskies and hot water, it isn't a good combination.  Proper catch and release in hot water becomes difficult, and a likely reason as to why we are seeing muskies floating dead on the surface.  Bass on the other hand are the opposite of muskies.  They thrive in this hot stuff.  It's exactly why Florida, Texas and Arizona boast some of the best bass fishing in the country.  It's because of this bass bonanza that I've been able to stay busy and bring smiles to many of my customers.  I can't remember a time when we've caught this many bass, and big ones to boot.  It's been stellar bassin'.  Here's a few shots from the past few days on the water.  Thanks to all that have joined me for the fun!

Mixed Nuts...

I love muskies, but my time with them has been put on hold.  Instead of trying to tangle with the beasts, I've been on a mission for metro bass and walleye.  Fortunately, the action has remained steady and I've been able to help many anglers land a lunker or two.  There's more stories than I have writing space to share, so I'll just say thank you to all that have made it a great time on the water.  I appreciate all of you.  Above are a few pictures that I want to share.  I hope you have also been enjoying great weather and good fishing!

Boundary Waters 2012

Some call it the BWCA, I call it heaven.  Last week I was lucky enough to share an island with 8 of my best fishing friends.  We've made this an annual excursion for many years, and it doesn't appear to end any time soon.  If you don't have a fishing tradition, I encourage you to start one.  Life is way to short not to make memories.  As usual, I snapped a few pics to remember the time.  This year was the year of big walleyes and "hair" (the pictures will explain).  Thanks to all that kept the island bear free!