Hey gang,
Those of you helping me out with my "maiden" musky hunt are aware that I went out yesterday for the first dedicated trip. I've caught a couple of small musky accidentally in their past, but I have never really fished for them. Pigeon was one of the recommended lakes and it turned out to be an interesting day. Weather was excellent.. light winds, no rain and cloud cover until about 1 or so..
I started at the south end at Fees landing near Emily PP. The south end as many of you know if very shallow. Turned out to be a bit too shallow for my comfort level. My trolling motor (just a clamp on) continuously got fouled with heavy weeds. Even my main motor had issues with weeds. I casted along that main channel for about two hours but I decided to use my lighter gear as I felt that it would be a good bass holding area. Other than some incidental panfish, nothing was caught after about 2 or so hours. Overall, I don't think I will start from the south end anymore. I prefer mix of rock and weed and deeper water structure over the super shallow stuff (I often fish for smallmouth for this reason)
Some of you recommended that top end of the end of the lake so I had to make a call at around 9:30 to either shoot up there with my smallish boat (older 16' aluminum with a very old late 70s evinrude!) So I erred on the side of caution and trailered up to Bobcaygeon. But he time I got there and on the water it was around 10:30 I did find a free public launch that is actually pretty decent (right next to Gordon yacht club). I headed to a location that was recommend to me by Lew - and finally began casting.. here's where in got interesting! So I just started bait casting about 18 months ago. I have only used my Abu black max which is an economical and very forgiving reel. I like it and it's easy to cast. I don't think I've ever bird nested it. The reel I used yesterday was a different story. Some of you commented on it suggesting it may not be up to the task in the long run. Given that I am just starting out, I figured I'd try it before dropping several hundreds on a new tee/rod combo. It's the Abu Ambassador 6000. It's probably fine for trolling but maybe nit the best for casting..It's a bit clunky, and I could not play with the settings to reduce the bird nests. Handle is also small and it just felt cheap. Well I quickly learned what a bird nest is all about! I would say that every 4th or 5th cast I bird nested - usually not so bad and got my self untangled... My first casts were pretty cautious because I have never launched lures this big! Eventually, after a few dozen casts, I was getting more comfortable and able to launch the lures further. I started (and mostly casted) with a black spinnerbait with orange blades. Nice lure. The weed cover is amazing in the lake. I fished 8-12' for about 3 hours or so continuously casting to shore, weeds, rocks, etc.. Finally at about 1 PM, I see my first musky.. Right under the boat and looking at my lure as I almost finished my retrieve. I almost crapped my pants! It was close to 40" maybe a bit more or less.. hard to say but definitely a respectable fish and bigger than most fish I've handled. I paused the lure and then began a figure 8 for about 30 seconds but I lost sight of it. I began casting in different directions hoping that it would come back and did this for about 15 more minutes.. No bites! I then slowly drifted off in a northward direction and switch to a ducktail. This lure is heavier and I had more trouble with bird nests. Mostly minor ones. I switched back to the spinnerbait them eventually moved on to another area. I decided to troll after a few hours of casting - it is a bit of a workout that's for sure.
I trolled deeper water adjacent to shoreline and then hit some islands (all in the north end). I trolled a Believer (deep setting) for most of the time then eventually switched to a Jake. The lake is VERY different up there. The north end is also more scenic IMO. Nice lake overall. No bites after about 3 or so hours. Ended up packing it in just before 4 PM and headed home. A great day overall and I condor it successful as I was able to get a musky follow, although I am still nt sure if I just happened to see it under the boat or actually got it to be interested in my lure.
I did buy all the necessary tools recommended here - bolt cutter, jaw spreader, massive net, gloves, etc... also brought along a good First Aid kit!
A few questions:
-What knot do you guys use to attach you main line (braid) to your leader? I am referring to the pre-tied flouro leaders that have the welded O-rings. I used a Husky Muskie leader.
-When you see a fish like I did, do you return later in the day to that spot? What else could I have done to get that fish to strike?
-Can someone recommend a reel/rod combo that won't break the bank? Maybe something that will be a good step up
Any other suggestions? Thanks to the members to that contributed many helpful tips - and especially Lew who PM me with a few extra tips!
