houski

Thanks for the tip man, if fishing is slow, we might dip in for a few casts. However, we're only out for bigger fish these days. Caught lots of 'typical' Kawartha's fish over the years.

Nice fish man! The first muskie always sticks in your mind. Mine was only 34.5'', and I caught it while fishing bass. It's pretty sweet to catch your first actually targeting the species. Looks like a decent one too (42''...ish?). I would spool up with 80 lb. braid, this helps you to get your fish in quickly. Even on big fish, my fights usually only last about 30 seconds or so. Also, at the bare minimum, you should have a muskie sized net, or large cradle, long pliers, and good mini bolt cutters. These days my fish are only out of the water for a quick measurement, and photo. Then back they go. However, I'm sure I killed a fish or two unintentionally when I was staring out. Don't sweat it, just make sure that you're well prepared. For such a large mean fish, they're surprisingly fragile. Again, way to go man. Keep the photos coming.

Pressure washer def. works awesome! I always pressure wash, then follow it up with the shop vac. Carpet comes out like new!

Same, so we're going to give it a try. We've got charts both paper, and gps, so we should be alright that way. Thanks though.

lol. Well then, I hope Kash becomes a lake that I 'wouldn't waste your time on if I were you' type of lake...haha.

Hey all, I was planning on hitting up Kashagawigamog next weekend in search of old Esox masquinongy. I've heard that it's supposed to be a decent muskie lake, with some good sized fish in there. I was just wondering if anyone has or does fish this lake, and how the bite is/what to expect for numbers and size? I'll post a report letting everyone know how it goes.

JoshS, I've got the same setup you just mentioned. I use it mainly for pike and bass fishing. It will do alright for smaller muskie baits. I use mine the odd time for tubes, and downsized spinner baits. However, that being said, I wouldn't consider it a muskie rod. If you're planning on using it for muskies, I'd spool it up with at least 65 lb. braid.

Here are the knots that I use in different situations. I know there are many knots out there, and many that will do the job. The following are just my preferences. For tying lighter flouro (less than 50lb), I like to use the back to back uni, just make sure to make a few more wraps in your smaller diameter braid. For tying larger diameter flouro (60+ lb) I like to tye the triple surgeon's loop. I find that it is easier to get tight. I used to tie the back to back uni, but I find that it's hard to get the 100+ lb flouro tight enough not to slip. For tying flouro to snaps, I use the palomar on smaller diameter flouro, and the uni on large diameter flouro. I only tie swivels to my bucktail muskie rod, and I use the San Diego Jam knot to tie the braid, and the uni on the flouro side.

Hey guys, I would be throwing big baits if I were you. With this unseasonably warm weather we've been having, the muskies I'm sure have already established thier summer home ranges. I won't be throwing anything smaller than doulbe 10's, or any hardbait less than 10". I'll prolly be throwing the double 13's and 14" Jakes as much as my shoulder will allow. Happy muskie hunting!

I'll be out fishing the Kawarthas this weekend. Can't wait either! This week seems awfully long at work, but I'm sure I'll get through it. I find that big blades (Cowgirls, Esox Cobras, Willowbeasts, etc.) don't stay in the water past about 3.5 mph, however, that seems to be fast enough to turn fish. As for new baits to try, I've been waiting all winter to try the Tyrant jerkbait, it looks pretty awesome, I'm looking forward to seeing how it performs. Good luck fellas!

Hey guys, Just my two cents here... I switched my Muskie line from 80lb Dacron to 80lb Power Pro back around the time it first came out. I had multiple problems with it breaking mid cast, and on sudden hooksets, and other sudden stopages lost more than my fair share of baits, and fish with this line. Now I gave it a chance, but after buying/returning 4 or 5 spools of it, I would never reccomend it to anyone. I ran through all the troubleshooting (eg. checking my rod guides, visually inspecting the line for frays, nicks, or any discolouration, etc.) However, I haven't used it in years, so, I'm not sure if they've improved thier line or not. I will say though, that from my personal experience, Power Pro was very strong if you were applying even tension to the line, (eg. pulling in large sticks, attempting to bend hooks out on snags, etc.) but where I think it really fails as a line is where the line is suddenly stopped, and a great amount of force is applyed quickly, as in setting the hook on a large fish.

I used a Revo Toro on my bucktail rod last year. Saw lots of double 10 and double 13 blades over the course of the season. I didn't do any maintenance to it whatsoever during the year, and it worked like a top. Took it apart and cleaned and lubiricated it over the winter, and she's ready for another year of work. Now with that being said, you can never go wrong with a Calcutta, those things are built to put in work.