Back in the Game!

Besides weeds, muskies key on rock humps and points also frequented by walleye, drum, and smallmouth bass. Wind direction plays a key factor in selecting which rock humps to target on a given day. Alexander favors humps that top out 5 to 10 feet from the surface, and has less success fishing small ones that extend to the surface. Humps that contain some weedgrowth produce muskies more consistently. Alexander explains: “If I land more than 3 or 4 walleyes or smallies from an area without a muskie sighting, there probably aren’t many muskies around. Pack it up and move on to the next spot. These big muskies aren’t boat-shy or afraid to steal a free meal. If they’re around and hungry, you’re going to know it.”

To the north, the points and reefs surrounding Door County Peninsula and Big Bay de Noc offer prime structure for big fish. Deep-diving trolling baits are the lures of choice on the upper Bay. Due to the excessive drag that these baits exert on the line, planer boards are a less viable option for this application. Big baits that dive down 15 to 30 feet like Muskie Mania 9-inch Ernies and 10-inch Believers bury some in-line planer boards designed for walleye fishing. A large mast-and-ski setup, downriggers, or flatline trolling are the main options for muskies suspended around deepwater structure.

Other areas to consider in the upper Bay include pier heads and harbor mouths. These structures create current eddies, which in turn funnel in bait and attract muskies for much of the season.

Fall—Prime-Time Action

During fall, muskies congregate in areas that draw concentrations of baitfish. On the upper Bay including all of Door County, whitefish are key forage, spending much of their time deep in open water and gradually moving shallower as the temperatures cool. They continue this migration until spawning on reefs in November. This shift to shallower water draws muskies. Here, casting Magnum Bull Dawgs, Swimming Joes, and other soft plastic baits that can be counted down to a desired depth allows thoroughly working key areas of the reefs.

On the lower Bay, shad are the prey of choice. When water dips below 50°F, they invade the Fox River and other rivers on the West shore of the Bay. Muskies follow this migration and work in packs to corral and slash through balls of bait. The scene can be reminiscent of offshore saltwater fishing. Muskies chase shad to the surface, and flocks of seagulls attracted by the commotion swoop down for an easy meal.

Multiple hookups frequently happen when these conditions exist. As quickly as the action heats up, it cools off. Anglers must be willing to take a run-and-gun approach to chase down active fish, or remain patient and repeat established trolling passes throughout the day until fish become active.

Bring the Right Equipment to the Game

During fall, muskie anglers on the lower Bay rely heavily on trolling techniques. Wisconsin allows 3 lines per angler and most make full use of their allotment. Standard practice involves using long medium-heavy rods, with high-capacity casting reels, a mainline of 50-pound-test monofilament or 80-pound braid, and a heavy fluorocarbon leader to troll shallow-diving lures. Lures are spread from the boat with the use of planer boards and trolled at 2.5 to 6 mph. Other options include adding prop wash rods to the trolling spread, or a pump rod held in the angler’s hand and occasionally pumped to impart additional action to the lure.

The braid-versus-mono debate on the Bay hinges on the positive attributes of both lines. Anglers favoring braid find that it offers a higher breaking strength, allows for better hooksets due to its low stretch properties, and withstands chafing from the planer board releases better than monofilament. Mono guys like the feel of the line, pointing out that stretch absorbs the constant surging and stalling that boards experience when trolled in moderately large waves. This allows lures to have a consistent swimming action. In extremely cold conditions, monofilament does not retain water and freeze up to the same extent as braid.

Many anglers also add a slight twist to their presentation. Borrowing from their walleye brethren on Lake Michigan, they run a large spinner rig on their mainline in front of the leader. The rig consists of a size 5 or 6 Colorado blade and a large clevis to accommodate the increased diameter of the mainline, followed by 6 to 8 colored beads, and running the rig in front of the 3-foot leader of 100-pound fluorocarbon. The lure is then attached to the leader.

The spinner rig provides added flash and vibration and theoretically lengthens the overall presentation to nearly 4 feet—a supersized muskie meal that still pulls nicely behind the planer board. As a secondary benefit, it acts as a weed guard, stopping weeds from sliding down the line to the lure.

A traditional 6-rod trolling spread on the Bay has its outside lines running on the longest rods in the spread, which helps to lift the line off the water at the steepest angle possible. Bret Alexander uses Fenwick’s Techna AV 8-foot rods with Abu Garcia 7000LC reels and 80-pound Spiderwire. Outside boards carry the shallowest baits, run 15 to 20 feet behind the board and 60 feet from the boat. Top baits include Shallow Invaders, Grandmas, Shallow Raiders, and Jakes.

Middle boards are run 40 feet from the boat with shad-style baits like Rapala Super Shad Raps and Lindy Shallow Big M’s, fished 10 feet behind the board. A Fenwick Techna AV rod 7.5 feet long is used for the middle rod and an AV 7-footer for the inside rod.

The inside rods are then set with smaller, deep-diving lures fished tight to the boards. Baits like Baby Jointed Depth Raiders and 7-inch Jointed Believers are set 5 to 6 feet behind the board to keep the lures out of the way of the middle and outside boards. These jointed lures also have a faster, more erratic action than the straight baits run on the other boards. Adjustments are made to the trolling spread based upon the conditions and behavior of the fish.

For those anglers willing to work a little harder, casting continues to be rewarding in late fall. In river settings, muskies use current breaks caused by man-made structure like retaining walls, bridge abutments, pilings, and mooring posts. Industrial sites discharging warm water also attract and concentrate fish. Casting Musky Innovations’ Shad Clones and Magnum Bull Dawgs to confined pieces of cover offers an opportunity to connect on fish that cannot be targeted by trollers. Pulling a lively sucker on a down rod also offers casters a second chance to trigger fish that refuse to hit a lure.

The health of the Green Bay fishery hinges on proper fish-handling and release. Groups like the Packerland Chapter of Muskies, Inc. have financially supported the restoration program for years. In addition to lobbying for an increased size limit from 50 to 54 inches, such groups stress that anglers should always be ready for a possible encounter with a giant fish. Standard equipment should include a large net with an oversized hoop and protective coating, heavy-duty cutters, and extra-long pliers for extracting hooks.

With the season in full swing, get a game plan together and take notice of this whole new class of muskies. Sure, the playing field is stacked in favor of the hometown players. And yes, the trolling spreads resemble a John Madden teleprompter gone wrong. But the lure of tackling these giant upstart muskies should be enough to get any angler off the bench and back in the game.

In-Fisherman contributor Steve Ryan lives in Des Plaines, Illinois.