A Go At Campau Lake

I spent Wednesday evening on Campau Lake in hopes of tangling with a muskie or two.  I brought all of my big lures and my muskie rod and reel, along with some smaller bass gear.  It was a nice night with a lot of sun and quite a bit of wind.  I did forget my temp sensor, so I'm not sure of the water temperature.

I dedicated the first couple of hours to fishing the bluegill pattern Super Shad.  I was kind of feeling out the lake to get an idea of the topography.  I noticed that it is quite shallow on the north end with weeds already reaching the surface in places.  Most of the shoreline was bordered by a nice shallow flat that ran 4 to 6 feet.  This should be the place where the spring muskies are holding.

Something that I noticed right away was that the lake felt pretty small, and even smaller with the 10 or so boats fighting for real estate.  In addition to the people fishing, there were a couple of big speed boats circling the lake.  One blew by me so fast and so close I thought that I was going to start taking on water from its wake.  I had a few choice words for that guy.  After trying the shallows, I decided to do some trolling with the Super Shad.  I went right down the middle of Campau and then circled Kettle a few times.  I stopped to make a few casts before heading back over to Campau.  With my left hand wrapped around the reel, my pointer finger actually got sucked into the front of the free wheeling spool on one of my casts.  Oh that hurt!  I looked around to see if anyone had noticed, then pulled hard until I finally jerked it out.  I don't wrap my left hand around the reel when I cast anymore.  Anyway, there was no sign of any fish.  I switched to a Musky Mayhem Showgirl and fished it for a good hour, but she wasn't turning them on either.

I eventually decided that the big stuff wasn't doing it.  I traded to my bass gear and started slow rolling a spinner bait through the shallows.  Still nothing.  I tried a couple of shallow running crankbaits before finally trying out a perch pattern Storm Wildeye Kickin' Minnow.  Most of the boats had gone home, so I had the east shore all to myself.  This is the first time that I've fished with this bait, and I had some decent results.  The bass seemed to like it.  I caught 3 in about twenty minutes right at dusk.  My only concern is that the bass were really taking this thing deep, much like a plastic worm, and it has a treble hook on it.  It took a little extra work to get that mean hook out from deep in their mouths.  Luckily, I was able to release 3 healthy fish.

With my never say quit attitude, I decided to stay out until 11:00 fishing a live bluegill suspended off the bottom in 8 feet of water.  I set the clicker so that I could hear if something grabbed it and then went to the front of the boat and fan casted a buzzbait.  Fish were slapping the surface all night, but I don't know what they were and nothing ever hit either of my baits.  Didn't even have a brush with a muskie the whole outing.  I'm not too surprised.  I've had plenty of beginner's luck with these fish and it was bound to run out eventually.

With this trip as context, I read up on spring muskie fishing and I've come up with some new ideas.  It turns out that according to the articles I've read, the shallows were the place to fish.  What I was doing wrong was fishing too big of baits and running them too fast.  The guides who wrote the articles generally suggested shallow running baits retrieved in little bursts with long pauses.  One suggested jointed baits.  I picked up a couple of jointed Rapalas.  I'm eager to give them a go.  I also read about running Rat'l Traps through the shallows just fast enough to keep them out of the weeds.  Worth a try and I doubt that anybody else is using them.  The fish in Campau see a lot of the same baits day in and day out, so running something unfamiliar to them might just be enough to trigger a bite.

My final action that night was to probe the shallows with a spotlight to see if I could catch any muskies sleeping.  I found a few bass and thought that I had kicked up one muskie but when my eyes finally focused on the mass of fish shimering under the surface, it turned out to be a nasty old carp.  Campau isn't likely to become my prime muskie lake, but it's close to my house and they're in there.  It will be a nice place to try new techniques, hone my skills, and hopefully add to my muskie tally.

Accidental Muskie

With the new season just a week old, I ventured out onto Thornapple Lake this past Friday.  I spent another rough night on the couch so that I could get up early without waking Michelle.  The alarm was set for 4:00, but I woke up for about the 15th time at 3:45 and decided that I might as well just get up.  With no traffic, I made record time and was on the lake well before light.

The first thing that I did was check the water temperature and I found it to be 55 degrees.  I then loaded a 3-inch Berkley Alive Minnow on a jig and dinked around trying to find an active walleye.  With no luck by the time the sun finally rose, I decided to break in the new muskie gear.  I began by throwing a bluegill pattern Super Shad.  I liked the feel of the rod and the Cardiff casted and reeled like a dream.  I did get careless a couple of times and allowed myself to get some bird nests.  Nothing too terrible.  The worst one only took me a couple of minutes to pick out.  I tried a few other bucktail type lures after the Super Shad didn't cause any fish to show themselves.  After about 30 minutes of fishing with this big gear, I started to realize why the muskie guys say that this type of fishing is hard on the gear and hard on the fisherman.  My hands started getting tired and I could hear the rod creeking a little bit.  I stuck it out for at least another hour.  I watched some other muskie fishermen trolling and casting and noted that they weren't catching anything either.  I decided to give it a rest at around 10:00 and went back to the spinning gear.

In addition to the jig and minnow, I decided to drift a crawler harness a bit further behind the boat.  I held a rod in each hand and got into a rhythm with the boat as it bobbed in the waves.  I kind of excentuated the motion, pulling the spinner on the crawler harness in long jumps.  After 10 minutes, that rod got heavy and I felt a couple of big head jerks.  I wasn't under the illusion that this was a walleye for very long.  I had a pretty good idea that it was a pike or a muskie.  The fish stayed down for a long time and just swam with me as the boat drifted.  I made sure that the drag wasn't too tight and took my time with the big fish.  I kept an eye out behind me to make sure that I was keeping my distance from shore.  I didn't want to drop the anchor for fear that the fish would wrap the rope and get off.  After several minutes, it finally surfaced 15 feet behind the boat.  Once I had the fish up, I went ahead and dropped the anchor to keep from getting too shallow or running into shore.

I knew that I had my hands full with this fish, and especially with the old net that we have on our boat.  I managed to net the fish with little problem, but I immediately became worried about injuring it.  I got the hook out while the fish was still in the water, but it thrashed quite a bit and got itself tangled pretty bad in the mesh.  I really had to work hard to get it out of there, my last move being removing a large chunk of net from its mouth.  It seemed to want to bite anything that it could get its teeth into.  I snapped one quick picture, measured it at 38-inches and got it right back into the water.  It took quite awhile to get the fish revived, but it finally swam back down into the dark water.  If I'm going to go after these fish and really take care of them, I've got to get a good net.  I may ask for an advance on my Father's Day gift.

I fished for the rest of the day, targeting anything that might bite.  I threw spinner baits, numerous crankbaits, and spent a good portion of the day drifting for walleye.  I couldn't get anything going.  I went home feeling a bit unfulfilled.  While I was grateful to catch the muskie, I only did so by dumb luck.  I wasn't even targeting muskies when I caught it.  In fact, I hadn't caught a fish on purpose all day. Like most fishermen, I get quite a bit of satisfaction out of figuring out a pattern and using it to produce fish.  This early spring fishing is pretty tough.  The good news is that it improves with every new day.

This New Passion

When I first started fishing for flatheads, I was completely consumed by them.  My appetite for any and all information on them was insatiable.  I read articles over and over, bought every catfish DVD I could find,  watched them repeatedly every night, and conducted endless research to learn what rod, reel, line, swivel, sinker, and hook to use.  Flathead catfish were just about all that I could think about.  I heard from other guys who fished the river that catching one was rare.  This only made them that much more special.  I held them in such reverence that catching one brought on absolute elation.  In the course of several years, I eventually developed to the point that I could catch them just about every trip out.  I don't think that I've arrived, but I've reached a certain level of proficiency.  The whole process was exceptional, a complete joy.

As I begin to turn my attention to the muskellunge, I am seeing a number of parallels with my flathead campaign.  I'm back at the beginning.  I find myself fixated on them.  I only have 2 muskie DVD's, but I've seen both of them 50 times.  I keep listening for any little tidbit of information that I might have missed or I study their techniques to get them down pat.  My evenings are spent perusing the internet looking at lures, rods, reels, nets, line, and anything else that I might need to fish for muskies.  I have my ideas about exactly what gear I want to get, but I like to see if I can find forums where other guys give their opinions about this stuff.  My friend from work also told me about MyOutDoorTV.com.  This site is gold.  I'm finding full episodes of the show, The Next Bite.  It focuses on pike, walleye, and muskies.  I catch an episode about every night.

Of course the most crucial step in this new journey is actually getting out there and seeing if this is going to turn into anything.  There's no guarantee that these fish won't live up to their reputation of being almost impossible to catch.  I'm fully aware that I'm not in Northern Minnesota where most of these DVD's and shows are filmed.  What I have going for me is that I'm driven to go to incredible lengths to figure the muskies out and hopefully get good at catching them.  I'll stay out there for hours and hours trying to get into a bite and will still have to force myself off of the water when it's time to go.  If it turns out that because of fishing pressure my best chances to encounter active fish is at night, then I'll fish at night.  If trolling gets them, I'll troll.  If casting produces fish, I'll cast.  If this pursuit does not pan out, it will be despite my efforts, not because of any lack of effort.  

I went 4 or 5 times late in the fall last year.  I bought a few oversized lures and put my old Corsair on a low end 6' 6" Fenwick rod that I used to use for channels.  Tom Hugglar included Thornapple Lake in his book on fishing destinations in Michigan.  He gave me some kind of idea about where to fish, but really the lake was a huge mystery and I had no confidence that I would even cross paths with a muskie.  I think I had at least one follow because there was a big swirl at the boat when I pulled the lure out of the water at the end of one of my retrieves.  I'm hoping that I will slowly solve the mystery of this lake as I spend more and more time out there.  Ideally I will have some follows and even catch some fish.  My confidence will go up as I figure out where to find the fish and what lures they seem to prefer.  Pretty soon the lake should look completely different to me.  It will transform from this strange enigma to something as familiar as my own backyard . . . ideally.

I may end up spending a season beating the water senseless with nothing to show for it but a pair of Popeye arms.  If I do run into this scenario, I might briefly go a little crazy.  It won't be the end of the world, though.  The grass is still pretty green on this side of the fence.  If I could only fish my little two mile section of the Grand River for the rest of my life, I'd die a happy man.  I just might die a little happier if I can notch my belt with a few of these ferocious freshwater baracudas.          

   

 

A Look Towards Spring

I spent a good part of this past Saturday getting my ice fishing gear stored away.  I took my time to make sure that everything was clean and dry, and then stored it all neatly away in my basement.  With ice fishing completely behind me, it's time to turn towards spring and start to make my plan.  I'm finding that, especially with my new passion for muskie fishing, I have a lot to figure out in the next 45 days.  If I want to be ready for the pike, muskies, walleye, and channel cats by the end of April, then I'd better get it in gear.

The good news is that as far as catfish, I'm pretty well set.  I can always update and upgrade, but I've got what I need and I could be ready to fish the river tonight if I wanted to.  I buy my cat hooks in bulk, so I still have plenty.  The same goes for swivels.  I still have quite a bit of line left to make my leaders.  As for the line on my reels, I loaded that 80 pound PowerPro on them last year and I think that it has plenty of life left in it.  I may decide to get fresh line later in the year, but I don't think it's a must before the season starts.  I have my eye on an Abu Garci Ambassadeur 7000 C3I reel, but that too can wait.  I'll stick with my two 6500's and my old Shimano Cordair for now.  I'm set for cats.

It's thinking about getting ready for muskies that makes me feel overwhelmed.  I'm finding that it's almost like a whole new sport if you want to get off to a good start.  Bass gear obviously won't handle throwing the big lures and especially won't hold up to fighting the savage fish.  I like the St. Croix Premier 7'6" MH power, fast action casting rod.  Gander Mountain has just one.  I know that I can order one if this one sells, but it will be nice to save on the shipping.  It will probably be my first big purchase.  I've been drooling over the Shimano Calcutta 400 reel for years now.  They make a B series that is over $100 cheaper than the TE.  I'm in the process of saving for this reel right now.  Of course, Michelle and I are working hard to Dave Ramsey our debt, so just about the only money that I am able to put towards fishing is the money that I get for giving plasma.  Not a complaint.  I just have to think things through and really decide what I need and what I can live without.

The rod and reel are already a huge set back, and then I have to think about building some kind of starter arsenal of lures.  Muskie lures are usually much bigger than the average lure and, therefore, much more expensive.  I found a couple of Super Shad Raps at Dick's that were on sale for about $10.  I grabbed a couple and will get a couple more after I donate tomorrow.  I still want to get some bucktail in-line and safety pin spinner baits.  I also want to pick up some big plastic baits like the Bull Dawg.  Who knows what else I'll end up with.  Lures are like candy to me.  I'm drawn to them anytime I'm in a sporting goods store and it's pretty easy to talk myself into getting a couple more in case I find myself in just the right situation for them.  I kicked around the idea of getting the Terminator titanium leaders.  They're more expensive and it looks like I'd have to order them.  They can wait, too.  I can get a decent steel leader in the store for relatively cheap.  The last thing that I'll need for rigging is 65 # PowerPro.  This is a must right off the bat.  My starter kit is getting expensive.

Besides rod, reel, and tackle there are other things that you should probably have if you're going to chase muskies.  I would like to eventually get a really nice oversized net.  I've noticed that when the guys on the shows catch muskies, they leave them in the net and in the water while they're getting the hooks out.  Modern nets are also made to be a lot easier on the fish.  Hopefully I can get a good net shortly into the season.  I've noticed that some of the time, they have to cut the hooks to get the lure back out of the muskies' mouths with the least amount of damage to them.  I'll have to get some good cutters.  If I'm going to be cutting the hooks off of my lures, I better come prepared with a supply of replacement hooks and rings.  I'm also going to need a split ring tool.  Finally, Lindy makes a really nice glove that protects hands from hooks and teeth.  At something like $30 per glove, I'll have to wait on those.  Mechanics' gloves will have to do for now.    Way down the line, I'd like to get one more muskie rod and Calcutta reel so that I can have a second rod in the boat ready with a different type of lure or for a partner to use if I bring someone with me.  I also want a trolling rod and reel with a line counter.  I like the Shimano Tekota.  These things will have to come after I get some experience and decide that I can have some success with muskies and I really want to make them a fish that I regularly pursue.  Man, there's something to be said for driving 5 minutes to the river and fishing a crawler on a hook and sinker.

Other than putting fresh monofilament on my spinning reels, I'm in pretty good shape for chasing all of the other fish.  I'm going to go after big pike in the Grand River bayous this May.  I can use my muskie gear for them.  This is a new adventure for me and I'm really looking forward to exploring that section of the river.  I'll probably throw the kids in the Jeep before then and take a scouting trip to check out some of the launches over there.  I want to know right where I'm going when the time comes.  I've heard that the walleye fishing can be good on that end of the river, too.  I want to try for them with Josh and Elijah.  Elijah is obsessed with walleye and I've become obsessed with getting him his first one.  I'm sure Mort will come out with me, too.  We can go after those huge channel cats that Dan Lipski put us on a couple of years ago.  I might kick off my year fishing for muskies and walleye on Thornapple Lake on the last Saturday in April.  We'll see.  I have a feeling it will be like trying to hunt state land on the opening day of gun season.  I'm not big on combat fishing.  I'll figure it out when the time gets closer.

I love this time of year.  It's a great feeling to know that the new season is right around the corner, full of big fish and memorable moments on the water.  I get antsy with the anticipation, but as I lose myself in the preparation, time is going to fly by and I'm going to be back in a boat before I know it.