Sweet Topwater Strike – Musky Movement – Kiddos with Nice 'skies
Be the FIRST to see Musky Insider every week by signing up for the email version of this newsletter. It's 100% free and we will never sell your email address! Click here to sign up and never miss another issue.
Dick Pearson is Coming!
We can’t wait for our Musky Insider Pro Live Q&A session with musky legend Dick Pearson coming up this Thursday, June 13th.
A while back, we surveyed our Musky Insider PRO members and asked them about their favorite Q&A sessions and instructors.
Dick was at the top of the list – of course – so we knew we had to convince him to come back for round two!
If you are an Insider PRO member already, you can check out the recording of last year’s session with Dick in the member portal, and be sure to tune in this Thursday.
If you’re not signed up for Insider PRO yet, you can still join in time to participate in Dick’s live session and get your burning musky questions answered by one of the best musky minds on the planet.
Registration for Musky Insider Pro closes on Father’s Day and it could be a while before we let more people in the door.
You can get signed up and/or learn more by clicking this link 👈
The Next Generation of 'Skie Chasers
All it takes is ONE musky encounter to hook you for life.
Lets take a moment to show off some sweet muskies from the next generation of musky anglers. Because you don't just "quit" once you've had the experience of catching a musky – you chase that feeling the rest of your life!
First up, we have an awesome shot sent in by Joe Kraetke. Here's the story behind the fish:
"My daughter, Lucy, caught her first musky. A beautiful Price County, WI 44 incher on a sucker rig. It nearly pulled her into the water off the river bank several times but she battled through it. Had I been the one to fight it, I likely would have lost the fish due to it being just barely skin hook in the corner of the mouth. She was excited to release it and watch it swim off."
Next we have a sweet fall 'skie from Callan at the Future Anglers of Minnesota tournament:
Okay, this is a seriously impressive catch. Huge props to Tyler (11 years old) on landing this big Virginia viper, fishing with his mom and guide Sam Scott.
And our favorite kinda shot: the release! Great first 'skie for Emmitt Katzmarek and an awesome pic to go with it! 🔥
Sweet Topper Strike
Was watchin' some YouTube this week, when I ran across some MN Musky Opener action from Devoted Outdoors (John & Ashley Holmgren).
What specifically caught our attention was this wild boatside wallop:
It's thrilling watching a musky poise-up like that, then torpedo at your bait.
Big props to Ashley on converting 💪
The big spot-a-saurus took her on a run around the front-end of the boat before eventually hitting the net.
It's moments like THIS ☝️ that set musky fishing apart from the other freshwater species. You don't get crazy hand-to-hand interactions like Ashley experienced from bass, walleye, panfish, catfish, etc.
Btw, here's the full video from John & Ashley if you wanted to watch:
Muskies Be Movin'
Gord Pyzer posed a thought-provoking question in this Outdoor Canada article.
Why do 'skies colonize certain areas of lakes & rivers, and ignore spots that seem pretty dang similar overall?
This isn't uncommon and there's a good chance that there's quite a few different factors at play.
Gord shared a few good quotes, including this one from Dr. John Casselman:
"Muskellunge, generally, are not great movers. Their summer habitat is typically not far from their spawning and nursery areas. When they do move, it’s usually an indication of following available prey."
And when muskies are ready to get their move on, they can REALLY move....
"The best example of this is the fall migration of muskellunge up the St. Lawrence River into eastern Lake Ontario, where they follow alewife that are migrating back into the lake for the winter."
But just like a recent college grad, they always end up back in their hometown:
"Interestingly, though, in the spring they move back again to their spawning habitats in the river. They show strong fidelity to spawning locations, and I somehow suspect that this is a factor controlling their abundance."
This also holds true for several other species of gamefish.
I've heard many accounts of smallmouth bass swimming across massive lakes to return to their spawning grounds after tournament weigh-ins.
This Week's Mashup:
Mashup time!
#1 – Next time someone asks me if I wanna go bass/walleye fishing, I'm gonna show 'em this list. Spoiler alert: Bassin' & walleye fishing aren't on it!
#2 – Not gonna lie, I thought this post from Nick Rydell was pretty funny. Nick is a fisheries specialist at the Minnesota DNR. And here's his post:
"Hope everyone had a successful Muskie opener this weekend. If not, here are some pictures of fish over 50 inches from this year’s survey to prove to you that they exist. The largest was 52.75 inches."
#3 – Our buddies over at Taps & Tackle have some new bucktails in stock from J1 Baits. The Mini B (left) and the Big B (right).
And they are pairing it over at the shop with a fresh brew called Life of Illusion from Central Waters Brewing Company.
#4 – Saw this meme on Joel DeBoer's page, and had to share it here. 🙄
QUICK HITTERS:
– Big open water Illinois musky w/ Todays Angler (video)
– Vermilion musky opener w/ Thorne & Luke Ronnestrand (video)
– Northern WI opener float trip w/ Smith's Fishing (video)
– Spring musky baits talk w/ Ben Stone (video)
– River fishing action w/ Naspeltz (video)
THIS WEEK'S MONSTER MUSKIES:
This 56-incher from Tom Mathu was more than enough to win the Jordan Olson Memorial League this week (via the Titletown chapter of Muskies Inc.)
Lovin' this shot from Jake Krohn, featuring a Vilas County bruiser outta the jon boat. She fell for the Magnum Bull Dawg on the first turn of the 8.
John Hoyer just can't stay away from the 'skies! Check out this big ole girl he boated in-between a flurry of big Minnesota walleyes this week.
Wanna be featured in Musky Insider? Send in your recent trophy musky photos by replying to this email. You might just see your pic in next week's newsletter. 🤙
Want to see more from Musky Insider? Make sure to follow us on Facebook and Instagram for bonus content throughout the week!
Send all business inquiries to josh@muskyinsider.com