The New, Shenandoah and James River all have good populations of musky. Please, don’t be mislead. They are still the fish of 10,000 casts even in Virginia. If you judge the success of your day on the water by fish boated, musky fishing may not be for you.
What time of year is best for muskie fishing?
Some of the highest catch rates for muskies are during the summer months when the water is warm and the fish are most active. Fall fishing can also be very productive at times, and many of the largest muskies are caught during the fall.
Where do you find muskie in a river?
By late May, river levels are typically stable, which means muskies are moving toward midriver structure. Typically, submergent weed growth has developed by now, and it plays an important role in musky location. Expect to find muskies setting up on or near humps, points and flats.
How do you fish for musky in a river?
How many casts does it take to catch a muskie?
Muskellunge, also known as muskie or the fish of 10,000 casts is the largest pike in North America. They are notoriously difficult to catch, but often reach over 20 pounds and occasionally grow longer than 50 inches.
How old is a 50 inch muskie?
On average, musky are about 11 inches long after their first year of life, reach 34″ in year 7, reach 40″ in year 9, and reach 50 inches by age 17.
What bait is best for muskie?
Bucktails – Bucktails are arguably the most popular bait used by musky anglers. Bucktails produce vibrations in the water that are easily felt by a musky’s lateral line. Bucktails can be retrieved at any speed, depending on the conditions. The most popular bucktails are double 9 blades and double 10 blades.
What time of day are musky most active?
Title Muskie become more difficult to catch in the heat of summer and the cold of winter. Like many predatory fish, muskie are most active at dawn and dusk, and these times typically provide the most action, especially on warm, sunny days.
What is the best way to fish for muskie?
Are muskie hard to catch?
Because of this, they’re prized game fish throughout their range. Muskie are also famously hard to hook, hence the nickname “fish of a thousand casts.” They’re difficult to trick and impossible to predict. Even so, there are a few go-to tactics for both species.
How do you shore muskie fish?
“Run to the boat with the rod,” says Jackson. “Get away from shore, and if the muskie is moving away from you, set the hook hard. If the muskie is not swimming, lift with the rod tip to pressure it. At some point it will want to swim away, and that’s when to set the hook.”
How long should a musky rod be?
We find that a rod length of around 8 feet is the “sweet spot” when fishing for musky. It gives you plenty of length and strength for casting the large lures, yet it’s much easier to handle than a 9-foot rod.
Are muskie good eating?
People who love eating muskies will tell you that muskie tastes quite similar to bass. Others believe it tastes more like pike. Either way, muskie is more of a bland fish with not as much flavor as other fish species, like salmon or tuna. Much of the taste of the fish depends on how you cook it.
How do you target a musky?
The most popular technique for catching muskellunge is casting large artificial lures that are typically five to 10 inches long, or longer. This is typically done while standing in a boat that is motoring slowly or drifting along preferred habitat. This technique allows anglers to cover a lot of water in short time.
What is a muskies favorite food?
Given the opportunity to choose, Muskies prefer soft rayed, high protein based fish such as Suckers, Tullibee, Ciscoes, Bullheads, Carp, and minnows. In fact, the food sources Muskies prefer most are usually fish species that most people would desire to not have in their lake.
What’s the hardest fish to catch?
- Wahoo. Wahoo live in the warm waters of Florida and Louisiana.
- Dolphin Fish. This species goes by a few names, including Mahi-Mahi and Dorado.
- Tuna. Tuna are notoriously difficult to catch.
- Bass. Bass is one of the much-hyped fish out there, for any adventure head angler.
What depth do muskies like?
As a rule, muskies prefer shallow waters. They rarely go deeper than 40 ft (12 m) because they like to hide among the vegetated areas that need sunlight for growth.
What is the deepest part of the James River?
Coast Pilot excerpts are not being corrected. James River. Drafts of vessels above Newport News do not exceed 15 feet. The James River provides depths of 25 feet to the Richmond Deepwater Terminal and in the Terminal Turning Basin; 18 feet to and in the Richmond Harbor Turning Basin; 18 feet to the Lock at Richmond.
What is the biggest muskie ever caught?
According to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, the tiger muskie is the biggest on record. The biggest muskellunge ever caught was 68 pounds and 631⁄2 inches long. It was caught on the Chippewa Flowage in Sawyer County on Oct. 10, 1949.
What fish are biting in the James River?
Fishing is good for bluegill, and other species such as smallmouth bass, largemouth bass, redbreast sunfish, and channel catfish may be caught as well. The river is deep enough to use a prop motor downstream of the ramp but rocks limit safely taking a prop boat upstream of the boat ramp.
What is considered a trophy muskie?
What is this? This is a much-debated question, and the answer most anglers will give you is that a trophy muskie is a fish of at least 50 inches. A 50+ incher is undoubtedly a fish that dreams are made of, and to many, it’s the ultimate goal in life.
What is the lifespan of a muskie?
Adult muskies have no aquatic predators, but may fall victim to disease, large birds of prey, or people. Muskellunge can live to about 18 years old, but fish up to 30 years of age have been documented.
What eats a muskie?
Predators. Adult muskellunge are apex predators where they occur naturally. Only humans and (rarely) large birds of prey such as bald eagles pose a threat to an adult but juveniles are consumed by other muskies, northern pike, bass, trout, and occasionally birds of prey.
What water temp is best for musky fishing?
Biologists classify muskies as “cool-water” fish. They are most comfortable at water temperatures between 63 and 67 degrees. In that temperature range, and in even colder water, there’s enough oxygen in the water that a muskie can exert itself without lasting effects.
Do muskies bite humans?
Craig Fuller, a Missouri Department of Conservation biologist, told St. Louis Today, “No records exist of a human being bitten by a muskie in Missouri.” However, a Wikipedia description of the species includes this passage: “Although very rare, muskellunge attacks on humans do occur on occasion.”