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Trophy Muskie Techniquesby Kevin Patton
There are lots of good fishermen out there and a smaller number of them who can effectively teach fishing techniques to the rest of us, but few people excel in both areas. Muskie expert Jim Saric is one of those people. Saric talked about trophy muskie techniques to a crowd of 60 fishermen March 31 at a seminar sponsored by the Central Illinois Muskie Hunters at the Interstate Center in Bloomington. He entertained the crowd with humorous stories, video clips, and lots of good advice about catching trophy muskies. The Homewood, Illinois native now lives in Deerfield and is the editor and owner of Musky Hunter Magazine and host and executive producer of The Musky Hunter television series. He is also a contributing writer for In-Fisherman, North American Fisherman, Fishing Facts, and Midwest Outdoors magazines. He identified Minnesota as the best state for trophy muskies, but noted that their fishing season is relatively short compared to Illinois. "It is not legal to fish for muskies there until the first week of June," Saric said, "and ice sometimes forms on their lakes during the first week in November." In addition to a longer fishing season, Saric maintained that Illinois has good size and numbers of muskies, which is why he films two or three television shows here each year. When pursuing trophy muskies, Saric doesn't have a "favorite bait," and he revealed that there are at least 350 baits in his boat. "You have to use a variety of baits," he advises. "There is more than one bait that will work in a given situation." He also acknowledged that he doesn't have a "favorite depth" to fish for muskies. He often prefers to fish at the depth where the weedline ends, which varies from lake to lake. Saric broke down his suggestions for successful trophy muskie fishing into five categories.
Bucktails Bucktail spinners are a staple for hunting trophy muskies according to Saric. He suggests using both small and large baits, based on the size of the forage in your lake. "Good conditions for fishing a bucktail," noted Saric, "are when there is cloud cover, when active fish are shallow, and when you want to fish fast." Situations when Saric recommends bucktails include when you are fishing a new lake, when you want to cover water quickly to learn a lake, and when you are fishing cover in shallow water. "The blade style is important when fishing bucktails," said Saric "and I use different styles, depending on the depth of cover and speed that I'm retrieving the bait." He chooses a colorado blade for shallow water, a willowleaf blade for deeper areas, and a French blade when he fishes shallow cover and needs to use a very fast retrieve to trigger strikes. Saric is not a big believer in modifying baits, but he does occasionally change the shape of a bucktail blade to get a different vibration. One bucktail that has been very productive for Saric is the Cowgirl, which is a 10-inch bait that has two No. 10 Colorado blades instead of the traditional one blade. He mentioned three keys to more successfully presenting bucktails. The first is to put your thumb on the spool and pull back slightly with your rod as the bait hits the water in order to get the bait aligned in a straight line to start your retrieve. Secondly, Saric suggested using the reel handle to change lure presentation by alternately turning the handle at different speeds. He also emphasized that anglers should always do a figure eight maneuver at the boat with your rod tip in the water. "You should do this every cast, for every bait," he maintained.
Topwaters "Topwaters are always good when fish are shallow," according to Saric. Times that he uses topwater baits include when water temperatures are between 58-68 degrees, during a post-front day, in calm (but not flat calm) or rough waters, and when you have muskies located on a specific spot. Saric also uses them as a "toss back" bait when fish follow other baits but do not strike. He then throws a topwater bait at the fish. He prefers two styles of topwater baits for trophy muskies, using a single-prop topwater in rough water and a bait that glides "side-to-side" (Zara Spook action) when fishing calmer water. He noted that there needs to be a little chop on the water for topwaters to be effective. Two retrieves that Saric uses with topwaters include a "cat and mouse" approach and "hovering" the bait. His cat and mouse retrieve involves changing the retrieve with the reel handle by using three quick turns to speed up the lure and then returning to normal speed. He repeats this periodically to pull the bait away from any following fish in order to provoke a strike. When he hovers a top water bait in place, Saric bounces the rod tip with slack in his line so the bait moves in one spot. Soft Plastics "More people are throwing soft plastics," says Saric, "because they are catching a lot of fish on them." One hot bait is Musky Innovation's Bull Dawg soft plastic jerkbait, which is earning tournament fishermen more money than any other bait according to Saric. He uses soft plastics after a cold front, when fish are following baits but not biting, on pressured lakes, and as a toss-back lure. In shallow, clear-water lakes, Saric uses a smaller, five-inch bait, but chooses larger baits in deeper or murkier waters. "There is no wrong way to fish them," asserts Saric. "As long as the tail is moving, the bait is working." The erratic tail action triggers strikes whether you jerk it, pause and glide it, rip it, or just straight crank the bait. On tough fishing days, Saric often fishes a large, bright-colored (sherbert, lime, etc.) bait as a "shocker" to the fish.
Wireline Trolling "There is just as much to learn about trolling for muskies as there is to learn about casting for muskies," maintains Saric. He recommends trolling with wire lines, referring to it as "ultimate lure control." The technique doubles the depth that crankbaits run, allows your baits to bottom-bounce, and makes it easier to remove weeds from baits by jerking your rod. Saric describes the essentials for trolling as being a seven to eight-foot rod, a line-counter reel, a tightened down reel drag, and a Twilli Tip. Twilli Tip is an attachment to your rod tip that helps gather line into the rod tip and gives you leverage when fighting a fish. Saric likes the advantage that trolling provides for precise depth and speed control. He recommended using a GPS to guide your trolling and more easily reproduce your presentation after catching a fish. Trophy Spots When you are looking for trophy muskies at least 50-inches long, Saric suggests a strategy that includes fishing big structures that have a variety of cover located on them. He also believes that you increase your odds for trophy muskies when you fish within 1/4-mile of a main channel. Saric's approach includes developing a "milk run" of trophy spots rather than sitting on any one spot and he returns to areas multiple times during the day. He stated that it is important to take advantage of environmental triggers, such as sky changes and wind shifts, in your hunt for trophy muskies. "Stay on big fish and return to them," he concluded. That sounds like good advice for fishermen pursuing a predator at the top of the food chain that may be the biggest fish that swims in your lake. Jim Saric's Musky Hunter web site is located at: Central Illinois Muskie Hunters web site is located at: Illinois Muskie Tournament Trail web site is located at: |
