First timers on muskies!!

" Oh my Gosh...oh my gosh, I think I got one" is what I heard from behind me in the Lund. See, a recent high school graduate from the Washington D.C. area and his father were fishing muskies with me this morning. We got in a little too tight and I found myself dangerously close to a cabbage bed that covered a point on the south end of North Star Lake. When David said this, I looked back to see the rod over his left shoulder? No way this was a fish. I told him " I think it may be a weed". As soon as the word "weed" left my mouth I noticed the line coming to the surface like a rocket. Here it comes...........

I received a call from one of my frequent clients that he had a couple of relatives coming up to Minnesota from Maryland and he wanted to treat them to a full day of Musky fishing. I thought " cool, this could be fun". Mel then informed me that these two have never fished Muskies and wasn't sure they could cast! My thoughts then turned to "Oh oh...now what?" But after the first 10 minutes in the boat I could see this wasn't going to be an issue. They would be just fine. This was indeed their first time ever fishing for this monster of a species. I started David and his dad on Inhaler bucktails. These baits are bar none one of the best bucktails made. Within an hour David had on his first musky . The fish hit just 15 yards from the back on the boat and ran a bit. david was holding on for dear life. This fish cooperated beautifully. She swam to the side of the boat and went airborne. Dave then did exactly what he was told and lifted the pig right into the Frabil net. This was the only fish boated today but what a memorable fish it was. To be able to be a part of this experience is priceless. Now for his dad.....next time Sir! Maybe less weeds on your hooks will help ( inside joke ). Enjoy the picture of David and his spotted 42 inch Musky caught on the same Inhaler as his uncle just one year ago. Thanks to Dale Anderson of Winnie Walleyes for taking some nice pics for us today.

Stay tuned for more Muskie action as I have a bunch of Musky trips left this year. I'm thinking the fishing will heat up. We will keep our fingers crossed. Check out my website for some more reports and great pictures of beautiful fish. www.northstarguideservice.com

"Watch your bobber!!!!"

Eric

Muskie on!..Maybe..Mike, not again!

The morning started out with a little wind and cloud cover. So I knew we wouldnt have another day like we have had in the past. See, I was out on a trip with 2 guys that have been in the boat before who love to muskie fish and great guys to boot. A couple of years ago we had one of those days you hear about but never experience. Correct me if I'm wrong guys but I think we had 14 different fish follow, chase, hit and destroy lures all in a 4 hour stretch.

We all had on different lures including a new bait called Twisted Spoon, Top Raider and a Bulldawg. The dawg is Mikes favorite lure to use on North Star Lake just due to the fact that he has had numerous fish annihilate it time and time again. It didnt take long before we hit a stretch that usually holds some fish. Mike was in the front of the Lund tossing that orange and black Dawg like a pro. I had positioned the boat in 30'-35 ' so we could hit the desired depth of cabbage. The wind turned the front end and Mike had thrown the bait a tad bit short and ended up in 25' of water. After a few turns of the reel I had noticed Mike pull the rod straight up slowly as if he had a bunch of weeds draggin him down. That's where it turned funny. I asked him what was goin on and he said " think I had some weeds". I giggled a little and asked him to take a look at his bait because had tossed that lure in open water. The bait was lifted high and no weeds were hangin'...just tooth marks. Mike had pulled the lure right out of the fishes mouth ever so slowly. Perfect job if it was a weed. We all chucked a bit and kept moving.

Our next spot was an island that had a huge point of reeds and lots of cabbage. Same scenario with our presentations with Mike still in the front throwin his most beloved dawg. We meandered to the end of the point and I had instructed Mike to toss it in shallow , keep his rod high and move the bait across the top of the weeds. "BAM!!!!", his line straightened out and his rod loaded up. Could this be the time? Finally a fish that held on long enough to see and net? Nope. Just a lure that was full of teeth marks...tight full. Now remember I said I had two guys in the boat? The other gentleman Scott just stood on the back deck and threw his heart out. He did have a pretty big fish follow right to the boat but she shut her mouth and snubbed it's nose at us. Now I'm not sure why Scott and I even had rods in our hands 'cause it's always Mike that steals the show. Might have to switch things up again next year and stick Mike in the back 'Eh Scotty? Usually I place a photo or two is this spot of someone holding a fish but not this time. We do have the memories of those funny couple of moments watching Mike.

Thanks go out to Mike and Scott for another great trip chasing these elusive fish and who knows....the next time could be it!!!

Keep an eye out for my next post 'cause I'm back chasing them on Wednesday and take a look for new pictures on my website.  www.northstarguideservice.com

Watch your bobber!!!!!

Eric

Today was just a half day trip for me that didn't produce a "ton" of action but it did have its moments. Most of them came from watching one of my guys named "Sam". Now I have known Sam for quite some time and this is the first time we have had the chance to fish together. See, Sam just graduated from high school this year and his dad thought this would be a good chance to get he and his brother into some walleyes. 6:00 am came early for all of us except his younger brother Michael who decided not to go due to that fact that it was WAY too early.

We started out fishing rigs tipped with leaches at the same humps that have been producing for me these past few weeks. I located a bunch of fish but couldn't get them to respond. TO ANYTHING!!! I tried a couple of different humps with the same result. I received a call from a buddy that found some baitfish and a few 'eyes . We headed over there and started catching fish right away. Now back to Sam. Our first fish was caught by him in a very unorthodoxed way. He was pulling a rig and told me he " had one goin". I attempted to guide Sammy through his first bite and away we went. I think he did everything I told him NOT to do. His dad and I just sat back a laughed. The fish was "on", then it was "gone...then back "on" then I'm not sure what happened but the fish ended up at the side of the Lund. Our first keeper. I told Sam I was gonna write this and he just laughed and said "ok no problem" with that great big smile he always has.

I got out the spinner rods and we began in 13 fow. BAM ...Randy had one on but it let go. then Sam had one and that let go also. We picked and scrounged for our fish and had some laughs while doin it. We had fish in the box and also let a few  big ones go. Below is a fish that Randy released.

 I hope that Michael will be with us the next time we are on the water as he has the biggest smile of all three of them. Maybe we will have to start around noon.

Big Bass in the Slop

This morning was a real treat for me . I had two gentlemen from the Rochester area in my boat chasing big Largemouth. Typically I would have started of us throwing spinnerbaits to try and located these fish but it wasn't gonna happen. Most of the fish I have been finding this time of year have been in the thick pads up shallow. I decided that the water temp being 76 f, we would slow it down and throw some plastic.

Jeff had on a black worm Texas Rig style and I was throwing a slow falling Senko rigged "Wacky" style. Mike on the other hand wanted to catch some pike and decided that a spinner bait was gonna be his weapon. Our first two cast produced some action with both Jeff and I missing our fish. I thought it was gonna be one of those days where we would slaughter the bass. I was wrong. We worked for every fish and worked hard. The water temp was still high but the air temp had fallen dramatically this a.m. and the bucket mouths didn't like it . At least that was what I was telling myself. The sun decided to pop out and the fish answered with a boom. Below is a picture of Jeffs first larger fish that inhaled the Berkley Power Worm.

While fishing the same stretch of water Jeff picked yet another hog on the same set-up. This time the fish was slightly larger. It hit at the egde of the break and he slammed the hook home on this pig of a bass.

This behemoth measured in at a whopping 22 3/4 inches. This fish was fat and healthy; a good sign for this Itasca County gem of a lake. After a few more fish we decided to call it a day and cranked up the Verado and head back to the landing. Great day?...No...Good day...Yes!!! Its all about these smiles you see above. If you are a guide and doing this for any other reason other than the smiles and thanks, you might need to look further because this is what its all about.

Tomorrow I head to Winnie with some long time guests and friends to chase some walleyes. This trip is one of those I always look forward to. A dad and his two sons. One of them never catching a walleye and the other doesn't remember if he did. Hope to log some great photos and post a good story for you.

Watch your Bobber!!!

1st time in a boat? Really?

"Alright guys we will start the drift again". "How deep are we this time Eric?" I said "31 feet guys but we will be in the right depth really quick." The wind had started to pick up with it gusting to 18mph. John's son Jim said to me " I think I got one goin' " I looked at the Lowarnce and it read 31.9' It couldn't be. But I looked at the time and the temps and I guess it was possible. The fish were movin deep." Set the hook Jim!"  and he did so just perfectly! The rod loaded up and I thought " Oh, oh he's in for a fight ". The fish stayed down but soon came up to where we could see her................


When I first received a call the call that I was needed to take a dad and his 12 year old son walleye fishing, I was excited to be a part of this experience. Then when I learned the boy had never fished walleyes before it got me even more excited. Man, to be a part of this kids memories of being 12 and catching his1st walleye left me thinkin', "what if its gonna be a struggle to find the fish ?" On the drive to the landing I then was told that " Jim has never been in a boat". This was gonna be a day we would all remember.

We decided to start on the North end and fish some humps that topped out at 22'. I located some fish right away and it didn't take too long before John had one goin. A 17 3/4"- 'eye was hanging on the end of his leech tipped rig. Wouldn't ya know it but a boat that was circling us saw us land two fish before he moved right in and pushed us off. Now for those of you who are new to fishing or heck even seasoned veterans, it's not very polite to watch someone who is working a small spot and catching fish to move right in and block your path. It seems to happen every time we are on the water lately. There are atleast 50 + humps that are sooo close they could fish. We ended up moving a half mile to the south and what a good move it was. Thats where most of our numbers came from. Leeches were the ticket in the Lund again out fishing crawlers.

Ok, back to that fish. Jim's dad had said most of the morning that all he wanted was for Jim to catch a big fish. Well it was happening...and boy did it happen! Jim's first of 4 bigger fish was a 22 incher and then the big boy hit on the very next drift. Yep in almost 32' of water. The picture above is that of a fish that hit 25 1/4". Now I know most of you weekend pro's are thinkin " that's just 25 inches!" . You are right! 25 inches of the biggest fish of this boys life. Below are a couple of other shots I took of this memorable day. I just hope at least one of you reading this gets to experience what I did yesterday. Besides taking out my own son this tops them all. I hope that some day I get to do this again!!! Thanks guys! You are welcome in my boat anytime.

Eric Koenig
www.northstarguideservice.com