Fishing Forum

I probably broke the 1000 cast mark in my attempt to catch a big tiger.  Today I finally succeeded.  I did not measure or take a picture with my placard for the contest because I wanted to get it back in the water as quickly as possible.  I wish I could have caught it on video when it launched itself completely out of the water trying to throw the hook.  What a toothy beast.  Thanks Newton for giving up a gem today.  Yes, it got me back!

Looks like he/she is in really good shape. I was worried what low water may do to them. Congrats. Were you throwning hard baits or plastics?

Thanks Lance. Hardware.

Awesome!!! Great looking fish, congrats! Still on my bucket list.

Congrats! Good Tiger muskie!

Thanks

I'm jealous. How deep would you guess that the deeper water is? Any sign of crappie?

I would guess around 10 to 15 ft in the deepest spots.  I have not tried for the panfish so I don't have any Intel on them.  I've been targeting the muskies. The bass seem to be plentiful as I have caught several the last couple of times up there.

How are you targeting the muskies. ?
Plastic, crank baits. Spinner baits. They all work at the right time..

I have tried so many different things.  Large minnow hard baits, plastics (the bass like those), lots of different cranks, large spinners and spinnerbaits with no hookups or follows.  It was when I started throwing large spoons that I began to get some interest.  Maybe they haven't seen too many of them, I don't know.  But at least I've had some follows, a good strike near shore, a brief hookup on another one, then this one. It had it down the throat almost to the gills, just engulfed it.  I also caught the 21" bass from a previous trip on the spoon.

Congrats on getting your TM. In the far North they use spoons all the time for Pike, sounds like Tigers like them too. Were you using a steel leader?

Thanks.  Yes I was using a steel leader.  I need the invest in a jaw spreader if I decide to go after them some more. That was a daunting task trying to navigate around those teeth even with a pair of long nose pliers.

I tried jaw spreaders with pike and Its easier without them in my experience. Once it spreads there jaw they thrash and freak out the whole time making it even harder

That's good to know.  Thanks for the info.  It did thrash when I opened the mouth wide to unhook it.  That's when I got the souvenir on my finger.

I have also donated blood the the Tigers of Newton last year. It wasn't even my Tiger.   I don't know if there is a good way to avoid those needle teeth.

I'm still sorry about that Hugh, might have been the same fish... Congrats Paul, glad you got the tiger to play... Later J

Wahoo! Congrats

Kevlar gloves work nice when unhooking muskies. Also prevents hooks getting buried in your fingers/hand. Been there and it's not very fun. Do not use jaw spreaders. Bad for the fish.  Muskies and pike tend to get very docile when flipped on their backs in the net or water. We used cradles a lot in the midwest but you need two people in the boat to use them.