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| I have been Muskie fishing for just a couple of years, but i have to ask. This may be a dumb question for some of you, but how do you locate forage or baitfish effectively? I read alot of this and always try to find schools of fish that are spooked and start casting but how do you find the shad that are in open water? Depth finder i would assume, but what is the correct practice? | |
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Posts: 2361
| Go to Webster Lake in IN.
Look at your graph or your flasher. There will be a solid line on your flasher anywhere from 5-25 feet deep, on your graph, if you have a fish id mode, you will see a solid line of big fish from 5-25 feet deep. The depth will depend on sunlight, temperature, water clarity and time of year. It will vary. Now that you have found that wide bar or that row of big fish symbols, those will be muskies, and now it is easy, everything above that line is bait, and if you see a slight haze on your flasher or graph, that indicates the bait fish are scared poopless(thus the haze), and it means that the big fish below them are eating. Cast whereever you see that haze.
Edited by firstsixfeet 4/29/2005 7:16 PM
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Posts: 32885
Location: Rhinelander, Wisconsin | I look for 'clouds' of signals on the screen. We do not have shad here, so were looking for perch or the like up here. The schools are smaller, and appear as oblong or round clouds of small signals on the screen. If there's hooks under or in those clouds, then you can be certain there are gamefish there. Make sure your sonar is set so it is sensitive enough to pick up the baitfish. Some folks adjust the unit to get a clean screen, because all the actual signals returning can 'clutter' the screen, and is sometimes confusing. | |
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Posts: 147
Location: Leech Lake, Walker, MN. | Use your electronics, another thing to keep in mind is watching folks fishing for other species. These areas usually mean crappies, sunnies, perch, or walleyes are present. This usually means smaller minnows, crayfish, or insects are also present. Of course the larger predators will be close by. I also use an underwater camera in addition to my sonar to locate and identify forage.
Good luck, Murph | |
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Posts: 354
| At times diving loons in open water areas will indicate forage near by as well. It pays to be
both a bird watcher and a musky fisherman.  | |
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Posts: 1185
Location: Wishin I Was Fishin' | This is when a better sonar unit is necessary. Higher wattage and pixels. Spend the $$$ get the picture. I perfer Lowrance but the oters have comparable high end units. I am not talking $1000, just $200 will get you an Eagle that will do the job just fine. | |
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How to effectively find baitfish