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| So I caught my first lake muskie last weekend and it was also the first after dark and the first on my homemade bucktails.... after hook removal and two pictures by myself (you know you fish alone a lot when you carry a tripod with you) I held the fish in the water for 4 or 5 minutes.. she kicked and was off..but then she came to the surface, not belly up, and swam away from me on the surface........ I followed her a little ways and lost her in the darkness, should I be worried that she didn't make it or do they often swim on the surface a bit.... |
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Location: Illinois | You should be worried that she didn't make it! I'm sure you made a good attempt of releasing your first lake musky, but to have no second thoughts- you need to watch her swim DOWN. Easier said than done when you don't have tons of experience to guide you! It's possible that the musky's swim bladder was inflated, which acts as a float, disabling it from swimming safely down. Sometimes muskies can regulate this by themselves, but if you encounter this again, do this: hold the musky upright in the water by the tail, gently press upward on it's belly starting by it's tail and moving toward the head. If successful, the musky "burps" and should soon recover completely and swim down.
Congrats on the fish and good luck releasing em' all! |
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Posts: 1663
Location: Kodiak, AK | I don't know enough to comment on the fish, but I can compliment you on your concern for the fish. She may not have made it, but good on you for giving a #*^@.
Jeff |
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| yes, follow the fish until they go down.
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| What are you trying to say esoxfly............ are you saying I don't care whether she made it or not? Do you think I just dumped her in the drink and left her sit there? Not sure if that was sarcasim or not....... I followed and she sped up and splashed and went down a little.......but due to the darkness I was not aware if she surfaced again.......... |
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Posts: 2686
Location: Hayward, WI | I think esoxfly was being serious - that he appreciates you caring about the fish enough to ask the question. Whether the fish made it or not, I'd say there's a chance either way. You did what you could. If it was after dark, it's going to be nearly impossible to tell if that fish came up again. It's always a good idea to stay in the area for up to an hour if a release was questionable, but if it is dark, you would have a hard time telling if that fish came up 50 yards away.
To somewhat answer your question, I have had quite a few fish swim down at a shallow angle. Some dart nearly straight down, but a lot of my bigger fish have slowly paddled back down to the depths slowly, gaining depth slowly.
curleytail |
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Posts: 2024
| CollegeMuskyHunter - 8/11/2008 9:34 PM
What are you trying to say esoxfly............ are you saying I don't care whether she made it or not? Do you think I just dumped her in the drink and left her sit there? Not sure if that was sarcasim or not....... I followed and she sped up and splashed and went down a little.......but due to the darkness I was not aware if she surfaced again..........
I think you misread Esoxfly's post. I'm pretty sure he was complimenting you for showing genuine concern.
Sounds like you did all you could given that it was dark. I wouldn't lose sleep over it. |
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Releasing fish.......