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Posts: 170
Location: Chicagoland | Like with all lakes that have a spillway, muskie often escape over the dam when the water is high. I could be mistaken, but wasn't Pewaukee busting its banks earlier this year?
So anyway. How's the musky fishing in this river? I mainly ask, because my grandma lives in Brookfield off of Springdale right by North Ave. The Fox flows right by there! Are there musky in this part of the river? If not, where can one find them in this river system? What baits? Thanks a lot, and Seasons Greetings! |
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Posts: 170
Location: Chicagoland | I can only deduce one thing from this. The river is full of fish and I should keep it secret, or no one's heard of anything. |
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Posts: 412
Location: Waukesha, WI | LOL. Deduce what you will!!!! 
Yes, fish end up over the dam every year and not just when it was at the flood stage it was last year. "Busting it's banks" is still a sore topic for many in the area.
I heard tagged fish from the Pewaukee Lake study made it to the Fox Chain in IL. The Milwaukee Chapter of Muskies Inc is working with the WI DNR to protect the muskies from the lake/Pewaukee River to the next dam I believe. It isn't a project I'm directly involved in. I can't recall if this is just during spawn or not.
Google Maps doesn't show which way the river flows. I don't think Springdale and North Ave is downstream, but I can't confirm that. |
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Posts: 15
| I have caught two small muskies (32"-35") on the Fox in Burlington throwing Mepps spinners for Walleye and Northern. It was several years back, but I always assumed they came from Pewaukee.
SW |
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Posts: 688
Location: Northern IL | Yea a fence is the best way to keep fish in the lake if applicable, Kinkaid lake in southern IL is the best example of success I know of, however tagging fish "Pewaukee study" with "metal tags" will do more to prematurely kill off a large population of muskies than loosing a few over the spill way, priorites.... |
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Posts: 16632
Location: The desert | jerryb - 12/30/2008 6:56 PM
Yea a fence is the best way to keep fish in the lake if applicable, Kinkaid lake in southern IL is the best example of success I know of, however tagging fish "Pewaukee study" with "metal tags" will do more to prematurely kill off a large population of muskies than loosing a few over the spill way, priorites....
Ok I'll bite....why the quotations on "Pewaukee study" and "metal tags"? First off, I dont believe that metal tags are used much anymore. Tagging is often done with Floy tags or PIT tags now. Both which are very easy to administer with a low level of mortality. Now if loosing only a few over a spillway had little to no effect on a population, why build a fence?
Second, what does building a fence and tagging fish have to do with priorites? Why cant both be done? To be honest it seems like we could learn a lot more about these fish by tagging them as opposed to building a fence. Perhaps I should learn how to prioritize. |
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Posts: 412
Location: Waukesha, WI | I was wondering that too. I crafted an e-mail to one of our chapter's founding fathers as to it's history since I've only been a member of the chapter for less than three years.
From what I scanned through in the Pewaukee Study that ended in '98, aluminum and radio tags were used, and the WI DNR was involved with this study. As for a fence, one almost went up. It might have been an upkeep concern that prevented it or an apparent lack of interest.
Pointer, do you know of issues with aluminum tags? Have you seen the study results?
Mike
Edited by ESfishOX 12/30/2008 11:44 PM
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Posts: 16632
Location: The desert | Mike,
I havent had much experience with aluminum tags. The only time I've used them was helping the DNR with some Sturgeon work, but the tags were old and they seemed to be phasing them out with PIT tags. PIT tags and plastic floy tags is what I've been using the past two summers and they have worked just fine with little harm to the trout. The floy tags have an end that looks like those plastic things that hold price tags onto clothing. They are inserted into the fleshy portion of a fish near the dorsal fin. Very little damage is done to the fish. The first 50 I caught had a floy tag in it from 11 or so years prior. The fish developes a little sore around the area, but it clearly wasnt effecting the fish one bit.
As for the results of the survey, I have no idea. I'm sure an email to the local biologist and you could get some info on what they found. |
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Posts: 412
Location: Waukesha, WI | Do you know if the floy tags are cheaper than the PIT tags? Thanks for your firsthand info too BTW.
The study results are on the MI website. I was just wondering if you saw it.  |
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Posts: 16632
Location: The desert | Floy tags should be cheaper than PIT tags. PIT tags are the passive internal transponders. You inject them into the belly cavity, generally right above the anal port so you dont damage any organs. In order to read them you need a scanner. This technique is pretty much identical to that used by vets for pet owners if their dog or cat gets lost, its easily trackable. The scanners arent cheap and I know each seperate PIT tag is at least a couple bucks a piece, and they are a pain when you drop them in the tall grass and dirt and have to search for them with the scanner. We use PIT tags in some state sensitive species out in Utah. If it is safe enough for a species that is making its way to the endangered list, I'm pretty sure a musky can handle it. But lets keep our priorities straight........(sigh)
But some cool things you can do with the PIT tags is set up readers that can record when a fish swims over the reader/sensor line. If this is in a stream/river you can also determine if it was going up or down stream. Sometimes both PIT and floy tags are used together in the event that one of the tags is lost. |
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Posts: 2024
| PIT tags: http://www.biomark.com/RFID-tags.htm
Floy T-bar anchor tags: http://shop.floytag.ihostsites.net/productinfo.aspx?productid=FD-67...
If radio tags were used then that sounds like a tracking study as opposed to a mark-recapture study. Mike is right about the use of metal tags. They have essentially become obsolete with the advent of PIT tags and floy tags. The only problem with the floy tags is sometimes, if not inserted properly, the fish will actually expel them (cell growth pushes them out) or they simply fall out. Once the PIT tags are in the intraperitoneal cavity they almost never fall out.
ESfishOX: What's the title of the study? I was on the MI site and didn't see it. |
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Posts: 16632
Location: The desert | esox50 - 12/31/2008 10:21 AM
If radio tags were used then that sounds like a tracking study as opposed to a mark-recapture study. Mike is right about the use of metal tags. They have essentially become obsolete with the advent of PIT tags and floy tags. The only problem with the floy tags is sometimes, if not inserted properly, the fish will actually expel them (cell growth pushes them out) or they simply fall out. Once the PIT tags are in the intraperitoneal cavity they almost never fall out.
Sean are you stating your inadequacies about using a Floy tag?? Kidding of course. We've actually seen PIT tags lost on a few occasions, we're always a bit baffled, but it only seems to happen in our June sucker population. Perhaps because those fish are so sickly looking and skinny. PIT tags are nice though, unless you have an intern who likes to talk more than work and tries to carry on a conversation, with a person who isnt listening to her, all while trying to record the PIT ID number I'm trying to read off. Other than that, they work great! |
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PIT tags are nice though, unless you have an intern who likes to talk more than work and tries to carry on a conversation, with a person who isnt listening to her, all while trying to record the PIT ID number I'm trying to read off. Other than that, they work great!
LOL. Been there, done that. |
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Posts: 412
Location: Waukesha, WI | http://www.muskiesinc.org/ss/site/content/MINC%20Pages/Members/Rese...
Hidden under the chapter info....cleaned up that path junk too (hate it when people put spaces in file names and folders).
Mike
Edited by ESfishOX 12/31/2008 12:47 PM
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Posts: 2691
Location: Pewaukee, Wisconsin | Fishable numbers-YES
100 yards from the spillway will be closed to fishing if we can get it passed this Spring. DNR and a few of us from Muskies Inc are working to get that done to protect the fish. Lots of snagging and illegal fishing going on in Spring.
Fox river runs in to the Pewaukee river by 164 and I94. Lots of muskies in the spillway in down town Waukesha in Spring.
Hard to fish the river since its not wide or deep from the split to Pewaukee. Never checked the Fox up from the split but it too is shallow and narrow.
Best time to hit any part of this river is Spring and Fall. I expect good numbers of fish up the river this Spring since we lost hundreds of muskies this past Spring with the extreme flooding. |
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Posts: 1636
| This is just a rumor... I heard of an upper 30" muskie caught near the Illinois River with a tag, that came from Pewaukee. This was maybe 5 or 6 years ago. |
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| Just to clear the record, the Milw. Chapter of Muskies, Inc. has not metal tagged a fish in Pewaukee nor any where else in at least 15 years. The fish in the Pewaukee study were all radio transplants. |
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Posts: 1636
| There was an individual who would tag fish on his own (not associated with the club), and some fish were caught with those tags. Hopefully he is no longer tagging fish! |
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Location: SE Wisconsin | Down River, no less than two miles from downtown Waukesha, the river opens up a bit and deepens. There are som 8 to 12 foot holes at some bends in the river that hold a number of different species. When I was younger, we'd fish in Vernon Marsh from shore, catching cats to walleyes, bass to pike. . . Never a musky, although we knew they were in there from the obvious visuals you get while they mock spawn at the dam. There is a boat launch big enough for large fishing boats right off 164 and Fox Run by the church.. Would I spend a day chasing skis on this river, NO, but for the adventurous type, it is definitely musky worthy. . . Years and years of musky transfor from Pewaukee Lake, down the river and right into the Fox off of HWY F/North Street (old 164) accross I94 from American. . . I work at Cooper Power in plain view of the river!
The snagging and harrassment is out of control at the dam in the spring! People targeting the specie, mixed with snaggers makes a true musky fisherman want to drop a tear! |
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Posts: 170
Location: Chicagoland | more like pull out a can of whoop ass! |
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Posts: 2691
Location: Pewaukee, Wisconsin | I have personally seen metal tags years ago. The last ten years I have not seen any. They scared over with infection and big soars. Bad idea but that was figured out after it was done for a few years. Tags were on the top fin at the base of the fin and back. Lots of old pictures have these ugly tags/scars.
As for the numbers of muskies from Pewaukee to the dam in Waukesha I would say this Spring will be the best ever. Lots of fish lost this Spring in the flood. Any fish that goes over the dam in Waukesha can't get back over. So, lots of good fishing from the dam down this Spring.
Things will be different this Spring in Pewaukee. I will make sure I raise enough stink with everyone I can to protect these fish we(muskies inc/DNR) stock.
I hope it's illegal to fish but that would be too quick to get passed. I would be surprized. Lots of eyes on that area last year and plenty of people called in reports of snagging. I am doing everything I can to get this protected. Everyone can help. Just call the DNR and express your concern and tell them about all the violations you hear about every Spring.
Edited by Mikes Extreme 1/19/2009 6:50 PM
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Pewaukee/Fox River Questions