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| Hi all. Looking for some feedback to a few questions from guys who have families.
1. When you travel for Muskie fishing, do you travel more often with your family or with group, club, friends, etc.
2. If you do travel with your family, do you fish Muskies with your kids?
3. How old were your kids when they first started fishing Muskies?
4. What do you value more, "trophy" or "action" lakes?
5. If you value "trophy" water more, do you select destinations for your family trips based on your "trophy" water preference or do you make other plans?
6. If you don't fish Muskies with your kids, what do you fish for when you are with them?
7. Do you spend some time fishing for other species with the kids and then "prime" fishing Muskies for yourself?
8. Would you take your family to a lake with a 50" size limit or a 34" size limit if you have kids with you and they will fish Muskies?
Thanks,
Jono
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| Jono
I have a wife and two daughters at my house. Here are answers to your questions.
1. I do both. I have been fortunate that my whole family likes fishing. I have "the fever" worse than they do but we do it as a family. My 12 year old has gone on several trips with just her and I. I am still trying to get my 12 year old her first and I know if I could get my wife on one she'd be more willing to spend time casting instead of reading. My 16 year old and my wife both love to panfish too. I just make sure that I make time to do things with them all, even if I have to take time out from fishing to do it.
Since last year I have also started making more trips with "the guys". But I try not to overdo that. 1 or 2 trips a year at the most usually. But I can get away with more as long as I am involved with the other family stuff. Softball, flute lessons, plays etc.
2. Already answered, yes with my 12 year old. My 16 year old hasn't really shown an interest and I'm not a believer in pushing them into it.
3. 12 year old was 10 to 11 years old when she started.
4. Right now with my daughter I value more action lakes. Would like to show her what it's all about. But, for myself I tend to lean more towards lakes with a chance at a mid 40's +.
5. I try to plan my vacations so that I am within driving distance of lakes that I want to fish. I don't feel a huge need to stay on the water that I want to fish. As a matter of fact if you want to be mobile and try different things staying on one lake can be a negative.
6. Pannies for the most part.
7. Yes. I make time to do both. I'll fish muskies by myself, or with my daughter, in the morning then panfishing or doing other family stuff during the day. Back to ski's in the evening.
8. I don't think the size limit on the lake would matter to me. Fish population density, location and accomodations are more important to my family.
Hope this helps.
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| Hey Jono, Here is our take!
1=family
2=15 1st ski at 8
3=we go to the best lake for what conditions are period!
4=depends
5=Musky`s only
6=no,musky`s only
7=We again go by conditions,cause we let`em ALL GO!
We as a family probably spend over 30 days a season on the water together and I would not trade that for anything! Besides that way all the hot lakes are kept in the family,if you know what I mean.One other thing,if we really just set out for an action lake its for my wife,as me and the boy almost always go big!Its a great question and I have many thoughts on this a great subject!All for one and one for all! Handy | |
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| Usually alone if going to Ky, will take assorted Sponges if at a local lake/river/coast
Would rather have a #s lake for action
Little dude is 6.9...I fish w/ him for trout, carp, rockfish, basses, 'gills...
Coastal- he fishes for flounder, spot croaker, mullet, blues, trout, redfish, pompano etc.
Few 'skis here, but if we are where there are a few, I fish them, and the wife/Jr fish for small stuff.
I would take little sponge to a 34"spot so that he can score. Time w/ him is more important than me getting pulled in the drink by a BIG fish![:0]
Hope this helps! | |
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| 1. When you travel for Muskie fishing, do you travel more often with your family or with group, club, friends, etc.
Mostly family with an occasional boys trip thrown in.
2. If you do travel with your family, do you fish Muskies with your kids?
YES
3. How old were your kids when they first started fishing Muskies?
My son was/is 4. He is a caster. He will cast and cast and is happy to catch anything. Still waiting on the first muskie. He will throw small bucktails and bass baits.
4. What do you value more, "trophy" or "action" lakes?
No preference. The elements tell me where to go.
5. If you value "trophy" water more, do you select destinations for your family trips based on your "trophy" water preference or do you make other plans?
We travel to areas that have a wide variety of lakes so that we can adjust our plans as need to based on the weather.
6. If you don't fish Muskies with your kids, what do you fish for when you are with them?
Most lakes have a varitey of fishing oppurtunities. I am be fishing for Muskies in the front of the boat and the wife and son are walleye/pan/perch/bass fishing in the back.
7. Do you spend some time fishing for other species with the kids and then "prime" fishing Muskies for yourself?
No way, the wife and son would kill me.
8. Would you take your family to a lake with a 50" size limit or a 34" size limit if you have kids with you and they will fish Muskies?
The size limit makes no difference. CPR all the way. | |
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| My kids won't fish with live bait anymore, they only like to cast. My sons are 9,7 and 5. I pick a lake that has musky and is a good lake for other species like bass/pike/walleye, casting lures. This way we can all fish the same spots and catch fish. I picked the flambeau flowage for that very reason. My kids scored on smallies/pike and walleye. We will goto vermillion this year to for that reason. It can be trail and error, for instsance we fished a lake in boulder junction that we seen and caught alot of musky but my kids did not catch much and my 9 year old blanked for the week. Now they could have caught panfish but they are bored with that. | |
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| I do both. My kids fish muskies with me. I started them fishing when they were 4. They both started muskie fishing at about 14. I prefer trophy lakes. When the family is along I try to make an large effort to have accomadations which are acceptable for the family. I don't push long extended periods of only muskie fishing, nor do I mandate that they fish continuously. One of my daughter's favorite breaks is sitting down in the boat with my binoculars to watch the loons, eagles, merganzers, deer or whatever. Take
refreshments no matter when you are out. Sure you could fish harder, but that family time will get you more time for you as well. | |
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| 1) family, especially my sons
2) yes. ALOT!!
3) 9 years old
4) trophy, but good pike water also. Pike get the same reaction as any big fish up until the urge to catch a huge muskie begins to erode it.
5) yes, trophy water, see number 4
6) N/A except we always took a break a few times a day to pitch for Smallies and Walleyes with cranks, etc. Eases the pain.
7) See 6
8) See 4
My sons traveled with me on fishing trips to LOTW, Wabigoon, Rainy, and other waters. They also went hunting as soon as they were old enough for Antelope, Mule deer, and Whitetails out west. They will never forget the trips, and neither will I!! Our Sioux Narrows trip was really a great family venture. | |
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| Thanks all for the responses. I would love to hear more.
On all the bbs I've posted this on, it seems pretty consistent that the size limit doesn't matter when it comes to taking kids Muskie fishing and families do travel on Muskie trips. What is more important is listening to the kid, letting them fish for whatever they want, choosing lakes based on local conditions and emphasizing catch & release. My sample size here is hardly representative or scientific but I find it interesting that it is basically uniform. Only like minded people responding or is this truly a widely held belief?
So, let me tip my hand a little and show why I'm asking:
What do you say to a guy who will not support higher size limits on lakes with the ability to produce trophy specimens because higher size limits do nothing to involve kids in fishing and keeps them from keeping the fish? That it is really important for the kid to keep a legal Muskie. Furthermore, higher size limits on Muskies only benefits "professional" Muskie fishers.
This is for real. I was told this by a member of the Conservation Congress so it's more than just "a guy". This is a person with some weight behind him by nature of his position.
Thanks again,
Jono
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| Well, for one, is the reason you take a kid fishing to keep fish? Do kids want to keep fish because that's what they are told or that's what they want to do? My kids like releasing what they catch. I let them release their fish. They like it. As far as higher size limits go, the higher the limit the more fish and the better chance of a kid catching them. | |
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| Jono, There is one other way of looking at that situation and that smiply put is some people will never understand no matter how much logic,information or clout from professinal type people!Its a stalemate and sometimes your effort is better spent in other directions without conflict!Sad to say but true!I know of many in the old school of thought and now in my life I just shy away,Its kinda like the war debate,eveyones right but no one wins! So all thats left is to do what you beleive is best and forget the rest!Guess this could be alittle vent as I know a few that are not in favor of alot of the new fishing proposals.Its a bummer! Handy | |
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| The argument you got from the guy is not only backwards, but flies in the face of good logic. If there is a higher size limit on the lake fished, and the limit is applied to Muskie in a lake that will support the bigger limit, then the potential for catching more and bigger fish is real. The trophy potential grows, so the chance that the youngster will catch a truly HUGE fish, and THEN face the dilema of CPR, is equal or larger than the youngster's dilema if the fish is 35". Kids are not dense or slow just because they are young. They know the difference between a big muskie and a little one, and most, if they are fishing muskie specifically, WANT a monster.
My kids wanted to fish where I found the biggest, not the most. Would have been nice if that had been Wisconsin and not NW Ontario. I LIVE in the center of 250 muskie lakes, and drive 10 hours to fish Wabigoon with my sons. Tell THAT to the guy from the CC, and ask him to look at the boards. There are WAY more 'just fishermen' here than 'pros', and they mostly seem to agree.
Ask Keith. He netted my Wabigoon fish in 95 when he was just 16, and has seen fish there that will make him return as long as he is able. He started fishing there with me when he was 9, and has badgered me to go back every year since, despite the fact that we actually would catch more fish as far as numbers of muskies right here in the Rhinelander area. | |
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Informal poll on families and fishing trips.