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Posts: 750
Location: Minneapolis, MN | Last week I had two tiger muskies leave the water try to hit a top water and both missed. Last night I had the same thing happen again. As that's the only action I had both nights it's really annoying and I can't decide if I would have rather just not seen any fish. Not sure what I could be doing differently. |
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Posts: 415
| If you don't see any fish it's a lot harder to know if you are in the right spots, using the right baits, etc. I would rather have one swing and miss than not see any at all. Muskies miss top waters all the time, usually more than any other style baits. Just keep casting. |
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Posts: 1360
Location: Lake "y" cause lake"x" got over fished | No there not blind, they just have REALLY bad aim. and not just tigers, but all muskies. IF I had to come up with a complaint about muskies it would be their aim.
Edited by FAT-SKI 9/11/2013 11:54 AM
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Posts: 58
Location: South Elgin | Ill give my two cents here and get roasted I'm sure, but here it goes.
Northern Pike are notorious for being daylight feeders. Sure they at times, like a blind squirrel, can find the nut at night, but for the most part their ability to strike a lure at night is poor. Also pike are not the greatest top-water strikers in the world as well. I've watched fishing partners on my pike trips to the NWT fish for hours with top-waters only to have pike swing and miss or jump over the bait completely fanning on the offering.
So.........I believe its the northern pike gene that causes tiger musky to fail in both these areas. But again this is my two cents based on more than 50 fly-in pike trips to Canada. I hope it helps and also makes some sense.
J
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Posts: 750
Location: Minneapolis, MN | J_mich - 9/11/2013 11:58 AM
Ill give my two cents here and get roasted I'm sure, but here it goes.
Northern Pike are notorious for being daylight feeders. Sure they at times, like a blind squirrel, can find the nut at night, but for the most part their ability to strike a lure at night is poor. Also pike are not the greatest top-water strikers in the world as well. I've watched fishing partners on my pike trips to the NWT fish for hours with top-waters only to have pike swing and miss or jump over the bait completely fanning on the offering.
So.........I believe its the northern pike gene that causes tiger musky to fail in both these areas. But again this is my two cents based on more than 50 fly-in pike trips to Canada. I hope it helps and also makes some sense.
J
Unfortunately top water seems to be the only thing that gets them moving. Last week it was a DirtyB and last night it was a Lil' Creeper. Both nights double 8's, 9's, 10's, MiniD's, and Mag double dawgs didn't move anything. |
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Posts: 620
Location: Seymour, WI | I think most of the time when muskies blow up on a topwater it's because they want to get it out of their area, not because they missed it. When they really want to eat it... they don't miss.
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Posts: 43
| This is a pretty interesting thread. I recently read an article (i think it was muskie hunter but not sure) about muskie eye sight. It said that because a muskies eyes are on the side of their head they have very bad depth perception. they seem more two dementional. If I remembered where i had read this i would put up the article. |
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Posts: 339
Location: Denmark | Pike have the same problem, often I have seen them missing the bait like a polar missile. |
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Posts: 1455
Location: Kronenwetter, WI | You know where they are and that they are printing to top waters. Try a creeper. |
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Posts: 750
Location: Minneapolis, MN | Cowboyhannah - 9/11/2013 12:51 PM
You know where they are and that they are printing to top waters. Try a creeper.
That was what last nights miss was on. |
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| My theory is that blow ups on topwaters "appear" to be more frequent than subsurface because those are the only ones we see. I have seen swirls and flashes on subsurface lures and I bet there are a lot more that I don't see.
So, maybe a blow up is simply a missed strike. Following that theory, blow ups happen under water too, but we don't see them as often.
What do you think?
Brian
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Location: MN | I have a lot of blow ups on top water and most are misses. When they eat it usually doesn't make a big blow up or splash on top. My theory is when they blow up and miss they notice something isn't right and turn off at te last second. I figure the same thing happens under water with other baits we just can't see most of them. Personally I think going a day without any action is worse than not seeing a thing.
A few things have helped my topwater hook ups. Reel super slow. As slow as you can reel without sacrificing the action of the bait. It feels uncomfortably slow. Upsize your hooks and just keep on reeling until you feel a solid tug from the fish. Post a pic when you stick one. |
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Posts: 4080
Location: Elko - Lake Vermilion | The song "Eye of the Tiger" comes to mind,..... Of course they can see... They just have poor aim, and timing......
Topwater lures are notorious for not being very good hooking tools. |
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Posts: 243
| Grass - 9/11/2013 12:18 PM
I think most of the time when muskies blow up on a topwater it's because they want to get it out of their area, not because they missed it. When they really want to eat it... they don't miss.
Have to totally...but respectfully...disagree with this. I've heard it before and I think muskies---tigers and naturals---miss very often when they try to eat. I've seen them miss suckers before that have been right in front of their face for several minutes. Sometimes they just miss. The good news is they sometimes try to eat again if they do, so if they swing and miss, don't be afraid to keep pounding the spot. Got a 52" this year doing exactly that after she went vertically airborne and whiffed 10 minutes earlier. Once you turn on the switch....sometimes it just doesn't feel fair to the fish  |
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Posts: 750
Location: Minneapolis, MN | IM Musky Time - 9/11/2013 7:35 PM
Grass - 9/11/2013 12:18 PM
I think most of the time when muskies blow up on a topwater it's because they want to get it out of their area, not because they missed it. When they really want to eat it... they don't miss.
Have to totally...but respectfully...disagree with this. I've heard it before and I think muskies---tigers and naturals---miss very often when they try to eat. I've seen them miss suckers before that have been right in front of their face for several minutes. Sometimes they just miss. The good news is they sometimes try to eat again if they do, so if they swing and miss, don't be afraid to keep pounding the spot. Got a 52" this year doing exactly that after she went vertically airborne and whiffed 10 minutes earlier. Once you turn on the switch....sometimes it just doesn't feel fair to the fish ; )
We kept pounding the pots but we never see the fish again. Maybe they feel foolish for missing and they sulk off... |
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Posts: 1455
Location: Kronenwetter, WI | Try placing a small piece of soft dog food on the rear hook? What can be said...nobody knows with these fish. |
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Posts: 1760
Location: new richmond, wi. & isle, mn | I believe they are playing cat and mouse. When a muskie commits you can't flinch fast enough to screw up. It's the nature of the muskie, curiosity. Now you know where they are. The fun or frustration begins. Welcome to muskie fishing. |
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Posts: 20219
Location: oswego, il | Biologist Steve Pallo once told us the muskie fingerlings do the same things to a pellet in the tanks. They try to eat and miss them. Its amazing they survive at all it seems. A pike can be shot out of a canon eat your bait and have it 1/2 digested by the time the hooks penetrate and a musky can do the same, then just nose the bait with its mouth closed. So much wasted energy, hey do you think muskies are government employees? |
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Are Tigers Blind?