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Posts: 20254
Location: oswego, il | I think it's easy to say we should not fish for muskies when the water temps reach 80 degrees. What happens though, when you plan a trip to canada, minnesota or even somewhere not quite so far but your into the trip for a couple nights lodging and a tank of gas to a full week and 4 -6 tanks of gas? Your not planning on having the water temps be 80 or above and maybe you did not anticipate them being that high. Maybe they got that high during your stay. Do you fish, go home, youv'e spent a ton of hard earned money, what do you do? It's an easy decision when your local, just go home, what happens when you are not?
I had this happen last weekend. I anticipated water temps being lower but they hit 80 during the weekend. I based my decision to fish by local water temps on darker lakes and the weather for that week where I was fishing. I still fished but I won't fish there untill the water cools down in the fall. I was in the trip for over 2 bills. |
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Posts: 159
Location: NYC (and many weeks in MN during summer) | Tough call, but what I have done in the past is change my plans to fishing sun down to sun up. You may get the water down a few degrees and the sun won't be beating down. If I'm local I stay home, but 90% of my fishing requires a plane ride etc.
Randy |
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Posts: 1023
Location: Lafayette, IN | Todd, you know you're gonna get answers on both sides of this one. Remember, we're talking to Musky Anglers. Word....take the trip and keep your decisions to yourself. ( I agree with what you did however! :) ...let the melee begin... |
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| I would fish, but be extra careful. My health is more important than a fish, and I probably really need that vacation and time fishing....Ben |
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Posts: 457
| Depends on how far over the danger mark we're talking. In most cases, I'd hang the muskie baits till sundown, and fish smallies. (There's smallmouth almost everywhere I fish 'skies, and therefore take a complete arsenal of bass gear on dog day summer trips). If there aren't smallies, then I'd fish pike, if there's no pike...well...I'd likely go take a nap until later in the day, and go out for the night shift. |
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| Why not go after another species? Skis are not the only fish in the sea, or lake, that is. |
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Posts: 550
Location: So. Illinois | Our MI chapter published some info on this topic in our monthly news letter. The link is posted below. Good rule of thumb info.
http://www.shawneemuskiehunters.org/index_files/Page412.htm
J |
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Posts: 468
Location: Not where I wanna be! | id fish....... be extra careful tho |
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| I agree take every precaution. One thing though, I go to musky fish. My boat is not big and I don't have the room to bring multi-species stuff. I don't knowingly goto a lake that is 80 degrees. Last weekend the lake started at 79 and 78 degrees. I do know however and talked to a guy yesterday who has been to LOTW and seen 86 degrees and talked to people who have been to vermillion and seen water even warmer in the backs of bays. You spend all that money to musky fish, I don't know what the right answer is here, it's easy just to say go home or don't fish but not when you have spent alot of money or been looking forward to fish and this is your only time to do so. |
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Posts: 40
Location: Maryland | It's good to try to limit your fishing for Skis to lower temperature water days but as far as i know there are no scientific studies that made 80 degrees a magic number. You may be doing just as much damage at 78 or 79 as you are at 80 so i doubt it is as black and white a choice it is painted here. You are already releasing the fish and using heavy tackle to reduce the fight time so they are not so exhausted. Just keep trying to avoid times of the year when the water is likely to be hotter and maybe take extra steps like not taking the fish out of the water for pictures when the water is warmer than usual.
Is very close to the situation i can never understand where folks who are stauchly opposed to fishing muskies out of season fish opener and are gleeful to have been able to catch lots of fish when the cold spring has kept the muskies on the spawning beds during the opener. If the concern about out of season fishing was true these guys would not fish them "during season" when still on the spawning beds. |
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| The article from the Shawnee Muskie Hunters is not a good description of ethical fishing. They openly write about muskies when the water temps are WELL over 80 by now. Where does it help us make ethical choices when targeting muskies in summer months while fishing southern waters? If you are walleye fishing and catch multiple muskies, then move spots or try a different technique. Talking about a ton of muskies caught (and nice ones too) when we are trying to discourage fishing when temps are elevated, is absurd. I hope those Kinkaid guides do not register these fish through Muskies Inc., as it may suggest that fishing for muskies in summer months is condoned.
As for fishing on an extended trip and temps just reach 80....Go for it, but don't overplay the fish. There is a good chance that the water column is cool just a foot or two bellow.
Good Luck,
Hooked |
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| I think if you are fishing in the top few feet of water the fish are used to the warmer water. if you are pulling fish from out deep in the hot water thats not that cool. I know for a fact I would be fishing thats why im there. |
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Posts: 19
Location: St. Louis, MO | Todd - For goodness sakes fish! There is no ethics involced; so long as you don't break any rules and regs in the state your're fishing. I've enjoyed this topic every summer (winter time, I enjoy the topic whenever Tom G. catches a monster in his home waters and it DIES, during cold weather - it happens). It's only a fish!
I love the smell of broiled musky in the morning....
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Posts: 1767
Location: Lake Country, Wisconsin | The Shawnee Muskie Hunters article is unethical??
Is that why they put in 2 paragraphs explaining in detail how this time of year should be spent on other species and then gave detailed descriptions on how to properly handle a musky just in case you catch one??
Give me a break!
Edited by Musky Brian 7/16/2008 10:06 AM
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| There are a lot of things you can do to help make a catch and release less stressful to a fish when the water is hot.
First consider going barbless. It takes much less time to unhook a fish.
Use lures that have only one or two hooks to help speed up un-hooking fish.
Don't take fish out of water for any reason. Release photos look great. A big fish will still look big in the water.
If it's a real windy day, try to stay out of the wind to shorten the amount of time you will have to fight the fish.
Hot temps are hard on fish, no doubt. This time of year is when we see floaters on my local lakes more than any other. Last year we had an extended period of hot weather in July-Aug and members of my MI club saw several large muskies dead from on particularily hot weekend. Most of us quit fishing for awhile after that.
JS
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Posts: 158
Location: Burlington, WI | How about this. The surface water temps are around 80, but I'm fishing the deep rock humps and weeds down 10 to 20 feet deep where the water temps are in the 60's. If I am catching fish in those depths with cooler water temps then the fish should not be at risk. Right? If we are talking about fishing in the actual 80 degree water that should be another situation all together. I know that the longer fight pulling this fish from deep water is harder on a fish than a short fight from the surface, but theoretically it makes sense to me. |
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Posts: 2361
| Absolutely don't fish until the week after I leave Todd!
I don't fish down here for most of the summer until mid september or so most years due to hot water that goes deep. You would have to check temps down about 4-6 feet to really know what you have, often there is a cap in northern WI that really disappears under the water in 3 -5 feet. That big lake up there often has a cap during late summer, and you don't want to get below it if you are swimming, surface is nice, go down to dip a rock though. Shrinkage.
Guides in general are a poor reference for warm water fishing, particularly if they guide in the southern reaches, but of course that is only imo. Of course when they mention they could have caught more fish except they were having a hard time reviving the released fish, well that might be a clue. |
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Posts: 550
Location: So. Illinois | My appologies to Brian. Sorry for the misunderstanding on your post.
Edited by AFChief 7/16/2008 10:32 AM
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Posts: 1767
Location: Lake Country, Wisconsin | AFC I think you misinterpreted my post...I agree with you, I was saying it was ridiculous to insinuate they are being unethical |
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Posts: 581
| Personally, I think the problem is when surface temps hit 80 and stay at 80 or higher for extended periods of time. Obviously, this happens every year on the southern waters of IL, KY, etc., and happens almost annually in Southern Wisco for a period of time in July/Aug. I will stop fishing my local waters when this happens.
"Up north" (Canada, MN, WI) is typically a bit a of different ballgame. IF surface water temps hit 80, it USUALLY is only for a short period of time. Often, a cold front will come through after a few days and drop the temps back down. I don't think there is anything magical about a surface temp reading at the 80 degree mark for a short time period, i.e. a couple of days. I don't think you automatically need to stop fishing under those circumstances.
I personally believe that anytime the surface temps are in the upper 70's or higher, anglers need to start taking precautions to minimize the fight time, minimize net time, and absolutely minimize out-of-water time. There isn't anything special about surface temps reaching 80 degrees...except that it is definitely hot enough to be extra careful.
Again, targeting muskies during extended periods (2-3 days+) of 80 or higher is where the bigger problems are, and this can happen "up north" during some summers.
My $0.02.... |
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Posts: 8834
| It depends... We all like to think that 80 degrees is 80 degrees, makes it simple to have a cut off point.
But 80 degrees on the surface and much colder a few feet down is different than 80 degrees on a shallow lake.
80 degrees in a shallow bay during the hottest part of the day is different than 80 degrees at 6:00 in the morning before a 95 degree day.
80 degrees on a lake with a bad algae bloom and a high bacteria count is different than 80 degrees on a deep clear lake.
I think its safe to say that in Indiana or Kentucky for example there's a significant period of time where the water IS too warm to safely fish for muskies. But in Northern Wisconsin or Canada for example, you might see those temps for a few hours on a really hot day, very close to the surface, and that's about it. I think the overall health of the fish and the overall health of the ecosystem factor into it as well.
Like Todd, I have a very limited amount of time I can actually fish, trips are planned sometimes a year in advance. I'm gonna fish. I'll take extra precautions, I'll avoid planning trips down South in July for example, but I'm gonna fish.
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| most "musky trips" are pretty expensive and if you've only got 2 bills invested, why not just sit back and drink some beers and enjoy a relaxing vacation fishing for something else? I remember numerous trips up to Eagle where it cost a hell of a lot more than 2 bills A DAY, where we just sat back and relaxed..went tubing, swimming, and hit on some canadian girls... |
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