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Posts: 6
| Hello everybody,
I have always heard that you can catch muskies year round, but there seems to be a time in late February here in WV where they will eat and then turn off for a while. I am bass guy primarily and I am still hunting for my first musky. For bass usually there has to be about a week in the 70's before they start to bite and I was wondering if musky follow the same pattern. I have also been told to use smaller plastics (Like 6-8 inches long) and was wondering if this was true as well.
Thanks |
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Posts: 129
| I experience the same thing especially in rivers. Jan/Feb, if rivers not frozen, can be our best months for big muskies in PA. But then March/April everything goes to slow slow slow in lakes and rivers as well. I've scaled down and caught a 40" on Bucher 500 bucktail in early spring 2016 but I wouldn't call one fish a pattern |
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Posts: 1209
| When the water is cold well before spawn i would try a slow moving large bait then move smaller. 10" jerkbaits with a bunch of hangtime. I am in the single large meal mentality but its not hard to fish with a friend who is doing the opposite with a small double8 bucktail, still slower speed but drastically different lures. |
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Posts: 343
| You are likely dealing with spawning or early postspawn muskies when they shut down for a time. In Tennessee it is late Feb. early March, sometimes later depending on weather condition. They are very hard to catch around the spawn as their minds are elsewhere. Slowly worked gliders or jigs are probably your best bet, but you can't expect a lot of action. |
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Posts: 390
| My advice is try and pee them off. For example if they are shallow try a loud slow moving topwater. If deep try a slower glide or neutral crank and let it hang every few feet. Also I completely agree with the small jig. Predators bite what annoys them and they want out of their world, you can use this outside of feeding windows. |
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Posts: 25
Location: South Central PA | We just had ice out 2 and half weeks ago here on a small river in PA. Water temp was 35 to 36 degrees. Fished 3 times and caught one each trip (40, 36, and 34). They are catchable but not "on" yet. I'm using jerkbaits in the 6 to 7.5" range. Not the biggest fish, but some musky porn for you guys that are still froze in. A nice looking 40 from last weekend.
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Posts: 72
| nice fish! from now until march should be great in the rivers in wv. then it will pick back up again in may. April is usually when they spawn in wv in the rivers. on the flip side the reservoirs are good from april until june, although i think some fish try to spawn in the reservoirs i never think it hinders the fishing. As far as baits go theres nothing specific, glide baits, cranks, dive n rise, and bucktails and topwaters once it gets warm. remember to have your net and release tools ready and good luck! |
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