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Posts: 64
| I'm looking for at some properties on various lakes in northern wi and of course before checking out the property I look at the DNR site to see if there are musky in the lake. I find their rating system to be very inconsistent ---- what I mean is that there are times on the lake site where they list musky as "common" but then on the separate musky guide they list the lake as a "C" (which is lowest rating). Other times they list musky as "present" and give the lake a "B". Other times musky is "common" then listed as an "A1 or A2". I would think that if musky were "common" the lake would at least be higher than a "C". I know sometimes you just have to go fish yourself to find out but I don't have that luxury when looking at lots of properties. Anybody find that one of these "ratings" is more accurate than another? |
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Posts: 1767
Location: Lake Country, Wisconsin | I might be wrong, but those ratings can sometimes be really dated. I certainly wouldn’t take them as gospel by any means. Usually I will use whatever I have at my disposal to do research on new lakes up there....google search with keywords, here, lakelink, ask around people you know, locals, etc... |
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Posts: 1196
Location: E. Tenn | Go with "Wisconsin Muskellunge Waters" for the most recent info.. I'm assuming the other source you were looking at was the lake maps page. Most of those maps were generated back in the 60's and early 70's, with the date being shown near the legend. A lot has changed since then.. |
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Location: Northern Wisconsin | I would use the musky classification guide that rates lakes A1, A2, B, or C. In certain lakes, the amount of muskie and their size structure can change frequently so just because the guide says it's a C lake doesn't mean it still is. Went on a vacation several years ago to a "C" lake and had a great week including a 49. I believe most of the B/C lakes receive a lot less pressure. |
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Posts: 20178
Location: oswego, il | Agree it can be inconsistent. I know of a lake up there the dnr sampled over 30 muskies in a survey but the lake currently sits with a B rating. My guess is the lake fluctuates in population due to the harshness of winters. |
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Posts: 1275
Location: Hayward, Wisconsin | The ratings are misleading. In many cases, the "C" rating is due to the presense of pike. In many cases this can mean BIG muskies, but perhaps not a huge population. Many of the "A" lakes do NOT produce many lunkers as a rule. |
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Posts: 591
Location: Duluth | Larry Ramsell - 7/18/2018 9:52 AM
The ratings are misleading. In many cases, the "C" rating is due to the presense of pike. In many cases this can mean BIG muskies, but perhaps not a huge population. Many of the "A" lakes do NOT produce many lunkers as a rule.
FWIW my experience mirrors this, my biggest fish have come from C1 waters. I started fishing these for the same reason stated above by someone else, Waaay less pressure! sometimes even get funny looks from people if they see you tossing big rubber. |
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Posts: 32784
Location: Rhinelander, Wisconsin | Larry Ramsell - 7/18/2018 9:52 AM
The ratings are misleading. In many cases, the "C" rating is due to the presense of pike. In many cases this can mean BIG muskies, but perhaps not a huge population. Many of the "A" lakes do NOT produce many lunkers as a rule.
This. |
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Posts: 300
Location: Minocqua, WI | Some of the best quality fishing and specimens are in those B and C lakes..... where muskys listed present, and few have any idea of their whereabouts.
Mentioned above, I found this pamphlet to be fairly accurate representation of the current fisheries. Some lakes might be a bit off, but real good info nonetheless - https://dnr.wi.gov/topic/fishing/documents/musky/WisconsinMuskellung... |
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Posts: 20178
Location: oswego, il | I have the book and downloaded on my phone. Used it to find a lake x from a chat room guest who didn't say the name but said the acreage. He has even guided gillespie there on tv. |
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