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Posts: 1308
Location: WI | I was reading one of Tony Rizzo's books and he talkes a lot about fishing open water areas. I'm comfortable with casting into nowhere on really small lakes, but on bigger, deeper lakes where do you start?
I understand sunken islands, baitfish schools..but what if none of that is present? Just go out and drift and cast to oblivion?
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| Try staying a couple cast lengths out from a structure in open water and with every boat pass get closer until you're casting into the structure. This is what I'm trying to do on my trips now. This will target the open water fish that are adjacent to structure rather than holding tight. I'd have a hard time casting randomly in the open water without some sort of structure to base my attack on. But I'd bet there are some big cruisers wondering aimlessly out there. A needle in a haystack chance in my opinion! |
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| I have been having a great year in Vilas county WI catching suspended open water fish. Don't be afraid to literally cast into oblivion. It doesn't take long to cover a large area by casting on opposite sides of the boat as you drift across the basin. I would look for the largest expanses of deep open water. For example, I would look for large areas over say 40feet rather than a small isolated 40ft hole. I also think making the connection to an underwater reef or long extended point isn't as important as some would think. The best areas on the lakes I fish have no apparent structural connection to anything. Once you find an area in the basin that produces keep going back to it. You would be surprised how the same areas keep producing all summer year after year and how many muskies can be in the same small open water aera. Finally, I love calm sunny days for this approach. When everyone else is cursing the dog days of summer I couldn't be happier!  |
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Posts: 1308
Location: WI | Thanks guys! Does wind direction play a part in which end of the lake you're fishing like it would if you were fishing structure? |
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Posts: 605
Location: Marshfield, WI | I have a question about this too. Using your example, fishing over 40 feet of water, how deep would you fish?
Krishna
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| DJS,
One question I think about when reading your interpretation of what is there, How do the fish know to use the same small area year after year? There may be something that your not seeing. |
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| Jerry, you could be absolutely right there may be something in that part of the basin that draws fish to that area. I gues I could find more areas if I knew what exactly drew fish to that seemingly void deep open water area.
I usually count down a Curly Sue to a 9-12 count which gets it down 20-30 feet and then start my retrieve. The nice think about the Curly Sue lure is that it rockets toward the bottom none of this painful 1 foot per second fall rate.
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Posts: 3242
Location: Racine, Wi | JKahler - 9/1/2007 11:24 AM
Thanks guys! Does wind direction play a part in which end of the lake you're fishing like it would if you were fishing structure?
I think the wind does play into where the fish position over the open water. One thing from this year (I'm not an expert like some of the boys that open water fish, but did pretty good this year so far) is the wind would push the bait I was fishing and the fish would move with them. Not necessarily to the other side of the lake, but a different area of the basin that I'm working. We would get them close to where we had them the day before, but small adjustments in drifts and locations were needed.
Kbob, as far as how deep we fish them, it depends. They can be high up, or down deep. We've gotten them 20' down early, and 5 feet down early, and that continues through out the year. I got a 47.5 on a XX in June over 40 fow and that bait was only coming in 3-4 feet down. We also had fish launching over weagles in that same area. So cover all your bases. I had a client loose a 53-54" fish this year that was only 5 feet down over 80 feet of water, so you don't necessarily have to let your baits sink. Watch the bait and where it is, and go from there.
Hopefully some of this makes sense. I haven't gotten through my first cup of coffee yet today. |
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Posts: 1308
Location: WI | Makes sense to me, thanks! |
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Posts: 41
| IMO, trolling is the way to fish open water. I think its a numbers game the more water you cover the better chance your going to go over fish. |
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Posts: 1168
| Wind does play a role....but look underneath the surface, not so much at the baitfish but what else is happening? It's cool to look at an LCD screen and see pods of baitfish but what else can you learn from utilizing all of the tools that unit has? And is it really a muskie/baitfish relationship that is going on? Or is there something more to it than that? Hmmmm.... I've leaned strongly away from just seeking out baitfish this season. Probably won't go back to just seeking that out anymore. Too much time was wasted when there were other things that gave big clues as to where active fish were hanging out at. |
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Posts: 95
Location: LOTW every chance I get | Ulbian, As many do, I tend to look for baitfish schools when fishing open water. I have not had much ( read any) success. I am intrigued by your post. Could you be a little more specific as to what you look for if not baitfish. Are you looking for the big hooks, thermocline, or what? Thanks, Dave |
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| Caught probably more big pike and muskies in open water when the screen was totally blank than when it was covered in baitfish marks. I have no idea how they escape being marked, but fish over 25lbs come completely out of nowhere all the time where I fish. You're all jacked up, glued to the rods and graph when the screen's busy only to have a rod go off when there's nothing going on somewhere else. Seen it way too many times to ignore, on nice quality fish, too. |
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