MuskieFIRST | Down Rigger Musky, I'm a Believer » General Discussion

Muskie Discussion Forums

You are logged in as a guest. ( logon | register )

Moderators: Slamr	View previous thread :: View next thread
Jump to page : 1 Now viewing page 1 [30 messages per page] Muskie Fishing -> General Discussion -> Down Rigger Musky, I'm a Believer

Message Subject: Down Rigger Musky, I'm a Believer

Gander Mt Guide

Posted 8/1/2005 9:00 AM (#155251)
Subject: Down Rigger Musky, I'm a Believer

Posts: 2515

Location: Waukesha & Land O Lakes, WI

So this past weekend my buddy Bill Vierkandt says..."Hey John, wanna hit Pewaukee saturday morning?" My first question is..."Casting or Trolling?" He says, "trolling, is that cool?, I want to try some new things". Not being one to turn down an opportunity to learn new stuff said "sure thing". So we headed out at 5am and I drove the boat while Bill set up what looked like the biggest mess I've ever seen...he had a 2 reel boom on the bow and 2 downriggers off the back. Off the boom Bill put out 2 huge tandem Great Lakes boards with 2 lines each...I was looking at Bill like he was nuts, I was thinking.."How the hell are we going land a fish, IF WE CATCH ONE with all this mess?? There were rods and lines all over the place.

Gorgeous morning to be out and the fishing was slow, but Bill did what any good angler would do, he changed things up and put a Harrasser bucktail on one of the downriggers, replacing a spoon he had on for a while that wasn't producing and kept at adjusting depths. We cruised over to a new area and hit a 20' break....BOOM..the downrigger rod with the spinner began singing the "Wrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr" tune and was bobbing like crazy. I grabbed the rod and felt the heft of a nice fish. Bill ran around clearing lines and a few moments later I had my first legal fish trolling!

Downriggers aren't "Big Water" essentials, they're "any body of water that has weeds and moderate depth essentials". The wire and ball keep weeds away from your baits and riggers take spinners to depths not achievable by casting....plain and simple...they work.

I've never been a big proponent of Trolling, but whenever you can catch fish when catching fish isn't easy....do it. If you're looking for a good guy and great guide to teach you some new trick...call Bill, super guy.

Zoom - | Zoom 100% | Zoom + | Expand / Contract | Open New window