Author Topic: muskie's in champlain (Read 4987 times)

CJiceaddict · « **on:** Jan 20, 2012, 09:52 AM »

I was asked the other day if I had ever gotten a muskie through the ice on Champlain. I have never even seen one, but has anyone else?

rboot · « **Reply #1 on:** Jan 20, 2012, 09:54 AM »

caught a small one couple of summer's ago panfishing

CJiceaddict · « **Reply #2 on:** Jan 20, 2012, 10:06 AM »

I would love to see one come out. That would truly be a unique fish to catch and release!

oldcatamount · « **Reply #3 on:** Jan 20, 2012, 10:36 AM »

There are Musky in the Missisquoi River which flows into Lake Champlain from east of Swanton. Every year or so, we hear of a heavy Musky being caught there so, it's a pretty sure bet that they are in the lake to.

woodyvt · « **Reply #4 on:** Jan 20, 2012, 10:38 AM »

The only one I ever caught was along the Georgia shore in St albans bay about 20 years ago. It was 31". I guess they still catch them, but they are pretty scarce.

Dead Head on ice · « **Reply #5 on:** Jan 20, 2012, 10:42 AM »

Quote from: oldcatamount on Jan 20, 2012, 10:36 AM

There are Musky in the Missisquoi River which flows into Lake Champlain from east of Swanton. Every year or so, we hear of a heavy Musky being caught there so, it's a pretty sure bet that they are in the lake to.

I remember a few years ago two young kids caught a real nice one!

oldcatamount · « **Reply #6 on:** Jan 20, 2012, 12:56 PM »

Ya, there was a "father and son" team that were catching some beauties! They knew what they were doing alright. If I remember right, the Muskies were close to 30 lbs each but, (I can't be positive about that). I understand it takes a whole lot of effort to hook into a Musky so that's probably why not many guys ever catch one. They're more aggresive than a pike but, can be more finicky to. I'm going to try it in the spring.

TRT · « **Reply #7 on:** Jan 20, 2012, 01:13 PM »

Fishing of a thousand casts in waters with a lot of Musky, I think I will keep
pike fishing.

hun ter1972 · « **Reply #8 on:** Jan 20, 2012, 03:31 PM »

i cought one this past summer up at the boat access on lake rd in milton while i was fishin spring perch

buckshot21 · « **Reply #9 on:** Jan 20, 2012, 07:49 PM »

My friend caught one with me this fall flipping the rt. 78 pilons while fishing for bass. It was probably between 8-10 lbs.

dave bartlett · « **Reply #10 on:** Jan 21, 2012, 05:21 PM »

About 15 years ago or so,we thought we caught one according to the picture in the Vt. Digest Book but we talked to a Biologist shortly after that and he told us that the identification picture of the pattern on the outside of the gills was wrong.It was misprinted.And he also told us that they are almost extinct in Champlain.

flagfishon · « **Reply #11 on:** Jan 22, 2012, 04:03 PM »

I caught one as a kid in Mallets Bay. It was only about 6 pounds. Looks just like a pike, but with tiger stripes.

northernnyice · « **Reply #12 on:** Jan 22, 2012, 04:23 PM »

Quote from: scrambler1 on Jan 21, 2012, 08:49 PM

One in a hundred thousand casts. They say

"fish of ten thousand casts" I think the expression goes....

Muskies are very catchable fish if you know how to target them. Maybe not in Champlain though as it seems like they are pretty scarce.

perchhauler · « **Reply #13 on:** Jan 22, 2012, 05:02 PM »

My brother and I used to catch some every year in kings bay NY, but have not fished there in a few years, caught a real nice about 8 lbs, in dillenbeck, about 10 years ago, and a few small ones in missisquoi bay over the years.

johndeere540 · « **Reply #14 on:** Jan 22, 2012, 05:24 PM »

Was just watching a show with a guy fishing lake of the woods up in canada and he was averaging 5 monsters per day! He said spend a lot of time next to the boat cause they usually just follow the lure in and u got to persuade them to take it!

northernnyice · « **Reply #15 on:** Jan 22, 2012, 05:26 PM »

Yeah on a lot of pressured lakes you can get a lot of muskies to eat at boatside on the figure 8.

northernnyice · « **Reply #16 on:** Jan 22, 2012, 05:28 PM »

Quote from: perchhauler on Jan 22, 2012, 05:02 PM

My brother and I used to catch some every year in kings bay NY, but have not fished there in a few years, caught a real nice about 8 lbs, in dillenbeck, about 10 years ago, and a few small ones in missisquoi bay over the years.

Are you talking about tigers or pures?? 8lb is an extremely small probably still juvenile musky.

johndeere540 · « **Reply #17 on:** Jan 22, 2012, 05:30 PM »

Quote from: northernnyice on Jan 22, 2012, 05:26 PM

Yeah on a lot of pressured lakes you can get a lot of muskies to eat at boatside on the figure 8.

The figure eight is exactely what he did!

northernnyice · « **Reply #18 on:** Jan 22, 2012, 05:36 PM »

Who was on the show you watched on LOTW? Jim Saric? Joe Bucher?? Spence Petros? Bill Sandy?

johndeere540 · « **Reply #19 on:** Jan 22, 2012, 06:16 PM »

Quote from: northernnyice on Jan 22, 2012, 05:36 PM

Who was on the show you watched on LOTW? Jim Saric? Joe Bucher?? Spence Petros? Bill Sandy?

Bill Sandy They caught some monsters on the how too!

Lavman · « **Reply #20 on:** Jan 25, 2012, 07:16 AM »

My buddy foul hooked one about 20 years ago.

It was his first time ever ice fishing and we were jigging perch in 4 fow out off the boat launch at Horicans. We were nailing the perch left and right running two bibbits on each of our lines when suddenly the perch bite shut off like someone threw a switch. Next thing I know I look over and my buddy has both hands on his line like he is pulling on a submarine. I laugh and say "dude, just pull the dang thing up" thinking he has a perch on, maybe a double. I look over at his hole and we both see this fish slide by right under the hole and it is massive - we are looking down a 6" hole and all we see is fish back. I look at him and we exchange "holy craps". He manages to ease the fish to the hole and get the head up into the hole and all we see are teeth. Not having a gaff I grab the ice ladle and flip it over to use the hooked end to slide into the fishes mouth and hook the gill. I start pulling the fish up and my buddy says "let me outta here!!" and he vacates the shanty while I keep pulling this thing out of the hole. Our little pop up shanty is only about 4' tall and I am still pulling fish through the hole. Finally I have the lip of the fish touching the roof of the shanty and the tail is at the top of the hole.

I carefully back out of the shanty and lay this thing on the ice and go over and slap my buddy on the back and tell him that is the biggest damn fish I have ever seen pulled through a hole in the ice and he has the luck! He says "what the hell is it??" and I had no clue either. I pulled out my F&G digest (back then the digest was a nice little orange covered booklet that fit in your pocket as opposed to the magazine we have today). I flipped to the back and it showed pictures of the face of a pickeral, a pike and a muskie. Using the digest we concluded it was a muskie.

When we got it out on the ice we could see that it was hooked twice, the bottom bibbit was stuck near the tail of the fish and the top was behind the gill like it had sucked the bibbit in and it was expelled out the gill and that is what hooked it. I recall the handline was wound with mono, probably 8# as that is what we use for perch jerkin'. Total luck he managed to land that fish, at any time if that monster had wanted to bail he could have thrashed and been gone.

Anyway, that is my Muskie story. Have never seen one since.

dave bartlett · « **Reply #21 on:** Jan 25, 2012, 08:46 AM »

Lavman,
We caught one like i said about 20 years ago in Whites Bay and according to the digest it was a musky accordingly with the diagram of all three fish.They went by the scale pattern on the outside of there gills.The biologists told us that the book was misprinted and it wasn't right.Therefore we had a pike not a musky even though the color and the stripes of the scales was different.

IsomBay · « **Reply #22 on:** Jan 25, 2012, 09:35 AM »

I remember a father/son barbershop team brought back a large musky head after fishing the lower Otter Creek a few years back. That's all that remained after trying to reel it back to the boat. Huge bite marks!

fishinaround · « **Reply #23 on:** Jan 25, 2012, 09:43 AM »

these two were submitted for master angler program this summer. Otter Creek! Never know whatcha gonna get!

http://www.vtfishandwildlife.com/masterangler_list.cfm?species_=Muskellunge&yr=2011

shiveringjoe · « **Reply #24 on:** Jan 25, 2012, 10:05 AM »

We had a muskie sighting in Missisquoi Bay 3 summers ago. I had just reeled in a small pike and I thought I saw a flash of something big and bronze right when I pulled it out of the water. A few seconds later my buddy was reeling in his crankbait and about 2' from the boat the muskie nailed it and broke his line. It wasn't huge ~15lbs but we all got a great look at it and my buddy might have screamed a little.

Lavman · « **Reply #25 on:** Jan 25, 2012, 10:35 AM »

Quote from: dave bartlett on Jan 25, 2012, 08:46 AM

Lavman,
We caught one like i said about 20 years ago in Whites Bay and according to the digest it was a musky accordingly with the diagram of all three fish.They went by the scale pattern on the outside of there gills.The biologists told us that the book was misprinted and it wasn't right.Therefore we had a pike not a musky even though the color and the stripes of the scales was different.

Well Dave I have been telling this story for 20 years and I hate to have to go back and find all the folks I told and revise my story. I guess it is just a "big fish" story now

CJiceaddict · « **Reply #26 on:** Jan 25, 2012, 11:01 AM »

These are some cool stories guys! Glad to know they still exist, though rare, maybe someday I'll get surprised and hook into one

CJ

Big Ben · « **Reply #27 on:** Jan 25, 2012, 05:03 PM »

Haven't caught a musky since 2002 and I ate that son of a gun. I may have eaten the last one

campfindit2 · « **Reply #28 on:** Jan 25, 2012, 05:26 PM »

Hold onto your hat Ben, here comes the hate mail

vtfisher49 · « **Reply #29 on:** Jan 25, 2012, 05:29 PM »

I think all the hate mail is getting sent to Capt Joe with the bomo perch post...LOL

News:

Author Topic: muskie's in champlain (Read 4987 times)