Author Topic: anyone ever caught a muskie on champlain? (Read 1619 times)

esoxmaster · « **on:** Dec 10, 2013, 08:08 PM »

anyone ever caught a muskie on champlain? saw one, one year pike fishing in city bay in the spring. water was like glass. fishing for smallies and saw this thing chase the lure right to the boat. couldnt get it to hit but was over 4' long! clear water muskie. looking to target them this year through the ice. any pointers much appreciated for lake champlain!

vt-jig · « **Reply #1 on:** Dec 10, 2013, 08:10 PM »

If you can manage to catch a 'ski out of LC, you would probably be the luckiest ice fisherman on the planet.

perchhauler · « **Reply #2 on:** Dec 10, 2013, 08:51 PM »

haven't caught or seen any caught for some time. I have caught them in missisquoi bay, dillenbeck, and kings bay near the chazy river, but that was 10 or more years ago. the state has been stocking them in the missisquoi river, hopefully we will see some results in the next few years.

RipSomeLips22 · « **Reply #3 on:** Dec 10, 2013, 08:58 PM »

The only place I've even heard of anyone catching a khakis is in the mississquoi up near swanton

flagfishon · « **Reply #4 on:** Dec 10, 2013, 10:00 PM »

I caught one trolling about fifteen years ago in Malletts Bay, but I haven't seen one since.

pikeaddict · « **Reply #5 on:** Dec 11, 2013, 06:31 AM »

I caught few small ones in Otter Creek, when I was a kid.

woodyvt · « **Reply #6 on:** Dec 11, 2013, 08:02 AM »

Caught one that was 31" about 15+ years ago ice fishing in St Albans Bay along the Georgia shore.

First and only one I ever caught.

Lavman · « **Reply #7 on:** Dec 11, 2013, 08:08 AM »

Pulled one through the ice about 20 years ago while jigging perch off the Horicans boat launch.

The perch were biting pretty steady in about 3 FOW then the bite shut off. Next thing I look over and my buddy is like "WHOA! Got something big on!".

I look over at him and tell him to just pull it up, just a big perch. I look down my hole and see this huge fish pass under me.....that ain't no perch! My buddy is unable to hold the line and I tell him to let line off the jig rod which he does. After a few minutes of tug o war the fish is at the hole.

I look down into a mouth full of teeth and my buddy says "let me outta here!" so he bails out of the little pop up shanty and I am left holding the line.

The fish is hooked at the back of the gill and by the tail so it is curled up a bit. I had no gaff but reached for my slush spoon, flipped it around and stuck the handle (hooked end first) into the fishes mouth and hooked the back of the gill.

I pull this monster up the 6" hole and its lips are touching the roof of the pop up as the tail is just clear of the hole.....it is a lunker.

I lay it out on the ice and we get a good look at it. Not sure what it was we got out the F&G book (back then it was a little orange covered paperback and at the back of the book it had a page on distinguishing between chain pickerel, pike and musky) we determined it to be a musky.

Very cool fish, figure it was about 42" long as I recall. Sent it back down the hole and that was the last time I ever saw a musky. They are (were!) in Champlain, I can vouch for that.

rbobby · « **Reply #8 on:** Dec 11, 2013, 09:50 AM »

I thought I heard 2 where caught in one day last year near Carrie bay?

TRT · « **Reply #9 on:** Dec 11, 2013, 10:27 AM »

Otter creek is the current muskie hotspot. Reports are fairly steady of skis being caught there
including a state record fish in 2012 (think 2012) problem is all skis must be released. I've
fished Otter couple times now with no action but fish of 10,000 casts...

Nthaburgh · « **Reply #10 on:** Dec 12, 2013, 07:04 AM »

I believe F&G is working on a restoration project for the Musky and dont think they are legal to take anymore. Pretty sure I read that somewhere. I think they've been stocking fingerlings the last couple years into the Missisquoi river. You may want to check the regs before heading out after them.

dave bartlett · « **Reply #11 on:** Dec 12, 2013, 09:03 AM »

lavman,
we caught a fish about 20 years ago or more and (it was a little law book then) in Whites Bay and the biologist at that time was Arnold and i thought i had a musky according to the book and he said the book was printed wrong.I had a pike.He also told me that Muskies were extinct in Champlain.That was in the late 80's.

flagfishon · « **Reply #12 on:** Dec 13, 2013, 07:16 AM »

The one that I caught had very distinctive tiger stripes. I had caught several pike that day and I know that it wasn't a pickerel. It was about 30 in and maybe 5-6 lbs , from my memory. We thew it back into Malletts Bay in the late 80's, so it should be huge by now. We were trolling off of Porter's point.

flagfishon · « **Reply #13 on:** Dec 13, 2013, 07:24 AM »

Here is an interesting link that I found. Careful what you keep in Missisquoi Bay:

https://www.mychamplain.net/forum/muskie-restoration-efforts-extend-further-historic-range

802keeper1122 · « **Reply #14 on:** Dec 13, 2013, 07:37 AM »

My neighbor has told me stories about catching them in the 60's at the mouth of the Missisqoui River but they were mostly catching walleye

buckshot21 · « **Reply #15 on:** Dec 13, 2013, 12:18 PM »

My friend caught one about 9lbs fishing the rt 78 bridge pilings near the entrance to Mississquoi. Pretty fish.

shadylane · « **Reply #16 on:** Dec 13, 2013, 12:22 PM »

Probably 10-11 years ago I did a survey on cedar island and I'm 80% sure I saw one dead washed up on the bank. I've never seen one alive, but I've seen pictures and this one had very similar markings, but the color was starting to fade on it. Pretty sure it wasn't a northern but I couldn't tell you for sure. It was probably in the 30" range.

drinkwater · « **Reply #17 on:** Dec 15, 2013, 07:11 AM »

I've caught some hybrid's but never an actual musket!

dickbaker · « **Reply #18 on:** Dec 15, 2013, 07:19 AM »

Quote from: drinkwater on Dec 15, 2013, 07:11 AM

I've caught some hybrid's but never an actual musket!

The hybrids are pike/pickerel.

Pasquatch · « **Reply #19 on:** Dec 15, 2013, 07:42 AM »

Quote from: dickbaker on Dec 15, 2013, 07:19 AM

The hybrids are pike/pickerel.

Tiger muskies are muskellunge x northern pike.

http://wdfw.wa.gov/fishing/washington/Species/1207/

Wes

rawrightII · « **Reply #20 on:** Dec 15, 2013, 07:17 PM »

http://www.vermont.gov/portal/government/article.php?news=1263

longshot1154 · « **Reply #21 on:** Dec 17, 2013, 03:23 AM »

Many, many years ago, I was fishing Carry Bay. Had one grab my Mepps 3 black fury. Came right at the boat, jumped right beside the boat and took off the other way, spitting the lure, all before me ever being able to set the hook. Biggest fish I've ever seen in Vermont, until a couple years ago when a co-worker I brought walleye fishing in the Winooski River hooked into a sturgeon. We had it beside the boat, and had my hands on it, after about 15 minutes of it pulling us all over the river. No walleye that day, but I'll always remember it as the best day of fishing in my life.

vtbuckrulrss · « **Reply #22 on:** Dec 17, 2013, 06:01 AM »

My Dad caught one up near Swanton about 10, 15 years ago while jigging for perch. He would most likely have been using a bibet and minnow combo.

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Author Topic: anyone ever caught a muskie on champlain? (Read 1619 times)