T-Billy

If you're fishing weeds you're good to go at that depth or even half that depth if you're quiet. If you're just fishing structure without cover, you probably wanna back off a little.

Started today off even more righter than yesterday. About an hour in, this thick beast of a 45" rocketed up from the deep and smoked my rig in the second turn of the 8 going full tilt. Not a bite I'll forget anytime soon. The huge schools of shad are forming and lots of muskie are there gorging on 'em. Muskiepalooza 23 is officially underway. Unfortunately the seal around my livewell plug decided it had had enough shortly after, and I started taking on water faster than I was comfortable with so I had to bail. Got it fixed this afternoon, and made a batch of 4.8" Keitechs, and 6" Do-It Rippers. Speaking of which, that's what the above beast ate. I had that rig loaded with three 6" Rippers on 3/8 heads, and two 4.8's up top on the dummies. That sucker is a workout to throw. Bass rods need not apply. I'm throwing it on a 9' H muskie rod and it really loads that rod up. I'm gonna suck it up and spend a bunch of time with that rig though. Sticking them with that 8/0 Mustad 34081 inspires confidence. Two more days to fish this week, and the wife's fishing with me both days. I hope she gets to stick a few. Fingers crossed.

Fall for me is either cranks or rigs on windblown rip rap, or jigs/trigs in shallow wood and weeds.

Yeah, it's a good'n. My guide buddy couldn't let me have my moment though. LOL. He caught one 28.5" and over 8#. His client also put 4 ski's in the net, and lost 5 more. I'll not be leaving that stretch tomorrow. I bailed on it early to go fish some hard structure and drop some waypoints for when things really get going here soon. He said the shad came up high shortly after I left the area, and the ski's went to bustin on 'em.

Started the day off right. I caught this 26" 6.4# eye about 15 minutes in, on the rig. 4.8" Keitech. It was tough sledding with the muskies. Three follows on the rig. One follow and lost one on the glide bait. At least I finally got one to eat the glide instead of just following it in and circling around mocking me. Lol. There'll be another front blowing in tomorrow morning. Hopefully it'll get 'em chewing for me. Fingers crossed.

Preaching to the choir brother. Supposed to be 29 to start tomorrows muskie trip, possibly with a rain/snow mix for the first half of the day. High of 42. I'm chomping at the bit to get out there. My guide buddy's clients got five on the rig today. I'll be staying warm out there for the next 4-6 weeks by burning through a pile of 4.8" Keitechs.

Exactly. 😉

The jungle. 200ah Ampere Time. 100% satisfied after two seasons.

This.^^^ A livewell or deep net is a good thing for both you and the fish.

Heck yeah. Slow days most of the year, my mind will wander. Slow days late season, I find it easy to stay focused because of the potential every cast has. The anticipation keeps the blood pumping.

@ol'crickety, if you go again, you might oughta try pitching a jig or trig into that shallow brush on the sunny side of the pond. It's my #1 fall pattern. You can't fish too shallow. The 3.5# I caught the other day was in a tree limb with barely enough water to cover it's back. Sunny late morning through afternoon is prime time for this.

Praying for ya. Hope you feel better soon.

They're just getting started Katie. As the water falls into the 40's, shad schools dozens of acres in size will form. Sometimes they're so dense my sonar will think the top of the school is the lake bottom.

Beautiful fall day today. Colors are about at their peak. This warm weather is buggering up the bite though. It needs to go away, I'm ready for some cold water mayhem. Couldn't get a muskie to cooperate today, so I spent a couple hours pitching laydowns before I headed home. I managed 7 LM with this 3.49# being the best of the bunch. I also managed to find a floater for @gimruis. It was still alive, but just barely. The below pic makes me happy. This shad school was about 8-10 acres in size. I saw another mid lake that was much larger. Things are setting up nicely for Muskiepalooza 23!!! Just need to get past this warm front and get that water cooling again.

^^^All solid advice on how/where to fish it.^^^ When it comes to gear, I'm in the 8' HF camp all the way. The long handle and stout rod makes a BIG difference over the course of a day. 50# or even 65# braid will straighten hooks and get your rig back for you when you snag. Leave the clear plastic sissy line at home. You're pulling a flippin chandelier through the water for crying out loud. Any fish that's willing to hit that contraption doesn't give a crap about seeing your line.

Don't rule them out. Contrary to popular opinion, dead, brown milfoil has produced some biggins for me. They'll use it until it breaks up.

Roger that!!! Almost 13yrs clean and sober now, but there was a time.........

I don't know about Jim making ya seek the Lord, but Mr. Beam will sure make you lie to him. Oh Lord, PLEASE make these dry heaves go away!!! I promise, I'll never drink again. Oh No... no... NO........ Not the room spins!!! Oh Lord, HELP ME!!!!! I swear, I'll NEVER drink again!!!

Shallow and super tight to wood, especially around creek mouths has been my best bet when it's cold and muddy. Sunshine is a big plus, as are light winds. Jig, spinnerbait, grind away all day.

Backatcha Alex. You put a beat'n on some dandy's last winter. Looking forward to watching you build on that experience this year.

I'll be standing on the deck, sporting "The Hat", chucking big double blades and Bama rigs tomorrow morning at first light. Water temps are getting right, and shad are starting to school up in the main lake basins. Muskiepalooza 23 is just around the corner, and I have proper esox gear this year. I also have 17 days to fish in November. YEEEEEEEEEHAAAWWWWWW!!!!!!

Early December Ohio fish. I'll fight icing guides for this kind of quality.

Pressure is at an all time high on the lakes I fish, so is my catch rate.

Might have to pick up a few of those for jigging cold water muskie. Edit to add: Just checked em out, and they're reasonably priced. I'll be picking some 4" and 5" up for sure.

Right hand dominate. Fish lefty reels, always have. It just feels natural to me. It's nice to have most reels available in left retrieve these days. Used to be slim pickings.