And.......... Number 42 is a 42". BOY I HOPE THIS TREND CONTINUES!!! 😂

 She's a pretty girl.

The milder temps have things heading in the right direction. Predawn surface temp is down 7-8 degrees over the past 6 days. I caught the 42 and moved four others between dawn and 08:00, then it shut down as the sun got on the water. Back after 'em early tomorrow. 

Just a couple small ones on my bfs setup, it’s still fun as long as something is biting. Lures bill lewis gnat crank bait, mepps size 0 inline spinner that weighs around 2.3 grams if I remember correctly from the last time that I weighed it.

6 hours ago, T-Billy said:

Predawn surface temp is down 7-8 degrees over the past 6 days.

What does that take the temperatures down to?

 

1 hour ago, Jmurphy87 said:

Just a couple small ones on my bfs setup, it’s still fun as long as something is biting.

BFS is a blast.

I dislike spinning rods in general, and being able to cast small baits/lures on a casting rig is a lot more fun.

30 minutes ago, Further North said:

What does that take the temperatures down to?

 

BFS is a blast.

I dislike spinning rods in general, and being able to cast small baits/lures on a casting rig is a lot more fun.

Yeah the accuracy and different trajectory of the cast makes it a blast. I have not given up on my ultralight spinning rod since it’s 2 piece and hides in the back of the car but I notice the difference greatly.

1 hour ago, Further North said:

What does that take the temperatures down to?

75-76 on the lake. Saw as cool as 69 in the creek, but the fish have left it now that the lake is cooling.

It’s a beaut @T-Billy!

Tammy joined me this morning for a quite enjoyable 7hr trip. The fish were being a bit tight lipped, but they were chasing, and we managed to get 4 of 17 to bite. All four of those went into the net and all four ate in the 8. Three on blades and one on a crank.

 She kicked things off with a 35.5". Two casts after getting that fish released, I caught a 35.5" of my own.  About an hour later she boated this 40.5" on a crank. 

It took me until about a half hour before we bailed to catch my second. It just squeaked over the 40" mark.

All four fish decided to make me pay for picking them up out of the net.  😂

 

New pb snakehead while scouting a new location. I’ve been hunting one of these “dragons” as they are called locally for a while now. Caught plenty in the sub 30” class but the big ones take some dedication to find and catch. They tend to be killed when caught so finding them is a game of searching for less pressured water. 
 

I caught this one casting a ribbit frog over a fry ball. 

 

Snakeheads are so cool. They're like the komodo dragons of the water. Congrats on the PB! 

Rode out to the far side of the forebay to go striper fishing with a buddy for his birthday. We skunked all morning and were headed back to the cars when the fishing gods smiled on us and we lucked on a boiling school.

About 90 seconds of action, all of my fish on a duo pencil 110

No pics, but caught 17 yesterday and 12 today. 90% came on a 4" electric shad Mayor on an eighth ounce 4/0 weighted gammy ewg. Largest 4.35 lbs.

First night muskie of the year last night. 3 footer right at moonrise on a 5" Tuff Shad. Dunno why the fish pic came out so grainy, but the moonrise pic turned out great.

I also lost one about 38-40", about ten casts in, on a 20:00 start. I fished until 05:30 and the only other action I had was the moonrise fish. Twas a grind.

 I did see several suspended fish in the short time I spent trolling. Gonna change up tactics tonight and spend some time jigging offshore structure. This latest heat wave has buggered up the pattern I was on last week. 

Had about 20 minutes before work today. Same spot as last weeks new PB. They must be coming over the dam into the outlet. Not what I was after, but I’m not complaining either.

 

 

@T-Billy: Tim, what's your musky total for 2025? Are you hoping for one hundred again?

2 hours ago, Swamp Girl said:

@T-Billy: Tim, what's your musky total for 2025? Are you hoping for one hundred again?

Currently at 46, plus Tammy has caught 7. She just retired last week and will be fishing with me a lot more, so 100 for me is probably out of reach, but hopefully we can combine for over 100.

 I've made it a harder goal to reach by trying to target bigger fish over numbers. I've been fishing open water more recently and I've been pulling the bait away from anything under 3' when I can. Not always possible. You know how fast they are. 

 Right now my average is 39.7", up from a 37" average last year. Before the water got warm I was running a 41" average at one point. The ODNR's muskie anglers log has the statewide average consistently around 37" so I'm pretty happy with where I'm at, but always trying to improve.

2 minutes ago, T-Billy said:

Right now my average is 39.7", up from a 37" average last year. Before the water got warm I was running a 41" average. The ODNR's muskie anglers log has the statewide average consistently around 37" so I'm pretty happy with where I'm at, but always trying to improve.

 

Respect.

Caught a nice NJ Fluke (flounder) on a friend’s boat yesterday. 28”, 8.4lbs.  Going to make some nice meals!

 

On 8/18/2025 at 8:10 AM, Craig P said:

Caught a nice NJ Fluke (flounder) on a friend’s boat yesterday. 28”, 8.4lbs.  Going to make some nice meals!

 

 

nice!  that's a great one.

Just a small guy but we did have quite a bit of rain last night so the river was flowing pretty decent and chocolate milk. Was hoping for some smallies but a fish is a fish and beats the skunk. Bill lewis gnat crank on a Kistler hunt x4ul with a conquest bfs with an upgraded roro spool and 8lb ygk sinking braid. It’s a blast no matter what you catch.

My buddy doesn’t fish but we have been talking about going for a boat ride since I got the boat.  His wife was traveling this weekend so I told my wife to make plans with a friend. I took him to one of the prettier lakes and we mostly just rode around and chatted while I graphed and looked for baitfish. If I found some I’d drop the trolling motor and pull out the livescope.  We stopped for BBQ on the way and did take out.  Cooler of beers.  A couple cigars in the console.  Pretty good night.

 

8# hybrid on the UL/M Poison adrena shaking a minnow. 

decent early season striper from the bank, fun fight on BFS/6lb line

Shook off about a dozen this size, constantly slashing at the bait every cast

Bait has been well chewed this season, all the paint is gone from the gills, tons of bite marks, 2nd set of hardware.

Nothing picture worthy for me today. 33", 34", and a 37", but Tammy got a nice thick 42". Fun day on the water with my awesome wife.

Ya gotta admire his ambition!!! 😂 I got started about 11:30 and this was all I could come up with before daylight.

I got this nice, thick for summer 43" about 07:15 though, and raised a few more 30 somethings before calling it quits a little after 08:00.

I was surprised at the lack of action in the dark. Water temps are down 10 degrees over the past week and a half. Currently at 70-72.

@T-Billy is a heckuva musky hunter. Heckuva husband too.

3 hours ago, Swamp Girl said:

@T-Billy is a heckuva musky hunter. Heckuva husband too.

Thanks Katie. My wife agrees, though I'm not sure why? I don't know how she puts up with me. The woman has the patience of Job. 😂

I had a good numbers day yesterday. I caught 6, lost 3 and raised about that many more. No big's though. 33x2, 34, 35, 36, 38 

 I added another 36, lost two, and pulled it away from a couple low 30's this morning. I also had a low 40's come in hot, but it wouldn't quite commit.

 These 30 somethings are dragging down my average size, but the season total is now at 62. This seems to be the SOP in August/September. Lots of mid size fish with an occasional big'n up in the weeds. The average size will go back up as we transition into fall.