Ivan

Since I am not able to fish Chautauqua any more this year, I was doing a little reminiscing. I figured i'd share a few pics of some of our nicer Chautauqua fish from the last few seasons. I know I always enjoy looking at pics. Good luck to everyone still hitting the water.

Very nice gesture with the net for Old Man Capt Larry. Not sure why a thread that can improve someone's knowledge of proper release techniques got locked, but oh well. I guess I need to watch my approach more carefully on subjects like that. I usually fish Chq on weekends in July some, skip most of Aug, then return and fish Sept-Nov. It wasn't like this prior to the last 2 yrs for us, but the last 2 years, I have found slow fishing at Chq until the end of Sept. Mid to late Oct is usually tough again, then November picks back up. At least that's been our experience over the years at Chq. Much of that can depend on your individual style of fishing though. Its hard for me to compare last year to this year because I missed some peak times this year and will not get to fish Chq in Nov at all this year. It is an apples to oranges comparison, but last year we released 60 some Chq fish and this year we released 30 some Chq fish.

I didn't listen to the sound, but practice a release routine that looks more like this:

Good job Ryan. Fishing at Chq has been poor the last couple weeks in my opinion. I fished 15hrs between Sat and Sun this weekend. I trolled North and South. Deep, shallow and in between. Marked lots of bait, but very few muskies (not sure where they are hiding right now). Water temps are mid 50s and dropping. Water clarity is pretty good. After quite a bit of searching, I finally marked a decent number of muskies along with lots of bait in one area of the North end. I pounded that spot and ended up 2 for 3 and 1 other rip that didn't hook up. Small fish though. Boss Shads and Tuff Shads in bright colors got our action. I know two other boats that fished Sat with no action and talked to another guy at the launch that got 1 small fish casting for the weekend.

Ok Old Man. I tried to offer some constructive criticism. If you are concerned enough to fish with barbless hooks for easy hook removal, I would think you would be concerned enough to handle the fish better. I am sure you can find some other helpful hints with a Google search and maybe even a video to help you, but he is a link to some tips for a release process that is better for the fish than what you are currently doing: http://muskie_guy.tripod.com/cpr.html

Thanks for the reply Ryan. Unfortunately, I figured the temp hadn't changed much. Good Luck.

40s, rain, and North winds this weekend. Sounds great. I give any of you guys that will be casting alot of credit. Anybody have the current water temps? I think I had about 55 North and 53 South last weekend. Maybe if it has been slow this week, we will all get lucky this weekend. Good luck

Actually, I see now it could be a world record for 8lb test line, but not the overall world record.

I'll chime in on a couple things here. First, it isn't a world record muskie. It is the new Michigan state record muskie. I am a very avid muskie fisherman. I have been fishing for muskies for the last 15 years seriously, and we average over 100 muskies released from my boat per year. (Not bragging, just trying to lend some validity to my opinion.) However, I tend to agree with Rob. Although I practice catch and release almost exclusively, this is a 59", 58lb muskie we are talking about. It beat the previous Michigan state record by 7 or 8lbs. I would have kept it too, and I am a catch and release muskie fisherman. These were bass guys with an accidental catch. There is no way to get a state or world record without keeping the fish. Now, had the fish not been big enough to be a record, I would have released it. I think it was a great catch and a great story.

I'll stop and say hello if I see you Chad. My theory is either water temp or weather for the slow trolling bite last weekend. I missed a month of fishing Chq prior to last weekend because of some health problems, but before that we were slamming them trolling in that brown water of Sept. Dad and I had a 14 fish day Sept 22nd. Good luck to you as well.

I do have a VHF Chad, but I usually keep it off. I usually communicate with friends by text on the water. I'll keep an eye out for you guys. Looks like you are mainly a caster. I'll be all toasty warm and dry inside my roof and side curtains trolling around, although that may not be the best way to catch fish at this particular moment. Was it Dan H. that got the 51? Don't tell me it was this past Saturday or Sunday...trolling was off for sure at Chq those days.

That makes sense Chad. I will most likely be at Chq this coming weekend also. What boat will you be fishing from? I have a blue Lund Baron.

Old man, Nice fish , but people in glass houses shouldn't throw stones. "it was a nice fish until they killed it." (your response from the Michigan record thread) Maybe you should concentrate on honing your own release skills. If you are going to target muskies, you should lose the walleye gear. You could start with more capable baitcasting gear to shorten the fight, a bigger net, and leave the fish in the water, while in the net, to unhook and get your camera ready etc. Your video cuts off as soon as you pull that fish in the boat (terrible practice by the way). I'm afraid of what the rest of your release process may have been, if it was even released. People think muskies are big, mean fish, and they are, but they are also the most fragile (when it comes to releasing them) fish I have ever fished for. Cold water temps may have saved that fish you guys caught, but if that was summer, that fish would be dead. The better our release practices are, the better fishing will be for everybody.

Nice fish Chad. Congrats. I have never been to Waneta, but the background of your pics reminds me alot of the south end of Chq. Why do you leave Waneta to fish Chq later in the fall?

found this on another site. some good info here, but looks geared towards summer fishing Subject: French River Fishing Breyer is drive-to and one of the last camps as you exit Wolseley Bay. I fish that part of the river (Lower section) about fifteen days a year. Excellent muskie fishing for numbers of muskies and fish over thirty pounds are common. I've seen them a lot biggger than that. Tons of classic-looking spots, wind is never a factor. If you're used to fishing big/open fisheries the French is a little shooting gallery. Rising and falling water can change things fast, and levels can swing fast. Fished it all seasons but that July-Sept window is pretty much 'can't miss.' Lots of fish 36-42in and certain areas will only show you a fish if its 48+. No GPS chip or paper map, so feel your way around. Your resort owner will almost certainly send you to three or four safe areas that are fairly close to camp (and they have fish) and you can work out from there. It fishes like a lake, not a river for the most part. Noticabley moving water only exists in a handful of areas but the whole system is affected by the water the release into Georgian Bay. Forty pound fish have been documented right in Wolseley Bay. The big-fish areas are not hard to pick out and your camp owner will point you in the right direction. Get someone to take you out the first couple sessions. The hazard areas are really pretty obvious if you've done any ammount of Shield navigating. I can run from the ramp at Wolseley up into Chaudiere Rapids in the dead of night (and usually do a couple times a trip) and there's really only one tricky rock. The rest is wid-open running thru the main channels over 60-120fow. One of the best places I've ever seen for muskie fishing, love it up there. I'm sure you will too. Lots easier to get around on than the river is down to The Bay, I can tell you that! The best surface fishing I've found anywhere. I could fish up there all summer with a small tray of head spinners, tail spinners, wtds (lots of misses), creeper/walkers and bulger bucktails and spinnerbaits. Throw in a favorite Suick or two and you're all set. I and others use weighted rubber baits up there with success also, especially around moving water. Caught fish on tandem no5s and tandem no13s. We get lots of fish trolling also, ten inch jntd Believers, Outkasts, Frankies, spinnerbaits. Jointed Believers are a great surface bait up there also. Water will range from stained to quite dark depending on flow. Because the water moves and cycles so much temps are almost always 67-72 on main channel spots from like June thru Oct. That range stays pretty consistent. I use lots of painted blades in hot colours and like jerkbaits and surface baits with some colour on the head/tail or belly. Blk/org or firetiger works as good as anything up there for me. Spots that look good are almost always worth stopping at and you will find lots of similar-looking areas to check too. Lots more coontail every year, but cabbage too. The recipe is always the same during the peak of summer: prominent rock, some weeds and right near deep water. If the spot has some exposure to the main flow areas so much the better. Once you get moving around and seeing what's available the top areas are not hard to identify. Keep it simple with lures, work areas where you have lots of options jammed into small areas and you will catch fish. Last hour of daylight and first hour of darkness can be really good up there too. The river is full of sm/lm bass, some nice pike and lots of walleye also. Walleye is normally just a matter of marking some and dropping a jig on them. We've caught them over eight pounds by accident on muskie lures too.

Where at on the French? Which resort and is it located closer to Nippissing or closer to the Georgian Bay? I have fished the bay where the French dumps in. I have also fished Nippissing, but don't have much personal experience on the river itself. I would be trolling big cranks like Parrywinkles, Marges, Farnky's, Blue Water Baits, Hosebaits, etc on wire line and crashing some shoals near deep water looking for the big girls.

I run a LCX 111. I bought it new in 2007. I went through 2 transducers in the first couple seasons. I had similar symptoms...I would loose bottom, not mark fish as well, had to increase sensitivity to get it to mark the same as it used to at a lower sensitivity, etc. When I replaced the transducer, the symptoms went away. Once I put my third one on, after 2 went bad, I have never had another issue (knock on wood). Not sure if the quality/longevity was improved or i just got lucky with this one or unlucky with the 2 that went bad. I know I really like Lowrance products so I will continue to use them. I do know that it is not good to turn your unit on while you are in the parking lot/out of water and have your transducer beam bouncing off of concrete or asphalt. It wears them out faster. Wait until your boat is in the water before you turn your unit on.

Thanks Nitro. Catching a nice muskie there is a rewarding feeling. Usually brutal conditions and very few but potentially giant fish. This should get Frank excited if he hasn't seen it: http://blog.syracuse.com/outdoors/2011/12/muskie_2.html

Rich (Sign Man) or Bob (Waterwolf) both have comfortable boats, proven success, and big recent fish...can't go wrong with either. IMO the later you can get dates for, the better chance at a really big fish. I go mid Nov myself, but only because I feel like there is less chance of pulling my boat through snow. I can't wait to get back there this Nov. Attached is a pic of the last one we got there. Nothing compared to some of the giants Rich and Bob have caught recently, but my Dad's pb and a very nice fish. Terribly unfortunate, but we had to stay an extra day on this trip because of lots of snow on our route home. Keep in mind that 2 days will give you a better chance than 1, if you can swing it. Also, you are really only looking for one hit up there, but chances are if you get that hit, it will be the one you are looking for. Good luck and let us know what you do if you go.

I'll be at Bertrands Nov 14 through the 18th. See you there Raaven.

Hey Mark, I haven't used any Storm products for muskie fishing. Most guys out east troll semi-locally made baits. At least that's what I put my confidence in and most of the hardcore guys I know are the same. There are some exceptions, but check out some PA, OH, WV, NY, ON made baits like, Legend Perchbaits, Wiley Lures, Tuff Shads, Hookers, Frankies, Bakers, etc. There's lots of great lure makers out here...many more than I listed and I did not intentionally leave anyone out.

Man, I'd jump on those December dates on the Larry with Waterwolf. That's usually when the biggest muskies are caught on the Larry and you don't have to worry about trailering a boat in the snow since you will be guided. You made an interesting choice of words with "legal muskie". Not to get into a catch and release debate, but consider a replica if you are lucky enough to get a trophy. Most all of the guys listed will want you to release the fish, and replicas look better and last longer than skin mounts these days anyway. There have been some huge muskies caught the last several years at the Larry and a few of them have been approaching world record size. There's no way to get a new world record if we don't release the ones that are getting close. Good luck in your quest.

I said I would let this go, and I will, but I have one last thing to get off my chest. Although I haven't changed my mind about what got me fired up in the first place, I feel bad about what happened here. A healthy debate can be good, but I'm not sure what got into me for a couple days, and I said some things I'm not proud of. I probably should have never made the first post in response to Yankees report, but it's too late for that. I don't know any of you guys, and I shouldn't have made some assumptions that I did. I apologize to Paul, Yankee, and others for making things personal. This is a great, informative site here...sorry for temporarily messing it up. I debated making this post. It may have just been better to let this thing get buried with new posts, but oh well. Good luck to everybody

yeh...I'll let it go

You know, Yankee seems pretty cool. He was fired up initially, but he seems alright. Here's a serious question though... Are all the salmon charter boat captains on lake Ontario self-righteous, egotistical guys that hate recreational fisherman or just the couple that posted here? Some of you guys need to look in the mirror and think about what kind of person you are. Just because you have a 10M boat and run a charter for king salmon doesn't mean you are better or more experienced than everybody else on the lake on any given day. I am sure you are very good at catching salmon on Lake O, but that isn't everything. You could provide some constructive criticism to people, but check your egos at the door. I, for one, am glad that I don't have to pay a guy like that to take me out. Good luck with your businesses. If your clients knew how you treated and felt about recreational fisherman with less than 10M boats, they might think twice about hiring you.