How do you catch these?

[Ivana Fishalot]

I think it would be a blast to try and catch a fish that I have never seen (in person)

Check em' out

I know that some of you have to fish for them. Where at (geographically and in a lake)?
What is the average size?
How and what do you rig for them?

[Phishin Phool]

Holy smokes, I used tournament waterski in that lake. If I'd known they were in there I'd been sittin on the bank as a spectator.

[Moley Molson]

my grandpa once told me, that these are the fish of a thousand casts....not just these big ones, but musky in general.

Big big spinners, big big crankbaits/jerkbaits. Think shallow weed beds/structured areas early in the morning. Usually you will see one and then cast to it. Water conditions permitting of course.

[corkyking]

Those fish are hybrids. They wont reproduce. When they are gone, they're gone. I haven't heard of new plants.

I'm not judging. They were an experiment by WDFW and, I believe, have been very successful. It just seems like a shame to kill 'em unless they are going to be replaced.

You're right, it would be great fun to catch one.

[gthfish]

here in Id., F&G plants them in lakes to control large populations of stunted perch, etc. No one really fishes for them, but Ive heard that some people in Montana ice fish them with spears! Dark shanty ---jiggle a full size perch lure with no hooks on it---then stab!

[Flatfish]

Monster bucktail( 6-12" long). Same size plugs. Spinnerbaits.

Go to the Cabelas catelog and snoop in the Muskie/Pike section. Big, hairy, and flashy will do.

In Fisherman magazine is an informative, scientific read. It has lots of info on the toothy fish.

Oh yeah, wire leaders are mandatory. Rows of razor sharp shred any mono leader fast.

Mark and the perch pattern Harasser dog.

[Ivana Fishalot]

So, I'm assuming that they are not indigenous to any lakes around here. They just planted them in Mayfield?

Someone said look for them in the shallows. There aren't any in Mayfield that I can recall. I've only been there once and it is a reservoir that gets deep fast.

[Ivana Fishalot]

Holy smokes!!!! I just did a search to learn more and look what I found!!!!!

They're Here!!

[TonTo]

Mayfield was the first but they planted Merwin too and they should be getting pretty big soon.They were planted in hopes of thining down the squaw fish population.

Yeah what the link in the post above said, I guess I shoulda read it first.
What in the h311 are they doing below the dam?Makes ya wonder,oh yeah sterril....whew,but kinda makes me wonder,remember jurasic park....sometimes nature dosen't like being toyed with.

[ 01-26-2004, 12:59 AM: Message edited by: TonTo ]

[Ivana Fishalot]

What about the one that was supposedly caught over here below Willamette Falls?. That is crazy!

One can only wonder what something like this has done to the smolts? Born to Be Wild (AKA Depoebay Dan) mentioned that the coho return was no where near what he thought it would be in the Cowlitz system.

Things that make you go hmmmmm?

Edit: I went back and reread the article. The one in the willamette was caught above the falls. And the biologists chalked it up to a stray? A stray that traveled 50 or so miles? It must've been because it preferred superfund sites. It was headed for the Newberg pool.

[ 01-26-2004, 02:08 AM: Message edited by: Ivana Fishalot ]

[Boat Monkey]

I'm all for the stocking of the upper Willie with these things as it's a gauntlet for smolts of all types up there. Last summer my friend who trolls for bass on an almost daily basis caught two pikeminnow (seperate days) in the 4-5 pount range. They do not go "dormant" like the article says about the muskies, as far as I know, and they are voracious eaters...

Who knows, maybe the upper Willie would become as viable as the lower for steelhead and salmon if the outgoing smolt weren't desemated bhy pikeminnow and bass?

[fishnpray]

Muskie are a blast to catch...more available in upper middle section of our fair country. When we fished for them a couple days out there, we killed them on double-jointed plugs and a couple different (wierd) topwater plugs. They also fish a lure out there that looks exactly like a duckling...heh...wonder why....

-luis

[marko]

I have fished Mayfield several times for trout from a float tube. The Tiger Muskie intrigued me so I looked into it and plan on fishing for them this year. Some things I learned. First they are a cross between a Northern Pike and a Muskie, they do not reproduce and they are hard to catch.
The advice I got was fish early in the day or very late. Troll at medium speed near structure (for you non warm water guys that means use a depth finder and look for weed beds, submerged islands, downed trees, etc.) Troll shallow and far behind the boat.
Now, none of the techniques are proven to me yet, so I'll let you know when I have tried it a few times. :whazzup:

[DJFISHS2XS]

It takes about 30,000 casts to get one to bite, but then its a blast....Ive caught them in Michigan when I was a young guy...spoons,live bait (almost any thing) jigs, spinners, baby ducks...it all works...

Phool
your water sking responce made me smile. My aunt had a resort on a little lake in the U.P. of Michigan callled Carribou lake. There was a young women staying there that was just scared to death of the fish (tiger muskeys) in the lake but she wanted to water ski. when we finaly convinced here that she would be fine and got her up on skis, we were all on the end of the dock watching her come by and when she was about 40 yards out a huge muskey jump out of the wake about 3 feet behind her (we never seen anything like that before) she didnt even see the fish but the look on our faces gave her a hint that something was up....she let got the rope right infront of the dock and came up screaming swam to the dock and came out of the water with her swim suit top down to the Ring type ski perserver that we used back then...it was a great day for a 14 year old... she never got back in...pretty funny...

[Jimmy Carl Black]

What in the h311 are they doing below the dam?Makes ya wonder,oh yeah sterril....whew,but kinda makes me wonder,remember jurasic park....sometimes nature dosen't like being toyed with.

<font size="2" face="verdana,arial,helvetica">Especially with such primative creatures as fish. I wonder if they're already in the big river.

[Moley Molson]

Mayfield has plenty of shallow water.....you just gotta do some exploring to find it. There are two rivers that make up mayfield lake....cowlitz and the tilton....don't discout these areas!

[greenbuttskunk]

big bucktail spinners and husky plugs. I have'nt caught tigers out here, but did fish for musky with a little success back east and in canada.
They can be tough to catch, the fish of 1000 casts can be accurate. Having one chase a lure up to the boat when you are not expecting it pretty much gives you a heart attack. :shocked:
GBS

[Private-Aye-Fish]

A fairly heavy casting rod capable of handling lures up to three ounces combined with a good reel spooled with 14 to 20 pound test is preferred. Some type of heavy monofilament or wire leader is necessary to prevent the line from being cut by very sharp teeth. Five to seven inch crankbaits to imitate the preferred suckers and fallfish will tempt muskies/pike/tiger muskies. Many muskies are also caught on flashy bucktail spinners and spinnerbaits; even jigs and topwaters can be productive. Once you have hooked one of these brutes, a pistol grip device with jaws for gripping hooks called a "hookout" is a necessity for keeping your hands away from the muskies teeth while removing the hooks. :shocked: Use or lose your ability to play the guitar.

[Got Fish?]

My buddy and I used to fish mayfield lake 1 week in august every year for about 4 years. We would wake in the morning and try to chase those sneaky monsters. One morning we headed over to Ike Kinswa state park and saw something roll in the swimming area. No one was swimming so we went over the bouys and investigated. In the swimming area that was blocked by bouys there was another area that was just for little kids, no more that a couple of feet deep. Well in that area we saw at least 5 of those fish at least 3 to 4 feet long each. :shocked: We moved in towards them and they sulked away. Never did see them again but I wonder what they were waiting for...... [img]graemlins/eek13.gif[/img]