Mistakes by musky anglers cause fewer fish. The fish are notorious for long follows. You need long casts, plus a good figure 8 at the end. Mistakes with lures are common also. Then the leaders and line will be a problem using the wrong choices.
You spend hours and cast 1000s of times to hook a fish. Mistakes make this all a waste of time. You must eliminate or greatly reduce the mistakes with musky fishing. You get a few chances of a hook-up, do not waste them.
Rod Mistakes By Musky Anglers
The rod length is one of the mistakes made by many anglers. You need a long rod for the figure eight or finishing move. Yes, the rod cast farther an important aspect. But the figure eight accounts for the majority of fish caught.
Always do a figure eight or large loop move every cast. You may not see the fish until it is too late. The fish could be trailing 10-15 feet back. It can be deeper in the water coming up. You never lift the lure out of the water until after the finishing move.
Doing figure eights needs practicing to get good results. People make turns too tight and slow down. A fish usually turns away from the mistakes. Make a turn gently giving the fish time to react and room to move toward the lure.
Muskies do not make 90-degree turns. Their bodies are too long. The longer rods make using a larger arc in the turn easier. If you are in a boat go with an 8 1/2 to 9 1/2 feet rod. Shore fishing a 7 1/2 to 8 feet rod. Your height will play a part in the length. Yet, use the longest rod possible.
Slowing down is unnatural for prey. When a musky is chasing prey, the prey speeds up or makes evasive moves. This is what you do with a figure eight. Make the prey mimic a fleeing baitfish. Making the right move at the end of a retrieve triggers strikes.
Casting
You must cast well for musky fishing. An overhead cast is safer and casts farther and more accurately. Practice casting if you are unable to do an overhead cast. A lot of musky anglers will not fish with you doing side arm casts.
The side arm cast will have a lure fly back if the reel jams. This happens when the line digs in the spool. Someone trying to cast too hard has this happen often. A lure flying back impales hooks into a person. This leads to a trip to the emergency room.
You want longer casts to keep your lure in the water longer. The overhead cast goes farther. Muskies follow a lure for a long time. Plus you want to cast past the target spot. Spots holding musky are not the lure landing area.
You make an accurate cast past the spot. Then retrieve through the area with fish. The fish knows your lure is coming. It hears your lure land and feels the vibration on the retrieve. It will find your lure.
Lure Mistakes by Musky Anglers
The leading mistake with lures is dull hooks. When you buy a lure, sharpen the hooks. New hooks on lures may seem sharp. They are not by musky standards. Muskies have a mouth that is bone. The hooks need to be sharper than the new ones.
Use a file and sharpen your hooks. The lure will hang on your thumbnail at 45 degrees when sharp. If the hook slides on your thumbnail it needs to be sharper.
The wrong strength hooks are a problem with some lures. The lower-cost lures have cheap hooks on them. The hook will straighten out under the pressure of fighting a musky. Replace the hooks with 3x or 4x strength hooks or buy better lures.
You need extra hooks anyway. At times, a hook needs to be cut to remove a lure. Buy a few sizes to fit your lures.
Leaders and Line
Cheap does not work with line and leaders. I see people wanting to use the bargain bins or lines from Walmart. Then throw on a multi-strand wire leader. You will lose fish and likely the lure also.
There are companies making lines and leaders well suited for muskies. Spend a few more dollars on the good tackle. Plus in the right strength.
Sufix 832, Cortland Masterbraid, and Power Pro are the lines that work. Use a test strength of 65-80 pounds. The line sees a lot of stress from repeated casting and the lure weight. It will fray or fail if too light or made cheap.
Single strand wire leaders are the best. These are strong, lightweight, and do not kink. A musky cannot cut the material with its teeth or gill plates. A leader with a kink is weak.
This type of leader will last until you lose it in a break-off when snagged. A 12-15 inch length works for most lures. An experienced angler may use a 9-inch in some situations.
Fluorocarbon leaders work well in some instances. If trolling or using large steady moving baits. Use the fluoro when a head hit is unlikely or the fish cannot inhale the lure. A 120-pound test and up is needed, many anglers use 200-pound test fluoro leaders.
The Drag
The drag works with your line. People either make it too light or heavy. A musky will pull some drag but rarely goes on a run. If the fish can run it is too light. This results in a poor hookset and allows a fish to throw the lure.
A drag too tight can make the line or leader fail. Plus the fish can tear free from the hooks. The drag needs to give on a hard thrash to prevent the fish from coming off the hooks. Braid does not have shock strength. Your drag provides the shock strength for the line.
You need a reel suitable for musky fishing. The reels hold higher capacities of stronger lines. Plus have smooth drags higher in power. A bass or walleye setup can land a musky at times. This is as much luck as skill. A big musky will take off, usually cutting or breaking the line.
Release Mistakes by Musky Anglers
Looking at how people handle pike and musky on social media is a horror story. These fish need proper handling. Leave the fish grippers at home, or better throw them away. You need to have the correct release tools and techniques.
The grippers break the teeth and jaws of the fish. Using the tool makes you hold the fish vertically. Holding a member of the pike family vertical causes delayed mortality, their organs shift. Hold the fish horizontally.
Netting the Fish
An often overlooked part of landing a musky. Two people work together for this job. The angler tells them he has a fish on. The net man grabs the net. It should be ready with the handle extended.
The angler with the fish guides the netman to where he needs to be to scoop the fish. The angler guides the fish to where the net is in the water. Once the fish’s body is above the hoop of the net. The net man lifts the net avoiding getting the hook in the mesh.
A lot of fish are lost due to someone botching the netting job. It is another part of musky fishing you need to practice. Netting a musky is not as easy as many believe.
Mistakes by Musky Anglers Holding the Fish
Wet your hands or gloves and the bump board before touching the fish. The fish have a slime layer. If it is damaged a fish is at high risk for disease. You need to do this with any species of fish.
You only hold the fish long enough for a picture or two. It is in the net during hook removal. After the pictures, you release the fish into the water. A musky or pike should be out of the water for less than a minute.
The gill plate holds or grabs as many do improperly is for big fish. A small pike or musky is held easily near the tail and under the belly. Save the gill plate hold for fish about 34-36 inches or larger. Fish under this size weigh 4-6 pounds. Trout get this big.
When using a gill plate hold you need to avoid the gills. Under the jaw is an opening. Starting near the front of the jaw. Slide your fingers into the middle knuckles. Grip firmly and lift while placing the other hand under the belly. Lift to the horizontal position.
Solunar Times
What are solunar times and the effects? This is a key element affecting musky activity. Keeping it simple, sunrise and sunset are two of the time periods. The others are the majors and minors or moonrise and set, plus overhead and underfoot.
The minors are moonrise and moonset. The moon overhead and underfoot is the majors. Do not confuse these moon positions with the phases of the moon.
The moon influences musky and pike, actually all fish. Yet it is stronger with pike and musky. The fish is more active at these times. You need to be casting or trolling during the times. You get more follows and strikes.
This is when the bigger fish tend to be caught also. A small fish strikes any time. The trophy fish wait for prime time to eat. If you want to catch a musky, use the solunar times to plan your day. Sites online provide the times for your location.
Lack of Knowledge
Muskies are the apex predator in the region they inhabit. The fish takes the habitat it prefers. The only fish that chases away a muskie or pike is a bigger one. You need to learn these habitats.
Musky changes locations based on weather, the seasons, and pressure. The fish move around throughout the year. If the water gets too warm they suspend or go deep.
People pressuring muskies to push them out of their preferred habitat. When you find places holding musky. Do not pound it endlessly trying to catch one. Come back during a major to fish the spot.
People do not give up places holding fish because of the pressure problem. Once other people know of the place. It will have people fishing it every day for most of the day.
Conclusions
These are the primary mistakes by musky anglers. They lead to people missing a fish often or causing harm. Use the right tackle, tools, and techniques. You need the basics to become habits. Always do the figure eight.
Have release tools ready when you catch a fish. Study the best times and learn the habitat. Keep your focus, you never know when a fish will appear or strike. Musky fishing is mentally tough. A solid foundation makes it easier.
If you are a beginner or have little experience. You need to learn everything about the fish. Finding where musky likes to live is a big part of musky fishing.