Season 5

How often have you heard the phrase “you should have been here yesterday, they were biting like crazy.” As a musky hunter we rarely encounter perfect weather conditions, and more often than not, we are dealt post-frontal conditions that indicate tough fishing. Jim Saric, Musky Hunter Managing Editor Steve Heiting and University of Esox Instructor Kevin Schmidt reveal spot selection and lure strategies for catching muskies when facing tough summer conditions.

When you think about Lake of the Woods, one name is often synonymous with muskies…Bill Sandy. Bill is a legendary guide on Lake of the Woods, having fished it for over forty years. Jim Saric, and Pro Guide Bill Sandy reveal some of Bill’s secrets for consistently catching muskies, no matter where you fish on Lake of the Woods.

Every season musky hunters are faced with a variety of weather conditions. Flat, calm conditions can appear to make the muskies stagnant, yet understanding how muksies move during such conditions can open the door to some great catches spring, summer or fall. First, Jim Saric and musky hunter Scott Schuster handle an early summer heat wave. Then, Jim Saric and Pro Guide Gregg Thomas tackle calm conditions during a fall cold snap.

Want to take your catches to the next level? Then the University of Esox musky school is for you. Through classroom, dock-side and on-the-water instruction, the University of Esox has been helping anglers make their musky dreams come true for 15 years. Jim Saric, Musky Hunter Managing Editor Steve Heiting, University of Esox instructor Kevin Schmidt, and musky hunters John Mich and Marc Ericksen provide an inside look at the University of Esox on Lake of the Woods.

When the cold winds of fall come howling and freeze-up approaches, it’s time to crack out the big soft plastics. Jim Saric and Pro Guide Mike Hulbert battle some monster muskies using monster-sized soft plastics on a late season adventure.

Wind can be the musky hunter friend and foe. Wind creates commotion in the underwater world and cuts light penetration creating a feeding opportunity for apex predators like muskies. Wind also can create havoc with boat control and lure presentations. First, Jim Saric, and Trophy Hunter Tom Sullivan battle strong winds with an approaching storm. Then Jim Saric, Brad Ruh and Dennis Lappen from Musky Innovations grind it out in giant winds.

Musky hunters — much like the fish we chase — love to focus on edges. Yet, a whole group of muskies never approach weed edges or rock bars, but spend their entire season cruising the abyss of the basin feeding on open-water forage. Jim Saric and Pro Guide Mike Hulbert provide an approach and tools for dissecting the basin on any water to find and catch the muskies.

The more you fish muskies the more you realize there’s more than one way to catch them. In fact, it’s not uncommon to be able to catch muskies both trolling and casting on the same water. Jim Saric illustrates a dynamite trolling system that exists in many waters across the musky range. Taking advantage of this system opens up a whole new alternative, wherever you chase muskies.

While the northern waters are frozen in spring, muskies are catchable in the open waters of the South. The key to catching these fish early is to understand both the musky and shad spawning process. First, Jim Saric, Musky Hunter Advertising Representative Charlie Buhler, and musky hunter Chris Juhas use smaller rattle baits for pre-spawn muskies. Then, Jim Saric and Matt Rayner from Ranger Boats use a variety of lures to catch muskies amid the Shad spawn.

Big water is synonymous with big muskies. Consider the largest waters in North America and they consistently produce some of the largest muskies. Because of their sheer size, these big waters can also make locating and catching muskies difficult. It can be feast or famine. First, Jim Saric along with musky hunters Rick Mikel and Sam Patza, work bucktails over a giant weed flat. Then, Jim Saric and Jim Stewart from the Musky Shop work deep edges in search of a big water, breakline bruiser.

March 20, 2011: TBA

March 27, 2011: TBA

What’s the first thing you do when the muskies aren’t biting? Switch lures. Although that often works, sometimes it pays to experiment with lure speed, first. Jim Saric, Pro Guide Mike Lazarus, and Trophy Hunter Tom Sullivan demonstrate the importance of varying lure speed to trigger more strikes.