Start The Muskie Season...

Boy oh Boy do I have stories to tell. I will catch you up on all the latest and greatest, including a superb week in the BWCA. This will all come soon, but first I must share the outing that still has me tickled pink. Last night was an interesting night. There were a couple of factors that always seem to get the muskies moving. looking ahead at how things were going to play out, I called up Young Ben and told him we were gonna go catching. Without hesitation he was in!

With the insane heat, we opted not to waste any time, and only concentrate on the active window that we knew was to come. We hit the water as the sun was setting, and pulled up to the first spot. I had a lot of anticipation because I simply haven't been muskie fishing much this year. Looking at the icons on my graph, and past success, I pointed at the water and told Ben there is one right there. Yep, my 4th cast of the night gave me the first fish. Nothing huge, but a nice muskie nonetheless. Ben just laughed. He then followed that up with the proverbial "how many do you think we will catch." I told him not to get cocky, but he wanted to set goals, and said, "Aren't we suppose to aim high?" Well, he was right, so we chose 3 as our goal. After all, I knew we would only be on the water for a very short time. Upon releasing the fish, I trolled up to my next icon. Yep, another one came screaming to the boat, then another and another. It was almost surreal. About fifteen casts later we had seen another 3 fish, and then I got slammed. Almost one of those strikes that hurt the wrist. Fish number two was in the boat, again, not a giant, but a good ski. A quick high five and we were back at it. On my very next cast I had another follow, and Ben the same. It was almost getting out of hand. In that short little window, the fish were simply on a tear. All we could do was laugh. During that short half hour stretch, we saw a total of 9 muskies and boated 2. Not quite the goal that we had set, but hey, I aint complaining.

I have been catching a lot of grief lately for not posting stories about muskies. After all, it is one of my greatest passions in life. I heard the grief, and trust me it hasn't gone unnoticed. While I have been having a ball with everyone and the bass and walleye outings, it was good to get the big sticks rolling again. Maybe that's why I am still excited the morning after... From the muskie filled metro waters, keep on livin' the dream!

Travis Frank - Travis@mnbound.com