USA. Nature Vision moves into lure market

The move into the lure market is a first for the Central Minnesota firm, which remains best known for its Aqua-Vu Underwater Viewing Systems. Far from strangers to the world of fishing tackle, Nature Vision President and CEO Jeff Zernov represented Lindy-Little Joe Tackle for many years, prior to co-founding In-Fisherman magazine in 1975.

Crazy Crank Lures are built using a super durable solid core resin that unlike wood or plastic, will not crack, leak, or sink. In addition, the lures cast like rockets and deliver a rhythmic yet consistent action, as well as a unique sound that's accomplished by through a hydro-dynamically designed head.

A mere five prototypes of the Rumbler topwater lure have accounted for over 60 muskies, including many by muskie fishing legends Doug Johnson and Dick Pearson.

"I am excited to place the Rumbler and Crazy Crank in the hands of a respectable organization with the capabilities to get the lures in the boats of many more anglers." says Crazy Crank creator Don Schwartz. "The Rumbler has piqued the interest of muskie anglers so fast that I just couldn't meet the demand on my own. This is a design and material that will change muskie fishing, and I think this move assures that the lures will get to the public before the imitations come along."

Fig Rig Rods…One Man’s Experience

By Craig Sandell © 2007

In 2005, I wrote this article documenting the problems that I experienced with the Fig Rig rod that I used. In 2006, message boards have had entries from folks who have experienced similar problems. According to some of the chat, Fig Rig had a bad run of blanks that caused the problem...something that Fig Rig contends has been resolved. I would submit that it is not enough for a manufacturer to say that it has fixed the problem; confidence in a product can only be restored if, along with the cause, the manufacturer defines what 'corrective action' has been instituted to purge defective items in stock and ensure that safe guards have been put in place to prevent the problem from happening again. In addition, I have gotten first hand reports from Fig Rig users that they have had to re-attach their rod tip guide because it came loose during normal use...this would appear to indicate that Fig Rig has a larger problem than faulty blanks from their supplier. You will have to make up your own mind as to whether you want to trust your time on the water to a rod that has demonstrated a propensity to fail under the stress of Musky angling.

2007 Update
On 3/26/07 Musky America received a request via an Email from a person representing himself as Kevin Figgins requesting that we remove this article. Mr. Figgins was informed that the article was a factual account of problems encountered using the Fig Rig Rod. Musky America offered Mr. Figgins the opportunity to submit a rebuttal to this article...To date we have received no additional input from Mr. Figgins.
We have received another failure report from a person who indicated that he went through 4 of the 8 foot Fig Rig rods during the 2006 season. He indicated that when he contacted Fig Rig, he got the standard answer that they had a run of bad blanks and that the problem has been fixed...The person reporting the problem indicated that he went to using rods from different manufacturers.

In September of 2005, I participated in the Lake Chippewa Flowage Muskie Tournament. The whole experience was a great one and the event was very well administered.

I was fortunate to have won a Fig Rig 7’ medium rod as a door prize. Since all of my custom made rods are 6½’, I was anxious to see how this 7’ rod would perform for me on the water.

As soon as I got back to my trailer at Indian Trail Resort, I set up the rod with an Abu Garcia 5500 loaded with TUF line. I planned to use the rod as a Bucktail rod when I went to Phillips, WI to fish with my good friend Rob Meusec.

The next day, I was on the water casting a 1½ ounce Bucktail toward the deep edge of a weed line. As I was retrieving the Bucktail, a fish hit about 20 feet from the boat. I set the hook and much to my chagrin, the Fig Rig Rod that I had won and had high hope for, broke in the thick portion of the rod shaft. Well, I lost the fish as well as the use of the rod…I was not a happy camper.

When I got back to Indian Trail Resort, I was in the bar relating the sad story when another person at the bar piped up and said that he had a couple of friends who had also had their Fig Rig rods break on them.

I thought that this was something that the folks at Fig Rig should know about. I packed up the remnants of the rod and sent it to Fig Rig at my own expense, along with a note explaining the circumstance surrounding the failure of the Fig Rig rod…I did not ask them to replace the rod but I did encourage them to reassess their quality control and application engineering.

In early October, I received a new rod in the mail, along with an invoice of $25.00 for the shipping charges. They did not credit the $6.50 that it cost me to send the broken Fig Rig rod to them and provided no note expressing a concern that their Fig Rig rod had failed during the most elementary aspect of the Muskie experience…the setting of the hook.

I am sure that there are folks out there who have used these rods without having them break into pieces. Would I use this rod again?…in a word "NO". Like all of you, I spend a lot of time on and off the water working hard to locate and catch our Muskie friend. I am not about to take a chance that this same circumstance will happen again.

As a final observation, the Fig Rig rod had a Muskies, Inc. decal on it providing the perception that the rod is in some way endorsed by Muskies, Inc. If that is the case, I would encourage Muskies, Inc. to reassess its endorsement of the Fig Rig rod. If it is not the case, I would encourage Muskies, Inc. to petition Fig Rig to remove the Muskies, Inc. decal from their rod until such time that Fig Rig provides "cause and corrective action" regarding the failure of their medium 7’ Muskie rod.

Green Bay about more than Packers these days

By DOUG NEWHOFF, Sports Editor

REEN BAY, Wis. — Residents of Green Bay probably aren’t ready to start skipping Packer games for a day of fishing on the bay.

But there might be a few diehard fans at least considering it as an option.These days, the waters of Green Bay are making an equally indelible impression on anglers who enjoy the pursuit of walleyes, smallmouth bass, perch and even muskies. A body of water that was once as polluted as Ricky Williams' bloodstream is living the clean life and teeming with fish - especially walleyes.

"It's at an all-time best right now for both numbers and the size of the fish," said Don Kohl, who has lived in the area for the past 23 years. "It's just silly right now."

The Masters Walleye Circuit exposed the Bay's big walleye potential in 1998 when it first visited the area.

With the fish in a late-summer pattern of prowling the rocky reefs in the northern half of the bay, 196 MWC teams lugged 1,009 walleyes to the scales weighing an average of 4 1/2 pounds apiece. It took a two-day, 10-walleye limit of 68.40 pounds to win and 42.76 pounds to finish among the top 35 teams.

Three weeks ago, the MWC returned to Green Bay for the first time in several years. Participants discovered they didn't need to make a risky, 50-mile run to the northern reefs. These days, there are more than enough walleyes in the southern part of the bay to keep a boatload of anglers busy.

During the two-day MWC event, 184 teams weighed in 1,555 walleyes averaging 3.75 pounds apiece. Dozens of walleyes weighing between 8 and 11 pounds were caught. It took 56 1/2 pounds to win and a two-day catch of 40 pounds to make the top 50.

"It's funny because not that long ago, maybe 10 to 12 years ago, the south part of the bay was unexplored," said Kohl, a veteran tournament angler who is taking a year off from competitive fishing. "I think because of the combination of the population growing and fishermen getting better, the south half of the bay right now is every bit as good for big fish numbers as the northern half.

"Our biologists tell us we've had a number of good year classes. Four of the last five years have been just perfect conditions. And the food base in the bay is incredible.

"Some of it might have to do with the zebra mussels, too. Nobody wanted to see them in the bay, but say what you want, I think they have helped with the water quality. There has also been a lot of cleanup from the (paper) mills along the Fox River, and when you clean up the river, you clean up the bay."

During the MWC event, many teams of anglers reported catches of 40 to 50 fish a day while slow-trolling in-line spinner rigs tipped with nightcrawlers and using planer boards to carry their lines away from the boat. While those catches included drum, catfish, perch, smallmouth and the occasional muskie, most of the fish were walleyes. Most of the walleyes measured 18 to 22 inches in length, but almost every catch included a fish or two in the 28- to 30-inch class.

"It just blows my mind," said Kohl. "For the last 10 years in the bay, it's been commonplace for guys to go out and catch numbers of quality fish."

Perch fishing is nearly as popular as walleye fishing on the bay. Dozens of small boats can be found anchored up on almost every southern reef.

"It's back now, finally," said Kohl, noting that commercial fishing, angler harvest and predation from cormorants contributed to the decline.

"They've reduced angler limits and commercial harvest limits the last few years, and they're trying to control the cormorants. The perch population is showing the results. We have great numbers of 9- to 11-inch perch again with plenty of bigger ones out there."

The smallmouth fishery is one of the best anywhere, especially on the reefs and rocky shorelines in the northern part of the bay near Sturgeon Bay, Wis. Like the walleyes, they grow fat and sassy with fish up to 4 pounds common.

And along with the improvements in water quality and the vast forage base available, the muskie population is thriving.

"This has become a world class muskie fishery," said Kohl. "The last few years, it's incredible how many guys have started coming to the bay to fish muskies.

"There are numbers and size. There are a lot of 50-plus inch fish being caught, especially in the spring and fall, and it will only get better."

Of course, Green Bay faces threats to its fishery. Invasive species like zebra mussels and gobies are a concern, as are new fish viruses that are spreading throughout the Great Lakes.

However, there aren't many places that currently provide any better fishing.

"Overall, with the numbers of fish to be caught, it's an outstanding place to bring somebody just to catch fish," said Kohl. "It's not like you're going to go for hours out there and not get a bite. You will be busy reeling in something all the time.

"You can fish about any way you want and be successful. You can slip-bobber, jig, throw crankbaits, troll spinners, troll crankbaits, drift-fish ...

"And you don't need a big boat. If the wind kicks up, there are still plenty of places that are protected in the southern bay, plus the river, which kind of gets overlooked now because the bay is so good.

"We're pretty blessed."

Contact Doug Newhoff at (319) 291-1467 or doug.newhoff@wcfcourier.com

Record Muskie

Video Link

A Mandan man reels in a record muskie.

Cory Bosch of Mandan was fishing all by himself on New Johns Lake north of Bismarck on July Third and caught a 46-pound-8-ounce muskie that measured 54 inches in length. Bosch says it was quite a fight to get the fish into his boat.

(Cory Bosch, Mandan fisherman) "...Back and forth and up and down. it would dive to the bottom and I'd slowly bring it up and it'd take five minutes every time I'd bring it back up. I'd try to land it and it would go back down. I didn't have a net. I had a small Walleye net but I didn't want to risk getting the hooks caught in the net. So I had to hand land it and every time I'd try to grab it under the gills, it would flop its head and go right back down to the bottom...over and over you know."


State Game and Fish officials had to take a sample of the fish to find out if it is a pure muskie or a cross between a muskie and a northern pike.

But either way, officials say the fish is a state record holder.

(Scott Gangl, Fisheries Management Section Leader) "We've stocked both pure muskies and tiger muskies, which is a hybrid between a muskie and a northern pike, into New Johns Lake. So we need to determine whether its one or the other. So the only way to do that definitively is by doing DNA testing and so we're taking a sample of DNA and we're sending it to a geneticist in Maine who did the last onethe last time we had a record."


If Bosch's fish is a pure muskiehe beat the old record by 8 ounces. Bill Wald of Washburn caught the last record holder also at New Johns Lake in 2003

Summer Is The Time Of Acute Musky Fever

By Al Denninger

Musky Fever hits Hayward…Hundreds stricken…Tourists bring fever to area…No cure found, only temporary relief for victims…Only heavy doses of fishing can relieve this thing called MUSKY FEVER!!!

Summer signals the start of the hot action for the King of the Freshwater Fish. Musky are spreading out and more likely to be on main-lake spots. Weed beds are reaching for the sky, and the water-ah! The water temperatures are reaching a steady 68-74 degrees. Musky are putting on the feed bag. Big females are starting to show up; this is the time of the season when musky action is at its best. There’s more fish action now than in any other month. September might see more trophy fish, but late June through early July is when the real action takes place.

Below is a list of a few lakes to pound in the first few weeks of summer.

Lake Winter: Lots of good action on this body of water. It has produced some big fish. Purple Bucktails on sunny days and yellow on overcast are the hot ticket in June and early July—both sporting brass blades.

Chippewa Flowage: Bucktails are the best all around bait choice. Many favor fluorescent or green blades with black hair.

First work the weeds, concentrating on the edges. Key weed beds have deep water on two or three sides.

Surface baits are also a good choice. Creepers, Globes, Toppers and Water Thumpers are all in play.

Lost Land Lake is usually solid weeds. Fish the open pockets. This lake is usually clear, but can also be stained depending upon run off. Orange or purple Bucktails with gold blades are a good bet. Also, the Suick has been hot on this lake.

Teal Lake always has dark water, and a brass or copper-bladed Bucktail here seems to produce very well. For surface baits, globes, Hawg Wobblers, or water thumpers.

Spider Lake - Spider Lake produces well on Bucktails with silver blades.

You may also have good luck with Crane, Slammers, and Hi-Finn’s sidewinders with gold and/or silver prism tape added to the sides of these twitch-baits-using silver tape on clear water and gold on stained waters.

MAXIMIZE YOUR TIME ON THE WATER

After reading the first part of this article, you get the picture that Bucktails are the guides’ first choice, and with good reason.

Bucktails search the water fast. The more water you cover in your allotted fishing time, the more likely you’ll put your offering in front of an active musky.

Remember, these fish are active now; water temperatures are in the favorite range, and females have had ample time to recover from the rigors of spawning. Weed beds have matured enough as to have fish set up feeding patterns.

Many of these active musky will return to the same weed beds to feed. When you locate a large fish, note time, wind direction, water temperature, bait, etc. Try to return the next day to that particular weed bed at the same time using the same bait.

I have also found that fish seem to have a three-day feeding cycle. I’d enjoy talking to anyone who has noticed the same pattern.

TACKLE TIPS

The question of line comes up often: mono vs. braided vs. spectra.

No doubt about it, you’ll fool more fish on mono, but I dislike the stretch. I prefer Courtland Micron. The no-stretch factor is a big plus in burying the steel. The same can be said of lines like TUF line.

If mono is the route you want to go, make sure you spool up with 25-30 pound test. Knots wear fast under constant casting pressure.

For those anglers on Pig Patrol and for whom only 30 pound plus fish get your heart pumping, stick with Micron or spectra. Micron is pure white, but don’t let that keep you from trying it. TUF line is salt and pepper.

Most braided–line fishermen use black, but remember the old saying, "Use a black Bucktail, ‘cause fish can see black the best!" So why use black line?

Well, whatever your views on equipment, enjoy your time on the water. Enjoy as Hayward spreads the fishing fever.

Good luck and tight lines.

Michigan's Master Angler Pike

So, you want to catch the biggest northern of your life without leaving our state? No problem. Just follow the evidence! (March 2007)
By Steven A. Griffin

DALE SPARTASThe open-water fishing fan of northern pike could get a bit discouraged after taking a close look at Michigan's Master Angler Award list. From lakes that have produced multiple Master Angler-class pike in the last few years, most of the trophy fish have come through the ice, not from open water. Tip-ups and spears did most of the work, not crankbaits and spoons.
But then, when the ice is gone, how many people really focus on pike the same way winter anglers do, with long hours. heavy tackle and single-species dedication? Those fish didn't just appear when ice sealed the lake, after all. That's just when they were caught in the fishing spotlight.
Let's hand it to the tip-uppers and thank them for their research, which points to a handful of lakes with big fish. And at the same time, let's not neglect those special waters that substitute huge numbers of feisty smaller pike for smaller numbers of big fish. Then you just have to sneak onto those lakes and others with rods stouter than usual, lines heavier than normal, tougher leaders and bigger baits.
Leave the bluegills, perch and walleyes to the tourists this season, and set your sights on the powerful pike in these award-winning waters.
HOUGHTON LAKEThis could be the Michigan lake most associated with northern pike fishing. At more than 20,000 acres, it's our state's largest inland lake, and anglers chase its northerns throughout every season.
Houghton is shallow, with an average depth of about 8 feet, and nothing deeper than 22 feet. It is incredibly fertile, producing bumper crops of almost all warm- and coolwater species, including northern pike. "It's just a fish factory," an admiring fisheries biologist once told me.
Match plenty of pike with a lot of fishing, and you get a fast-action water that will likely have you sorting through plenty of northerns to get a 24-inch keeper. It can be great fun, though, to tangle with all those pike.
Scott Cain, a Midland dentist who fishes many walleye tournaments, loves pike fishing on Houghton Lake. Sure, he makes pilgrimages to some of Canada's trophy-pike lakes, but what he really loves is fast action on pike of all sizes.
"The best 'action' spot in Michigan, bar none, is the Middle Grounds in Houghton Lake," Cain said. That's the 3-foot-deep flat spot in the center of the lake that is featured on almost any map. Cain said it's about 200 yards long by 200 yards wide. "You won't catch big ones, but a friend and I caught 116 pike by casting Beetle Spins in about two hours. None were legal size, but the action is unparalleled. It's better fished earlier in the season because it gets weed-choked fairly early, but if you take any kid there -- including big kids like us -- it is a riot."
Even though few Houghton Lake pike live long enough to stretch much longer than Michigan's 24-inch minimum length, a few lunkers invariably grow fat on the abundant forage. This lake gives up at least one 20-pound-plus pike every year.
The "South Shore Weedbed" -- just where its name would lead you to expect it -- is a longtime favorite location of many pike anglers. Floating stick baits such as Rapalas and Rebels will be pounced on here, and jigs tossed into the weeds will stir up action, too.
Other good pike haunts on the lake include the edge of the weedbed on the east edge of North Bay, along with the several weedbeds in East Bay. Wherever you fish on Houghton Lake, you can't go wrong working the deep side of any weedbed -- emergent or submergent -- you can find.
There's a public access site on each of the four shorelines, and bait shops, restaurants, motels and resorts just about everywhere you go. Get more information from the Houghton Lake Area Tourism Bureau at 1-800-676-5330, or go to the bureau's Web site at www.visithoughtonlake.com.
HIGGINS LAKETell people you're pike fishing on Higgins Lake and they'll tell you you're one lake too far to the north. Although they're connected neighbors, Higgins and Houghton lakes couldn't be much more different.
Houghton is shallow, warm and fertile. By comparison, Higgins is deep, cold and sterile. Houghton is a walleye lake, Higgins a trout hotspot. But Higgins, like Houghton, has northern pike, and it has some big ones.
The state's largest pike of 2005 in the caught-and-kept category was a Higgins fish, a 26-pounder that stretched 44 inches long. That person, David Stewart of Roscommon, put a second Master Angler Award pike from Higgins Lake on the list, too. And even though both of his pike ran into a winter spear, there's no reason you couldn't be just as lucky in the open water.
Thank the abundant food base -- especially smelt, whitefish and small trout -- for the hefty pike that come from Higgins. Maybe you should thank, too, the fact that few people target the toothy critters in open water.
This is not a lake with a lot of cover, so the pike have few ambush points. They do haunt weedbeds, though, including the relatively short ones along the steep dropoff from 10 feet to 25 feet that rings the lake. One of my biggest pike ever slammed a spoon I was jigging at the dropoff for perch at the north end of the lake. Hanging a live sucker or other tasty offering -- and make it big -- is a good bet, too. People will think you're on the wrong lake if you tell them what you're doing -- but a trophy northern just might tell you otherwise!
Access is easy at North and South Higgins Lake State Parks, and at a Department of Natural Resources public access site in the northwest corner. A State Park Motor Vehicle sticker is always required at the parks. In tourist season, a daily or seasonal fee is charged at the access site, too.
The Houghton Lake Area Tourism Bureau serves the Higgins Lake area with lodging and other information at VisitHoughtonLake.com, or 1-800-676-5330.
AU TRAIN LAKEThis Alger County lake about nine miles east of Munising produces big pike from its 830 acres.
The DNR's Jim Waybrant said in a "status of the fishery" resource report that area residents have cherished this lake's big pike and walleyes for more than 100 years, accounting for the early development of cottages around its northern and western shores. Much remains undeveloped, though, because the eastern and southern shorelines are mainly owned by the U.S. Forest Service, which operates a campground and boat launch just perfect for pike anglers.
Local folks have often complained that the lake grows so many suckers and draws in even more from Lake Superior that it damages Au Train Lake's fishing. Sucker removal efforts have had little effect on their numbers, though, and biologists aren't too concerned about them. Pike, walleyes and bass are all doing pretty well in the lake, where small but numerous perch provide plenty of chow.
The lake was surveyed in 1994, and again in 2002, and over that time the northern pike numbers and sizes increased dramatically. Pike made up almost 30 percent of the lake's predators by weight, and about 30 percent of them were keepers, meaning 24 inches or longer
"The increase in northern pike numbers and weight was significant," Waybrant said, "while the (lake's) walleyes and smallmouth bass remained relatively similar to their numbers in the 1994 survey."
Au Train Lake is fed by four streams, the largest of which is the Au Train River, which flows four miles to it from Au Train Basin, which is also called Forest Lake. It is worth noting that Au Train Basin put a dandy 44-inch-Master Angler pike on the list in 2005. Steven Ball of Skandia released the fish, so it could be out there for you, too!
It's also worth noting that Au Train Lake, although large compared with its neighbors, is relatively small as pike lakes go, so it gets quite a bit of pressure. Think about enjoying the battle, then releasing your pike, and then catching walleyes for dinner.
Get local information from the Alger County Chamber of Commerce at (906) 387-2138, or online at AlgerCounty.com.
SAGINAW BAYBirch Run's Don Bomba -- whose specialty is muskie fishing and who is an official of the Michigan Muskie Alliance -- also loves messing with pike. He calls Saginaw Bay, "a very, very overlooked fishery. Early in the year, until midsummer, I've had 20-fish days out there casting bass-sized spinnerbaits, and jigs with twistertails."
Chris Jeroue is a Midland angler who spends more days on the water than just about anyone else I know. Where would he fish for pike? "The best I can tell you on my pike experience," he replied, "is hitting Hoyles Marina (on Saginaw Bay's southwestern shoreline at Linwood) in the early spring and early fall. They get monsters over there. I've seen pike come out of the water and go after a perch that someone caught. I have had a nice perch bit in half over there."
Indeed. Last summer when I feasted on the bounty of Saginaw Bay's bumper crop of eating-sized walleyes, I learned to take enough crawler harnesses to replace the several that were sure to be bitten off by pike. Tying on a Dardevle, Rapala or other pike favorite would be a great way to take advantage of the bay's rich food supplies.
I've made a mental note to do what I can this year to protect walleye trollers' rigs and Chris Jeroue's perch -- and that's by removing a few big pike from the bay.
LAKES MITCHELL & CADILLACSome top pike waters are known for winter sport, some for summer action. Some get their names on the Master Angler list year after year, while others -- like these connected lakes -- show up in almost every weekly fishing report during the long pike fishing season.
These natural lakes have rich beds of cabbage and other vegetation that are perfect for growing Esox foods and sheltering the predators when they come to call. Lake Mitchell is the largest at 2,560 acres, while Lake Cadillac covers 1,150 acres, all of them within the Cadillac city limits.
Access is a breeze, with a public access site on Lake Mitchell directly off highway M-115, and another on the northwest shoreline of Lake Cadillac. Mitchell State Park, right on the channel between the two lakes, makes a perfect fish camp.
Get your fishing information from Pilgrim Village Resort & Fishing Shop at (231) 775-5412, or online at PilgrimVillageFishing.com.
ST. MARYS RIVERThe St. Marys River in Chippewa County is a great spot to launch a big-pike search. It's produced a half-dozen fish of more than 20 pounds (kept) or 40 inches (released), four of them in the open-water months of May, September and November. Oh sure, depending on the season, the fishing headlines from the St. Marys likely shout about trout, salmon and whitefish, and focus the attention on the fast water of the rapids itself. But whatever the season, northern pike are willing to tussle, especially in Ashmun, Izaak Walton, George, Waishka, Munuscong and Raber bays.
Pike -- and muskies -- find everything they need in the river and its bays, including weedbeds, abundant forage and clean water. Start prowling the bays' shallows in spring by tossing big jerkbaits, surface plugs and in-line spinners. When summer warms the waters, work deeper weedbeds by slow-trolling with big stick baits. In the fall -- the best season for big pike -- casting again moves to the forefront.
The St. Marys River in Chippewa County is a great spot to launch a big-pike search. It's produced a half-dozen fish of more than 20 pounds (kept) or 40 inches (released), four of them in the open-water months of May, September and November.
Access the upper river at Ashmun Bay Park or at Brimley State Park. Launch for the lower river at Belleville Marina, Munuscong River, Raber Township Park or DeTour Passage.
For more information, contact the Sault Convention & Visitors Bureau at 1-800-657-2858, or online at Saultsmarie.com.
CROTON DAM PONDCroton Dam Pond, an impoundment of the Muskegon River in Newaygo County, is just the kind of place we were talking about when we launched this discussion about big, slimy pike. It has some trophy fish, but they mostly show up when ice-anglers set stout tip-up rigs or tend spears and decoys. But those fish were there before the lake froze over, too -- they just don't make short work of the nerves and gear of summer anglers stumbling upon them. Approach them like the trophy they are, though, and who knows what could happen?
Croton Dam Pond covers 1,380 acres, and stretches 14 miles end to end. Like many other reservoirs, it has plenty of white and redhorse suckers, and they're great snacks for growing pike. Jump into the action at access sites in the village of Croton.
For information, contact the Newaygo Area Chamber of Commerce at (231) 652-3068, or online at Explorenewaygo.com.
TITTABAWASSEE RIVER IMPOUNDMENTSDams stall this Saginaw River tributary four times, and each impoundment offers a great place to tangle with a pike.
"The whole Tittabawassee Chain -- Secord, Smallwood, Wixom and Sanford (lakes) -- is outstanding for pike fishing, with Sanford and Wixom kicking out the occasional 40-incher," said Esox specialist Don Bomba, while adding, "My best on Sanford is 44 inches."
"The whole Tittabawassee Chain -- Secord, Smallwood, Wixom and Sanford (lakes) -- is outstanding for pike fishing, with Sanford and Wixom kicking out the occasional 40-incher," said Esox specialist Don Bomba, while adding, "My best on Sanford is 44 inches."
These four backwater lakes have the typical pike features in abundant forage -- especially suckers -- and plenty of weedbeds, stumps and dropoffs.
First, moving downstream from Roscommon County, the Tittabawassee pauses behind Secord Dam. It forms a lake of about 2,000 acres, up to 40 feet deep. Access is at Bowmanville and Finkbeinder roads. Next is Smallwood Lake, about 300 acres of pike water.
Both of those lakes are relatively unknown. Not so with Wixom Lake, most of which is in Gladwin County. Wixom hosts bass fishing tournaments almost every weekend of the open-water season. Wixom Lake, where the Tobacco River merges with the Tittabawassee River, boasts an impounded arm of each river, with a combined surface area of just under 2,000 acres. There is a DNR public access site on the Tobacco side near Edenville.
Sanford Lake, lowest on the system, is about 10 miles long, covering just under two square miles. It has a maximum depth of 30 feet, with the vast majority less than 20 feet. Launch at Midland County's Sanford Lake Park near the dam, or upstream at Sanford Lake Marina.
DNR officials say all four lakes have plenty of northerns, with relatively low fishing pressure focused on them. All have rich weedbeds, and increasingly clear water, thanks mainly to zebra mussels. To top that off, they produce tons of redhorse and white suckers, which pike love to dine on.
"There are a lot of pike," said DNR biologist Kathryn Schrouder, "and I don't think they're utilized all that much."
* * *
In truth, pike are "underutilized" almost everywhere. Thirty-five of Michigan's 82 counties put northerns on the Master Angler Award list since 2004 -- from Berrien County in the southwest to Wayne County in the southeast, and from Baraga in the far north to Chippewa in the eastern Upper Peninsula. Nobody in Michigan is far from a lake in which lurks a northern pike. Catch 'em in the act this year, especially now that you have the evidence!

Finding Minnesota: Muskie Rampage Of 1955

WCCO) Walker, Minn. On lazy summer days in Federal Dam, the tiny town where the legendary Leech Lake is formed, kids still cast their fishing rods from the docks. With lures of assorted colors and sizes, they're filled with eager anticipation, hoping to lure a lunker.Dan Tonga greets visitors with a warm smile. Under bright indigo skies, Tonga prepares to set off on another Leech Lake fishing charter. He now runs the charter business his parents started decades ago.Tonga tells his customers that it was weather much like the current spell of hot days that the greatest Muskie tale ever told unfolded, back on July 16, 1955."They say it was a hot, hot summer -- the dog days of summer. I guess the tulibees were dying all over the lake. It was dead fish all over the lake. And the Muskies, they just started catching them one after the other," Tonga reminisces.Fish that would normally be caught once in a thousand casts were biting at anything thrown their way."I guess anything that floated people were trying to get on and get out and get their fish caught," recalled the sage guide.More than 50 years later, vintage black and white photographs show record catches with dozens of huge Muskie hanging from long poles and being hauled about in wheelbarrows. They're scenes from long ago that Dan Tonga simply sums up as "very rare, very rare."Word of the aptly named "Muskie rampage" spread quickly around the region. Friends called their other fishing friends. WCCO Radio started doing daily Muskie updates. Soon, Leech Lake was alive with throngs of eager anglers."There's not many of them around to talk about it anymore," said Jerry Stewart, standing on Walker's city dock.Stewart also runs a charter and guide service on the lake and has caught his share of Muskie over the years. Usually, after spending long hours on Leech either trolling or casting for the elusive monsters. He's well aware of time it takes just to catch one."That was the Federal Dam run of 1955. It never happened again, that was a one time deal," Stewart said.Because of the heat that summer, the fish had lost their normal food source, the tulibee. They were extremely hungry and biting at practically anything cast their way.In the years since that record summer of '55, there have been other fishing frenzies. But nothing anywhere near the few hot days in July that turned Leech Lake into a Muskie legend.As Dan Tonga bemusedly examined the faded photos of dozens of huge Muskies, I joked that they appear to show just a normal day of fishing. He gave an infectious laugh, smiled and said, "Yeah, we catch them like that all the time!"Only in my dreams!

Video Link: http://wcco.com/local/local_story_190081750.html