Musky America Magazine September 2024 Edition

Musky Fishing…The Weather Is In Charge By Craig Sandell © 2012 Rain…Wind…Drought…Heat…Cold! If there was ever any doubt that weather and Musky fishing are inseparable, the past few Musky seasons have removed all doubt. This year an early ice out in Wisconsin combined with early drought conditions in the North of the state has Musky prognosticators scratching their heads as to the effects upon Musky patterns. In 2010, I spent 3 weeks in early June beating the water and at almost every turn, my efforts were stymied by the weather. In a single week, the water level rose almost a foot due to heavy rain and the water temperature dropped from 78 degrees to 68 degrees. The fishing was tough. My fishing partner, Rob Meusec, and I were on the water every day attempting to entice our Musky friend into an assault on one of our lure selections but to no avail. The fish were turning off at the boat or hitting short. There was no perceived pattern and we were both crestfallen by the adventures with the fish that did hit but soon spit our lures back at us. While driving back from breakfast, we noticed that the recent heavy rains had swollen the creeks feeding the Chippewa Flowage. We were desperate for some success on the water and theorized that the fast moving water might have some fish camping out in the creek areas.

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