Kawartha Musky = Frustration

[cuda]

Hey guys just got home after 3 days fishing piegon and buckhorn lake for musky. Have fished these lakes for many years targeting bass, walleye, musky. This year we concentrated on musky managed to raise 9 fish over the 3 days not one commited, doing the figure 8 by the boat etc they would follow then sink back to the depths. What are we doing wrong? any thoughts. Heading back up in 2 weeks, hoping for better results. Hoping you seasoned musky fanatics can shed some light on this. Thanks paul

[DGM999]

With catch and release being predominant the figure 8 by the boat may be losing punch, they could be skittish as your on popular lakes, I'd focus on the more stealthy techniques getting a bait in from a distance.

[Andy2]

Hey guys just got home after 3 days fishing piegon and buckhorn lake for musky. Have fished these lakes for many years targeting bass, walleye, musky. This year we concentrated on musky managed to raise 9 fish over the 3 days not one commited, doing the figure 8 by the boat etc they would follow then sink back to the depths. What are we doing wrong? any thoughts. Heading back up in 2 weeks, hoping for better results. Hoping you seasoned musky fanatics can shed some light on this. Thanks paul

You are not alone. I found it tougher this year as well and have connected with very few fish. I think it's one of those years that kind of separates the mice from the men. I was at one camp and there were some Americans staying there. They fished very hard, out early, in late, taking lunch out in the boat. They didn't do as well as other years I was told, but they saw and caught more fish than I did, and they caught a few big fish. They were simply willing to work a lot harder than me. (Watching from a distance at times, these guys seemed to love using jerkbaits.)

[JoePa]

I wonder how many times a fish is caught and released after hitting a certain type lure and then starts getting smart and won't hit a lure that looks and acts a certain way - musky in particular because they are caught and released so often - maybe you just need to look at different type lures -

[mox72]

Catch a perch and rig that up.

[TurkeyRookie]

Catch a perch and rig that up.

I may be mistaken, and I apologize if I am, but is it not illegal to use game fish as a bait in Ontario?

https://www.ontario.ca/environment-a...-use-live-bait

[cuda]

I wonder how many times a fish is caught and released after hitting a certain type lure and then starts getting smart and won't hit a lure that looks and acts a certain way - musky in particular because they are caught and released so often - maybe you just need to look at different type lures -

Thought the same thing joepa everybody knows the kawarthas are heavily fished for musky. I threw everything in my tacklebox to try and mix it up including the kitchen sink, still no hits just lurkers.

[Roper]

I have fished buckhorn many times. I find muskie fishing very frustrating there also due to the weed content. Its always been difficult to cast or troll without hauling weeds. I still go back (going the thankgiving weekend) because those same frustrating weeds provide excellent forage and cover for the abundant game fish there. When weeds are extremely bothersome I have had some success drifting and dragging a large sucker minnow on the surface over the weeds. Make sure you hook the sucker minnow (larger the better) in 2 places - mouth and body. A large dead minnow will also work.
My brother has a technique he uses when trolling. He incorporates a flasher 6 ft in front of the bait/lure. The flasher dances on top of the water and will keep the bait above the weeds plus will also attract the fish to the bait/lure. He has been successful doing this.
Good luck.

[mox72]

I may be mistaken, and I apologize if I am, but is it not illegal to use game fish as a bait in Ontario?

https://www.ontario.ca/environment-a...-use-live-bait

I think that list is for live bait. I may also be wrong but I don't think there are any restrictions on using a cut perch, should have been more specific.

[FishFrenzy]

I think that list is for live bait. I may also be wrong but I don't think there are any restrictions on using a cut perch, should have been more specific.

You can't use game fish for bait - perch are game fish...

FishFrenzy