 | "Guide Service & Outfitter" |
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Muskies are still in there post spawn funk. Water tempatures are in the 62 to 63 degree range and should warm up to 65 by mid week. Any day things will start to heat up for the muskie fishermen. The walleyes on the other hand are feeding and active on the outer edges of the weedlines. I got out Friday afternoon to check out some of my hot spots, three hours of fishing in two spots produced quick action form both Large and Smallmouth Bass with plenty of Walleyes mixed in to keep us happy. The average Walleye was in the 13 to 15 inch range and lots of them. The Bass are on the way in to start there spawning and are very aggressive at this time. The panfish are also starting to move up shallow and will be spawning as soon as the water gets into the high 60's. The muskies are not very active but are still working the weedbeds with all the other fish. The weedlines in the big lake are full of fish, most of the action this week has been on the edges in 9 to 10 foot of water. Leaches and crallers are the prefered bait for the Walleyes and everthing else that is mixed in the weeds. Some nice Crappies were also taken from the weeds. With the water temps starting to get into the mid 60's some of the fish will be going deeper and the others will go shallow. Now is a great time to get in on some fast action working the weedlines. Saturday I guided two clients to a smorgasboard of action, both of them each must have caught over 100 fish each. We started at 8am and targeted Walleyes first, it didn't take long for Susan to catch her first Pewaukee Walleye and it was not long after that when she boated her 2n and 3rd. The Bass were the next to start up as the Walleyes started to slow. Bluegills, Crappies and Perch also started to get very active so we were off to the next spot. The same mixed bag was in the next 4 spot we fished. One of the spots Yvonne had a very nice Walleye on for about 3 or 4 minuits, this fish would not come off the bottom. After what seemed like forever she got the Walleye to the boat so I could get a good look at it. The fish was a good 5 to 6lb fish with a attitude, with two hard runs to the bottom the fish somehow came free and the hook came back empty. What a let down after such a great fight. Thats why they call it fishing not catching, some times it just happens even when you do everything correct. Today I got out for some muskie fishing and worked a lure that was given to me by a guy who makes his own style of baits. The bait is called a Fat Shad and imitates the Bluegill very well. The size and color he gave me was perfect for this time of year so I tied on on and trolled it along the weedline. I started around 8am and found my first muskie by 8:30 just off Rocky Point. A 33-inch muskie was fooled by this new bait and I was very impressed with the action and depth the bait produced. I fished for about two more hours with no action to show for my efforts. After a lunch break and cutting my lawn I tried my luck again. 4 hours of trolling and casting produced only a pain in my back so here I am at the computer finishing up this report. The fishing will heat up this week and look for the muskies to start to get more active. Working the weedbeds and weedlines will start to produce some nice muskies, I know I will be looking to score on some of Pewaukees healthy population of muskies this week. Bucktails, twitch baits, glide baits and crank baits will all produce fish for the next week or two. Good luck and see you on the water !!! |
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Fishing on Pewaukee lake is getting better with each warmer day. Water temps are in the high 50's and slowly creeping up to the 60 degree mark. Once we get over the post spawn things will start to rock, it won't belong till the pre-summer activity starts. Once the water gets above the 60 degree mark the muskies and other game fish will be much easer to catch or at least get them to move on a lure. This past Saturday the Muskies Inc anual fund raiser was held on Pewaukee Lake. The Pewaukee Classic has been one of the most popular muskie tournaments held on Pewaukee for years. Muskies Inc Classic has over 200 participants in three divisions:kids-womens-mens. I know that only 10 muskies were caught and regestered that day, most of the fish were caught early. The hot baits were Glide Baits like Udertakers,Power Probes and the Slammer Drop Belly. Other baits that were catching fish were Spinner Baits and Bucktails. I would think that a twitch bait would still be deadly this time of the year. I was at the second qualifier for the PMTT at Cave Run Kentucky this past week so I don't have first hand info to report. I did make calls to my sources so I could get this info to my clients, friends and readers. The PMTT Cave Run event was not easy, lots of boats reporting not even seeing a fish. We had a 40 inch class fish up and around a figure 8 in the first 10 casts, after that I had a legal fish take a swipe at a Suick but the fish missed the bait and was gone. We fished hard the rest of the day only to see one more fish. The second day we altered our game plan and still came up fish less in the end. I had one fish bump a bucktail about 30 ft from the boat and watched it come in for a second try, I went into a deep figue 8 and came up high on the second turn, wham he hits the bait out of the water and swims off. Bummer. About a hour later I had a hard strike on the same bucktail, I set the hook and relized that the fish was charging the boat. I reeled up the line as fast as I could and locked up again with her and then the fun began, she just stopped and shook her head side to side until the hooks came free. Double bummer. We had some other action but no more hookups. Either fish would have got us on the leader board and a check, both would have got us a top 5 finish. Thats tournament fishing, the heart breaks and the thrill of victory. Next month is the Eagle River qualifier and we should do great on that body of water. By this weekend Pewaukee Lake should be ready to start producing more Muskies, Bass and Walleyes. The spawnning process is over for the Northerns, Walleyes and Muskies. The Bass are in and very active at this time of year. Twitching minnow baits has been the most efective method but pitching worms will start to get hot, spinner baits are also very productive. The Walleyes are still working the weedbeds and are ready to eat. I will be after some of those Walleyes this week some time and the weekend will be a mix bag of Walleyes, Muskies, Bass and maybe panfish. I should have lots to report on next weeks post, hopefully it will be all good news. Good luck to all and see you on the water !!! |
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The week started out slow Monday 5pm to dark with some nice fish following but no takers, Tuesday was better with my 3rd legal of the week being a 40 1/4 inch muskie caught on a Mini Power Probe off Rocky Point (see photo on photos page 6). I was out with a friend John who called and jumped in the boat for a couple hours. We casted the West end by Walks Island for muskies and hooked into a double, both fish were Small Mouths and over 19 inches. I had my fish to the boat first and noticed it was considerably smaller than Johns, I quickly grabbed my fish and heard a snap, and his fish was gone. John looked at me and asked how big? I do know it was bigger than the one I have on my wall I told him. I mounted a 22-1/2 incher a few years back and his was bigger. The fish dwarfed the 19-1/2 incher, as they were side by side when I reached to grab my fish. His was too green to even thing about netting since he was using light tackle so I was going to grab my fish and net his. Oh well she is still swimming to be caught again, they needed to spawn anyway and he would have mounted that fish for sure. Back to muskie fishing. Thursday we boated a 34 incher and raised a few more from 5pm to dark. Saturday was the Wisconsin Muskie Tournament (WMT) on Pewaukee Lake. 60 teams fishing for $10,000.00. I wish I could be typing with a full wallet but it was not my day. We boated two muskies but one was 3/4 inch under size and that left us out of the money. Three teams did catch two muskies and 18 fish were caught in the 6am to 4pm time allowed. A 48-1/4 inch was the biggest registered, two 44-1/2 inch fish were entered and others from 40 to 34. The top team took the first place check with a 36 and a 44 ½ incher that was caught in the last ½ hour of the tournament. Second and third place caught two fish each and a friend of mine with a 44-½ incher claimed fourth place. We finished out of the money and needed to get a second fish to place 4th or better. The baits used were mostly twitch baits and glides baits. Well the Professional Muskie Tournament Trail 2nd Qualifier is at Cave Run Kentucky this weekend the 17th and 18th. Team 61 (Koepp/Peckels) will be there to get some more fish and hopefully more points. We started at Lake Shellbyville in Illinois April 5th and 6th. We boated a 38 incher in the first Qualifier and took 15th out of 112 teams, great start and should do great at Cave Run. I was down to the Cave in Late March and we boated 10 muskies in two days, what a great fishery they have going. Most of the fish were in the 30 to 33 inch range but I did managed to get a nice 40 incher before we had to leave. I have done some new things with my web site and have had some problems getting things going but I will have thing straightened out and back to normal soon. The fishing reports will continue each week to help you with the changing patterns. As the water warms so will the muskies, water temps are in the mid 50’s and the fish are just getting done spawning. Muskies on Pewaukee will start getting active when the water temps get into the 60’s. Remember finding the warmest water is going to be you’re best bet for active fish. New weed growth is also going to be a key spot. Good luck to all and see you on the water !!! |
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The opener was good to some and
slow to others. I could not fish Saturday morning due to family obligations but got out around 2pm. We started on the North shore in the East end of the lake because of the rivers that flow into the lake. They attract spawning muskies. From Taylor’s Bay to the Tressle Bay is always a great spot for early muskies. I rigged up two sucker rods, placed them out on each side of the boat. I reached for my rod to start casting the clicker started to go off on one of my sucker rods. I grabbed the live bait rod and applied some pressure, the fish moved off at just the correct angle so I set the hook and quickly landed my first Pewaukee Lake legal muskie without a cast. This is going to be a great day I told my brother Greg as I released the 34-inch muskie. The rest of the day we caught and released a 28 inch Northern and two sub legal muskies. Sunday I got out and boated a 44 ½ inch pre spawn muskie around 2pm off the South shore, a 38 ½ inch post spawn muskie around 3pm and lost a nice low 40’s that did a awesome tail dance less than 30 feet from the boat. All three muskies ate suckers that were dragging as I was casting. I didn’t even see a fish casting Sunday and only got a look at one Saturday. Some nice fish were boated opening weekend, a 48 ½ inch brute was caught on a Salmo and released on Saturday. Sunday a 47 inch muskie was caught on a Undertaker by a friend of mine, great job Rick, and my 44 ½ was the third biggest that was reported. Most of the other fish were caught on glide or twitch baits. See the new pictures of the 38 ½ -inch and the 44 ½ -inch muskies on page 5 of the photos link. |
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MIKE KOEPP 262-691-8909 To Schedule Appointment or For More Info: Info@mikekoepp.com |