MUSKIE magazine is published six times each year and is the Official Publication of Muskies, Inc. PO Box 1509 Waukesha, WI 53187-1509 Ph: 1-888-710-8286 © Copyright 2019 by Muskies, Inc. All rights reserved. Contents MUSKIE • VOL. 53, NO. 4

Departments

1 About the Cover, Sean Landsman 2 President’s Message, Jim Ashton ABOUT THE COVER 3 Index of Advertisers A group of muskies captured during spring fisheries 3 2019 Calendar Donations assessments in Iowa sits in a holding tank ready for processing. Michael Wentworth, Chapter 10 Secretary, reports that 139 4 MUSKIE News muskies were caught in the assessments. Fish were measured, sexed, and checked for the presence of a fin clip and PIT tag 6 Figure 8, Sean Landsman (if none were found, a tag was added). The 8 Lunge Log, Kevin Richards biggest muskie netted 16 Photo Contest, was a 48.5-incher. They Alison Willers even found a muskie in 20 Members Photos, Alison Willers the net that still had a lure stuck in its jaw! 21 Chapter News and Views - Sean 21 Regional News, Jeff Micholic Features 7 President to President Award - Jim Ashton 12 A Curious Bunch With Many Hats - Ace Sommerfeld 17 Kayak Muskies - Billy Georgopoulos

Join Muskies, Inc. Regular Membership: ❑ 1 Year-$45.00* ❑ 2 Years-$75.00 ❑ 3 Years-$105.00 Family Membership: ❑ 1 Year-$57.50* ❑ 2 Years-$100.00 ❑ 3 Years-$142.50 or give a member­ship Junior Membership: ❑ $30.00* Military Membership: ❑ $35.00* ❑ For Donation $______as a gift. (Under 18)

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www.muskiesinc.org July / August 2019 .....MUSKIE 1 Board of Directors Executive Committee The President’s Message President, Jim Ashton Phone: 636-227-5248 Email: [email protected] Jim Ashton VP Finance/Treasurer, Jeff Miller Phone: 715-617-8782 Muskies, Inc. President Email: [email protected] [email protected] VP Fisheries & Research, Jim Moore Phone: 740-667-3571 Email: [email protected] For many of our members, this VP Internal Affairs, Jeff Micholic year’s spring fishing was off to a Phone: 715-845-5025 slow start due to low air and water Email: [email protected] temperatures, high, muddy water VP Membership, Rick Petzke and in some more northern locations, Phone: 715-212-1522 late ice-out. Hopefully, now at the Email: [email protected] height of summer fishing, your VP Communications & Marketing, Brad Koehn hours on the water are paying Phone: 586-275-9438 dividends in the form of good catch Email: [email protected] rates and an opportunity to submit VP Youth Activities, Lila Warren Phone: 703-201-8358 some fish to the Lunge Log. Email: [email protected] Reporting your fish is essential, and the pictures you share help speak to Corporate Secretary, Jim Fritz Phone: 314-722-0466 the magnificent muskie. Keep the Email: [email protected] photos coming into Alison Willers Past-President, Carl Phillips ([email protected]). We Email: [email protected] don’t mind braggers! Senior Regional Representatives are also In the meantime, while fishing, Executive Committee Members chapter meetings, and other sponsored events continue, this is an excellent time to review the Mission of Muskies, Inc. (MI) as clearly stated in our Bylaws since our founding on February 24th, 1967: “1.02. Regional Representatives PURPOSE AND MISSION. The purpose of Muskies, Inc. is the improvement of the sport of muskie fishing. Our Mission is to unite all Region 1 Term Expires *VACANT ...... 2019 muskie-fishing interests for the promotion and protection of a high- Nick Poppler ...... 2020 quality muskellunge sport fishery in the United States and Canada. Curt Ellestad ...... 2021 We will accomplish this by supporting conservation practices, especially Region 2 catch and release, and research based on sound scientific merit, and *VACANT ...... 2019 carried out by authorized federal or state agencies, appropriate Tyler Kennedy ...... 2020 academic institutions, Muskies, Inc. Chapters and their members. We Geoff Verges ...... 2021 are committed to the abatement of water pollution, maintenance of Region 3 *Bob Sisson ...... 2021 records for muskies habitat, growth, and range and the dissemination Todd Cook ...... 2019 of muskie information.” We can be proud of the collective efforts by Colin Monahan ...... 2020 all chapters and their members that continue to give freely of their time Region 4 and effort. Although we’re not the largest national outdoor organization, *Frank A. Walter ...... 2019 we measure our success against the words of our Mission. We continue Walter Krause ...... 2020 Earle Hammond ...... 2019 to achieve and sustain MI in more ways than this column has space to * = Senior Regional Representative review. You can always follow the activities of Chapters in the section on Chapter News and Views. We know how well our membership works MUSKIE is published exclusively for the and are thankful for it. The success of any corporation is the participation membership of Muskies, Inc. and subscriptions come with a paid membership. Muskies, Inc. is of its members, and the key ingredient is leadership. Please read the a 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization. story on page 7 highlighting an award presented in May to a deserving Membership classes and associated annual Chapter President. dues are listed on the form at the bottom of During the fishing season, there are many weekly and monthly page one. Copies of MUSKIE magazine are available at $3.00 each from the Muskies, Inc. tournaments held by Chapters. Open to all members, the Gil Hamm Member Services. Contributors grant rights for Chapter Challenge will be held August 21st-23rd at Red Wing M.I. to publish once in MUSKIE Magazine, Lodge on Lake of the Woods. It will be hosted by last year’s winning both the print and online versions, including team, Chapter 15 Star of the North. archives and on the Muskies, Inc. website. The MI application for reinstatement for all chapters 501 status has been in the hands of the IRS since the filing on April 5th. We are hopeful

2 MUSKIE..... July / August 2019 the approval will come soon as it’s an essential asset for chapter management. 2019 Calendar Donations MUSKIE Magazine Staff Member Name Amount Our Annual Board Meeting was on EDITOR & MAGAZINE DESIGN June 4th. We covered regional reports, Thomas Griffin $15 Amy Keyes had a lively debate on administrative Gary A. Young $20 8588 Harding Road issues and the election of new Board Bancroft, WI 54921 Jack Worline $20 Phone: (715) 213-7206 members for VP’s covering Email: [email protected] Communications, Finance/Treasurer Bob Sisson $25 and the reelection of current members. Demetrios Kydonieus $25 More details will be available in the Frank Riggs $25 ASSISTANT MAGAZINE Sean Landsman September/October issue and an Jeff Deuster $25 Annual Report to all chapters. Email: [email protected] With plenty of time left for fishing John Mayher $25 don’t neglect essential facets of your Keith Ogden $25 PHOTO CONTEST EDITOR travel, including keeping your tow Kurtis Punzel $25 Alison Willers vehicle in top condition and paying Michael Beinert $25 Email: [email protected] attention to the maintenance of your trailer for boat owners. No one likes Nicholas Tritz $25 Richard L. McPike $25 LUNGE LOG EDITOR - MAGAZINE breaking down on the highway and Kevin Richards having to be delayed to your Ted Kassel $25 Phone: (573) 280-2300 destination. Always be safe on the Tom Truebenbach $25 Email: [email protected] water. Life jackets, safe cruising, Walter Powers $25 staying hydrated, leaving the party on Elmer W. Heyob Jr. $50 LUNGE LOG EDITOR - WEB the shore, and of course, don’t forget Randy Loewecke the plug! Sean would want you to use Ray Petkovsek $50 Phone: (815) 520-3628 your sunscreen! William Jance $55 Email: [email protected] Until we read together again, keep Keith Addy $100 this thought in mind: “If ADVERTISING SALES TEAM Kevin Richards, Advertising Manager people concentrated on 2019 MUSKIE Deadlines Phone: (573) 280-2300 the essential things in Issue Deadline Date Email: [email protected] life, there’d be a shortage September/October July 20th of fishing rods.” Kevin Pischke, Ad Sale Rep November/December September 20th Phone: (920) 676-7893 - Jim Ashton, January/February (2020) November 20th Email: [email protected] March/April (2020) January 20th (2020) FISH ON! PRINTING ACCOUNT MANAGER May/June (2020) March 20th (2020) Sunray Printing Solutions, Inc. - Stacey Thielen July/August (2020) May 20th (2020) ILLUSTRATORS/CARTOONISTS Charles Weiss INDEX OF ADVERTISERS FIELD EDITORS 2019 YOUTH TI PROMOTION ...... 4 Ace Sommerfeld, Kevin Pischke, Kevin BEAST BRAID LINE ...... 8 Richards, Rick Helm, Adam M. Glickman BIG TIME MUSKIE LURES ...... 15 Support CHAPTER 1: FRANK SCHNEIDER, JR. MEMORIAL TOURNAMENT 22 Membership Services, Robert Petzke P.O. Box 1509 CHAPTER 6: 43RD ANNUAL MUSKY TOURNAMENT ...... 24 Waukesha, WI 53187-1509 CHAPTER 29: 31ST ANNUAL IDSO MUSKIE FEST ...... 31 Phone: 888-710-8286 CHAOS TACKLE ...... 14 Email: [email protected] Finances, Numbers4Nonprofits DEADLINES FOR MUSKIE ...... 3 Madison, Wisconsin FITTANTE REPLICAS ...... 18 Merchandising Director, VACANT JOE BUCHER OUTDOORS ...... BACK COVER Phone: LAKEWOOD PRODUCTS ...... 16 Email: [email protected] Web Master, Randy Loewecke LAX REPRODUCTIONS ...... 13 Phone: 815-520-3628 LURE PARTS ONLINE ...... 5 Email: [email protected] MUSKY TACKLE ONLINE ...... 16 Each issue would not be possible without RED WING LODGE ...... 9 the help from our volunteers. Thank you ST. CROIX RODS ...... IFC Bill Stein, Richard Helm, and Lorin Nevling for your dedication to MUSKIE. YOUNGS WILDERNESS CAMP ...... 6

www.muskiesinc.org July / August 2019 .....MUSKIE 3 6th Annual Illinois High School Muskie Connor Hazen is one of the winners of 2019’s Tournament Youth Membership Promotion (there are six Submitted By: Walt Krause winners annually). Here he is posing with his The 6th Annual Illinois High School Muskie Tournament new rod. was held on Prairie Lake in central Illinois on May 18th. The weather finally cooperated for a nice day on the water. This year we had 10 teams from eight High Schools participating. The winning team came from Notre Dame 2019 Youth Membership Promotion Winner High School. This is the second time that this school has Congratulations to the very first youth rod winner, won the event. The muskies had lockjaw on this day, but Conner Hazen. Conner is extremely happy with his new Max Valkner found the bait that sealed the deal for his muskie rod and is excited to catch some big muskies on school. Max caught a 33 inch muskie on a swimbait. Max it this season. won a nice muskie rod and his team took home the first Because of the generosity of Tackle Industries and place trophy for his school along with the traveling trophy. Vexan, we are able to donate a fishing rod to an active The Shawnee Muskie Hunters is the lead sponsor of this Muskies, Inc. youth member six times per year. The Illinois State Tournament. The trophies were provided by winners are chosen at random, but parents are able to the Illinois Muskie Tournament Trail. Thanks to all the High submit on their child’s behalf. Email our VP of Schools that attended the tournament and to Max for his Membership, Rick Petzke, at vp-membership@ great catch. Many thanks to Jim Beaty, President of Chapter muskiesinc.org and tell him why you feel your child 28, for all his hard work in putting together this tournament. should be the winner of the next rod giveaway. Here is the list of schools and teams entered into the Illinois High School Muskie Tournament on Prairie Lake: 1. Marian Catholic (Chicago Heights) 2. Notre Dame College Prep (Niles) 3. Maine West (Des Plaines) 4. Guilford – Team 1 (Rockford) The winning team from the Illinois high school muskie 5. Guilford – Team 2 (Rockford) tournament. 6. Mt. Zion (South of Decatur) 7. Neuqua Valley (Naperville) 8. Marmion Academy – Team 1 (Aurora) & Wheaton Academy 9. Marmion Academy – Team 2 (Aurora) 10. Indian Creek (Shabbona)

Illinois high school students try their best to catch a muskie from Prairie Lake near Springfield, Illinois.

A group shot of all the participants of the Illinois high school muskie tournament..

4 MUSKIE..... July / August 2019 Muskies, Inc. Hall of Fame Class of 2019 Submitted By: Steve Budnik As per custom, on January 10th, 2019 the doors of the Muskies, Inc. Hall of Fame (MIHOF) swung open to admit one additional member. With 29 years of history, the MI Hall is now represented by some 76 entries, and there are currently 20 Chapters with members represented. This year’s recipient is Bill Jacobs. It would be difficult in this summary to fully describe the activities performed and instituted by Bill that furthered the goals of Muskies, Inc. over the years. Bill has been a member of the Headwaters Chapter for some 26 years and has been the Chapter’s President since 2003. Bill Jacobs Headwaters, of Chapter 12, receiving his plaque During this lengthy time at the helm, Bill has led the and a custom-made St. Croix Elite rod (Made by Musky Headwaters Chapter in becoming, and remaining, one of Pete) for his induction into the Muskies, Inc. Hall of Fame. MI’s largest and most successful Chapters. The number of programs that Bill has had a hand in developing are many. He has helped direct and coordinate two very successful yearly tournaments as well. At his direction, the Chapter stages an Annual Guides and Wisconsin DNR night where issues concerning muskie fishing are discussed and debated. Under Bill’s leadership, the Chapter maintains an ongoing dialogue with state fisheries personnel on issues like stocking, angler education, regulations, research, and aquatic invasive species. Bill and the Chapter have had an active county-wide program of financially supporting the upkeep and procurement of landing facilities around the north woods. This includes new docks, piers, and other waterfront equipment. Needed equipment has also been purchased for Wisconsin DNR personnel. Additionally, for 40 years, Bill has helped coordinate a very successful banquet. Member retention has long been one of Bill’s top priorities. Through various efforts including awards, rod and reel drawings, fish mounts, and other recognition programs, the Headwaters Chapter has always been a leader in retaining its members. The influence of Bill Jacobs in MI circles has always extended well beyond the chapter level. He has long been an active voice in the Wisconsin Chapters Muskies, Inc. organization by attending and taking part in annual meetings. The Wisconsin Conservation Congress is the only organization of its type in the country, and Bill has always had time to take part. Through several of his citizen resolutions at the “...build better baits...” annual county spring hearing, his efforts have resulted in needed updates and changes to Wisconsin muskie fishing regulations. Youth fishing activities and opportunities for our veterans have also been an integral part of Bill’s efforts. He has been a director of the local “Fishing Has No Boundaries” program for nearly 20 years. Bill has also been very involved in the local Eagle River Kids Fishing Day. Additionally, Bill is a founding member of the local annual Wounded Warrior event. Finally, when one takes the time to look at the purposes of MI or to study the criteria for the MIHOF carefully, you see the imprint of Bill Jacobs at every turn. Welcome to the Hall.

Steve Budnik is MI HOF Chair and can be reached at [email protected] and 715-686-7852. Nominations for the Hall are open at this time and close each year on November 30th. Please contact Steve for a copy of the HOF criteria/ Lure Parts Online, Inc., 580 North Street, Springfield, IL 62704 qualifications before submitting a nomination. www.muskiesinc.org July / August 2019 .....MUSKIE 5 “We don’t make mistakes, just happy little accidents.” - Bob Ross

Bob Ross is a legend. For the uninitiated, the late theory, the benefits of conserving sharks should trickle Ross was an artist (and a veteran in the USAF) who down to other, perhaps less notable fishes and even brought painting to the masses with his TV show “The invertebrates. To me, muskies are similar. As apex Joy of Painting” hosted on PBS (1983-1994). He was predators, muskies serve a similar ecological niche as known for his quiet, calm approach to instructing sharks in the oceans. And a muskie’s habitat viewers how to paint beautiful landscape scenes. His requirements, especially for spawning and during their positive attitude was downright contagious. early life stages, are shared with other species. I was reminded of one of Ross’ famous sayings when Umbrella species have a place in conservation. It is reading about Greg Denny receiving the Perry A. important to remember that our continued efforts to Smith President to President Award. Greg said he first conserve muskies and their habitats will benefit a great joined Muskies, Inc. after accidentally catching a many other species. muskie. He described it as an “amazing accident.” As we head into the primetime muskie months, I My guess is Greg’s story is not unique. At the risk of wish you many more “amazing accidents.” And as going on a tangent, there is something seriously always, remember two things: 1) wear your sunscreen fascinating about large predators like muskies. Indeed, and 2) practice catch-and-release. research shows that animals of large size command our - Sean Landsman, Assistant Editor respect. In so doing, they often become the focus of conservation efforts – Muskies, Inc. case-in- point. Conservationists, however, are now engaging in ever-increasing discussions about how to promote conservation of less appealing “Rip-N-Lips” Muskie Extravanza animals like icky bugs, creepy We offer some of the best trophy muskie waters on snakes, and warty amphibians. Lake of the Woods – Stevens, Stony and Those adjectives I just used are not Sabaskong Bay unlike a lot of descriptors applied to • Remote Island Camp (boat-in) these groups of animals. But they • All-inclusive American Plan • Housekeeping cabins • Free guided tour with map of muskie hotspots certainly don’t help convince folks • Professional guide with 21 years lake experience to invest time, energy, and money Write or Phone: • Specializing in personal service into saving them. 1-807-484-2930 We will donate 5% of y Enter: the “umbrella species.” U.S. residents call Toll-Free 1-866-894-0674 our fishing Box 126, Nestor Falls, Ontario P0X1K0 package to the muskie Sharks are an obvious example of (a club of y e-mail: [email protected] our choice! group of) umbrella species. In Ask for details www.youngswildernesscamp.com

6 MUSKIE..... July / August 2019 Perry A. Smith President to President 2 Award - Jim Ashton, Muskies, Inc. President The Perry A. PSmithP President to President Award We exist because MI members give freely to each of has been dormant for some time. As Muskies, Inc.’s our chapters. We are all volunteers in our organization, (MI) President, I felt it was important to revive this devoting countless hours and money to ensure that a Award because of what it signifies. This Award means local chapter is successful. leadership, dedication, and devotion as a volunteer to The work by individuals joining in a team effort is an organization with a mission that all MI members what makes for success, and Chapter 3, Chicagoland share. I regularly remind the MI Board why we exist. Muskies Hunters, is one of those chapters. Chicagoland Muskie Hunters was created in 1975 as the third chapter of MI. It flourished early on and continues to thrive today because of its dedicated members and strong leadership we are all proud of. The honoree was nominated for this Award along with many other outstanding Chapter Presidents. When I spoke with the nominee, he told me his motivation for joining MI all started when he accidentally caught a muskie. I thought to myself, “what an amazing accident to ever happen to a person and to our organization.” He’s been a member since January 2002 and has served in a variety of roles including Treasurer and Chapter Representative. On the nominating form, his attributes included commitment, a deep level of involvement, and excellent at delegating and striving for measurable outcomes. He is an advocate for innovative programs appealing to new members including youth, thus assuring MI’s future. The list goes on: non-stop recruiting, donations, stewardship, support for youth programs, banquet planning, and let’s not forget a fulltime job. Finally, the most meaningful statement, he is

Greg Denny, recipient of the involved in all aspects of the chapter. That defines 2019 Perry A. Smith President leadership. to President Award. Congratulations to Greg Denny.

(Nomination forms for the 2020 President to President Award will be distributed to all chapters in January. Thanks to all of the chapter members who nominated their Chapter’s President.)

www.muskiesinc.org July / August 2019 .....MUSKIE 7 LUNGE - KEVINLOG RICHARDS ...by: kevin richards...

The action is really picking up across MUSKIE spool of Beast Braid 80 lb. line to up to three anglers Country even though a lot of key fisheries hadn’t each month - one man, one woman, and one junior opened up when it was time to submit this Lunge Log member who register the longest muskies into their report. In the first five and a half months of 2019 we Lunge Log division. To share the fun with more had about 1,000 entries; we will have that many in a members, no member will receive more than one spool couple of the best weeks when all waters are open and of line during 2019, so in some months it may be the the muskies are going nuts! member with the second or third longest muskie in a As you look through our Lunge Log tables please division who gets the Beast Braid Line. remember the most up-to-date reports for our MOFC February LOTM Winner (Members Only Fishing Contest) will always be found online. The Top 25 standings in each division change almost daily during the peak of muskie fishing season. Treigh Mason (Men’s Division) registered the All entries are reviewed and approved by our webmaster February Lunker, a 47-incher from the Susquehanna Randy and as soon as an entry is approved it is included River. “Fish like this are the reason I enjoy our year in the MOFC and can impact the standings. Because of round season in PA, November thru March is big fish the lead time needed to contact anglers, get photos and time. This fish smoked a glidebait during a midday stories, and design and print each issue of MUSKIE, window after we repositioned ourselves on the drift to each Lunge Log feature article is just a snapshot in work with the wind.” time as far as the standings are concerned. Lunker of the Month Update from the Beast Braid Line TREIGH MASON

Our friends at Joe Bucher Outdoors are helping us expand our Lunker of the Month program this year. The angler who registers the longest released muskie each month (in accordance with MOFC rules) will receive a beautiful plaque at the end of the year, just as in the past. But to highlight and reward the longest catches by more members, Beast Braid Professional Fishing Line is donating a

8 MUSKIE..... July / August 2019 Junior LOTM Winners

Chase Gibson gets a spool of Beast Braid for his February Lunker of the Month and led his division for March. Our photo is Chase with one of the biggest of his 17 muskies so far this year. “Caught this 45-incher in a highly pressured cove during a Muskies, Inc. Chapter 9 Tournament. It was one of the eight we caught that weekend.” Lydia Klug gets a spool of Beast Braid as runner-up for March. Lydia already has seven muskies this season and says, “I caught this 40 inch fish casting my dad’s homemade Klugo jerkbait. Our fishing dog Brutus was in the boat.”

(Lunge Log continued on page 10)

CHASE GIBSON

LYDIA KLUG

Juniors Top 5 as of 05/15/2019 Rank Member Name Chapter Length Caught Lake Name State Lure 1 Chase Gibson 9 45.00 04/06/2019 Stonewall Jackson Lake WV Ernie 2 Chase Gibson 9 45.00 05/04/2019 Stonewall Jackson Lake WV Bondy Bait 3 Chase Gibson 9 44.00 04/30/2019 Stonewall Jackson Lake WV Homemade Glider 4 Chase Gibson 9 44.00 05/04/2019 Stonewall Jackson Lake WV Bondy Bait 5 Chase Gibson 9 43.00 03/24/2019 West Fork River WV Husky Jerk

Juniors Division as of 05/15/2019 Rank Member Name Chapter Muskies Points City State Avg. Length 1 Chase Gibson 9 17 240 Philippi WV 40 2 Lydia Klug 18 7 53 Proctor WV 34 3 Hunter Ponton 76 2 28 New Castle VA 40 4 Ethan Thomas Erb 23 1 17 Mineral Ridge OH 43 www.muskiesinc.org July / August 2019 .....MUSKIE 9 Women's Top 5 as of 05/15/2019 Women's Top 5 as of 05/15/2019 Rank Member Name Chapter LengthWomen's TopCaught 5 as of 05/15/2019Lake Name State Lure Rank Member Name Chapter Length Caught Lake Name State Lure Rank1 LisaMember Tenney Name Chapter9 Length45.00 04/17/2019Caught Salt ForkLake Lake Name StateOH 22 ShortLure Crankbait 1 Lisa Tenney 9 45.00 04/17/2019 Salt Fork Lake OH 22 Short Crankbait 12 DarleneLisa Tenney Kelley 9 45.00 04/22/201904/17/2019 StonewallSalt Fork LakeJackson Lake WVOH 22Li'l Short Ernie Crankbait 2 Darlene Kelley 9 45.00 04/22/2019 Stonewall Jackson Lake WV Li'l Ernie 23 KarenDarlene Phillips Kelley 89 43.2545.00 04/28/201904/22/2019 MacbrideStonewall Jackson Lake WVIA CraneLi'l Ernie Bait 3 Karen Phillips 8 43.25 04/28/2019 Macbride IA Crane Bait 43 AllisonKaren Phillips Klug 188 43.0043.25 04/06/201904/28/2019 PiedmontMacbride Lake OHIA Crane Bait 4 Allison Klug 18 43.00 04/06/2019 Piedmont Lake OH Crane Bait 54 LisaAllison Tenney Klug 189 43.00 04/13/201904/06/2019 SaltPiedmont Fork Lake OH 22Crane Short Bait Crankbait 5 Lisa Tenney 9 43.00 04/13/2019 Salt Fork Lake OH 22 Short Crankbait 5 Lisa Tenney 9 43.00 04/13/2019 Salt Fork Lake OH 22 Short Crankbait Women's Division as of 05/15/2019 Women's Division as of 05/15/2019 Rank Member Name Chapter MuskiesWomen's DivisionPoints as of 05/15/2019City State Avg. Length Rank Member Name Chapter Muskies Points City State Avg. Length Rank1 DarleneMember Kelley Name Chapter9 Muskies2 Points33 Salem City StateWV Avg. 43Length 1 Darlene Kelley 9 2 33 Salem WV 43 12 DarleneKaren Phillips Kelley 98 21 3317 SalemStoughton WVWI 43 2 Karen Phillips 8 1 17 Stoughton WI 43 23 KarenSandy PhillipsPetrozzi 188 1 17 StoughtonWintersville OHWI 43 3 Sandy Petrozzi 18 1 17 Wintersville OH 43 34 SandyCarrie OwensPetrozzi 1828 13 1716 WintersvilleEvansville OHIN 4331 4 Carrie Owens 28 3 16 Evansville IN 31 45 CarrieCaitlin OwensCummings 2862 31 168 EvansvilleStevens Point WIIN 3134 5 Caitlin Cummings 62 1 8 Stevens Point WI 34 5 Caitlin Cummings 62 1 8 Stevens Point WI 34 Women's Masters Division as of 05/15/2019 Women's Masters Division as of 05/15/2019 Rank Member Name ChapterWomen'sMuskies MastersPoints Division as of 05/15/2019City State Avg. Length Rank Member Name Chapter Muskies Points City State Avg. Length Rank1 LisaMember Tenney Name Chapter9 Muskies5 Points72 Belpre City StateOH Avg. 42Length 1 Lisa Tenney 9 5 72 Belpre OH 42 12 LisaVickie Tenney Banks 529 53 7224 BelpreWellington OHKY 4234 2 Vickie Banks 52 3 24 Wellington KY 34 23 VickieAllison Banks Klug 5218 32 2422 WellingtonProctor WVKY 3437 3 Allison Klug 18 2 22 Proctor WV 37 34 AllisonNikki Swain Klug 1842 21 229 ProctorUpland WVIN 3735 4 Nikki Swain 42 1 9 Upland IN 35 4 Nikki Swain 42 Men's1 Top 109 as of Upland05/15/2019 IN 35 Men's Top 10 as of 05/15/2019 Rank Member Name Chapter Length Caught Lake Name State Lure Rank Member Name Chapter Length Caught Lake Name State Lure 1 Tripp Soma 8 52.25 05/04/2019 Waubesa (Opening Day) WI Harasser 1 Tripp Soma 8 52.25 05/04/2019 Waubesa (Opening Day) WI Harasser 2 Frank2 PorupskiFrank Porupski16 50.0016 01/13/201950.00 Monongahela01/13/2019 RiverMonongahelaPA RiverMedusa PA Medusa 3 Kevin3 KelleyKevin Kelley 16 50.0016 03/30/201950.00 Allegheny03/30/2019 RiverAllegheny RiverPA Stalker CrankPA Stalker Crank 4 Elmer4 W.Elmer Heyob W. Jr. Heyob41 Jr. 49.7541 04/11/201949.75 Salt04/11/2019 Fork LakeSalt Fork LakeOH Xtreme ShadOH Xtreme Shad 5 William5 A.William Hall A. Hall9 49.009 04/07/201949.00 Stonewall04/07/2019 JacksonStonewall Lake JacksonWV Rapala Lake CrankWV Rapala Crank 6 Frank6 PorupskiFrank Porupski16 49.0016 05/11/201949.00 Monongahela05/11/2019 RiverMonongahelaPA RiverCustom MadePA Custom Made 7 Chipper7 BushongChipper Bushong52 48.5052 01/08/201948.50 Licking01/08/2019 River Licking RiverKY Savage GearKY GlideSavage Gear Glide 8 Joshua8 MillerJoshua Miller 64 48.5064 01/20/201948.50 Marburg01/20/2019 Marburg PA Rapala Jerk PA Rapala Jerk 9 Willard9 FerrellWillard Ferrell 9 48.509 03/21/201948.50 Monongahela03/21/2019 RiverMonongahelaWV RiverBulldawg WV Bulldawg 10 Stephen Howell 9 48.25 04/12/2019 Monongahela River WV Bulldawg 10 Stephen Howell 9 48.25 04/12/2019 Monongahela River WV Bulldawg Men's Division as of 05/15/2019 Rank Member Name Chapter Muskies PointsMen's Division asCity of 05/15/2019State Avg. Length 1 StephenRank HowellMember Name9 Chapter31 Muskies374 MorgantownPoints CityWV 38State Avg. Length 2 Dan1 RobertsStephen Howell9 169 15931 Elizabeth374 MorgantownWV 36WV 38 3 Rick2 SimpsonDan Roberts 19 139 15716 Negley159 Elizabeth OH 38WV 36 4 Frank3 PorupskiRick Simpson 16 919 14913 New 157Salem Negley PA 43OH 38 5 Treigh4 MasonFrank Porupski50 1116 1459 Grantville149 New SalemPA 39 PA 43 6 Willard5 FerrellTreigh Mason 9 1050 12511 Fairmont145 Grantville WV 38 PA 39 7 Timothy6 A.Willard Smith Ferrell 19 109 12010 Rogers125 Fairmont OH 38WV 38 8 William A. Hall 9 10 114 Fairmont WV 37 7 Timothy A. Smith 19 10 120 Rogers OH 38 9 Michael F. Zicafoose 9 12 108 Fairmont WV 35 10 Clint8 OlsonWilliam A. Hall41 99 9910 Bellville114 Fairmont OH 37WV 37 9 Michael F. Zicafoose 9 12 108 Fairmont WV 35 10 Clint Olson Men's Masters41 Division9 as of 05/15/201999 Bellville OH 37 Rank Member Name Chapter Muskies Points City State Avg. Length 1 David White 18 38 405 Moundsville WV 37 2 Ray H. Elkins 19 17 198 East Canton OH 37 3 Bernie Klug 18 18 193 Proctor WV 37 4 Charles R. Carpenter 9 16 183 Harrisville WV 37 5 Bob D. Marshall 19 17 176 Bowerston OH 36 6 John Cade 9 16 143 Clarington OH 35 7 Elmer W. Heyob Jr. 41 11 132 Marysville OH 38 8 Dave Wenzel 9 13 128 Jane Lew WV 36 9 Rusty Welker 42 11 113 Kokomo IN 36 10 Michael Floyd 57 8 112 Auburn WA 40

10 MUSKIE..... July / August 2019 Fly Division as of 05/15/2019 Rank Member Name Chapter Muskies Points City State Avg. Length 1 John Ringenbach 19 1 18 Lakewood OH 44 2 Adam Page 50 1 16 Schwensville PA 42 3 Ray Hawk 9 1 15 Spencer WV 41 4 Cory Campbell 50 1 14 Bethlehem PA 40 5 Gordon Dixon 64 3 13 Shippenville PA 30

Hybrid Top 5 as of 05/15/2019 Rank Member Name Chapter Length Caught Lake Name State Lure 1 Joshua Miller 64 48.50 01/20/2019 Marburg PA Rapala Jerk 2 Michael Floyd 57 45.00 04/18/2019 Lake Tapps WA Savagegear 4Play 3 Michael Floyd 57 44.50 05/04/2019 Mayfield Lake WA Savagegear 4Play 4 Michael Floyd 57 42.75 04/30/2019 Lake Tapps WA Savagegear 4Play 5 Michael Floyd 57 42.75 05/04/2019 Mayfield Lake WA Homemade Bucktail DARLENE KELLEY Darlene Kelley (Women’s Division) - “My husband and I decided to take the day and go to Stonewall Jackson Lake; one of our favorite places to fish. We cast most of time, but decided to troll for a while and I caught this nice 45 inch muskie using a Lil Ernie.” At this point Darlene is tied with Lisa Tenney (next photo) for the longest release by a woman this year. Lisa Tenney (Women’s Masters Division) - “I’ve had a great season so far given the few times I’ve been out. I have landed some real girthy fish casting .22 Shorts and Boss Shad Crime Bosses. These fish were up shallow and hit the baits soon after they hit the water. I have been fishing solo this year and getting good pictures has been difficult. I usually set my phone up to video after I get the fish unhooked and screen shot the video. Good luck to you and all the other anglers this year.” Congrats to LISA TENNEY Lisa; looks like she will have another fine season. Her first five muskies this year have averaged 42 inches! Kevin Kelley (March of the Month) registered the second 50-incher of 2019. He says, “It was my birthday and all I wanted to do was go out fishing; after work of course. I fished a few hours with no signs of any fish moving. Went back to cast over a drop-off spot for the second time. This time with old reliable (carp pattern Super Stalker); just as the lure was coming to the boat I let it rise, and out of nowhere I saw a big head destroy the Men'slure. Masters I knew Division it was as of big 05/15/2019 but didn’t realize it was that big. Rank Member Name Chapter MuskiesAfter thePoints short boat sideCity fight, we nettedState her,Avg. measured, Length 1 David White 18 photographed,38 405 andMoundsville got her back and swimmingWV as37 fast as 2 Ray H. Elkins 19 17 198 East Canton OH 37 3 Bernie Klug 18 we18 could. 193 She swamProctor away strong andWV very full of37 eggs.” 4 Charles R. Carpenter 9 16Finally .183 . . afterHarrisville the thrill of catchingWV your next muskie,37 5 Bob D. Marshall 19 please17 do 176your bestBowerston to carefully releaseOH it to fight 36another 6 John Cade 9 16 143 Clarington OH 35 KEVIN KELLEY 7 Elmer W. Heyob Jr. 41 day;11 the future132 ofMarysville our muskie resourceOH will literally38 be in 8 Dave Wenzel 9 your13 hands!128 Jane Lew WV 36 9 Rusty Welker 42 11 113 Kokomo IN 36 10 Michael Floyd 57 8 112 Auburn – Lunge Log WAEditor, Kevin40 Richards

Fly Division as of 05/15/2019 Rank Member Name Chapter Muskies Points City State Avg. Length 1 John Ringenbach 19 1 18 Lakewood OH 44 2 Adam Page 50 1 16 Schwensville PA 42 3 Ray Hawk 9 1 15 Spencer WV 41 4 Cory Campbell 50 1 14 Bethlehem PA 40 5 Gordon Dixon 64 3 13 Shippenville PA 30

Hybrid Top 5 as of 05/15/2019 Rank Member Name Chapter Length Caught Lake Name State Lure 1 Joshua Miller 64 48.50 01/20/2019 Marburg PA Rapala Jerk 2 Michael Floyd 57 45.00 04/18/2019 Lake Tapps WA Savagegear 4Play 3 Michael Floyd 57 44.50 05/04/2019 Mayfield Lake WA Savagegear 4Play 4 Michael Floyd 57 42.75 04/30/2019 Lake Tapps WA Savagegear 4Play 5 Michael Floyd 57 42.75 05/04/2019 Mayfield Lake WA Homemade Bucktail www.muskiesinc.org July / August 2019 .....MUSKIE 11 A Curious Bunch with many hats BY: Ace Sommerfeld The life of a muskie guide is complicated. They are forced to wear a multitude of hats – angler, psychologist, salesman, ambassador, doctor, and more. If guides appear to be hard-nosed, consider what they’re up against. They are committed to putting North America’s most elusive fish in your hands whether muskies are feeling it or not. First and foremost, a guide must be an angler. Chances more than hooking a fish. Make an assessment of the are they got into guiding to expand their association boat as you head toward the day’s first drift. You get with muskies or thought it would be an excellent way a look at how a guide arranges things, and you won’t to spend more time on the water. Their angling hat is have to guess or ask questions if your help is suddenly more than likely torn, stained, and a health hazard to needed. You see how a guide lives. Where’s the net? anyone but the person wearing it. It’s easy to assume How are the tackle boxes stored, and what’s in them? they knew their way around and were top-notch muskie Where are the de-hooking tools? There’s sure to be hunters before sharing secrets with total strangers. something that will improve your approach. If the fish Muskie guiding has a long legacy. Muskie historian, are biting, you may get repeat lessons from an expert Larry Ramsell, told me the first record of the profession in handling a fish from hookset, netting, unhooking, is on the Saint Lawrence River in the 1880s. “Local photographs, and releasing. experts guided wealthy New Yorkers who wanted a Most guides stay on the cutting edge of technology trophy without the learning curve,” Ramsell said. in all aspects of muskie angling. They also have a hard Guiding took root in my home state, Wisconsin, as a by- time parting with a lure or tool that has served them product of the lumber industry. “Railroads hauled logs well for a long time. Look for ideas that will improve south and brought tourists north in the early 1900s,” your game when you and the guide part ways. says Ramsell. Lumberjacks spent winter in the woods Wise anglers who intend to spend a few days on and summer income came from guiding on lakes and unfamiliar water hire a guide for the first day of the trip. rivers accessible to the rail system. There is probably There’s no need to show up wearing a similar scenario all across traditional muskie habitat. a plastic nose and fake glasses; the The concept of guiding is loosely connected to anyone guide most likely who goes out fishing with a partner. It is especially knows your motives. true when one partner has more experience than the Don’t expect to learn all other. Now and then someone with little or no muskie their go-to spots, but knowledge will ask for my help. If they won’t commit if you let them to four or five consecutive nights, I suggest fishing for know what another species or hire a guide. your I’m starting to make it sound like the services of a professional are limited to the wealthy or inexperienced. That’s not true. Muskie hunters of all abilities hire guides. The Lunge Log would have fewer entries if we didn’t get some help once in a while. Every other year the stars line up correctly and I find myself in a guided boat. Your objective with a guide should be centered around

12 MUSKIE..... July / August intentions are, you’ll probably get some timely advice To reduce the cost of a guide, you can recruit a fishing that will improve your chances in the following days. partner and share the price, or only utilize the guide Like all things outdoors, guides are not created for a half day trip. A half day may be enough to cover equal. Each one is an individual with their knowledge a small body of water. Many anglers are hard pressed and philosophies, making it essential for the potential to spend more than a half day in a boat. Look above customer to research a guide and the area they fish the prize tables at any tournament or Muskies, Inc. before booking. Your goals should be discussed; for function. Tacked somewhere on a bulletin board will instance, do you want to catch one big fish, or are you be a guide’s contribution to free services. For example, looking for action? It’s also a good idea to go over this Nick and Kris Brenner of Chapter 6 tag team on those with your boat partner. Make sure you’re physically able to handle a guide’s (Article continued on page 14) gear and tackle. I’d be in serious trouble if the guide opened a box full of Pounders and Double-tens. Guides will most likely be able to accommodate a range of Promoting desires from hardcore to trolling if they are given a head’s up. No one seems to Catch-and-Release mind if I bring a couple of rods and a few lures. with Muskies, Inc. I’d finish my interrogation by asking for references and recent photographs for over 30 Years. taken on the system the guide intends to fish. Meals and fees should be discussed before you commit. Be sure to include your partner in the decision making if they have a vested interest. I’ve seen things get ugly after a long day because of misunderstandings over money. It is customary to tip your guide for a job well done. Perhaps the biggest misnomer when it comes to hiring a guide is cost. When you factor in all of the guide’s expenses, it’s easy to see their fees are reasonable. You will be using expensive gear that is maintained daily. It may not seem like much to an experienced angler, but a novice can save hundreds of dollars on equipment that they may use only once or twice. Your guide is showing you spots that took countless hours and thousands of dollars to establish. (715) 547-3710 www.laxreproductions.com

Doubling up on hiring a guide can help reduce costs. 5455 Hwy 45 Conover, WI 54519 Email: [email protected]

July / August 2019 .....MUSKIE 13 prizes and often come away with a free or reduced of a guide’s revenue, but it doesn’t happen overnight. day with a guide. A common practice among guides is Guides are required to sell themselves on both sides of offering free half-day trips and prize winners pay the the aisle. difference for a full day. Then there is the client. I’m not saying you need a The thought of getting paid to be on the water every Ph.D. in psychology, but that’s another hat to wear. day has a strong appeal to many veteran muskie Guides often deal with impatient clients who need to hunters. In some regards, it represents the pinnacle of be politely reminded they’re trying to catch accomplishments in the muskie world. Unfortunately, many quickly realize that the life of a guide isn’t for them. It seems that long-term successful guiding has to If you have little experience on a body of water, hiring a be in your blood. guide can be a fantastic way Some of the obvious problems for a new guide begin to reduce the learning curve. with finances. Suddenly you have to gear up for many anglers in multiple ways. This is when the guide has to put on his salesman hat, which has to fit pretty comfortably. Many guides acquire gear from a manufacturer or outlet at a reduced cost. Your sales abilities may determine how much swag you get from those sources. Before you take the salesman hat off, you need to build clients. This process can take years. You’ll have to advertise, set up booths at expos, speak whenever and wherever you can, and hope your early success leads to word-of-mouth bookings. Repeat customers are often the backbone

14 MUSKIE..... July / August 2019 muskies, not panfish. They may be with clients who drove hundreds of miles and don’t want to hear technical jargon about why nothing’s moving. The first half of the day could be burned up with casting lessons. Convincing a tired angler to stick it out another hour takes tact and patience. Now consider your competition. You’ll be trying to outgun all the anglers and other guides at the same time. Popular bodies of water attract a horde of guides, and you could end up as frustrated as your clients. I can go home and wait for a better day; guides don’t have that luxury. The legal aspect of guiding varies in every state or Kris Brenner with a 50.5 incher. He spent province. Governments won’t allow just anyone to take the day with a guide and caught three the responsibility that goes into pursuing big fish on big more fish including a 48.5, 44 and 38. water in marginal weather. Guides run into everything from heart attacks to emergency hook extraction. The doctor hat is crucial, considering the vast array our reputation can be in the hands of a guide. The of clients in your care. Guides are certified in ambassador hat is just as important as all the others. necessary life-saving procedures no matter Whatever motivates them, you can be sure guides are where they fish. devoted to showing their clients a memorable day on A guide’s mark on the muskie world goes the water. Whether you’re a beginner looking for expert beyond catching fish. They are often the face services, or a journeyman in need of local, up-to-date of muskie sticks in general. From boat landing knowledge consider a guide to enhance the thrill of etiquette to assisting disabled watercraft, muskie fishing.

                              “!! Trophy Catch Spinnerbaits!!”     SEVERAL COLORS               

www.muskiesinc.org July / August 2019 .....MUSKIE 15 By: Alison Willers MUSKIE Editor [email protected] THOMAS MORRIS Thomas Morris of Cleveland Chapter 23 submitted this photo of his 15-year- old grandson, Ethan Erb. Ethan, who has been muskie fishing with his Grandpa for seven years, was fishing his first Ohio Huskie Muskie Club Tournament on West Branch when he reeled in this 42.5 inch muskie. Ethan’s fish was the longest catch of the competition, landing Ethan in second place. Congratulations, Ethan! A grand prize is on its way from Musky Tackle Online!

Share your member photos or enter the Photo Contest by contacting Alison Willers at pictures@ muskiesinc.org. If you are interested in being a featured sponsor, please contact Alison Willers at pictures@ muskiesinc.org, or Kevin Richards at advertising@ muskiesinc.org and mention the Photo Contest.

16 MUSKIE..... July / August Kayak The author with a nice kayak-caught muskie. Muskies BY: Billy Georgopoulos As we all know, these magnificent beasts sure do push us to our limits when it comes to catching them. That is even more true when you are fishing out in a kayak.

Catching muskies in a boat that has a lot of available there I used four large tie wraps which I secured on my space, a much better view of the water, and areas to cast 45 inch landing cradle that in turn would be attached in are one thing. In a kayak that is pretty much at the to the carabiners. This setup allowed me to place my water level, it is an entirely new way of fishing. cradle in the water during a fish battle and efficiently The last four years, I have been muskie fishing out of guide the muskie into it. It was rigged in a way where a kayak. I can honestly say that much thought needs to I had some options for having the cradle rolled up and go into how to transition from fishing out of a boat, to in the closed position for when I did not need it, as well fishing out of 13-foot kayak. as open and floating in the water completely free when The biggest battle by far is the limited space for it was to be used. The fourth tie wrap acted as a cradle fishing gear. Kayaks do offer some excellent space handle and secured on a small strap clip when the cradle saving options, but when you are sitting in one spot all was closed. day long that has very little space around you, you need (Article continued on page 18) to put your creativity to the test! After my first muskie kayak fishing outing, where everything was still very new to me, I quickly came up with many ways to make my days on the water a lot more efficient and successful. At the top of the list was how would I successfully land a muskie if I caught one? There was zero room to lay out a bump board or room for a huge muskie net. With some creative thinking, I was able to rig The first order of business up an excellent landing method that made when you buy everything so much easier and safer not only a fishing kayak for me but the fish as well. is to plan how you’re going to I reviewed the setup of my kayak and was hold all your able to use two sizeable industrial style work equipment. carabiners that I attached to existing straps Space is at a on my kayak. One being a strap from my premium! little workspace cover at the front and the second being a strap on my kayak seat. From

www.muskiesinc.org July / August 2019 .....MUSKIE 17 I can’t stress enough how much easier this made well with larger rods and larger baits. landing any fish, let alone a big muskie! I had also As I was trolling with a 9+ inch crankbait, I looked secured a pretty good live well option where a muskie over my shoulder and saw that the weight of the rod could be landed safely and sit there in the water calmly. and reel had forced the rod holder to slip out of place, I would have a few minutes to get ready to unhook it causing my rod to almost fall straight back into the lake. in the cradle, get a great hold of it for a couple of quick Luckily, I quickly grabbed my rod before it could sink. photos, and then release it. As you can see, there are quite a few things to think Once I had a foolproof landing method, I reviewed about when it comes to all the big gear that is needed to how much fishing gear and tackle I could paddle around catch these freshwater monsters! with on any given outing. The days of taking out ten My solution for trolling was to secure the rod to one plus fishing trays with baits and four to six muskie rods side of me, with the handle end running behind one of had ended immediately! My only option was to revisit my legs and through the frame of the seat itself, this all my muskie tackle trays and restructure them as a lake by lake “go to” muskie trays. I first took my top 10 to 15 muskie baits that were high producers and high comfort baits and placed them in one tray. With space I had in my 12-foot Jackson Kilroy fishing kayak, I was able to comfortably take five to six trays which I placed into a small plastic milk crate that is secured behind my seat. Then it allows me to have a good 25 to 35 baits with me at any given time for a day of muskie fishing. My kayak is equipped with a small foam work tray, which helps make things easier. I can safely secure any baits I have already used that day quite easily and quickly and also allows me to use that area as an actual work area for changing out, sharpen hooks and reviewing baits. From time to time, this work area was also used to bring out another five to eight lures that I could secure into the foam. When it came to how I would transport muskie rods, there was a lot more to consider. I use 7 foot 11 inch to 9 foot muskie rods with large muskie reels on them, so the sheer weight of the rods has to be taken into consideration. My kayak was outfitted with several add on rod holders that were available in a few different designs, so making sure the design I selected worked with the handle length of my rods was very important. Once I had the right rod holders, I was on my way (well at least I thought I was), but during my first trolling session I learned very quickly that rod holders would not work

18 MUSKIE..... July / August 2019 allowed me to troll any size bait quite well, but the rod and once I had about 16 to 18 inches of line left, I was still not in the best place for long periods of trolling. immediately grabbed a good, strong hold of my rod The style of kayak you select is very critical. There handle and started the figure 8 motion with a good are so many to choose from, ranging from sitting on portion of my rod in the water already. Doing the figure top styles to sit inside canoe styles and paddling power 8 was complicated and took a lot of thought about how or pedal power as well as some newer styles that allow to best hold and move the rod. The harder part was for the use of small trolling motors. As we know with what the figure 8 was doing to me and the kayak. muskie fishing, we sure do cast a lot on any given The sheer figure 8 movement with larger baits created day; muskies aren’t called the fish of 10,000 casts for so much drag in my kayak that it would start to turn the nothing. kayak around in half circles. There was no real solution Now, you can imagine what is involved with a hand for this issue, as a kayak will easily be moved when paddle-style like mine, where you need to use your arms hooked into almost any size fish. I had to battle through for long periods of time to paddle out to your muskie it the best I could as my kayak was in full movement spots, in any conditions and maneuver yourself around during the figure 8. Now we all know how important at each spot with constant small paddle positioning a figure 8 is after every cast and how often we need adjustments, then after all that effort just to get to your to perform it so working through this big issue is spot, you now need to start using your arms to cast; talk something that you have to do in when muskie fishing. about physical stamina coming into play. This is where Again, with a very limited view of any following a pedal style kayak will immensely reduce arm fatigue muskies around the kayak, I would actually extend as you use only your legs to get around all day and your the length of time for each figure 8, just in case I had arms stay nice and fresh for casting! not seen any following muskies. To fully explain how When it comes to casting in a kayak the biggest complex this figure 8 issue became over four years later advantage is using the longer rods; 7 foot 11 inches is I am still constantly reviewing ways of doing figure 8s my shortest muskie rod, and with those long rods I can much easier in my kayak. cast baits just as far as I can when fishing in a boat. It As you can see, muskie fishing in a kayak is not easy does take a lot of practice at the start because you are by any stretch of the imagination, but if you take some now casting from a sitting position, so seeing where time to review how you fish and make sure you select your bait will land in any area is compromised quite a the right kayak for your body and style of fishing, you bit. You are unable to see where large clumps of weeds can catch these beasts while enjoying an insanely crazy are and also have limited depth perception from that battle with them! view. Using longer rods in a kayak will also allow you to avoid snagging yourself or parts of your kayak, as your bait will always be up high and away from you before you cast. With casting comes the challenge of how to create a very strong flawless figure 8 at the end of every cast, this also took some creative thinking as a lot of factors did not make this easy at all. Imagine trying to start the figure 8 while being around water level height, with an 8 foot rod straight out in front of you only inches away from the water. I had to teach myself how to Large, industrial- figure 8 in a completely different strength carabiner clips help hold a way. I needed to make sure I had cradle to the side of eyes glued to the back of my bait, the author’s kayak. www.muskiesinc.org July / August 2019 .....MUSKIE 19 MEMBER

By: Alison Willers // MUSKIE Editor // [email protected]

PP HH OOAndy TTPatrick ofOO AnotherS Searly Chapter 45 hooked season catch into this early season goes to Jim fish while casting Barton from a homemade fly. Chapter 41. His Congratulations on Ohio muskie fell victim to a ciscoe colored your first lunge log Shadzilla. entry, Andy!

Michael Brandli Gottlieb of Capital City caught this 42 inch Adamski of muskie on opening day while fishing the Madison Chain Chapter 19 in Wisconsin. Terrific start to your season, Brandli! caught this clean, 36.5 inch ‘ski casting a custom lure in Ohio.

Randy Mead of Chapter 49, tied into this 46 inch muskie while casting a Phantom Lure. Randy is close to entering his Willard Ferrell of 100th catch in Chapter 9 reeled the Lunge Log! in this girthy, West Best of luck this Virginia muskie season to reach that milestone. that hit his perch colored Bulldawg; great catch!

Ryan Wilke from Heartland Muskies Chapter caught and released his personal best. A well-marked 47.75 inch beauty early this season. 20 MUSKIE..... July / August 2019 ATTENTION Chapter CHAPTER CONTACTS: Please make sure News your chapter address and phone number is correct on this page AND on the M.I. website. Whenever you update & ­chapter ­information on Views the website, please send an email to the Editor so we can keep this page current. Thanks! RegionalCHAPTER PRESIDENTS, News CHAPTER REPRESENTATIVES AND ALL MEMBERS: No. Chapter - President Name: Contact Information Your fishing calendar of events should already be in full swing 01..... Twin Cities - Jim Doyle: 952-920-9818 // [email protected] by the time you cast your eyes on this news article. I hope you 02..... Fargo-Moorhead - Ted Scharl: 701-237-4801 have taken time to fish at some of the different places you’ve 03..... Chicagoland Muskie Hunters - Greg Denny: 847-331-0400 // [email protected] always wanted to visit, and have met up with some of the 04..... Titletown/Packerland - Dave Rott: 920-327-2730 // [email protected] different people you always wanted to spend time fishing with. 05..... Pomme De Terre - George Donner: 816-678-1623 // [email protected] The fellowship and camaraderie involved in the act of fishing can 06..... First Wisconsin - John Imm: 715-839-7089 // [email protected] help us to regain lost social ties and enhance our limited view of 07..... South Side Muskie Hawks - John Daley : 773-704-3401 the natural world. 08..... Capital City - Winston Hopkins: 608-577-3184 // [email protected] As a member of Muskies, Inc. (MI), it is essential that you take 09..... West Virginia - Jim Moore : 740-667-3571 // [email protected] full advantage of all of MI’s numerous benefits. It is important 10..... Heartland - Ryan Wilcke: 641-430-6961 // [email protected] that you enter every legal muskie caught (30 inches and over) 11..... Mississippi Valley - Sonny Stephens: 309-797-1803 // [email protected] in the Lunge Log for our Members Only Fish Contest (www. 12..... Headwaters - Bill Jacobs: 715-891-5574 // [email protected] muskiesinc.org). The data is not only crucial for the monthly/ 13..... Hayward Lakes - Mike Persson: 715-634-4543 seasonal awards (which can be won at the local and national 14..... South of the Border - Len Szulc: 815-385-9026 // [email protected] - Cliff Arola: 218-966-8220 // [email protected] levels), but it can also reflect the latest catch-and-release 15..... Star of the North 16..... Three Rivers - Joel Morrow: 724-859-3386 // [email protected] information on a personal, local, regional, and national level. 17..... Quad County - Duane Landmeier: 815-695-1494 // [email protected] Your entire body of data contributes to the most extensive, 18..... Hopedale - Charlie Alexander: [email protected] most complete database of caught muskies in the world. Many 19..... Akron-Canton Muskie Maniacs - Bob McCloud: 330-221-7617 // [email protected] different agencies use our data to help manage fisheries and 20..... Between the Lakes - Damion Nevers: 920-207-4635 // [email protected] conduct research to help maintain our precious resource. All 21..... North Metro - Dan Mruz: [email protected] of the numbers and fields that you enter on the lunge log are 22..... New Jersey - Cal Huntzinger : 908-319-2205 important. Please take the time to entirely and accurately fill them 23..... Cleveland - Robert Basic: 330-550-9890 // [email protected] out. The smaller fish that you catch will in no way diminish from 24..... Brainerd Lakes - Jim Kath: 218-821-3669 an award you might receive at the end of the season. In fact, the 26..... Central Wisconsin - John Carlson: 715-339-3635 // [email protected] MOFC monthly/seasonal awards are based upon total points, not 28..... Shawnee Muskie Hunters - Jim Beaty: 618-971-7806 // [email protected] on an average or formula of caught fish. 29..... Upper Great Plains - Travis Sweisberger: 712-229-7297 // [email protected] If you are worried about giving away secrets that betray 30..... God’s Country - Bob Nontelle: 608-799-4030 // [email protected] your hidden lake, the critical missing data of your catch might 32..... Flatlanders - Dick Cholke: 815-222-1062 // [email protected] outweigh the personal gain you maintain by withholding data. 33..... Lake Superior - Curt Ellestad: 218-390-8888 // [email protected] - Brian Mirek: 414-807-4122 // [email protected] Research information gathered might affect stocking or research 35..... Milwaukee 37..... St. Cloud - Ken Smith // 612-703-6239 // [email protected] plans for the fishery. Here is a prime example. The local DNR 38..... Alexandria-Vikingland - Katee Campion: 320-293-7910 // [email protected] in our area has trained several muskie anglers to insert PIT 39..... Fox River Valley - Steve Kroll: 312-320-6721 // [email protected] tags and have equipped anglers with PIT tag readers to identify 41..... Central Ohio - Bob Sisson: 614-207-1018 // [email protected] future catches. This is so the information can be gained to help 42..... Hoosier Muskie Hunters - Bill Sutherlin // 317-250-6165 // [email protected] understand and maintain the fishery. By enlisting muskie angler’s 46..... Bemidji/Cass Lake - Chris Thury: 612-590-9785 // [email protected] help, the DNR can better understand a population’s age structure, 47..... Michigan Muskie Alliance - Nick Day: // [email protected] growth rates of different age classes, reproduction, movement, 49..... Webster Lake Musky Club - John Dobry: 219-743-4131 // [email protected] and mortality rates. Our collaborative efforts can make a positive 50..... Penn-Jersey - Michael DiGuiseppe // 610-427-3499 // [email protected] impact on the future of our fisheries. 52..... Daniel Boone - Chris Haley: 606-759-7610 // [email protected] Another new benefit offered to members is the Gil Hamm 53..... Huskerland Muskie Hunters - Matt Tesarek: 402-676-1019 // [email protected] Regional Challenge Outings beginning in 2020. These events 54..... Southern Crossroads - Dean Peterson: 507-345-8701 // [email protected] will be open to all MI members in each of the four regions, 55..... Mid-Iowa Muskies - Dave Halverson: 515-299-0867 // [email protected] allowing corporate funds to help promote and sponsor the 57..... NW TIGER PAC - Michael Floyd: 253-833-1318 // [email protected] outings. These Challenges are offered in the spirit of Gil Hamm 58..... Lake St. Clair Muskies, Inc. - Charles Legarski: 586-873-9154 // [email protected] - Victoria Gantzer: 505-916-4028 // [email protected] to develop more opportunities for participation in hopes to create 59..... New Mexico Muskies, Inc. 61..... Northwoods Chapter - Pete Stoltman: 715-356-9758 // [email protected] more traditions of camaraderie and fellowship. Now, perhaps MI 62..... Wausau Area Chapter - Tyler Kennedy: 715-498-2016 // [email protected] anglers can compete for a grand slam of MI Regional events, 63..... South Central West Virginia - Jake Flint : 304-364-8878 // [email protected] visiting different areas of the country, enjoying all the benefits 64..... Nittany Valley Musky Alliance - Patrick Krumenacker: 814-421-6502 // [email protected] that muskie fishing can offer around the world. 65..... Mountain West Muskie - Kim Wagner: 801-540-5602 // [email protected] If you have an interest in planning or organizing a Regional 69..... New York Muskies - James Reynolds: 585-670-0422 Challenge in your area, or if you have an interest in 70..... Central New York - Trevor Thieme: 315-571-4046 // [email protected] becoming a Regional Representative, please contact me at 76..... Virginia Chapter - Toby Tester: 540-354-7869 // [email protected] [email protected]. - VP Internal Affairs, Jeff Micholic July / August 2019 .....MUSKIE 21 By the next magazine, we will be able to report on our Chapter 1: Twin Cities involvement with the Armed Forces Family Fishing Celebration www.twincitiesmuskiesinc.org and the Capable Partners event. Some events we all look forward to are as follows: - August 17th-24th: The Gil Hamm Tournament in Sabaskong Saturday, May 4th was the 28th Bay consecutive year that our Chapter - September 6th-8th: The Frank Schneider Tournament coordinated with several Veteran’s With the late spring and the ongoing cold water, remember to groups, their families, and caregivers, wear your life vest. I hope you all had a successful muskie opener to provide a fishing and shore lunch and be safe on the water. Each Veteran was given a experience. All the Vets fished out of - Tom Keith commemorative hat and a supported a trout pond. Their catches went to fishing experience at the trout pond. This Veteran is representative of all the our cleaning station, then straight to Veteran’s that we help catch a fish and Chapter 3: Chicagoland Muskie Hunters the cooking station which was served www.facebook.com/chicagolandmuskiehunters serve them a shore lunch. to everyone who attended. Indeed, a fresh-caught shore lunch to the veterans and their families. It is a humbling experience to provide The inaugural Geneva Musky Convention is in the books, and this opportunity for nearly 500 veterans and their families. Our by all accounts, it was a big success and something that we hope members consistently work hard to make this the best experience will become an annual event. The convention was a muskie school possible. hosted by guides Pete Rich and Ryan McMahon and co-sponsored On June 7th, our Chapter hosted a qualifying event for the by the Chicagoland Muskie Hunters and the Blackhawk Musky 10th Annual Minnesota State High School Muskie Tournament. Club of Janesville Wisconsin. The event was on May 4th on Lake Winners of our local event go on to compete against their peers at Geneva, which was also the muskie opener. There were nightly Lake Vermilion out of Vermilion Dam Lodge. This decade long seminars and on-the-water sessions where attendees had the experience has provided a safe and quality muskie experience for opportunity to fish with the guides. They were able to apply some the youth of our State. Our Chapter member, Terry Schar, has been of the tactics discussed in the nightly seminars, and sure enough, in charge of this event for the past five years. Each year he does an a few fish were caught and released. Seeing the excitement around outstanding job. Thanks, and congratulations are due to Terry and this burgeoning fishery and specifically around our Chapter’s Mike Riha, North Metro Chapter, as they are stepping down after stocking of Leech Lake Strain muskies is what made this a special five years of leadership. Mike has run the North Metro Qualifier event. and the State event. Speaking of the Lake Geneva Leech Lake Strain stocking initiative, our fund-raising effort, led by Fisheries Director Kevin

JOIN US FOR MUSKIES, INC.’S OLDEST FISHING GET-TOGETHER FRANK SCHNEIDER, JR. MEMORIAL MUSKIE TOURNAMENT SEPTEMBER 6-7-8, 2019 $ CHOICE OF OVER 20 NORTHERN MINNESOTA LAKES 15,000 PRIZES AWARDED THROUGH 10TH PLACE GRANDCASH PLUS PRIZES FOR TOP JUNIOR ANGLERS & NORTHERN PIKE FIRST PLACE WINS TRIP TO PRIZE RED WING LODGE, LAKE OF THE WOODS * Canadian & US Resort Stays - Guide Trips $100 ADULTS • $40 JUNIORS • $180 FAMILY (AFTER LABOR DAY: $120 ADULT • $30 JUNIOR • $200 FAMILY) Muskie Rods & Reels • Muskie Tackle • Door Prizes REGISTER ONLINE 2-DAY (Saturday & Sunday) THROUGH SEPTEMBER 1: www.twincitiesmuskiesinc.org $75 ADULT • $30 JUNIOR • $150 FAMILY (AFTER LABOR DAY: $100 ADULT • $25 JUNIOR • $175 FAMILY) For more information, contact Casey Friskney 715-419-1187

22 MUSKIE.....*To be given by draw July of every / August person who 2019registers a 40” or longer muskie. Based on full field of 500 paid contestants. Three $5,000 prizes awarded. Butts, continues to gather steam. grow the population will ensure the fishery stays strong for years We’re going to get over $1,000 to come. in donations from The Geneva Titletown will also be rerunning its fishing league. We had good Muskie Convention nightly raffles, results and feedback from last year, so we are looking forward to along with a verbal commitment keeping the league going. This league will give our members a from the Blackhawk Musky Club chance to use the PIT tag readers our club purchased to track the The Chain Gang - participants at for a donation of at least $1,000. movement of the muskies. the Chapter Outing on the Fox Chain. We are well on our way to being If you are looking forward to muskie tournaments on Green Bay, able to purchase a substantial you can contact the club or visit our website for more information number of advanced growth fish to stock this fall. and opportunities. Our Chapter outings season has gotten off to a strong start. First, Good luck to all the clubs and anglers! Wishing you success on we had an outing down to Cave Run, KY on April 6th. Everyone the water and creating memories for a lifetime. caught fish. The Cave Run outing winners were Ken Vyleta and - Chase Clover Dan Maher, whom each boated 41 inch muskies. Then on May 11th, we co-hosted an outing on the Fox Chain with the FRV Chapter 5: Pomme de Terre Chapter 39. This was also an opportunity for everyone to do some www.missourimuskies.org pre-fishing for our next outing, which is the FRV Challunge on the Chain tournament on May 18th. It was nice to see so many new and Junior members at this outing. Anglers from both Chapters caught Spring weather and outings are behind us. Chapter 5 members fish, but once again it was Ken Vyleta who took the top prize with are packing and heading to the north and other waters to hunt a 44 inch beauty. Ken was one of few anglers that boated a fish at muskie. The surface temps in Missouri waters are too high to favor the Geneva Muskie Convention. What an exciting season Ken is successful catch and release. Our home waters will start cooling in having so far. mid-September, and we will gladly begin fishing them when water Outings Director, Dan Maher, has a few more local outings temps allow. planned over the next few months as well as destination outings to Chapter 5 wants to thank our recent speakers at our spring Minnesota and northern Wisconsin later in the season. outings. Thank you, Steve Herbeck, noted muskie hunter and You can keep up with all our Chapter’s activities by following us educator. Thank you, Craig Fuller, Fisheries Biologist for the on facebook/chicagolandmuskiehunters. Missouri Department of Conservation. Those in attendance are Keep On Chuckin’, wiser than before. - Frank Loye Please, check our website for the status of the Pomme de Tour in July and August. It will get canceled if too few anglers participate Chapter 4: Titletown/Packerland in these tours of Pomme de Terre’s two main events. These are in- www.titletownmuskiesinc.org depth tours with top anglers aboard a pontoon boat; there will be secrets revealed. The Missouri Fisheries Department issued the release of the Fishing in Titletown is well underway! Muskie Strain Evaluation Report Pomme de Terre and Fellows We started our year out with many great speakers and topics Lakes. The report takes a significant look into the comparison of the ranging from big muskie bites to using your electronics successfully. stocking fry and fingerlings used in Missouri, primarily Northern Educating our members on all aspects of muskie fishing is very Strain versus all Kentucky strain. Longevity, growth rates, and important to our club, and it helps spread the excitement through lengths were significant factors. Accordingly, “it is recommended our fishing community. to continue stocking Northern Strain muskie fingerlings which Our annual banquet was, again, a huge success. The club come from Spirit Lake Fish Hatchery, Iowa.” We know this will exceeded its expectations, and that is directly contributed by our do little to quiet those who feel fish from Kentucky will do better club members putting in the extra effort to make that possible. The and grow larger as seen in several Kentucky bodies of water. proceeds will go to our continued support of the spotted muskie Retie often, program and youth programs within the Green Bay area. We had - Todd Hardin nearly 250 people in attendance, and we want to thank everyone that came to show support for the club. Chapter 6: First Wisconsin We are excited for 2019 and to be a part of two kid’s outings and www.firstwimuskiesinc.org a muskie veterans outing on Shawano Lake. Introducing muskie fishing to our youth and veterans is a mission of ours, and the club members enjoy every part of it. Our May fish fry was a great turn out with everyone antsy from May brought the Wisconsin DNR biologist to the Fox River the long winter. We drew for our custom made Rabska Lure, in De Pere for their annual egg/milt collection and survey of the overate, and told stories of years past. muskies in and around the Green Bay watershed. The results were Wisconsin’s Southern Zone has opened, with a few members awe-inspiring with the average size showing 47.36 inches and a traveling south in search of early season fish. At the time of weight of 31.21 pounds. The largest fished in the collection and writing, we are a week away from our waters opening up and the survey measured 56.89 inches and weighed in at 52.14 pounds. season to begin. The results are why we do this. Sustaining and continuous work to Have a safe season, and see you on the water! - Travis “Bub” Sharer www.muskiesinc.org July / August 2019 .....MUSKIE 23 quality upgrades signal better results at that location. Chapter 9: West Virginia Nate reports that the WV DNR five-year muskie plan is near www.facebook.com/WVChapter09Muskiesinc completion. When it is published, it will be shared with us for review and comment. District Fish Biologists Jeff Hansbarger and Nate Taylor gave the Twenty-six individuals signed up for our 2019 Spring Mail-In WV DNR Report at our annual meeting. They acknowledged that Tournament. Charlie Carpenter boated a 43 and a 40-incher on the 2018 Hatchery Production for muskie was very disappointing. Saturday at Stonewall Jackson while fishing with Danny Buzzard. Only about 350 muskies were stocked in 2018, all going into WV On Sunday, he returned to North Bend Lake near his home and Lakes. caught a 44 inch fishing with Matt Carpenter to ensure his team’s They are not currently stocking most WV streams. Most of first-place finish with 49 points. those previously stocked seem to hold decent muskie populations, With favorable weather and water conditions for a change, according to Jeff Hansbarger. However, he states that if natural several other fish were registered: reproduction is insufficient or a series of unsuccessful natural - William A. Hall and Zach Cullum caught two fish (a 49 and spawns occur; supplemental stocking will be considered. 34-incher) for a total of 31 points All muskies put into Stonewall Jackson Reservoir in the past - Chase Gibson and Dave Wenzel caught a nice 45 inch muskie six years have been PIT tagged; many have been recaptured. Jeff for a total of 19 points recommends being super careful when releasing fish in very warm - Troy Radcliff and Danny Haddox caught two muskies (a 36 water. Typically, biologists stop stocking when water temperatures and 33-incher) for a total of 17 points reach 80 degrees F. Colder water contains more oxygen. - Kevin Kelley and Darlene Kelley caught one 39 inch muskie A study concerning delayed mortality in warm water is planned for a total of 13 points. for Stonewall Jackson Reservoir (WV) and the James River (VA). Each of these muskies came from Stonewall, except for William This study will be a cooperative effort of WV and VA DNR’s. A Hall’s 34 inch muskie which was caught in Dunkard Creek. research project addressing this issue was conducted years ago on Thanks to Dave Turner, who served as chairperson. the Ottawa River in Ontario, but waters in WV and VA get much Twenty-one members and guests fished SJL on the first weekend warmer. Sometimes Stonewall water temperature exceeds 90 of May for our Odie Cutlip Memorial. At least 26 fish were caught. degrees in the heat of summer and early fall. - The winning team was Chase Gibson and Cody Spring, who Nate Taylor has replaced Scott Morrison as District VI Fish reported eight fish. Their largest was a 45 inch and the smallest Biologist. With increased pond space available, Nate expects was 31 inches. Chase and Cody racked up 106 points during the improved muskie production at the Palestine Hatchery in 2019. event. Apple Grove Hatchery had a history of poor outcomes for muskies. - Troy Radcliff and Danny Haddox caught five fish (46, 44, 39, However, the replacement of all pond liners and increased water 38, and a 37 inch) for a total of 74 points.

24 MUSKIE..... July / August 2019 - Dave Wentzel and Derek Wentzel caught five fish (42, 42, 36, ceremony. Our Chapter Treasurer’s children assisted with drawing 36, and a 35 inch) for a total of 61 points. for the door and raffle prizes. Thank you for the help, Matthew - Benji Willis and Chris Metz caught two fish (a 47 and a 35 Doane and William Doane. Get them involved in the Chapter and inch) for a total of 30 points. muskie fishing while they’re young! - Michael Zicafoose and William Hall II caught three fish (37, Tournament check-in and registration was on Friday evening, 35, and a 31 inch) for a total of 25 points. April 26th, where participants dined on pizza and refreshments. - Adam and Robert Petryszak caught two fish (a 36 and a 33 We had an array of door and raffle prizes donated generously inch) for a total of 17 points. from 48 local businesses, 91 regional businesses, and numerous - Doug Jenkins and Jim Moore caught a nice 36 inch fish for a individuals. Everyone was able to view all the generous donations total of 10 points. in the form of fishing equipment, clothing, general merchandise, One of the best weekends we’ve had at Stonewall in years. gift certificates, and gift cards Great weather and the fish seemed to be everywhere. Lots of There was a total of ten muskies caught during the tournament, muskie contacted and lots of muskies hooked and lost in addition with eight meeting the 30 inch minimum length requirement. The to those boated. tournament team and individual results are listed below: Great Outing. Thanks to Darlene Kelley for chairing the event. - First Place: Reid Lammers and Brandon Heuer with two fish; a - Chapter 9 Secretary, John Kaltenecker 41 and 43 totaling 32 points - Second Place: Connor Sorensen Chapter 10: Heartland and Duane Reineke with one fish; a www.facebook.com/Heartland-Muskies-Inc-Chapter-10 43 inch totaling 17 points www.heartlandmuskies.org - Third Place: Matt Bell and Mikayla Jones with one fish; a 40 Greetings from the Heartland! Our grass is green, flowers and inch totaling 14 points trees are blooming, and our challenging winter weather is just a - Fourth Place: Matt Olson and John memory. Mother Nature has undoubtedly rewarded us, once again, Newman with one fish; a 38 inch for getting through another Iowa winter and spring muskie season totaling 12 points Chapter member, Brandon Heuer, with a nice 43 inch is upon us. - Fifth Place: William Jance and muskie. Omitted from my May/June submission were the names of our Gary Jance with one fish; a 37 inch chapter officers for 2019, which are as follows: Ryan Wilcke, totaling 11 points Chapter 10 President; Scott Pingel, Chapter 10 Vice President; - Sixth Place: Larry Turner and Mike Keown with one fish; a 37 Christopher Doane, Chapter 10 Treasurer; Michael Wentworth, inch totaling 11 points Chapter 10 Secretary. - Seventh Place: Dustin Cook and Max Meister with one fish; a PERSONAL BEST UPDATE! On Saturday, April 6th, Ryan 36 inch totaling 10 points Wilcke boated a personal best muskie of 47.75 inches on Clear - Big Fish: Connor Sorensen caught a 43 inch muskie Lake. Congratulations, Ryan! - Short Fish: Colby Dickes with one fish (28 inches) and Brandon On April 13, the Iowa Fisheries Department initiated their Spring Heuer with one fish (25 inches) Gill Netting Program for walleyes and muskies on our home water, The Chapter assisted our fisheries personnel on Wednesday, Clear Lake, IA. Some Chapter members assisted in the netting May 15th, in stocking 600, 12 - 14 inch muskie “yearlings” into sessions and with the day time fish processing. During the three- Clear Lake. This stocking is done each odd-numbered year from day project, 139 healthy, feisty muskies were captured. The largest eggs raised at our Spirit Lake, IA hatchery. Fisheries Department muskie measured 48.5 inches. Each muskie was examined for data suggests that the predation survival rate for yearlings of this liquid nitrogen brands and PIT tags. If there wasn’t a tag already length is good enough to offset more than the cost of raising them in the muskies, one was inserted in the meaty portion of the left to this size. Cale Fredin (8-year-old son of Chapter member Kyle gill cover. The muskies were then measured, and the sex of each Fredin), assisted with the yearling release. Kyle tells me Cale “… fish was determined and then recorded. The bump board used to had the time of his life…” and that they had the opportunity to measure the muskies was donated by our Chapter in 2018. During view these same yearlings at the hatchery last August when they this netting session, we caught a muskie with a lure still embedded were about 8 inches long. Getting our youth involved is essential in its jaw. A lure with a fluorocarbon leader, but no fish attached, and is a good part of what MI is all about. We believe it’s vital was tangled in a net. A walleye carrying a FLO Tag, reportedly to educate our youth about muskies, so they can understand what valued at $150 from a previous fishing tournament, was processed the muskies renewable role is in our environment. Then, reap the and released with the tag intact. benefits of this knowledge by catching and releasing one. Kyle Our 19th Stan Harrison Memorial Muskie Tournament was states Cale will be a Chapter member in the next few days. Again, on April 27th. Fifty-five, two-person teams fished our one-day getting them involved in the Chapter and muskie fishing while tournament by braving the harsh, wintery spring weather of rain they’re young is important. turning to snow, with gusty winds and temperatures in the 30s. Chapter members will, again, assist the Nora Springs, IA Cub We are happy to contribute the proceeds from this fundraising Scouts with an afternoon fishing outing on Sunday, June 2nd, from tournament to assist local youth fishing programs. Some of the 3 p.m. until 5 p.m. at Buffalo Run Golf Club. Chapter members programs include Scout Fishing Days, Kids Fish Camps and Kids will host a general fishing clinic followed by actual one-on-one Fishing Tournaments, and other local Iowa Fisheries Department panfish and bass fishing with the scouts at a lake on the golf club projects. property. Another such outing is tentatively scheduled for this Our Chapters’ youth was involved in Saturday night’s awards (Text continued on page 26) www.muskiesinc.org July / August 2019 .....MUSKIE 25 coming August. What a great way to get young people interested 4) Establish a 50 inch size limit on the Rainbow Flowage, in the outdoors and fishing. Hopefully some future MI members Minocqua Chain, and White Sand Lake. in the making. One proposal failed, which was to create a catch and release A Chapter member will be assisting the Iowa Department of fishing season during the closed harvest season (January 1stto Natural Resources with Kids Fishing Camp in Ventura, IA daily May 31st) on all Wisconsin-Michigan boundary waters. from 9 a.m. until 12 p.m., tentatively scheduled for early August On April 23rd, our Chapter hosted the DNR/Guide’s meeting at 2019. the Eagle River VFW. This meeting is where local fish biologists, For the second year running, Heartland members will use PIT game wardens, and other DNR personnel come in and talk to us Tag readers, purchased by the Chapter, to assist Fisheries personnel about surveys they ran in 2018 and about upcoming projects for with tag and environmental data from muskies caught during the 2019. They also thanked us for our donations to buy three pit tag 2019 season. This additional information is just another tool our readers for their projects. Chapter is providing for them to manage our current and future Our scholarship committee, under the leadership of John local muskie populations better. Schmidt, selected Johnny Behrendt for our 2019, $1,000 Calendar of other events where Chapter members are Headwaters Chapter Scholarship. Johnny has a 3.53 GPA and will involved is as follows: be in his junior year majoring in Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences - May 21, 6:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.: League Night, Clear Lake at the University of Wisconsin Stevens Point. His home town is - June 15, 7 a.m. – 3 p.m.: Iowa Chapters 10, 29 and 55 Manitowish Water, Wisconsin. Challenge, Clear Lake Muskie opener was May 4th in Southern Wisconsin and May - June 18, 6:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.: League Night 25th in Northern Wisconsin. Our first club outing was May 25th, - July 16, 6:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.: League Night with our get together at the VFW in Eagle River. - August 20, 6:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.: League Night Our 39th Annual Spring Classic Muskie Tournament was on - September 17, 6:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.: League Night June 8th and 9th. Our Chapter sponsored the Kleeba Challunge - October 13, 12 p.m. – 4 p.m.: League Day Finale June 15th and 16th fishing in the Eagle River area. A full report For updates and event details, visit our website and Facebook will be published in the next issue of MUSKIE. page, listed in our Chapter banner above. Here’s to everyone’s - Dale Peterson personal best muskie in 2019! - Chapter 10 Secretary, Michael Wentworth Chapter 13: Hayward Lakes www.muskiesinc-hayward.org Chapter 12: Headwaters www.headwatersmuskies.com Local guide, Steve Genson, donated his time to give a presentation to our club about Offbeat Tactics to Catch More The first fish of 2019 was registered by Scott Buglaski which Muskies. The first tactic Steve uses is live bait in the spring and was a 40.75 inch muskie caught March 24th on Cave Run. early summer until the water temperature hits 70. For lures, Steve Our 41st Annual Banquet was a huge success. About 130 people likes Hell Hounds and Phantoms. He works these with irregular attended the banquet held April 13th at the Whitetail Inn in St. action and frequent pauses. In mid-summer, he spends much time Germain, WI. Our Annual Awards Banquet had the following trolling open water and deep edges with Matlocks. If you’d like to awards presented: fish with Steve, his phone number is (715) 558-3709, and you can - Mr. and Mrs. Musky Award to Andy and Summer Hendrickson find him on Facebook. - Presidents Award to Jim Heffner The calendar of events for the Hayward Chapter is listed - Artist of the Year Award to Suick Manufacturing Co. below and follows the same schedule as last year. Our Facebook - Volunteer of the Year to Hi Pines Campgrounds in Eagle River. page and our website will have more information about all club A special award went to our Chapter President, Bill Jacobs, for activities. being inducted into the MI Hall of Fame. Bill was presented with - Sunday, July 21st: Fishing Outing and Picnic – Fish during his plaque from MI and also a custom-made St. Croix Elite muskie the day if you like, and meet at 6:30 p.m. at Mike and Deanna’s rod by Musky Pete. house for food and beverages provided by the club. Bring family, The Big Fish Award replicas, donated from Lax Taxidermy/ friends, or prospective club members! RSVP Mike Persson Headwaters Chapter, went to Jeff Miller for his 52 inch muskie, (715) 634-4543 Amy Piantek for her 46 inch muskie, and Case Koschnik for his - Sunday, August 4th from 9 a.m. - 1:30 p.m.: Annual Kids 52 inch muskie. The banquet was wrapped up by 9 p.m. with many Fishing Day. Club members guide youngsters on Tiger Cat positive comments expressed from the attendees. Flowage and other nearby lakes. Shore lunch at noon with prizes April 8th was our Conservation Congress Spring Hearings at our for kids. All club members and friends are encouraged to help county seat. Muskie related proposals that were approved are as guides and cooks. This event will be at Black Iron Bar and as followed: Grill,10 miles East of Hayward on Highway 77 East. For more 1) Extend northern zone fishing season to the end of December information call Mike Persson (715) 634-4543 for open water fishing, no ice fishing - Tuesday, September 3rd at 6:30 p.m.: Business meeting 2) Change the opening date for Wisconsin-Michigan boundary to prepare for a tournament at 7 p.m. The general meeting waters from May 15th to June 1st begins with guest speaker (TBA). The meeting is at Flat Creek 3) Increase minimum size length from 40 inches to 50 inches on Restaurant.* Wisconsin-Michigan boundary waters

26 MUSKIE..... July / August 2019 - Friday, Sunday, October 4th – 6th: Our 42nd Annual Fall Due to high water conditions 2019, we had to cancel the Ohio Tournament. Saturday night raffle, Sunday awards ceremony River Muskie Tournament and will not be rescheduled for the at the Flat Creek Inn and Suites on Hwy. 27 – ½ mile south of season. Hayward. For more information, call Mike Persson (715) 634- The 2019 Pymatuning Lake Team tournament had 53 people 4543 or visit our website. sign-up and 19 legal fish were registered. Those results are as - Tuesday, November 12th at 7 p.m.: General Meeting with the follows: election of officers and lure swap. Bring your old lures or extras - First Place: Brian Clark and Chuck Cook caught six fish for a or other miscellaneous fishing items to buy, sell, or trade. The total of 193.75 inches meeting is at Flat Creek Restaurant.* - Second Place: Doug Vanasco and Adam Jeffcoat caught three - Sunday, December 1st: Annual Christmas Party - location to fish for a total of 97 inches be announced. Third Place: Alex Mundt and James Landon caught two fish for - Tuesday, January 7th, 2020, at 7 p.m.: Business Meeting to a total of 82 inches plan the year 2020 projects, activities, and budget. All board - Big Fish: Shannon Bibby with a healthy 46-incher members are asked to attend. All interested members are As of the writing of this article (late May), the club just welcome. The meeting will be at Flat Creek Restaurant* purchased minnows for the Linesville fish hatchery. We spent - Fishing Outings are held every other Wednesday during $3,500 on minnows this year. That purchased roughly 800 pounds summer, with our schedule set in May. Head over to our website of minnows. The minnows will last about one week of feeding on for more information. the 2019 yearling muskie. The PFBC will be supplementing more NOTE: For more information call Mike Persson (715) 634- minnow purchases in the weeks leading up to stocking of muskie 4543 or visit our club’s website www.muskiesinc-hayward.org in mid to late June. *Flat Creek Restaurant is in Flat Creek Inn and Suites – HWY A simple reminder, if you are not receiving the emails from our 27 – 1/2 mile South of Hayward, WI. club before all the events, your email must be listed incorrectly on Reminder: Register your muskie catches with Hayward Lakes the national website. Outside social media, this is the main form of Chapter of MI and be a part of the muskie fishing spirit and a contact we have with membership. If you feel you are one of these possible award winner! Register your release forms online at the people, please email me at [email protected] MI website (www.muskiesinc.org). We would also like to thank our sponsors and lure makers of the Good Fishing, club, next time you’re out don’t forget to take a look at their lures - Mike Persson or services. Wiley Lures, Legend Lures, Leo Lures, Mtailz Lures, Grandma Lures, Muddy Creek Guide Service, Allegheny Guide Chapter 16: Three Rivers Service, Boss Shad, Hammer Lures, Baker Baits, and Schoss Baits. www.muskiesinc.org/chapter16 - Good Fishing, Joel Morrow

Chapter 18: Hopedale Our 2nd Annual Veterans muskie fishing day was once again a www.muskiesinc18.com huge success. We had 15 Vets from the Butler VA in attendance. 18 The day began with a mid-morning troll around Lake Arthur from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. There was a total of three muskies caught Hopedale held its May meeting in conjunction with a chicken and a few fish were lost. A very successful short outing for all. BBQ in which 18 members and guests ate the delicious dinner. A huge thanks to all the volunteers Afterward, Curt Wagner, District 3 Fishing Supervisor of ODNR, from our club. In no particular gave a presentation on fish tagging and how data gathered is used. order, Tom Horwat, Dustin Our club learned about the collaboration between MI, and ODNR Thompson, Evan Schoss, Tim to share our catch data. The Lunge Log Data Sharing Program Monta, Rick Hoover, Tom Simon, allows club members permits to share their catch data with the Garrick Sobeski, Paul Weightman, Ohio Division of Wildlife through their club profile. This data is Jason Milnes, Jim Burr, Charles used for fish management in Ohio waterways. Curt spoke about the Mueller, and Joe Houck. After the tagging project, which will stop at the 6-year mark. Over 51,000 fishing was over, we gathered for a fish have been tagged. Those last tagged fish will reach release size small pizza party and comradery. Once again, thanks to everyone in a few years, continuing to provide information. Curt also shared involved! information about how our fishing license and equipment funds We are looking forward to bigger and better things next year! are appropriated. The two events were paid in full this year by a couple of sources Connor Patterson won the that need to be recognized. First, we received money from the big monthly drawing and Joe Ball won kayak raffle at Muskie Max this year. A big “Thanks” to Shawn the lure drawing. There were a total Leopardi for running the raffle, and to McEilwan Motor company of 10 members and guests who in Ellwood City for sponsoring the raffle. Also, a big “Thanks” participated in the April tournament to Zack Baker. He sold 10 of his shad baits and donated all the with no reported fish. June 15th money to Jim Burr to use for all the Veterans fishing trips through – 16th is our Open Tournament. Club secretary, Joe Ball, released the 2019 season. Fishing will begin at 8 a.m. on day this 49 inch muskie in a local lake. one to 5 p.m. on day two at the lake (Text continued on page 28) www.muskiesinc.org July / August 2019 .....MUSKIE 27 of your choice. We welcomed guests and new members at our have muskies in them. meetings on June 6th and July 11th at the Pine Valley Sportsman A couple of our members helped at the Sheboygan Area School Club, Hopedale, Ohio. Visit our website for more information, District Fishing Clinic. The clinic is set up to educate the students www.muskiesinc18.com. on all aspects of fishing. We also attended the Random Lake - Susan Matuska Conservation Fair. Our Chapter thinks it is imperative to educate the next generation in all aspects of our environment. Chapter 19: Akron-Canton - Jim Kvindlog www.facebook.com/Muskies-Inc-Chapter-19- AkronCanton-Muskie-Maniacs-1526556847609289/ Chapter 21: North Metro www.nmmuskies.com The Muskie Maniacs started their fishing season with their first two tournaments in the books. Our first tournament was on April 27th and 28th at Piedmont Lake. We had a decent turn out of Our general meetings are the third Tuesday of the month (unless anglers with 39 signed up, but the fish were not as cooperative with on or near a holiday- check www.nmmuskie.com for exact dates). only 12 fish caught. We meet at the Coon Rapids VFW at 7 p.m., so join us. A list Rick Simpson managed to take first place with his two nice fish of speakers will soon be on our website, and you can always get of 42.5 and a 44.5 inch fish. He also took the Big Fish pool with something new that can improve your fishing. his 44.5 inch fish. Congratulations Rick! You managed to get two To expand our Chapter influence and new female membership, nice fish during cold front conditions and the fish just coming off we actively made friends with the Women Anglers of Minnesota the spawn. Clint Kendrick took second with his two fish of 33.5 (WAM). We held a joint event on June 9th to introduce some of inches and a 34 inch fish. Third place went to Jason Miller with their members to muskie fishing. his 41 inch fish. The fishing was slow, with only nine anglers out Our Annual Chapter Picnic and Lure Swap were at the Bald Eagle of 39 that caught fish. For being the first tournament of the season, Lake on May 21st. A large number of members, guests, friends, we all had fun and were glad to be out on the water after a long and those interested in becoming members were in attendance. winter season. The North Metro, a few of the board members, along with Our second tournament of the season was at Leesville Lake the Twin Cities Chapter, personally donated over $1,000. This on May 11th and 12th. Our weather again playing a part of the donation will purchase muskie fingerlings for the MN DNR to conditions, and the fish still coming off spawn, played a role in cover the metro area stocking shortfall. our fish count. A total of 19 anglers participated with only 14 Our 29th Annual June Jam Tournament successfully debuted our fish caught. Rick Simpson stole the first-place spot again. Rick new and improved tournament format and location on June 15th. caught a total of three fish; a 44, 37.5 and a 38.5 inch muskie. He Thank you to everyone who continues to help out our Chapter. also took Big Fish pool with his 44 inch fish. Second place went We held our North Metro State High School Muskie Sectional to Jason Chalmers with his two fish; a 40 and a 35 inch muskie. Qualifier on June 7th on Bald Eagle Lake with 32 Junior Third place went to Mike Adamski with his two fish; a 41 and a participants and 16 boats. The Top Two Teams will go onto the 32.75 inch muskie. Congratulations to the winners! MN State Muskie Tournament. Our next event coming up will be our Chapter Challenge at Our 2019 Minnesota Muskie Expo lure raffle netted proceeds of Saltfork Lake on June 1st and 2nd. We are looking forward to $900 which were used to stock fish and to support the Minnesota this event, and we hope the weather will cooperate. Chapter 23 Muskie and Pike Alliance. won the event last year, so they get to host this year’s event. I will - Chapter 21 President, Dan Mruz have the results of the Challenge in our next issue, along with the results of our third tournament on July 13th and 14th, which will Chapter 23: Cleveland be our combined tournament with Chapter 23 at Westbranch. Our youth event is coming up on July 27th at the District 3 office of the 23 DNR. It is a fun time for all, and we look forward to seeing the kids catch fish! Hello everyone, we are now well into spring, all be it a wet - Kevin Proffitt and chilly one. Hopefully, everyone had a chance to get out on the water a couple of times. We just finished our first tournament Chapter 20: Between the Lakes of the year at West Branch and had an excellent turnout, with 42 www.betweenthelakes20.com adults and three youth signing up to fish. Unfortunately, the fish were not very cooperative, as only 12 legal muskies were reported. Finishing in first place was Sherman Champlin with a 36 and a 41 In April, our guest speaker was Bob Kimball of Trucker Lures inch muskie for a total of 25 points. Sherman also won the big and Guide Service. Bob gave us much useful information on fish pool with his 41 inch catch. Coming in second place was Pat fishing the Eagle River Chain of Lakes. Bob also discussed his Andino, who boated two muskies measuring in at 35 and 37 inches process of how he makes his lures. for a total of 20 points. Finishing in third place with a 38.5-incher In May, Addie Dutton of the DNR gave us the results of their was Tim Smith. Congratulations and thank you all for attending! two-year netting survey on Random Lake. The study shows us that On May 4th, in connection with Earth Day, Don Clowes and the lake is more of a number’s lake for muskies and not a trophy his wife Josephine represented the club in the annual shoreline lake. Starting next year, they will be doing a two-year netting clean up at West Branch Reservoir. Attendance was a little low survey on Elkhart Lake. These are the only lakes in our county that due to poor weather and moving the date around to get away from

28 MUSKIE..... July / August 2019 Easter. Regardless, Don means up to 8,000 fish maximum per 2-year period may find their and his wife were able to way into the lake. Implanting Passive Integrated Transponder get a boatload of trash out (PIT) tags into fingerling muskellunge stocked into Lake Vermilion of the Silver Creek area will also occur as funding and time permits. Such research is (picture on the right). If you essential in part to identify critical spawning areas and subsequent are in that area of the lake protection efforts to minimize human impact. In the report, there anytime, please do your is a plea for support, which is in direct alignment with our MI part and pick up anything you may see. mission. The DNR will “consider outside partnerships and funding Happy and Safe Fishing! opportunities to support muskellunge management, including PIT - Lee Himes tagging supplies, rearing pond operations, and surplus fingerling muskie stocking if the fish meet DNR standards and protocols.” Chapter 24: Brainerd Lakes Message received. www.brainerdmuskies.com See you on the water, - Brett Sande

Mid-summer is upon us and muskie fishing is in full swing (cast) Chapter 28: Shawnee Muskie Hunters everywhere. Our group has a busy summer schedule planned, with www.shawneemuskiehunters.org outings and fun meeting events to keep us occupied. The Summer Slam event will be for Leech Lake on July 20th from 6:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. and should be a great time to attack the big lake. This spring has been terrible for fishing. We had ice to the end My time on Leech is usually limited to mid-October during our of February and into March. Then we had one good week before Muskie Shootout tournament (more on that later). So, I am looking the rains came. If you have not heard, the Carbondale area had 10+ forward to some warmer temps, and hopefully, less wind, as last inches of rain that brought the lake up to the point that you could fall’s Shootout conditions were brutal! not launch a boat. Water was flowing over the fish barrier. We do A new, mid-week event this year for our Chapter is our Sponsor not know if or how many fish may have been lost over the barrier. Challunge, held on August 6th, from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. at Lake The lake is high and very dirty. The rain continued off and on to Alexander. Your muskie must be caught on a lure manufactured the end of March. The water is about 50 degrees. Cold and muddy by one of our Chapter sponsors to qualify (Stealth Tackle, Llungen water is always tough fishing. Lures, Kramer Brothers Tackle, or Wade’s Custom Tackle). This We had the Chapter Challenge on March 15th. The bad weather Challunge should be fun and may drum up some business for our forced us to delay it a week. I am sorry to say that we lost to great sponsors as I know I will be throwing my favorite Wade’s Pomme. We each had nine teams, and there were four fish caught Wobbler! over 30 inches. We had two, and they had two. Their fish were At our August 13th monthly meeting, we will be doing a lure bigger than ours. They had a 41 and a 38, and we had fish of 31 auction, which is always a hoot to participate in and is a great and 36. There were quite a few small fish caught (under 30). It fundraiser for the Chapter. In addition to getting some great deals was cold that day, but everyone had a perfect time, and we will get on gently used lures, there can be some shenanigans and friendly them next year. competition between participants, which adds to the fun. If your On March 29th we had our awards dinner at the Mississippi Chapter has not held a lure auction, you are missing out. One tip Flyway. About 38 members and guests were on hand to view the to a successful auction is that items don’t have to be lures. Baked PowerPoint presentation from Larry Owens on fishing Kinkaid. goods donated by confident renowned Chapter cooks, always fare It was interesting to see the trends over the years. Al Nutty gave well and can garner some big bucks. an informative talk on fishing for muskies under the adverse Finally, as mentioned above, we are locked and loaded for the conditions we are experiencing. Our top speaker was Juris Ozols, 2019 Muskie Shootout Tournament on October 12th - 13th, but the former Assistant Editor of MUSKIE. He gave a rather detailed there is a significant change from last year. Leech Lake is still presentation on how to take better pictures on the water. He pointed the destination, but Trappers Landing will be the new host site out the primary mistakes people do when taking pictures. for the tournament headquarters. We are excited about this new Manual gave out the awards for the Big Fish of the month, partnership and the benefits it will provide, e.g., sign up for the winners of the Men’s Master, Men’s Division, Women’s Division, Shootout, stay at Trappers, and receive a gift certificate to Reeds and Youth Division. Jim Beaty was the Shawnee Muskie Hunter Sports. Visit www.brainerdmuskies.com for more information. of the Year. Congratulations to all the winners, and congrats to For those of you who fish, have fished, or wish to fish Lake Carlisle Guinnip for his 10th place finish in the Men’s Division Vermilion, I came across some stocking information from 2017- of MI with a total of 65 fish. I almost forgot the winner of the 2022. The DNR lake management plan, is of interest and looks to incentive program. The first-place winner was Manual Santa be a positive move if implementation, can be achieved. Vermilion is Cruz, second place went to Jerry Dingus, and third place went to classified as a “Premier” lake as defined by the DNR Muskellunge Dane Garrett. Technical Committee, which gives it stocking priority in the Our membership changes almost monthly. We hope that if your Management Plan. Under the plan, the Lake Vermilion stocking membership is about to expire, please renew it. We want to keep quota has been bumped up to 3,000 fingerlings per year as a base you as a member. If you have an idea you would like to present to quota. Also, up to an additional 2,000 (surplus), Leech Lake strain the membership, just let us know by phone or email. fingerlings per 2-year period may be stocked when available. This Remember I’m in the other Lund. - Walt Krause www.muskiesinc.org July / August 2019 .....MUSKIE 29 - September 27th - 29th: Flatlanders Outing at the Bay of Green Chapter 29: Upper Great Plains Bay www.facebook.com/pg/Upper-Great-Plains-Muskie-Inc-Chapter - October 18th - 20th: Lake Alice We welcome our new members and encourage everyone to join us to learn more about this great sport. We have an active Chapter Now that muskie season is in full swing, we have a couple of that enjoys our time on the water. updates for club events coming up in September. - Dick Cholke First, Chapter 29 will be hosting our portion of the Iowa Chapter Challenge on Saturday, September 14th, 2019. It is a friendly competition between members of Iowa Chapters 10, 29, and 55. Chapter 37: St. Cloud Last year we had a good turnout, and we hope to see you all again. www.stcloudmuskies.com Any Chapter 29 members that would like to participate will need to complete a liability release form and return it to a Chapter 29 I was told once by a great muskie fisherman that “the turtle wins officer before the event. the race.” Recently, I heard the same thing stated by a veteran Our 31st Annual IDSO Muskie Tournament will take place on mushroom hunter/forager. The more I get acquainted with this Saturday, September 28th, 2019. See our ad in this issue or contact concept, the more I find it to be true in many walks of life. In most a Chapter 29 officer for more details. It is an excellent opportunity cases, the slow and steady forward motion yields the most fruit and for anyone participating in the PMTT World Championship to avoids most complications. I guess “baby steps” is another way spend some time in the Iowa Great Lakes ahead of time. to put it. Our Chapter is living proof of how this is true. We have We would like to wish everyone good luck on the water and the best membership group there is. Our dedicated board not only remind you to please practice catch and release. You can follow gets us over every hurdle we encounter but winning the race and Upper Great Plains MI Chapter 29 on Facebook for Chapter news keeps this all a success! Thank you, everyone, and thank you to our and updates. President, Ken Smith, for your ideas and dedication. - Joe Anderson In April, we had James Linder as not only our featured speaker, but also our big annual presentation, and it was a blast! Those Chapter 32: Flatlanders Linder’s have such talent in the way they fish, teach, and represent www.flatlanderschapter.com our anglers and fisheries on such a positive level. Many new faces and great conversations throughout the night got us fired up for the new season ahead. The Flatlanders offseason The Saint Cloud Chapter of MI also hosted another annual Big wrapped up nicely in April Brothers Big Sisters Fishing Outing. On May 4th, 23 kids and their with the first Rockford All sponsors joined us for another day of fishing and fun. The largest City Muskie Night. This joint fish was a 24 inch catfish and was caught by a young girl who event with the Rock Valley would probably never brag, but now has every right to boast of her Anglers drew a large crowd Randy Brady and his nice 42 big catch. Every “Little” left that day with their very own rod, reel, inch Lake Storey muskie. to hear Doug Wegner speak and a tackle box full of tackle. Thank you to all of our volunteers on fishing the Bay of Green for making this possible. Bay. Both clubs were happy with the evening and are considering May’s monthly speaker was Steve Scepaniak, a seasoned guide making this an annual event. for muskies on Mille Lacs Lake. This guy has seen it all out on “the Later in April, we had a good group head down to Lake Storey pond,” and was here to share it with us. Steve had an enjoyable in Galesburg, IL. For the one-day outing, four fish were caught, PowerPoint presentation and a wealth of knowledge. We will keep with an additional two that did not make the board. The entire our eyes out for him this season and see what monsters he gets group stayed overnight and fished again on Sunday with another pictures with this year. Thank you again, Steve. two fish coming to the net. Randy Brady returned this year to be We did have to cancel our scheduled lake cleanup on the top dog with a nice 42-incher on Saturday morning after taking Horseshoe chain due to rainy weather. This spring has been top honors last year. It was great to have the group together again relentless, and the weather has been putting a damper on many to enjoy a fun weekend. Sharing information showed the benefits activities. of these Chapter outings. Early on Saturday, active fish showed a Thank you for supporting your local Chapter and getting preference for deeper water. A few phone calls amongst the group involved to better our fisheries. We look forward to seeing you on and the discussion at our group lunch helped everyone. the water, at a meeting, or online on our Facebook page. Be safe, Our last outing to Lake Evergreen had harsh conditions. High and God bless! skies and a severe thunderstorm mid-day had us pulling all the - Eric Poissant boats after lunch. We did get some exercise in for our annual outings to Lake of the Woods. We look forward to seeing the other Chapters again at the Chapter 41: Central Ohio www.centralohiomuskies.wixsite.com/centralohiomuskies Chapter Challunge. Here is our 2019 schedule for the Flatlander’s outings: - July 12th - 20th: Flatlanders Outing at Lake of the Woods Our season is now officially underway, with our first tournament - August 17th - 24th: Flatlanders Outing at the MI Chapter of the year in the books. The Fisher Memorial on Clear Fork Challunge reservoir began with a tough day on a lake that would not give

30 MUSKIE..... July / August 2019 up a fish easily. Sunday proved to be a - June 14th: Nite Bite Outing on Alum Creek with fishing high wind day (25-30 mph with 50 mph beginning at 6 p.m. and ending at midnight. gusts), which didn’t help the situation! - June 15th: Wounded Veterans Event. We will be hosting local In total, only six fish were caught among wounded veterans for a day of muskie fishing. Chapter 41 will the 52 adults and two Juniors. The first- provide breakfast at the ramp. place honor went to Mark Steinert - June 21st - 23rd: Can-Am, this is one of the best tournaments with a 48.5. Following up was George anywhere in the muskie range. Weber with a 38 and Chuck Wilbert This month’s hot story is Clint Olsen and his 47 Clear Fork Clint Olsen and his with a 35.5-incher. The rest of the field beast. Clint had two, three fish days in the first part of May at the 47 inch Clear Fork had to be content with the excellent small reservoir near Mansfield, Ohio. That’s the way to get the BEAST! pulled pork, beans, and slaw lunch on season off with a bang! Saturday. Many thanks to Daryl Boggs Another season is off and running. Best of luck to all MI and his wife for putting on a fun event. members everywhere in 2019! Stay safe and here’s hoping you Earlier in the week was our May meeting, where long-time catch some luck. member Mark Pauling gave a talk on Lake St. Clair (LSC) with - Dan Collins tips on how he has amassed over 1,900 catches. It was an excellent presentation ranging from lures, techniques, and overviews of map Chapter 49: Webster Lake locations for catching LSC muskies. www.websterlakemuskyclub.org www.facebook.com/wlmc49 Later, we heard Turk Michel, our Chapter Vice President, on his gaining certification to teach muskie fishing to school kids. He gave a talk to Big Walnut Junior High on the finer points of our We hope everyone is enjoying an excellent first half to their sport. Turk also showed the kids how to tie proper knots and taught 2019 season. how to do a little casting outside in the schoolyard. Thanks to Turk The Webster Lake Musky Club is entering the mid-summer for his efforts in helping introduce area youth to muskie angling. break after a flurry of events to kick off 2019. The 18th Annual - June looks to be one of our busiest months here in Central Ice Out Challunge, sponsored by Musky Tackle Online, was held Ohio. Our list of events is as follows: March 30th. Another great turnout but unfortunately the fish did - June 1st and 2nd: Chapter Challunge at Salt Fork Reservoir not cooperate this year. - June 8th and 9th: Annual Russ Dodridge Outing at Alum Creek We also held our Spring Trophy Hunt Tournament, also sponsored - June 11th: Monthly meeting that will be at The Hollenback Rd by Musky Tackle Online, on April 13th at Webster Lake. Another ramp. We usually do a small cookout, and then we all go fishing. (Text continued on page 32)

www.muskiesinc.org July / August 2019 .....MUSKIE 31 outstanding turnout with the event being won by Gordon Hooten He gave an informative talk on our local hatchery and the methods with board member Randy Mead coming in second place. they use to grow muskie fingerlings. Josh Borovsky was our The Spring Guide for A Day event was speaker for our April meeting. He is one of the top muskie guides on April 27th. We had another record- in the state and gave us valuable information on how to fish Lake setting turnout with 30 participants, Vermilion. A special raffle happened after the April seminar, and many who were fishing for muskies for Kevin Walsh came out the big winner with his winning tickets. He the first time. The Chapter gave away a went home with a Headlock Lure and a Cowgirl Bucktail. MI membership, Musky Hunter starter Pat Stangl, Craig Carstensen, Colin Hulke, and Brock Moyer pack, and a $20 gift card to Musky Tackle participated in the Annual Muskie Fishing Tournament on Clear Online. Thanks to all of the “guides” Lake, Iowa on April 27th. Our Chapter members enjoyed their who donated their time and gear for the time fishing during the Minnesota walleye/northern opener on event. If you’re interested in fishing or May 11th and for the muskie opener on June 1st. John Dobry is holding his helping guide for the Fall Guide for A - Dean Peterson third place muskie. Day event on October 5th, contact us at [email protected]. In addition to these events, club members presented at the local Chapter 58: Lake St. Clair www.facebook.com/lscmi58 Chapters of 4H and Izaak Walton League, promoting muskie fishing and our efforts to support the local fisheries. The Chapter was well represented in the 23rd Annual Indiana Muskie Classic, Last chance! Time is running out to sign up for the 3rd Annual hosted by Chapter 42. Board members John and Fred Dobry placed Bondy Bait Musky Slam. This premier casting tournament will third this year out of nearly 80 teams. be on Lake St. Clair on July 26th-28th, 2019, and you will not The biggest news of our 2019 season is the purchase of want to miss it. Last year the competition doubled in size, and undeveloped land near the Kuhn Lake public access launch. This we are expecting an even bigger turnout this year. There will be land will nearly double the amount of parking for the launch, a captain’s meeting with dinner and door prizes to kick off the which is currently severely overcrowded on most weekends. tournament and to go over the rules. There will also be snacks and What a significant accomplishment that will positively impact refreshments at the awards ceremony on Sunday. Please check us area sportsmen and recreational users of our lakes for generations out online for more information about the tournament. You can to come. We owe a considerable debt of gratitude to Fundraising find us on the web at www.LSCMI.com, on Facebook at www. Chairman, Sean Bergsma, for leading this project. “Thanks” also Facebook.com/bondybaitmuskyslam, or the club’s Facebook site to the Indiana Natural Resource Foundation for their considerable at www.Facebook.com/LSCMI58 financial support. This project would NOT have been possible if - Chapter 58 Secretary, Adam Penzenstadler it wasn’t for the countless number of anglers who participated in our tournaments and who supported our online raffles over the past Chapter 64: Nittany Valley Musky several years. We went from a club with literally nothing in the Alliance Chapter bank a few years ago to now writing a $10,000 check to make this www.muskiesinc.org/chapter64 project happen. We are looking forward to doing more projects in the future. This very first exceptionally warm May day has me thinking Thank you for your support of the Webster Lake Musky Club! about the summer months ahead and everything that will be going Here is our remaining 2019 event schedule: on in our Chapter. Before I talk about the upcoming events, let me - October 5th: Fall Guide for a Day on Webster Lake first bring everyone up to speed on what has happened recently. - October 12th: Musky Madness Tournament, sponsored by Ye It gives me great pleasure to announce that our Chapter is a Olde Tackle Box on Barbee Chain of Lakes recipient of a Hugh C. Becker Foundation Award. The monies - November 2nd: Fall Brawl, sponsored by Chaos Tackle on received from this award will be used to purchase purebred Tippecanoe Lake muskies for our upcoming stocking in Curwensville Lake. I can’t - November 16th: Tri-Lakes Musky Roundup on Upper Long, thank the Hugh C. Becker Foundation Committee enough for their Skinner, and Long Lakes generous donation to help our Chapter. You can find the latest information about our events and Despite the weather for the Yellow Creek Pike Tournament, we activities on our website at www.websterlakemuskyclub.org and had 21 anglers participate in this one-day event. Matt Dixon took our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/wlmc49. the first-place spot, and second place went to Mike Roslonski. Sharp hooks and tight lines! Since no other fish were registered, David James was randomly - Fred Dobry chosen for third place. He decided to donate his winning back to the Chapter. Thank you, David! By the time you’re reading this, we will have held our Annual Chapter 54: Southern Crossroads Glendale Lake Shootout on Glendale Lake in Prince Gallitzin www.facebook.com/muskiesinc54 State Park. Our list of upcoming events are as follows: - September 7th: Curwensville Tiger Hunt Our December meeting program topic was “Favorite Trip - October 4th – 5th: Beast of the East Night.” Various Chapter members described their favorite fishing - November 3rd: Hawg Hunt trip or experience of 2018. Andrew Scholten, a fisheries specialist If your schedule permits, I hope you will consider coming to a for the DNR from the Waterville office, was our March presenter. few of our tournaments. They are a great way to get to know other

32 MUSKIE..... July / August 2019 Chapter members and participate in the meetings that are at the Category, and two new categories; Little Tiger Muskie Category closing of each tournament. (for smallest tiger caught), and a Traveling Bait Category We have also decided to adopt a trail at Prince Gallitzin State (spinnerbaits will rotate between anglers signing up for this Park. Our Chapter will be in charge of the upkeep of the trail. It’s category, and the winner will be the largest fish caught on that an excellent opportunity for our Chapter to help out the park. traveling bait) thanks to Nick Granato. Events started May 1st and As always, I hope that many of you will try to attend our will go through October 31st. meetings throughout the summer to give us your input on matters As of this writing, Ryan Elizondo is leading several categories you feel are essential. We wouldn’t be where we are at today if it with his 42.25 inch Men’s Big Fish, May LOTM, and the Rubber wasn’t for the hard work that previous members did before us. I categories. Brett Hill is leading Little Tiger Muskie with a 26 look forward to seeing many of you on the water. Have a safe and inch, and Lynn Hotchkiss leading Women’s Big Fish with her 42 relaxing summer, and I’ll hopefully see you on the water. inch muskie. Our Chapter will recognize all the winners at the - Matt Brown November end of season banquet. Good luck to all members who entered events. In closing, Chapter members are excited for 2019 as we are sure Chapter 65: Mountain West Muskie www.muskiesinc.org/chapter65 other MI Chapters are. From Chapter 65 to all of MI Chapters and their members all the best for the season having fun making lasting memories. Greetings from Chapter 65 Mountain West Muskie. Our Chapter - Kim Wagner gives a very hearty welcome to our newest Youth members Quinn Cooper, Aisea and Alaina Scanlon, and Jordan Venstra, and newest Chapter 69: New York Muskies Adult member, Jordan Westbroek. www.facebook.com/NYMI69 Our Chapter held an open March meeting at the American Legion in Huntsville. Craig Walker, Assistant Aquatics Deputy Utah DWR, provided an informative briefing to our members Over the past couple of months, we have been busy preparing on the Utah tiger muskie program and hatchery production. for the season. We developed the new website courtesy of our During the meeting, Joe Weisner discussed rods/reels, and Kim webmaster, Chad Lapa, and it is outstanding! We needed a central Wagner talked about the importance of release equipment. Robert location for all Chapter related news, and this is just what we were Strickland spoke about the 2019 community service events, and hoping for. We have our tournament schedule, tournament trail Nick Granato spoke about our 2019 Chapter events. points, early registration, news, educational information, and one Robert hosted our first 2019 Adopt-The-Beach event with of the coolest features, our story gallery. Chad’s vision of hundreds members collecting 56 pounds of trash from a Pineview trail. of big muskie photos has come to life through our story gallery. We Additionally, Robert worked our quarterly recycle aluminum can asked our members to submit a drive, netting close to $100. photo with a good story behind Late April early May, Chapters members assisted Cody Edwards, that photo. It turned out great the Assistant Aquatic Program Manager Utah Division of Wildlife because it’s a wonderful mix Resources (DWR), along with DWR technicians, with stocking of fantastic stories from our tiger muskies into northern Utah waters. Our Chapter members members. They aren’t all the assisted in stocking 6,000 2.5 inch fingerlings into Newton and biggest of fish, but we found it 28,400 2.5 inch fingerlings into Pineview. more interesting this way, and We also hosted a mini-seminar at the Sportsman Warehouse in we think you guys will enjoy it Travis Young, Chapter 70 member, caught Logan, Utah. Members discussed MI, Chapter 65, along with the as well! Please feel free to go this tiger at our first tournament of the equipment basics including properly handling of tiger muskie. over to the site and give it a look, season on Conesus Lake. Earning himself Nick Granato helped raise Chapter funds by making awesome www.nymusky.com. the first points of the season for our tournament trail. spinnerbaits to auction off. The winning bidder was Jimmy Lynn. We also concluded our first Chapter 65 raised $140 from the auction, so thank you, Nick. tournament of the year for tiger muskies on Conesus Lake. We had Jimmy can’t wait to see a tiger eat that high-quality spinnerbait. a great turnout with 50 anglers, and everyone had a terrific time! With the winter snowpack our Utah Mountains received, northern Before the start of our Big Chautauqua Showdown Tournament, Utah reservoirs are filling up. Spring has been cold and wet, which we will have our newest tournament, our New York State Kids is helping in slowing the runoff from mid and higher mountain Tournament. This tournament is a free event for youth anglers elevations. Members unwinterized their located in New York State and will have four divisions for the kids Shore fishing can be fun and boats by dusting off equipment cobwebs, to compete in. We will have a muskie (tiger muskie and pike), rewarding. Just ask Chapter 65 member, Maddi Hill McCarthy. venturing out, and finding willing tigers. a walleye, a bass, and a panfish category, and we will be giving It is going to be a great time on the out first, second, and third places for each division. The top three water for our members this year. Our anglers in each division will receive a plaque and a gift card in the Chapter put together categories for our value of $50 for first place, $30 for second place, and $20 for third members to participate in. place. We are trying to promote the youth in our state, so they get The fishing categories are as follows: off those Xbox’s and get into some tackle boxes! Big Fish Category, Top Water Category, Our member Andy Ohl came up with this idea and will be doing Rubber Category, Fly Category, Youth school assemblies to spark the kids’ interest. The other project Category, Lunker of the Month (LOTM) (Text continued on back cover) www.muskiesinc.org July / August 2019 .....MUSKIE 33 MUSKIES, INC. PO BOX 1509 Waukesha, WI 53187-1509

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we are currently working on is bringing the Region 3 Chapter the tournament began, Our club acted fast and managed to find a Challunge over to New York State Chautauqua lake next year. new body of water for the tournament as well as coordinate all the We feel we have a great turn out and thank Bob Sisson for the details. A special thank you to the Otisco Lake Campgrounds and opportunity to host next year’s event. There will be a lot more Marina for hosting us on such short notice, and to Travis Young details to come as we have some fresh ideas for this event! and Andrew Hulbert for coordinating the last-minute change. Since our muskie opener has arrived, we are going to take a little We have been working with the New York State Department break from the projects and computer work so we can hit the open of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) on a unique project water. We want to wish everyone a safe and successful muskie that should be underway by the time you receive this magazine. season! This project is an exciting one, and we are just waiting on some - Clint Nicholson paperwork before we can get started. Check our Facebook page and website for details on this project. Chapter 70: Central New York We also have begun construction on our tiger muskie stocking www.facebook.com/MuskiesIncCentralNewYork pen as part of the 2019 Gil Hamm Grant we received. This pen will allow us to work with the NYSDEC to try a new approach to stocking tiger muskies in one of our local waters. The intent is to Our season is well underway, and the majority of our use this pen to acclimate the fingerlings to their new environment tournaments are complete. At the last minute, we had to change before releasing them. More details will follow in the next article. our first tournament due to extremely high waters on the rivers the We are looking forward to the rest of our season here in NY and hope tournament would have been held. With only three days before everyone is having a great year! - Trevor Thieme

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