Looking for any hints or tips for chasing muskie. Never fished for them before, but am going to give it a try. Is the concept similar to chasing pike? My plan is to pitch the big baits along weed edges, rock piles, points, etc. Any certain baits work better any time of year? Certain time of year / time of day better for them? I live in Fargo so planning on starting the quest in Detroit Lakes. How heavy of line should be spooled? How long and heavy of leader do you use?
Similar areas as pike, but muskies like a bit warmer water. Most of time you are fishing musky in the top 10 feet of the water column...even if fishing open water over 40 feet. Detroit is no doubt an awesome lake, but it gets so much boat traffic you're better off fishing sunrise and then coming back and fishing sunset and/or during the night.
It's best for the fish if you don't play them too much, so going heavy on the equipment is what most guys do. A longer rod in the 8 to 8 1/2 foot range lets you cast these big baits a lot easier and farther, and you don't have to bend as much during the figure 8. 80 pound braid is pretty standard with 80-120 pound fluorocarbon leaders. Stealth makes some awesome leaders that are crimped, tied and glued. 12-18 inch leaders for casting is good. If you want to work some walk-the-dog or certain jerk baits right you should still use the old solid wire leader yet.
Figure 8 on every cast, never skip it. Although not as much in Minnesota, at LOW the guides say over 50% of the fish caught are in the figure 8.
For lures to start with, make sure you get some bucktails, particularly one called the Double Cowgirl, by Musky Mayhem. This bait changed the world of musky fishing several years ago. A magnum Bulldawg by Musky Innovations is also a must-have. You will also need some sort of top-water bait with a spinning prop, such as the Joe Bucher Top Raider. For a crank style bait look at Musky Innovations Shallow Invader and a Bucher Depth Raider.
When just starting there are three colors you will want----black, black, and black.
Don't give up if you aren't successful right away. I went my first year without catching a fish. It can be a real grind sometimes when you go several weekends without catching a fish. We fish big baits for big fish, however, as I am not interested in catching a 39 inch musky. This year has been horrible for our group, and I have found myself doing more walleye. I'm just a weekend warrior, though, which makes it even that much more difficult to catch a musky.