Hello everybody!

Here it is mid September and the cool fall air is already upon us. Water temps are falling and the Ciscos and Whitefish will soon be moving into their spawning areas on Lake Vermilion and many other northern lakes.

What that means for those of us that have the Muskie fishing bug is a chance to catch a true monster muskie. Muskies that spend most of the year out in deep water chasing bait-fish will be moving into the shallows to take advantage of the almost unlimited supply of fat rich Ciscos and Whitefish.They can add on much needed weight that will help them to survive the long, cold winter under the ice.
 
Muskie anglers all know what this time of the years brings and most are willing to brave the wet, cold weather to get their chance at a true fish of a lifetime. Muskies getting fat on a diet of Ciscos can put on weight at a fantastic rate in the fall. A 50-inch fish that might be in the 30-pound range in July or August, could easily weigh 40 to 50 pounds by late October. Fish of state record size have been caught and released in Vermilion many times in the last few years, almost all of them have been caught in the fall.

Trolling is the presentation of choice for many fall muskie anglers, however you can also catch them casting. As water temps fall into the low 50's and upper 40's trolling gets more and more effective. Large minnow baits like Jakes and Grandmas have always been very effective on Vermilion. In recent years however large plastic baits like Bulldawgs have become favorites among many of the anglers that come to the "Big V" for their shot at a giant.
 
Trolling along the shoreline breaks on gravel or rocky shorelines, windblown points and around main lake rock structures has always been very productive. Ciscos prefer to spawn on gravel and other hard bottom areas in four to 12 feet of water. They will start to school up adjacent to these areas when water temps cool into the mid 50's and as they fall into the high 40's they will start to move up into the shallows. You will often see Ciscos breaking the surface by the hundreds whenever you're out on the lake in late fall. You'll also eventually see a Muskie charging thought these schools of bait looking for an easy meal.

This action will continue right up until ice-up and as long as there is open water. You will likely see those "crazy muskie guys" breaking ice at the boat landing to get one more shot at that fall giant. 
 
It may sound crazy to many of you, but to a muskie fisherman it's one of the best times of the season to be on the water. Fish in the 40 to 50 pound range have become almost common place on Vermilion in the last few years. There have been many released that have been well over 50 pounds as well. It's very possible that more than one new state record fish has been released on Vermilion in the last 10 years.

Unfortunately a state record fish has to be killed before you can get the record. Fortunately, most of the Muskie anglers I know wouldn't think of killing a fish like that, even for a record. That means there are many fish of record class swimming out there for all of us to catch and release once again.
 
"Ace"