August 30th
As August comes to a close, the surface water temperatures are still in the upper 70s. The third weekend of August was the start of fish slipping back into the shallower weed flats and weed lines, but after the few days of hot and humid 90-degree days that followed, they just slipped back out. With the cooler nights and a nice cool weekend predicted, the fish will be slipping back into the shallower weed flats and weed lines once more. Trolling is still very effective and the best method to catch multiple muskies. Casting is just getting started and look for September to be very good for both trolling and casting.
The third and fourth weeks of August muskie fishing was on and off. Some days the fish were easy to catch and other days they were nowhere around. Fishing the deeper suspended fish was out of the question because of the high water temperatures. It is not worth killing or hurting a fish just because you can't wait a week or two for the hot 80 degree surface water temperatures to cool down. I know of three fish that were caught and died as they were being released. Most of the local fishermen left them alone for a week or more until we had a good rain and some wind to cool the water some. I have been watching the release time of the fish caught and noticed that once the surface temps get into the 80s, the fish are very hurt by catching them. If you just unhook them in the water, they release good. If you net them before release, they take some time to swim off. Lifting muskies for a picture also adds to the release time. The stress that a fish goes through is so hard on them when the water is hot. Once it gets into the high 70s, the fish release much better. Mid 70s, the muskies are strong as can be when released even after a quick picture, and that's where the water temperatures will be after Labor Day weekend.
The last full week of August is when the rain came, and the lake level rose about two feet in a few days. "Slow No Wake" was declared by the local police department and the boat traffic was minimal. This was great for the fishermen because the fish were moving to shallower water and the lake was quiet. Fishing got hot and then so did the weather and the muskies started to work their way back out to deeper water. With the recent cool night and some cooler days the fish started to show up on the breaks and flats again. This past week the fishing was outstanding. Multiple fish afternoons were common and some larger 40-inch class fish were caught and released.
I had a client out for some trolling action on Wednesday the 29th just after it rained for an hour. We worked the shallow flats first because I figured the rain and wind would have the fish up on the flats looking for an easy meal. We did manage to pick off a couple low 30s muskies before we moved to some deeper water to look for a bigger fish. This was a good move because it was not long before the hits started to sound off as the clickers on the reels screamed with each hit on our crank baits trolled in the deeper water. We boated 6 more muskies in two hours and 4 of the 6 were after dark. The muskies ranged from low 30s to just under 40-inches. Matt was blown away with the fact that we boated 8 muskies in just over 4 hours of fishing. While certainly not typical chasing the mighty muskie, one to three muskies per trip is what I expect in July and August, but the occasional skunk has showed up on two trolling outings this summer. Sizes may vary but I still have not figured out how to keep the little ones from hitting the baits. Size of lures will not dictate the size of the fish you catch contrary to other theories. Bigger baits for bigger fish will usually keep your number of fish boated way lower and you will still catch some dinks on those larger baits. I believe you should mimic the size of the forage to catch more fish and some quality sizes too. The big fish don't grow up being stupid; they learn what food is and what might not be. The better you match that food in size and color the better your chances to score a trophy fish on pressured water like Pewaukee Lake.
The 30th was also good for my client Mike. He was out for some muskie action in search of his first. Mike started out catching a small muskie just off the condos. We chose to water release this fish without even touching it. With a long nose pliers and a quick twist to remove the hook, it was free again. The rod was set back up and we cracked a beverage to toast his first muskie. Seconds later that same rod started to rip line out, and Mike was into his second muskie. This one was a better fish that stayed deep all the way to the boat. Twenty two feet deep and the fish was straight down. Finally she tired and came up to the top, and I scooped the Frabill under his first legal muskie. A quick picture and Mike released a clean fat 39-inch Pewaukee muskie. "Now were having fun" Mike said to me, and I replied "moon rise was an hour a way" and more fish are possible. Sure as the moon will rise so will the action as it does. Just minutes before the moon was due to come up, a planer board rod started to bend and the reel sounded the sweet sound of drag. Mike was into his third muskie just as the moon was peeking over the horizon. This was also a good fish I told him because it was taking the board under as it headed to deeper water. The anticipation was building as the planer board was removed and the fish kept deep. Mike handled the fish like a champ keeping pressure on it until it tired enough to put the net under it. This was a quality 40-inch class fish and just what I was looking for after dark for Mike to experience. A quick picture and she was released to make someone else's day or night. We also caught a bonus walleye before the night was over to top off a great half day guide trip.
With the "Slow No Wake" in effect this Labor Day weekend the fishing will be outstanding. Look for the first September report to be full of pictures and some good client stories to share. I am looking forward to getting back into the casting action very soon. Once enough fish move shallow to make it worth casting, it will be hard to decide what to do; cast or troll, they both will work. I actually like to start out trolling and then move in to cast as it gets dark. This is when some of the big fish take up sweet spots on the prime weed lines and weed beds in the big lake. The Eastern shallower end will be starting to kick out fish very soon.
I am looking forward to casting the upcoming months for the big girls who slipped out to deeper water so early this Summer as the water temperatures got so hot so fast. These fish are now starting to move back in and will be ready to test your nerves and skills very soon. Look for the best action to start in the next few weeks. By mid-September, the casting bite will be in full swing. Do you like the excitement of Top Water baits for muskies? How about the heart stopping hits on a figure 8 after dark on a buck tail or crank bait? This is what I am talking about! It's not too far away; make the plans now. I hope to see you on the water very soon.
I am already booked up after the 2nd week of October for the rest of the season. I do have some great September weekday dates remaining as well as a few in October, but they will fill quickly. I hope to net your personal best or most muskies ever in a fishing trip. Try Mike's Extreme Guide Service; you might be amazed at what you can learn and catch.
August 15th, 2007
Here it is the second week of August and the heat wave that sent the local lakes water temps into the 80s is finally breaking. Some well needed rain and cooler nights have helped to cool down the lakes to a safe level. With the water temperatures now in the high 70s, we can get back to fishing on a regular basis. I took some days off and rescheduled a few clients last week due to the dangerously high water temperatures. When it gets into the 80s you take the chance of killing the fish your catching. Even though you release them as fast as you can, the chances are good they will die from the stress and heat. Remember one degree of water temperature is like 10 degrees to us. That's a 5-degree drop in a week on the lake to bring it down to 77 from 82 (50 degree to us, say 90 to 40, that's a big change).
Ok, now that we can safely target the king of the lake safely again, lets get back on that lake and put the smack down on them. I still have some early September trolling/casting dates open and a few late ones to fill up. Please don't wait to book a date; I have already turned down way too many people this year looking for last minute dates. Drop me e-mail and let's talk patterns and dates, I will try to get you what you're looking for.
Now for some reports from Early August. Jeff, Shawn and Tom wanted to learn some of the trolling patterns and baits to use on Pewaukee Lake. We started out trolling the deeper water off Rocky Point looking for suspended fish and we found a large concentration of blue gills and crappies. We worked baits high and low to see what was going to work best at that time of the afternoon. It was only about an hour before the first rod started to sing and Tom was hooked into his first Pewaukee muskie. Tom worked the fish closer to the boat as I hurried to get a few of the other lines in. After a good battle, the muskie was at the back of the boat and quickly sealed the deal with the net job. After a quick picture of his 36-inch musky, she was released to make someone else's day. The next fish we had to work for because the bait we were working just spread out all over and so did the muskies. I decided to structure troll for a while to see if we could catch a deepwater muskie coming in to feed. This was a good choice because Shawn was quick to grab the next rod as the drag sounded off like an alarm clock. This was one hard fighting upper 30s muskie that just didn't want to come close to my boat. Shawn fought it like a champ, and it was not long before he was holding that muskie for a quick picture to preserve the memory.
The next day I had a father and son out for some muskie action and I was happy to see 4 fish show up to make little John's night. John and his son John were up from Illinois on vacation and wanted to see what Pewaukee Lake had to offer. They booked one of my popular 5pm till 10pm weekday afternoon outings, and I was happy to show them around. The first muskie came soon after we set up in the same area I did the night before. A respectable 39-inch fish gave little John all the fight he could handle. I must say it was very enjoyable for his father and I to watch and listen as the first battle between muskie and son happened.
The second fish was a 34-inch muskie followed by one just a bit smaller. The kicker fish of the night was a 19-inch walleye that came just as we were finishing up our outing. I am sure both John and his son will remember this quality time spent together on Pewaukee Lake.
The next day it was Steve and Chris looking to get locked up in to a muskie or two. I explained what was working the last few days as we motored out from the launch. I set up the lines and showed both of them what we were going to be trolling. It was just under an hour before the first fish crushed one of my crank baits and Chris was all over that. He worked that fish just the way it should be done, nice and easy with steady pressure. This was a good fish because it stayed down deep all the way to the boat. 
All three of us waited to see what was on the other end of the line as it got to the boat. I was ready with the net but as the 40-inch class muskie realized the boat was near, it bolted off on a power run back down to deeper water. This went on a few times before I had the chance to scoop her in the net. A quick picture and release was done on this fish to make sure we didn't hurt it in this high water temps. We set back up and back to trolling we went. After about a half hour we were still working that same area when Chris noticed a fish struggling in front of us. I quickly grabbed the net and scooped it up as we trolled by. This was the same fish we caught earlier. I put her in the aerated live well and nursed her back to where she was ready to go back. Just about then the second fish hit one of our crank baits. Steve was up, and his battle was just getting started. His fish was just a bit smaller but a quality fish and fight just about the time we needed to stop the boat to release the newly energized muskie we had in the livewell. We released both fish at the same time and waited to make sure they were both ok.
Sunday was the most outstanding day of fishing I have had on Pewaukee Lake this year. Joe and I caught 10 muskies, 3 smallmouth bass and two pike during the misty rainy morning and into the afternoon. The largest muskie was Joe's and she went just over 40-inches. I got a 36-incher and a handful of low 30s. Joe got to catch two pike that measured 33 and 35-inches. We also got a huge smallmouth bass that went about 6lbs. The other two were in the 2 to 3 pound range. This action was outstanding because the humidity dropped and the first rainy day was upon us in the last month or so. That day I will remember for a while, action all day. Actually, we also lost a couple fish and Joe "the carpster" snagged a carp in the tail. 
You talk about a fight, I laughed the rest of the day and actually I am still ripping on him for that. LOL, sorry Joe, I had to.
With the water temps starting to fall as the cooler nights set in, you can bet the larger fish with start to move back in from the deep water. I am looking forward to getting back into the casting as the muskies start showing up back in the weeds. August is full and September is just about booked up. Now is the time to get a date set before it's too late. Trolling and casting will be the pattern in September. This is the perfect combo for anyone who is looking for action. I am looking forward to seeing you on the water enjoying the great outdoors.