Two hand retrieve for Musky success

                                                A two handed retrieved beauty 
 

In the past I haven't really utilized the two hand retrieve much. Honestly, I felt like I was catching enough fish that I didn't really need to. But a year or so ago I was fishing a favorite boulder strewn flat of mine with a reel holding 550 grain Depth Charge line. Although I was stripping pretty fast I kept getting hung up in the boulders. I usually would just switch out to another reel loaded with Scientific Angler Full Intermediate line when this happens. But the water was warm enough and the fish should of been aggressive enough to eat a pretty fast moving fly. So I chose to two hand my fly with the heavier full sink line instead. 

I worked my way up to the edge of the flat and launched a cast to slack water edge on the far side of the river. I quickly tucked the rod butt under my arm pit and buried the rod tip in the water and started stripping as fast as I could across the current. Seconds in I saw the big wake chasing my fly and I knew it was game on! I kept my fly rippin until I saw the big Musky inches from my T Bone Sucker pattern and suddenly stopped it in its face. The big girl with gills flared and mouth agape inhaled my fly five feet from me. I started my two hand stripping cadence again this time to ensure the hook was properly planted but it was unneeded because the fish totally inhaled my fly. What an experience and my first two hander fish in the net. 

                                                            First two hander fish 

Needless to say the experience above got me hooked to this retrieve style and I started utilizing it A LOT more. One thing I've learned is you don't always need to be two handing your flies a hundred miles per hour. I like to change my retrieval speeds up throughout the day. It's good to change things up on the Musky water. You never know what retrieve is going to be the one that triggers that predatory response. 

A waterway that is fast becoming my favorite is littered with wood. The wood makes for perfect Musky habitat but it's a magnet for snagging your flies if you fish too slow. I've been throwing in and around the wood and two handing my flies back to the boat with little fear of getting hung up. A favorite fly option of mine is any fly with a Paccahiarini dragon tail on it. The tail movement pulls those cover hugging fish up and can make for some unbelievable takes. 

                                                         Two hander out the wood 

I have been having some really good success fishing moving water flats in 2-5 foot of water with this retrieve as well. I like to retrieve my fly with the Paccahiarini dragon tail at a pace that I know that the tail is wiggling enough to get their attention. If the fly zips across the water above them they just shoot straight up and crush it. I've caught a bunch of fish like this all Summer and honestly should have a lot more if I was just a little better. 

                                                          Two hander caught on a flat

I had a rough day a few months ago and I couldn't keep a fish pinned. I lost a decent fish at the boat and my frustration level was at 150%. After a few days to calm down I decided to try for that fish at night. I put on a black fly with a silver and black Paccahiarini dragon tail and I crept to the tree where the fish hung out. In the pitch black I peppered casts and two hand ripped that fly around the area when suddenly my fly stopped and I knew it was the big girl. I kept my rod tip low and kept stripping until the fish was close to the bloat. I raised my rod up and she instantly breached the surface splashing me with water. The sight of her glistening in the moon light was unreal. What and experience and I would of never pulled it off with a more traditional stripping cadence. 

                                                        Night time two hander fish 

Moral of this post is don't be one dimensional like I used to be. Who knows how many more fish I could of caught if I would of tried two handing my flies a little earlier in my Musky career. Don't forget to vary your retrieve speeds up and don't be afraid to give two handing at night a try as well. 

Tight lines,

Scott

Wade fishing tactics for Musky

                                                            Pocket water fish
 

Wade fishing for Musky can be frustrating at times. Musky don't usually live in pristine waterways with nice easy to wade gravel bottoms. They live in hard to wade places with lots of mud, boulders, and woody debris. With that in mind what better way to defeat the fish of 100,000 (10,000 is for gear heads) casts than catching them mano a mano on their own turf. Here are just a couple of my go to tactics that have helped me catch some bruiser Musky while wade fishing. 

I should preface this by telling you all that I discovered many of my tactics by learning on the go. When I first started fly fishing for Musky I just dove in and flew by the seat of my pants. I didn't watch any videos, or read a books about it, I just went out and fished. Coming from a Trout and Steelhead background I literally fished for Musky in pretty much the same manner that I threw streamers for Trout and Steelhead. But instead of 3" streamers I was now throwing 12"-16"  Musky meat. But I essentially fish the same exact way. Musky in moving water situations relate exactly like other fish species by utilizing current breaks. I have caught many fish in fast moving water that most would never equate to Musky water. But I knew where those current breaks were and I fished them like I was fishing for any other fish species and I caught Musky. 

The fish in the picture above was caught in a slow pocket of water on the opposite side of some really fast moving water. It was a Spring day and flows were up from recent rain storms and I wasn't able to fish the usual spots or fish in a traditional cast and strip manner because of how fast the water was moving. If I were to cast to the opposite bank and strip back in, the moving water in the center of the stream would drag my fly line and fly so fast it would of been futile trying to get a fish to eat. So with my Trout fishing mind set I waded as far out into the fast water that I safely could, and then cast my 12" Changer into the slack water. I then used the current to my advantage and I high sticked my fly down through the pocket. It worked like a charm and this fish was the result of that effort. 

An absolute favorite tactic of mine that also involves moving water is swinging a big Changer or T bone fly. Depending on the speed of the water I like to quarter my cast downstream and across the current and then let the current carry my fly in a swinging fashion to a likely holding spot. I will also give the fly a twitch occasionally to make it appear like a wounded and/or dying fish. The Musky that are hanging in the slower moving section of the tail out or pool can't resist a slow swinging fly in their wheelhouse. This tactic has fooled the majority of my big fish when wade fishing. Again it's important to have the water scenario in your favor for this type of tactic.

                                                       Brute Musky caught on the swing

The last tactic that I will discuss is one that I just started implementing recently and has been the demise of a handful of 40+ fish. It involves using a Changer style fly preferably with a Pacchiarini dragon tail or T bone with same style tail. It also helps to be using a slow sinking fly line like the Full Intermediate from Scientific Angler. The fish have to be holding in semi shallow water of 4' or less deep and ideally have some bottom structure with it. It's a really simple technique of fan casting an area and swimming the fly back slowly and methodically with a two hand retrieve. The motion of the  Pacchiarini tail mimics the spinning of a bucktail blade that the gear guys use and the fish can't stop from eating it. I've caught most of those fish on a slow steady retrieve but I also caught one on a super fast so don't be afraid to change it up.

 

                                   Kraken with Pacchiarini dragon tail used in above tactic

Musky fly fishing is way more than casting and stripping your fly back. Try something different and remember to think outside the box. The one thing I learned about Musky is just when you think they are predictable you have a fish prove that's not entirely the true. Tight lines...

Musky On The Fly 101- Part 2 Where to Fish

                                               A likely holding spot for Musky

We have our rod, flies, bite guard , and leader now for the fun part! Let's go fishing!! But where?? There are lots of lakes, rivers and streams in Pennsylvania that have Musky in them. Finding untapped fishy water takes some time and a little bit of detective work, but it's a fun and very rewarding journey. I'm going to give you some advice on how to narrow down the search for Musky waterways as well as some tips and tactics.

If you live in Pennsylvania the Pa Fish and Boat Commission posts on their website a list of their Musky stocking locations. They also tell you where they trap net breeder fish for their breeding program. In addition the State shares data that they have collected from fish surveys done by their Biologists. This data can often be years old but it doesn't diminish the usefulness to us fishermen. If I were looking for Musky waters in Pennsylvania this is the first place I'd start.

 

A couple years ago I googled the name of a stream and added "Musky" to the search which led me to a message board. My eyes lit up when I started reading guys talking about Musky eating the Smallmouth that they had hooked up with right off their lines. I had visions of Musky heaven and I had to get on that water. With a little online leg work I found an access point and I was fishing the water in a few short days, and under a week I was netting my first Musky. That message board banter was years old but it was still extremely useful to me because it told me exactly what I wanted to hear.

                                                         MESSAGE BOARD FISH

                                            

Social media is a huge part of our society today and that encompasses our fishing community as well. There are lots of fishing related pages on Facebook that have some really good information on them. With so many people frequenting these pages there is going to be a few with loose lips so to speak. Whether intentional or not someone is going to let out a clue on a waterway that possibly you never considered being a Musky hotspot. If you're lucky enough to snag this info you may have your new Musky spot. 

Bait and tackle stores are AWESOME places to get fishing intel from. I know, I know we are fly anglers and we don't frequent bait and tackles stores but hear me out. These places usually have a brag board where people post pictures of their catch and most of the time there are Musky pics. Even better the people that work the counter or own the place are always happy to share where the fish was caught even down to the specific location and what the fish was caught on. Do I need to say any more?? Stop into these places and get some useful intel and spend a few dollars while you're at it. 

In summary, it pays to be a detective when trying to find good quality Musky water. Anyone can sit at a spillway and catch a Musky eventually. We are fly anglers and we don't fish like that. Get that small bit of intel that lets you know there are Musky in a certain waterway and then go fish. Musky move around quite a bit so don't get stuck in one spot. Get away from the crowds and easy access and you will be rewarded with many a toothy fish! Tight lines...

Musky On The Fly 101-Musky Flies

                                     BIG MEATY KRAKEN FROM NIGHTMARE MUSKY FLIES

Musky flies are like fine works of art. They come in lots of pretty colors and styles. But did you know they are designed to displace water? In simpler terms they push/move water as you strip the fly back. The fish can actually feel the fly swimming in addition to seeing it. Musky are very sensitive to movement,vibration, and electrical impulses so this water displacement is an effective way to get their attention. I'm going to list a few of the different Musky fly styles and a few of the top tiers where you can get them from.  

CHANGERS

I was introduced to changer style flies by Tony Sandrone of Nightmare Musky Flies when I first started Musky fishing. I owe A LOT of my Musky fishing success to Tony and his awesome changer style flies. The changer is an articulated streamer that has a really awesome wiggle motion that Musky love! Changers are my "go to" flies when I want to dead drift or swing my flies into spots (I will be writing more about these techniques in a later post). These flies will get down with the intermediate or the full sink line. They come in 8" (double hooks) and 12" (double hooks) with feather style tails or a multitude of Pacchiarini  tails (see picture below). I've caught many of my largest Musky on the changer style. I have since moved to its cousin fly The Kraken" with the dragon tail from Pacchiarini because it's a tad bit lighter and a little easier for my bum shoulder to cast. I also LOVE the action of a Pacchiarini dragon tails. I honesty believe those tails get fish to strike even when don't want to. Contact Tony for more details or to order your flies at   https://www.nightmaremuskyflies.com/

                                       CHANGER STYLE FROM NIGHTMARE MUSKY FLIES

                                                       PACCHIARINI TAIL OPTIONS

BUFORDS

My buddy Mark Burns who owns Urban Fly Company has a lot of success fishing Bufords, and his flies are some of the best around. He ties a wide variety of awesome color combos and they put a bunch of fish in the net for many anglers  Bufords come in "singles" (one hook) around 6"-8" long and doubles (two hooks) around 12" long. The head of a Buford is made from stacked deer hair and can be made more or less buoyant depending on the size of the head. The bigger the head the more buoyant the fly is and the smaller the head the less buoyant. This is important to remember because you'll be faced with different fishing situations where you may not want your fly to sink overly fast or vice versa. You'll have to take into account the fly line you're using as well because an intermediate fly line might not sink a double Buford too well,  especially one with a bigger head. But a single Buford with a smaller head should get down with that same intermediate line. Bufords have an awesome suspending nature to them and that comes in handy when the fish are sluggish and not overly aggressive. They also have really nice natural motion in the water. Contact Mark Burns at Urban Fly Company  for more detailed information about Buford style Musky flies. 

                                SOME COLORFUL BUFORD STYLE FLIES FROM URBAN FLY CO

                                                                                                 

T-BONES

This next fly I want to talk about is called a T-Bone. A LOT of Musky have fallen for the T-bone and they are the original "OG" of Musky flies.I love the action of these flies especially with the natural feather tail. Dom Petruzzi owner of Streamerking Flies is the man when it comes to T-bones and many other fishy Musky flies. I have caught many Musky on Doms' T-bones. They get down on either the intermediate or the full sink line. The T-Bone comes to life when it hit the water. It has awesome natural motion with very little work from the angler. This is one of the reasons I love using them in tight waterways where you don't have a lot of time to work a fly. It's important to have a fly with excellent  action to attract a bite in a short amount of time and the T-bone gives you that. I was grinding on some water that I knew a huge Musky was hanging out in. After exhausting almost every other fly in my box I saw an all white T-Bone and tied it on.  I cast that fly up current and it literally didn't sink 6" under the surface before the big girl exploded on it like a Great White Shark attacking a helpless Seal. Long story short I lost that fish but the moral of the story is T-Bones catch fish so use them! Dom is an awesome dude and his flies rock so contact him at  https://streamerkingflies.ecwid.com/

                                                 T-BONES FROM STREAMERKING FLIES

DECEIVERS

One last Musky fly I'd like to touch on is the deceiver style. I use deceivers in small waterways where you only have a short distance to get a fish to commit to a strike.They have really nice natural motion in the water and you can get them to walk side to side like a glide bait. Musky are really attracted to this type of action and it can sometimes trigger bites when all else fails. Deceivers work well with full sink and intermediate lines.  It's a smart move to have a few of these in your fly box. https://urbanflycompany.com/

                                        ALL BLACK DECEIVER FROM URBAN FLY COMPANY 

FLY COLORS

I get asked a lot about color selection. My best advice would be to get a Perch, Sucker, all white, all black, Shad, and lastly Firetiger. Those of you that know me know Firetiger is my favorite color and I catch a lot of fish on it. If you're just starting out I would suggest getting a few flies from each of the above mentioned tiers in the colors that I recommended and you'll be good to go! 

Musky On The Fly 101-Fly Line and The Leader

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Full sinking fly line from Orvis Co.

We got our rod and reel now we need to figure out what fly line we will need. Choosing the right fly line is probably the most confusing aspect of fly fishing for Musky or any other fish for that matter. All the major fly line companies have so many different fly line options and it can boggle your mind. I'm going to attempt to make this as simple as I can for you. For starters we are only going to worry about two types of line. One is a full sinking line and the other is an intermediate sinking line. 

Full sinking lines are tungsten filled fly lines that are made in different grains. Each line grain corresponds with a specific rod weight. For example Orvis Depth Charge grain recommendations are as follows..350 grain (9/10wt Rod), 450 grain (11/12wt rod), and 550 grain (12wt rod). NOTE: This line has a sink rate of 6" per second. Which means when you cast your fly out and let it sink, it "should" sink around 6" for ever second you wait to retrieve it. Factors such as current, boat movement, fly style, etc can affect the sink rate somewhat so you'll need to figure that out for each fishing situation that you're in. 

What does this mean and in what situations do I fish this particular line?? I use a full sinking line any time I need to get my fly down in the water column. This is usually the case if I'm fishing in deeper Lakes or fast moving current (PRO TIP: Musky do lay in current) For an example you're fishing a Lake in 10 foot of water and you want to get mid water column with your fly. Make your cast and wait 10 seconds before you retrieve and then strip your fly back to the boat. This retrieval delay allows the fly line to sink your fly to the desired depth. Another example is when fishing a River and you have fast current to contend with. Most likely you'll need a full sinking line to get your fly down in the water column. A full sinking line also gives you the ability to have a faster presentation because the line holds your fly under the water more than the intermediate line. You can also use a fast retrieve to keep your fly up off the bottom in shallower spots where you don't want to get snagged. Not to mention that a fast retrieve can also trigger strikes from a hungry Musky. As you progress in your Musky fishing you will see that water depth is extremely important to catching these fish.  Knowing how to get your fly to the depth the fish are in is going to be vital to your success. 

                          

                                   Intermediate sinking line from Scientific Anglers

Our next fly line option is a full intermediate sinking line. This is the perfect line for shallow waterways or places with lots of structure. It has a very slow sink rate which means you can keep your fly off the bottom with relative ease.This line also works really well when the fish are taking slower presentations such as in Winter. I have some water that is chalk full of rocks and fallen timber and this line allows me to fish it effectively because I can keep my fly just above entanglements without getting snagged. If I were using a full sinking line I'd be having a lot of hang ups and most likely losing a bunch of expensive Musky flies. You can also use intermediate line when using top water flies...you do not need to use a floating fly line.

That's basically it. Those two types of fly line are all I ever use and they work really well for me. There are a ton of other fly lines designed to do all sorts of things but they are not important to the beginner fly angler or the fly angler that wants to keep things simple. 

Leader

I'm a simple person and thus most of my fishing set ups are pretty simplistic. My Musky leader is just that..simple! I always cut my welded loop off of my fly line because they ALWAYS crack and break anyways. I will nail knot roughly a 3' piece of 80lb flourocarbon to the now cut end of my fly line. A nail knot tool makes this a very easy job. Once you tie the knot I put a dab of Loon UV Knot Sense on the new nail knot and that's it. There are lots of guys that use a lighter leader or they use a breakaway leader. But I use the 80 lb because if I get snagged to the point where I can't get my fly out, I can usually pull with enough pressure to bend my hook and retrieve my fly. These flies cost good money and I'm not keen on the idea of losing them if I don't have to. 

On the other end of my leader I tie a perfection loop big enough to slide my fly through. I admit that this part of my leader is the biggest pain but I'm not the biggest fan of swivels. I don't like what they do to my fly action so this leader system allows me to bypass swivels. I again dab some   Loon Knot Sense on that knot and now my leader is done. Simple right??

                                              

                                                      Nail knot fly line to leader connection

                                                          

                                    

                                                         Perfection loop at end of leader

When I first started fly fishing for Musky I quite frankly made some dumb decisions. The biggest dumb decision I made was fishing without using a bite guard. In my mind a Musky couldn't bite through 80lb flouro that easily so I risked fishing without a bite guard. I luckily landed a few fish and one day I was reading a Musky fly page on Facebook and the post was about bite guards so I decided to read it. One seasoned vet commented that fishing without a bite guard wasn't a matter of "If" you were going to lose a big fish but "when". Minutes later I was online ordering bite guard wire and I fortunately didn't have to learn the hard way.

                                

                                                   Typical bite guard wire from AFW

I use this AFW wire in a 65lb camo. It knots fairly easily and doesn't kink.You need to perfection loop one end and the other end you loop knot it to a Musky fly . If your mind is wondering, yes you need to make one for each fly you plan to use. Then it's as simple as looping your leader perfection loop through the wire perfection loop and then sliding the leader loop over top of your fly and you're ready to fish.This most likely isn't the most economic way because you're using a lot of wire but as I mentioned above I'm not a big fan of swivels and I don't want to be buying crimping tools.. My way is just one option of many so take it or leave the choice is yours.

Musky On the Fly 101-Fly rod and Reel

                

I get asked a lot of fly fishing related questions through social media. Most of these questions are related to chasing Musky on the fly which some of you already know is a passion of mine. I really enjoy helping other fly anglers so I felt like a blog would be a great place to do that. This first post will be in several parts and will cover everything you will need (and then some) to start chasing the elusive Muskellunge. I hope you all enjoy and learn a little something along the way. 

Where to begin?? Probably the most asked question I get is, "what rod and reel set up do I need"? When I first started chasing Musky on the fly, I was told by many seasoned fly anglers to use a minimum 10wt, but I didn't heed that advice. In my bullheadedness I took that as a direct challenge and I was going to show everyone I could catch a Musky on a lighter 7wt. Boy would I ever regret that decision.

I got my first order of Musky flies and I was off and running.The lighter rod was handling the 8" streamers without much of a problem. But after thousands and thousands of casts I started noticing acute pain in my right shoulder that would wake me up at night. The pain would soon have me at the doctors and an MRI would reveal that I had a torn rotator cuff. Musky on the fly lesson #1 learned loud and clear! 

                                   First Musky (46") on the fly 2017 caught on 7wt fly rod 

I failed to take into consideration the toll that casting bigger and heavier flies on a lighter rod would have on my body. So my pain is your preventative gain so don't be a dummy like me and use a 10wt minimum fly rod. Now I personally use an Orvis H3 12wt in a fast action for my Musky fishing. It throws the bigger flies that I use most often with relative ease.The downside to using a 12wt is that it's physically heavier to hold and after using it all day you really feel it in your rod hand. I would suggest  going to a REPUTABLE fly shop and casting a few different sized rods to see which one works best for your casting style and comfort. I would caution going with any new line of Predator rods. Musky are not the fish to experiment with junk fly rods (I know from learning the hard way). A lot of guys I know really like the Redington Predator line of fly rods. Not only are they really good rods but they have a price point that most can afford. One advantage of name brand companies is the warranty and customer support. That alone is worth it's weight in gold for me. Stay away from knock off fly rods!

                                                   Junk Predator rod broken by fish

"A fly reel is only a line holder" is something I hear way too often. Most often by people that are unwilling to spend good money on quality products. I don't know about you but I'd rather buy one quality reel that lasts forever than a cheap reel that only lasts a few months when the drag eventually fails..which they do (yes I know from this experience as well). Yes a Musky isn't going to test your drag but I wade fish quite a bit and I'm constantly stripping line out and reeling it back in so a smooth drag is essential. Most of the better reel companies have sealed drag systems that aid in keeping the reels from freezing solid in Winter (HINT: Musky feed in Winter), as well as keeping sand and other substances from fouling up your drag. So get the best quality reel that you can comfortably afford. Your reel should be sized appropriately for your rod and reel size. I like the LS4 from Lamson because it's extremely light, very durable, and the drag is so smooth. 

        

                                      12WT Orvis H3 with Waterworks Lamson L4 REEL   

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This concludes Part 1 of my introduction to chasing Musky on the fly. I tell all my clients that are just learning to fly fish in general that the sport is as simple or as complex as you want to make it. Fly fishing for Musky is no different and I'm going to keep things simple and easy to understand and hopefully this emboldens fly anglers who are on the fence to give it a try. The next post will focus on fly line options and a simple leader system for Musky fly fishing. Thanks so much for reading .