I lost the "big one" today..........

September 24, 2009 and Henry & I decide we should take Henry's boat and fish the far East end of Eagle Lake for muskie. A sunny, calm day with water temps around 68 degrees it would not seem to be a great muskie day. It turns out it really wasn't, except for one fish. Above, Henry with a decent northern, one of a very few caught today. On the first spot we fished, Henry had an nice 48" muskie follow.

Later in the afternoon I did manage to land this small muskie. If I don't seem too impressed it was probably due to the fish I lost earlier in the morning.

This is the lure that caught the small muskie and also hooked the "MONSTER" that I lost earlier in the day. If my recollection is correct, the bait is a Shumway "Boo-Tail".......probably mid 1980's vintage, judging by the amount of rust and lack of tail. Let me tell you about the fish of a lifetime I lost today. Firstly, as anyone who has fished with me can support, I don't exaggerate the fish I catch and release. Secondly, after fishing Eagle for over 30 years I have probably caught two fish that, if stretched, could be said to be 50 inchers. Nice fish.......I've seen bigger. Until today the biggest fish I ever saw was in Meridian Bay, maybe 25 years ago, fishing with Bill Balcom (NewMexicam) who I still fish with today. The fish was a lazy follower, size was undetermined....it was a huge fish. The fish I had on today was every bit the size of that fish. My lure was probably ten feet from the boat when out of the brownish East end water this huge head appears, followed by the rest of the fish that seemed to go on forever. In slow motion the fish .......which at that moment I was thinking several things about........the head was absolutely huge.....its eyes seemed to be so far apart......and the crease between its eyes extended down its body to its tail.....solid muscle. It's mouth opened behind my lure..........I recall thinking that the lower jaw bones were crazily big........and then closed on my bait. Are you supposed to set the hook now? I hate these moments.........well I kind of set the hook, and the fish is on! It did a brief head thrash on the surface and I yelled to Henry to get the motor up. I was actually thinking of the trolling motor ( I was in the bow) but Henry thought I meant the big motor. No matter the fish went down, bypassed the trolling motor and headed to the rear of the boat, where it surfaced like a submarine. It seemed like 6 feet of fish back there thrashing around.........in slow motion it did the head thrash with mouth open routine.........I'm thinking this hook isn't going to hold..........and I'm right. The fish is off.......all thoughts of where the net is and getting the camera ready are out the window.

All that is left to do is heal the wound with some of Henry's Polish beer.....a cold Lezyajsk or two. My lasting thoughts are these. Pay better attention to the condition of the hooks you are throwing............and............a fifty inch fish is big, but a fifty-five plus fish is a whole different species. As I type this with the repro fify incher above me, there is no comparison. Was it a forty pound fish......for sure.........how much bigger, I guess I will never know. Well, there is always later this fall. If big fish go in cycles, then my cycle is 25 years.........I'll be almost 80 when my next chance comes again...............

Four Top Secrets REVEALED!

Yes, there are bigger fish in Clearwater Lake. This one, caught by an angler who wishes to remain anonymous, could not be released. 32 1/2 inches and 15 pounds. On closer examination it was revealed the fish was a male and the large gut was actually a half digested whitefish. Probably the reason it could not decompress and succumbed to the bends.

The location of the "Professor" and his red glove is uncovered. Obviously, like the "Dark Prince", the Professor spends his daylight hours under cover of darkness.....in this case inside his livewell. Perhaps that is the reason for the pasty, undead look he often exhibits.

A rare photo of the "Newmexicam" without his white spandex shorts and hairless legs. Taken shortly before a Nick Nolte look alike contest.

At the recent Muskie Madness Week pot luck dinner and awards night, Big Dick Keller shows the real secret for obtaining true "big" status. Apparently it has nothing to do with his gig with the band "Big Dick and the Penetrators" or his often heard phrase " The bigger the nose, the bigger the hose!" What about the rumour that Willy Nelson died...........................

Muskie Madness Week.....Part Two.

Last year's winner, Henry Marowski, and Phil Moy congratulate each other after coming in second place with a pair of 27 inchers.

Tom Lecy was a pike angler up until this trip where he landed 3 muskies using his home made spoons made out of.....spoons! Nothing huge, but Eagle Lake muskies non the less. Catching one is always an accomplishment.

Big Dick Keller making off with a framed Charles Weiss muskie print, as well as the hand carved take home trophy courtesy of Chuck.

........And here is the winning fish, 35 inches of finned fury!

All in all it was a fun time, with good folks, good food, and plenty of muskie fellowship. While the weather conditions seemed to shut down the big fish we still managed to have 7 muskies entered during the week. As usual, some bigger fish were seen as they thumbed their noses at our offerings. We have set the Muskie Madness Week dates for 2010 and hope to see you there.......September 11th to 18th, 2010.

Muskie Madness Week.....Part One.....

Phil Moy watches confidently as challenger Gord Bastable strikes a pose during the Wednesday night Muskie Madness Week shuffleboard tournament held at the Bayview Hotel ("Official Watering Hole of the VBL Muskie Madness Week")

The tension mounts as "Honourary Dick", Dan Kornelyk, takes to the shuffleboard table.

2008 Champ, Big Dick Keller, kicks back with Joan Kornelyk while sipping on a cold "O.V."

Dan poses for the camera while hiding behind a bottle of Labatts 50.

John Garrett and Gord after the final playoff game which was fast and furious. A close game but Gord's experience outperforms John's "aiming juice". Now let's get back to chasing muskie!

In defense of Lucy

That sight of Lucy reminded me of a very similar photo we took while up at VBL. Very sad!

Sometimes good things happen.........

Tom Ericson and his dandy muskie caught on a topwater lure at boatside. First muskie landed in the newly refinished wood boat!

Sometimes you can wish all you want and it will never happen! Lucy with eyes on a juicy piece of steak. Photo courtesy of Scotty Kardasz

Back in the water......

After a slow make-over the wood boat is finally back in action. Sporting a new ash keel, several coats of epoxy finish and marine varnish, and a brand new 50hp Yamaha tiller, it is looking good.

The motor has about 20 minutes of running time on it. Seems really quiet, even at full throttle. Only one small issue.....the handle is much longer than what the Merc had making the driver's seat position somewhat tight. Solution........add another seat base maybe a foot forward.

18 feet of wooden fish catching fury. That 60 incher is sure going to look pretty against the cedar and oak!

Muskies & muskie rumours........

Bob Meyer had some good luck the week the Professor's were up chasing walleye. Above, a chubby 42 incher.

Something slightly smaller........

An interesting pose..........

Finally the rumoured fish that Gord apparently caught. Yes, it is a muskie, but how big? You'll just have to wait for the Beaver newsletter to find out!