Question?

[mtourdot]

Okay, so i am newish to musky fishing but have become really obsessed with it over the winter and have been researching it alot. I have one question on the regulations. For the northern part of the state is it illegal if you catch a musky if your fishing with smaller baits for northern? Im pretty sure i know this answer already, but is it illegal to catch and release musky in may before the musky season opens?

[jkahler]

I wouldn't intentionally target them before the season opens. But if you catch one and let it go while fishing for something else (by accident, not an excuse to try and catch a ski!) it's no big deal. It's really not that much longer to wait to legitamately target them, so play it safe and do the right thing.

[mtourdot]

Okay, thanks for the help!

[Ty Sennett]

It's not illegal to catch one. It's illegal to target them. So lets say you know where or physically can see muskies up shallow. To cast any baits at them is illegal. There's no way to prove in court that you were specifically targeting muskies but as kind of a common sense practice most people understand you should not target muskies when they are in the spawning season(April-late May). It's counterproductive to physically exaust a spawning fish when they are dropping eggs. Many times the eggs end up spilling out onto your boat when you pick them up. Doing so means that many less future fry that would result. I've worked with DNR in harvesting eggs in muskies and some females just let loose when you hold them a certain way. Others take more work. With natural reproduction so important up here, targeting muskies before the season is open can set back future muskie success.

That was quite the rant.

[Mark Benson]

That was quite the rant.

But a good one!!!

Mark

[mtourdot]

Okay, looks like i will just have to find somewhere in southern wisconsin to fish in may. I don't want to hurt the muskies. Thanks for the information.

[Louis]

That was quite the rant.

Rant? Check out some of the other boards, search "world record", and then you can read some rants.