fish on a throwback!

[Red Childress]

If there was a 46, there is a 50 using your area at times during the year. It took my boat 15 years to land the first 50”....we have gotten 8 over the past 9.5 years (in PA). You will continue to learn little things about your own water so keep an open mind.....the longer you spend in the right areas, the ‘luckier’ you will get.

I still laugh at myself thinking back about a few of the areas I used to fish. I can’t drive thru them fast enough these days. Haha. There was no one really doing it around here so I had to develop my own strategy which took many years of obsessive fishing, reading and observation........and I still tweak it from time to time.

It will happen for you. Keep putting in the smart work.

[gfishes]

I am definitely still learning. Its been a really fun process. Do you ever find fish in faster shallow water? 5 feet and less? I have pretty much ignored these areas and left them as my "smallmouth locations".


Sometimes I still struggle in identifying a good location. There is one area in particular that screams perfect in my mind. Outside river bend. GIANT rocks, low gradient, depth to 20ft. Nearly a half mile long. Some of the deepest water in my area. It is very similar to my go to spots. I have hit this area many times and have NEVER seen a fish. No follows, not even a pike. I'm about to give up on it, but it just looks so good. When trying to find articles on river muskie fishing I feel like the Allegheny never fits the the characteristics of the rivers discussed. Any reading material you might recommend?

[Red Childress]

I agree, reading material for rivers like ours is extremely hard to come by. There was a great article in Musky Hunter several years ago documenting musky behavior in small to medium sized rivers. (The article was mostly about the rivers in WV which is where the study was done.). It was the single most important article relating to ‘my river’ here in this section of the Allegheny.

Yes, they will be in 5 ft. or less water at times and especially late at night/early morning when the temps spike during summer. Be sure to get in and around those big rocks that you mentioned. If the water is clear with less than 3mph current, they could be suspended in that 20ft. area.

[gfishes]

Great, I'm on the search for that article.

I have never thought about the suspended fish. Definitely less than 3mph and very clear water.

[Red Childress]

What is the water temperature in your area?

[gfishes]

The jet boat is very basic. No electronics aside from the TM. I use the Franklin gauge for references.

[gfishes]

I guess temp is a a variable that I neglect in the river. Except for during the colder months when I might try and target spots with sun exposure. Is this something you are constantly monitoring?