Strange things happen

[d2bucktail]

I don't know about you, but I've experienced some strange things while musky fishing. Fish lost at the boat, seeing things that aren't there, battling a world record that turns out to be a turtle that's wrapped your line around a large branch, your friend launches his boat in November and you realize too late that *YOU* were supposed to hang on to the rope, and on and on. What kind of strange stories do you have?
Dave Dawson

[d2bucktail]

At the end of the 5th day of musky fishing on Sabaskong Bay I had what could have been some sort of out of body experience! I was fishing with my brother and a friend. We were working down the face of a small island where a 50-inch-class musky had smacked at and missed my bucktail earlier in the trip. The combination of being tired and fatigued, but still very anxious to catch a big musky apparently caught up with me when I had a fish hit that same bucktail near the same spot. I set the hook hard and it felt like a good fish. I felt a slow, heavy head-shake and I saw a large boil at the surface! I reacted by instinct and shouted with UNBELIEVABLE excitement – and in a deep, scratchy all-star wrestler tone of voice, “THERE IT IS, GUYS!!! THIS IS IT! THERE IT IS!!! THERE IT IS!!! THERE IT IS!!! THERE IT IS!!!” Now, mind you, I’m pretty much an introvert and I’m not normally very animated. I NEVER talk like this and can’t ever remember saying, “blah blah blah, GUYS” when saying something to the guys I’m with. I do, however, have a history of acting a little crazy when big fish are involved. Anyway, my friend scrambled for the net, which got hooked by a lure. My brother quickly began reeling his lure in so he could try to help. The fish stayed down as I fought her to the boat. Within just a few seconds I saw my opponent. A 28 ½” pike surfaced right next to the boat. I thought, “What the %&*#@!?!” Then I announced, in a clear and calm tone, “Oh… never mind.” The 2 guys I was with thought I lost the big musky I’d been battling and then I busted up laughing. I still can’t understand why I reacted the way I did. I must have been running on autopilot or something. It was just crazy. My musky pox must really be bad!!! :)

Dave Dawson

[Den]

Dave, they call that musky fever. I caught and released a very large musky in canada a few years ago, and after i calmed down(so i thought) i was casting another weed bed, a pike about 5 pounds hit the spinner, and i set the hook so hard that i actually tore the upper flap off of the fishes mouth. the spinner came in with it attached to the hook yet. the adrennalin sure gets you doing crazy things when fishing. good luck and good fishin.
Den

[Gumbo]

I think it's topwater fever. I either rip the lips off or pull the bait out of the mouth of the first fish almost every time I fish topwater. Exciting stuff!