lots of big fish, small area

[eric h]

Canada, July 4th, this year, 4 four guys, two boats, surface temp 67. We headed out in the morning after tooth critters. I go to one side of an island the other boat goes on the other side. We have a blow up right away and the others catch two, small. We got are two radios with barking at each other. Then it's dead. Nothing going on in my boat and don't hear from the other guys for and hour and a half. Then they tell us we need to come into this bay and experience what they have been for the past hour. Now they are in this shallow bay where one of the guys got a fish last year. So we head over there and they tell us to drift over this weed patch that is about 20'x20'. "Why"? "Just do it". So we start drifting into these mini pads, its not real thick and about 2 feet deep. I tell the guy in my boat to grab a rod there's a big muskie. Then we had to go through the were, right there thing. So he starts throwing and I see another. So am casting also, but it slowly swims off, but I don't care because there is another and the other guy sees another also. Now I am crapping my pants, these are all nice fish. We see six fish on that pass but no strikes, no follows even a look. The fish did not pay any attention to the lures. The other guys are just sitting back smiling at us. I tell them I think there is six different fish in here and all in the upper 40's, one of them says no there is a dozen, and the other thinks there is 15. We don't know what is going on. I had heard that the fish might sit in warmer water to warm and raise their metabolism and then go feed. It was 2 -2 1/2 degrees warmer there. We figured we would come back at night and have a grand old time. Now it's dark, we all go in slow, quiet and start throwing, and throwing. After awhile I turn the spotlight on to see if there is any fish down there. Ya they are there and a couple pushing 50. I saw one small one about 32 or so. It had a small floating rapala hooked in the front of his face. I tried to net him and almost got it but no luck. Why were these fish all so tight in one spot? We threw everything we had at them, I wondered if suckers would have done it.

[fishstalker]

small Rapala hanging from his jaws, eh? That should have told you something. I would have scaled down on lure size, maybe even gone with plastics, and slowed down the retrieve. I might have even busted out the fly rod with big streamers. Just like bass, Muskies sometimes need to be finessed.

[eric h]

We tried everthing but live bait. As far as slowing down the bait, these fish were right there, it got to the point that we were jigging things in their face. I know what you are thinking, "so many big fish in one small spot, right". I would not believe it if i had not seen it. I am wondering if anyone else has seen this.

[fishstalker]

I've seen it with Muskies once at Governor Dodge S.P. in WI one August. I was bank fishing at the campground beach, at sun down and I kept seeing fishbreaks, big fins, rolls, etc in the very shallow water. I thought they were carp until I started wading. I looked down to see a long shape glide right in front of me, then another. I knoticed the fins were reddish, and had spots. I saw at least 10, and saw the rolls and splashes of many more. like your experiance, they werent biting. I wondered if I should go get the flyrod, but i didnt want to leave. The sight of those fish in 10" of water, swimming with their backs out of the water and rolling like carp was really cool. I've never seen anything else like it.