Fishing in Northern WI

I get asked often, “when is the best time to come?” My answer is you can never catch fish if you’re not fishing for them!

Musky Fishing

Musky season is from the Saturday during Memorial weekend, and I fish muskies till I leave to guide duck hunts during mid-October. Anytime you can make it during that stretch, we can fish for them, and I should show you success on the water! I know almost all the decent-sized musky lakes in the area and pick and choose what ones I fish depending on the day and time of year to keep a high success rate. Of course, I will fish the water you want to fish if you have a specific body of water in mind you want to target. If you can choose when you can come, I recommend it during the first week in July through mid-October. There are peaks and valleys in success throughout the season, but muskies can be a little slower during the month of June as the water warms. If you are fishing in June, I still should be able to put you on fish, but colder water means smaller feeding windows. Afternoon feeding windows seem to be best when the water is the warmest. Usually, starting late June through the first week in July usually offers a full moon and the start of good summer musky patterns developing. This is when success rates are a bit higher, along with a better average size. Moon phases matter. This means coming two days ahead or behind a full or new moon. Full moon phases are some of the hottest bites of the year, but the new moon is not far behind. During these periods, average catch rates and the average size of fish go up. Weather trumps the moon on a daily event, but a good starting point is coming during a good moon phase.

Musky Fishing Trips are offered in 3 different packages: Price is based on 1-3 anglers

• 1/2 day trip (Base Price): Spend a great morning or afternoon chasing muskies. This trip is great for most anglers looking to get out to chase muskies. Most anglers can cast effectively for about 4 hours before they start to wear down. Captain Matt also includes live bait if used on the trips so there are no extra charges on any of the fishing trips!!

• Full Day: This trip is for those of you who want to cast and cast some more! Captain Matt has this trip set up for people that want to spend the full day casting. Best if you have some musky fishing experience. During times of the season, the daytime bite can be good so fishing throughout the day is a good option. Usually, the best time for this is during the early part of the season when the water starts to warm or in the fall when water is cooling, and a good daytime musky bite occurs. It is also good throughout the summer months when you have a good moon period, and the major is during the day.

• Modified full day: The reason why Captain Matt calls it a modified full day trip is because instead of grinding out a full day on the water all at once, he likes to break up the day and hit both prime times (morning and evening). Most fishing guides grind out a full day all at once, and you get done mid-afternoon which means your wasting time and energy when fish do not want to bite, and then you also miss a great feeding window during the evening. Spend half the day fishing muskies, go in and relax, then head back out to fish the evening bite window. You can use the second part of the day chasing more muskies, or you could go for walleye, bass, or multispecies instead. This is a great trip for those who want to fish for muskies but also want to bend the rod some more or have fish to take back for a fish fry. This is Captain Matt's favorite trip, where people fish walleyes or multi-species half the day, head in for a little R&R, and then head back out for muskies! Live Bait is Included!

These trips will be dedicated to learning techniques and strategies for catching more muskies or getting your first fish in the boat. Captain Matt is one of the top musky tournament fishermen across the country so he knows a thing or two about the species and how to consistently catch them. Captain Matt has spoken at numerous musky clubs, fishing schools, and big-name musky and outdoor expos. On a musky trip, you will learn top techniques and how to identify fish locations depending on the time of year. Musky fishing trips do involve some effort since most all trips we will be casting. Captain Matt can handle everyone from young to old but it does take some effort to catch them. Most people handle around 3-5 hours of musky casting so many of the musky trips are half days. If you're a die-hard and just want to cast we can fish the whole day but for many trips, we can put together a successful musky trip in the morning or afternoon.