# Best lures for night fishing?



## MuskyGeek (Sep 16, 2005)

I would like to try some night fishing for muskies this year, and could use some advice on what lures to use and maybe some general suggestions to help get me started in the right direction. I prefer to cast for muskies, and during the summer, it's my understanding that muskies tend to feed in the shallows more at night than during the day. Not to mention there are much fewer boats on the water at night.

My dad and I tried it over the weekend at Salt Fork and really had a good time even though we didn't catch anything. Is it a good idea to have lights on all the time to possibly see any follows or should you go dark and hope that one will hit your figure eight? Will top water lures work? I have read posts on this site that many people don't liek top water here in Ohio.

We'll be hitting Salt Fork, Piedmont and Clearfork a few times at night this year, so any suggestions would be very much appreciated.


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## crawdiddy (Apr 10, 2006)

this is not musky specific but in general at night black is a good color. I saw a big black jitterbug that looked nice but I've only caught one musky and it wasn't at night. I am interested in what those with experience have to say as I might make a trip out to alum one night going for skis. Good ?.


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## FutureClassicChamp (Jan 16, 2006)

i like spinnerbaits and magnum hawg wobblers. and of course the mighty WEAGLE! all in black. if you use head lamps, i would not have them on all the time. and a regular lamp in the boat will get you eaten alive. if the moons out, keep em off and go through 2 figure 8s each cast. emphasize the "L"


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## crawdiddy (Apr 10, 2006)

is the "L" a part of the figure 8 (the bottom and top of the 8?) thanks I'm gonna paint my mackeral colored rapala floating magnum black and maybe my jointed creek chub pikie. I just got a medium heavy rod and some 20 lb trilene XT line. I'm gonna attept to catch the first 50"er out of alum lol.


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## Weatherby (May 27, 2005)

I would not use mono line. If you get a good fish, chances are he will be swimming around with a lure stuck in his mouth. Get some Power Pro, or Cortland in no less than 65lb. You and the fish will be better off.


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## crawdiddy (Apr 10, 2006)

I also have a spool of original spiderwire in 50lb. I didn't like it when I tried it a year ago but will use that for cut resistance. thanks for the heads up. Its not 65lb but I'm done spending money for now.

edit: speak up if you think 50 lb spiderwire is insufficient and maybe I'll spend some more money. I think I should be fine but only have one musky under my belt, a small one maybe 28" max but fat which was caught on 8lb trilene xt mono. I know that is not musky line but I am slowly upgrading my setup. The stuff gets expensive.


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## peple of the perch (Sep 13, 2004)

i dont musky fish but i think a big jitterbug will do


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## bronzebackyac (Apr 19, 2005)

If you don't want to change your line, use a 18'' metal leader as an alternative. You can then change your lure quickly.


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## FutureClassicChamp (Jan 16, 2006)

bronzebackyac said:


> If you don't want to change your line, use a 18'' metal leader as an alternative. You can then change your lure quickly.



thatll cost you 20 times as much in replacing lures snapping off because of backlashes. and you cant work a walk the dog style lure with an 18" leader, at least not to max performance. 

as Weatherby said, get yourself some 65 to 80lb braid and some decent leaders. you cant beat power pro or tuffline xp.

the "L" is your first turn at the boat. youre bringing your bait straight in, your rod tip is pointed straight down to the water if not already in the water (aligned straight with your path of retrieval). once youre down to the length of line out that youre going to figure 8 with, you make a sharp "L" turn to either side and continue with your 8. be sure to accelerate during this time and make it all one motion.


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## MuskyGeek (Sep 16, 2005)

When you can't see your lure or line in the dark, how do you know when to start the figure eight? The one muskie I have caught so far this year hit on the second "L" just as I started to speed it up, the difference was that it was daylight and I saw everything that was going on and was able to start the figure eight with the right amount of line out and was able to keep the lure with in striking distance of the fish. 

I did hear about black being the best color for night fishing, but I wasn't sure if they should be top water, spinners, jerk baits, etc or if there were different times for each type of lure even at night. Some of the top water that we have make a lot of noise and make a pretty big comotion in the water, while some of the jerk and glide baits we have are just the opposite. Do the same rule apply at night as during the day and the different conditions?


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## FutureClassicChamp (Jan 16, 2006)

MuskyGeek said:


> When you can't see your lure or line in the dark, how do you know when to start the figure eight? The one muskie I have caught so far this year hit on the second "L" just as I started to speed it up, the difference was that it was daylight and I saw everything that was going on and was able to start the figure eight with the right amount of line out and was able to keep the lure with in striking distance of the fish.
> 
> I did hear about black being the best color for night fishing, but I wasn't sure if they should be top water, spinners, jerk baits, etc or if there were different times for each type of lure even at night. Some of the top water that we have make a lot of noise and make a pretty big comotion in the water, while some of the jerk and glide baits we have are just the opposite. Do the same rule apply at night as during the day and the different conditions?



second "L"?? 

you should be able to see your bait that close. whether it be from the moon or a lamp

"Some of the top water that we have make a lot of noise and make a pretty big comotion in the water, while some of the jerk and glide baits we have are just the opposite. Do the same rule apply at night as during the day and the different conditions"

-jerkbaits and glide baits make a huge commotion! both send vibrations through water and are picked up by the fishs most important sensory organ, their lateral line. the bigger the fish, the bigger and more sensitive her lateral line is. 

-what rules are you referring to?


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## crawdiddy (Apr 10, 2006)

ok I'm gonna bite the bullet and get some 65lb test to go with my new medium heavy rod. I'm getting the braided stuff with the thinner diameter. Thanks for the advice, I would hate to lose a big one. Now I need some more big musky lures. I've got the basics though a mepps musky killer, a large jointed creek chub pike minow, 2 large rapala magnum floaters, and a 5" dardevle 5 of diamonds spoon. I need a large deeper diving crank though. I've been eyeing the tuf-shads. Maybe I can still get one of the wooden ones. Just one more lure.....


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## FutureClassicChamp (Jan 16, 2006)

atta boy! lol.....are you gonna be casting or trolling?


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## Weatherby (May 27, 2005)

Welcome to the "sickness". If I had a dollar for everytime I said "One more lure" I could have bought 12 more.


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## crawdiddy (Apr 10, 2006)

regarding casting or trolling, I plan to do whatever I think will give me the best odds of catching one. So at this point in time (summer) that will mean mostly trolling but casting near shore from like 5 am until 7 or so(does this seem reasonable?). So I also need to get some rod holders for my canoe (I will be the only one who trolls for muskie at alum from a canoe..lol). I trolled a week or so ago with my large dardevle spoon and had something big on for about 20 seconds then it was gone. I think it was a large channel cat based on how it fought (a steady good pull like a dead weight kinda pull complemented with the tug tug tug tug as they flop back and forth). But maybe it was a muskie? When I troll I will probably be on the west side bw cheshire and down to the beach (and maybe do the riprap by the dam). I will probably be trolling about 100 yards from shore. Further in the middle and my canoe can't handle the big wakes from the funhousers.


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## FutureClassicChamp (Jan 16, 2006)

how fast does your canoe go, do you have like a 6hp on there?
my favorite trollers are legend baits, cant beat em. now post us some pictures! lol


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## ramlund man (Mar 25, 2006)

you might try a favorite of mine casting at night on lake st.clair--a joe bucher topraider ----in glow/seagull pattern availible thru rollie and helen's as an exclusive from their catalog-- it's the only topwater lure i cast at night that isn't mostly black


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## crittergitter (Jun 9, 2005)

I am still a novice when it comes to catching muskies, but I know things can be kind of hectic during full daylight when you can see everything(I am talking about a fish in the net at the boat). Nighttime seems like this could be even more chaotic. I know one thing, with all those teeth, I don't know if I would want to fool with one in the dark. I might have to consider it though. I would also love to catch one on top water as that is my favorite way to catch any kind of fish!!!

CG


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## Weatherby (May 27, 2005)

If fishing at night make sure you have a good headlamp and the proper release tools. If you are CAREFUL everything should be good.



In case you are wondering what the proper release tools are, here is a short list.


Good net with a TREATED bag. (Frabill Big Kahuna or similar)
Long needle nose pliers. (at least 11")
Knipex or similar cutters. (for cutting hooks that you can't get out) 
Jaw spreader.


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## MuskyGeek (Sep 16, 2005)

Just wanted to say thanks for all the good advice. We didn't exactly go night fishing over the long weekend, but we did get out about an hour or so before dawn on Saturday morning and a few hours on Monday. I really paid close attention to how I started my figure eights by speeding up the lure and really creating an "L" shape as the lure neared the boat. It paid off! Sort of! I missed five fish. Three on saturday and two on Monday! I know that is not something to brag about, but it is much better than just having the fish follow up to the boat just to turn around and swim away. I just need to get the hook set! Only one of the those fish was actually on for any amount of time before the lure popped out of his mouth. Three of them hit me right at the boat either when I made the initial turn or about 2-3 turns into the figure eight. All were on spinner baits that I was cranking as fast as I could on top of weeds in about 6-8 feet of water. I used tandem spinners and in-line bucktails. With the tandem, I think the muskie was actually biting the blades themselves and missing the hooks all together. It happened so fast that I never even jerked to set the hook. MY Fault! Anyway, it added up to some frustrating fun.


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## kingjohn (Apr 23, 2004)

The neighbors' small dog ,,,,,,,equiped with two treble hooks and a small bell!!!!!! Troll it along slowly 2mph,,,,,between the bell and the bark you'll know if its getting hit!!!!!!!!


Just kiddin I like trolling at night,,,Salt fork stay by the dam or within that area!!


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