Huge ND zander caught, Strange pike deformity, Easy leadcore knot

Said now he’s not cutting his hair until he catches a 40-incher (haha!).

Amazing fish, man!!! 🙌 Sooooooo jelly.

Couple quick things:

1. Yup, there are some zander (European cousin to walleye) in North America:

> The ND Game and Fish Dept stocked [a lake] with 180K European zander fry and 1,050 fingerlings in ’89 after failed attempts in ’87 and ’88. The state scrapped the program in ’90 because of concerns from neighboring states MN, SD, MT and the province of MB.

Still a small population in there (and other lakes thx to high-water years) and they are reproducing successfully. I’ve actually seen quite a few caught outta the area the last few years – mostly in the spring, but also thru the ice.

2. Salmo is famous for their hard baits…so you might not have even known that they have a softer side aka UV soft plastics.

And it’s super cool that’s what he caught it on considering those baits are proven fish-catchers for zander in Europe, and just a couple years back Salmo brought ’em across the big pond for walleyes.

From top to bottom: Walleye Shad, Slick Shad, and Spikey Shad:

Most folks in the comments section are suspecting it’s the result of an injury from a Boga-Grip style tool. Definitely could be the case unless pike are evolving into filter feeders or that thing had an emergency tracheotomy 😳 LOL.

Speaking of chasing esox….

My buddy Nick Lindner tried to talk me into going muskie fishing with him the other day. Yeah okay LOL. I’ve gotta pass ‘cuz here’s an actual photo of me – just 17 minutes into chucking muskie baits – the last time I thought it was a good idea:

Btw the steel cylinder alone was 1,200 lbs, so I’m quite thankful we don’t have to carry that thing around from hole to hole while ice fishing.

Some info from this James Dinneen post at sciencehistory.org:

> The ping sped through the frigid seawater at about 4,800 fps: at 540 Hz it was about the same pitch as a dial tone – but loud. The sound waves hit the iceberg, refracting at different angles. A little more than a second later the echo returned to the oscillator…. Echo-ranging – sonar – was born.

> The next morning the crew tried another experiment and pointed the oscillator at the seafloor to take an echo sounding, a measurement of depth. In the relatively shallow water the echoes returned almost too quickly to record accurately with a stopwatch, but the signals were strong and clear, loud enough for the crew below deck to hear the echo return. The implications were remarkable: the centuries-old practice of laboriously and inaccurately taking depth measurements by lowering weights to the seafloor was on its way out.

That’s how it all started!

1. Gary Maher wins Mississippi River NWT!

Gary made a huge comeback – he was middle of the pack after day 1, but his day-2 bag (flirting with 20 lbs) rocketed him into the top spot and a $101,288 payday. 🤑

Few quotes from this NWT Insider Report:

> “I was fishing an island break that swung next to the shore in a secondary channel. I would put the Spot-Lock on and work the current seams back and forth in 12-14′. It was a transition area where they could visit coming out of a back bay or the main river. On the bottom, it was a mix of rock and clams. I thought they would eventually show up, and they did.”

> “Everything we caught came on willow cats and live-bait rigs with slip weights. The heavier the current, the bigger the weight. We had to feel bottom and stay in that perfect zone.”

> “I’ve been up there [in a position to win] quite a few times…I’ve been waiting all my life to do this. It took me a lot of years, but it finally happened, and it’s incredible. It’s something I’ve always dreamed of, but never truly expected. Even when I came in today, I never expected to win. You’re fishing against the greatest walleye guys in the world. I’m honored.”

BIG congrats, Gary!!! Well deserved.

2. OH State researchers studied what colors walleye prefer.

Some interesting info, but tough to say just how “controlled [these] fishing experiments” could be….

3. MN/WI: St. Louis River anglers wondering where the BIGS went.

The walleye population is way up:

> Preliminary results of a major walleye population survey on the St. Louis River Estuary show a 70% increase in walleye since 2015, putting the number near the population back in 1981 when a similar survey was taken.

But locals are saying they’re not seeing nearly as many big fish as they did prior to the 2012 flood. Has them wondering if there’s less of them, or if they’re just harder to catch.

> “It’s possible walleyes are frequenting parts of the estuary that anglers haven’t traditionally fished as much and avoiding old hotspots. It’s even more likely that walleyes, for whatever reasons, spend more time in Lake Superior. The estuary’s walleyes have always been migratory, spawning in the river each spring and then slowly dropping back downstream to spend summer and fall in the big lake eating smelt, shiners and herring.”

4. ON: Abraham/Lombardo win Dryden Walleye Masters.

Scott Abraham and Frank Lombardo also took home ‘big fish’ of the derby with an 11.38-lb giant. Congrats fellas!!!

Btw if any photos of that fish exist, then you’re a better detective than I am…dug around everywhere!

5. WI/MI/IL DNR teamed up in a poaching investigation…

…of hundreds of spawning lake whitefish from the Menominee River.

> …29 citations were issued, with 91 whitefish seized…also ordered a total of 24 yrs of rights revocation [between the 13 violators]. The citations included exceeding the daily bag limit of whitefish, intentionally snagging fish and failing to release foul-hooked fish.

6. MN: Husband/wife duo wins Lake Osakis derby by nearly 10 lbs.

Tyler and Cate Wolden (who I actually went to high school with, small world!) won the 41st Osakis Lions Walleye Tournament and got ‘big fish’ thx to this 29.25-incher.

Was super nice of Cate to let you hold her fish, man. 😜 Hahaha props you two!

7. St. Croix has new Skandic Ice rods coming. 🥶

> Consisting of 12 models ranging in length from 24″ to 36″ and covering the gamut between ultralight and heavy power, St. Croix’s new Skandic Ice Series rods support precise presentations while offering extreme durability, custom looks, high-quality components, and angler-preferred ergonomics.

> Combining precise and sensitive tips with powerful backbone, custom handle configurations, an innovative new Seaguide Delta TYG guide train and St. Croix’s most durable materials to-date….

8. IL: The end of ‘Asian carp’ is coming?

But not how you think. The IL DNR wanted a new national name and brand for Asian carp to make them sound tastier:

> Asian carp is mild-flavored, flaky, freshwater fish, caught in Midwestern waterways. Its place is among the most popular white fish: more savory than tilapia; cleaner tasting than catfish; and firmer than cod.

> “This is not your grandfather’s carp. It is not the one that is rooting around down in the mud. Because they are eating high in the water column, there are lower levels of contaminants.”

> What we need now is a name that is as appealing as its taste, so more people will eat it and in the process, restore our waterways and protect the Great Lakes.

They just unveiled that new national name and brand earlier today, Copi, which is a nod to how “copious” the fish are.

9. WI/MN: Tagged silver carp swims from La Crosse to Winona in 1 day.

Upriver, into swift current.

> The MN DNR tagged the rogue fish, which took advantage of a high-water loophole last month to slip the surly bonds of locks and dams as spillways opened.

> The battle line must be drawn just above Lock and Dam 5 about 10 miles northwest of Winona, says one expert, who has a plan that could cost as much as $16.5 mil.

> He and a group of engineers had a brainstorm about one method that might work – a wall of bubbles and noise known as a “bioacoustic fish fence” to span the lock pool and make the carp retreat.

I tried creating a bubble wall around myself the other day, but my daughter just kept pushing right thru it lol:

10. Yamaha will now distribute Sharrow props.

Those new, super-efficient but super-expensive props:

> The terms of the agreement allow Sharrow Marine to manufacture its award-winning propellers in [Yamaha’s] state-of-the-art facility and foundry in Greenfield, IN. Yamaha will also be offering Sharrow Propellers through its boat builder and dealer distribution channels.

11. Did you know NH has a lead tackle ban?

Not allowed to use lead sinkers or jigs weighing 1 oz or less for all freshwater in the state.

Apparently in 2021, there were 7 adult loons found in NH that “were confirmed to have died from lead poisoning after ingesting lead sinkers and jigs weighing up to 0.17 ozs….”

12. UT: Tiger muskie limit increased at Johnson Reservoir.

> The daily fishing limit increased to 4 tiger muskellunge – a sterile, hybrid fish species – at Johnson Reservoir [thru Sept 30]…. This increase will allow anglers to catch and keep more tiger muskie before upcoming dam repairs require the reservoir to be drained.

13. FishUSA has a couple sales going on TODAY.

They’ve got 25% off all Lunkerhunt goodies and 15% off VMC Neon Moon Eye Jigs. Plus free shipping on orders over $60.

Yup, this is real life! We’re giving away a pair of 13 Fishing setups 🔥 including (2) Omen Gold 6’6″ medium spinning rods with (2) Kalon C 2.0 spinning reels to boot.

Takes 10 seconds to enter and can share the link you get for bonus entries – good luck!

Dylan Nussbaum’s favorite leadcore-to-leader knot.

My go-to “joiner” for fluoro leaders has always been the double-uni knot ‘cuz it’s 1) the easiest to tie and 2) hasn’t failed me yet. So not really sure why I’ve never used it for my leadcore setups?

If it’s good enough for Dylan Nussbaum, it’s good enough for me:

Researchers are scaring invasive mosquitofish to death with this robotic bass.

> Eastern mosquitofish, which are native to the eastern and southern United States, have been introduced all over the world to control mosquito populations. Ironically, their introduction in places like Australia has had the unintended consequence of making mosquito problems worse. That’s because instead of primarily eating mosquito larvae, they tend to eat the tadpoles and other native amphibians that evolved to eat mosquito larvae in the first place.

So now researchers are using robotic bass to frighten the invasive mosquitofish to the point that they reproduce less…. 🤷‍♂️

I dunno about all that, but I am surprised that no one has slapped a treble hook on this thing yet lol:

National Professional Anglers Assoc. 

MN-FISH