Today we’re fishing a small river for BIG musky! Muskie live in many of the lakes and streams in Eastern Tennessee and are far less pressured than their Northern cousins. They’ve been on Matt’s radar since his first trip to the region and today he’s on a mission to finally catch one (or two) from the kayak!
Known as the fish of 10,000 casts, the musky can be a very frustrating adversary. However, we know from years of trophy bass fishing with swimbaits that numbers like “10,000 casts” often represent a misunderstanding of the fish. With both bass and musky, once an angler understands their habits and feeding windows the time required to catch a trophy fish can be cut dramatically. They may never become “easy” to catch, but they’ll become much more predictable.
Matt focused his efforts on 3 presentations. He fished a Savage Gear 4-play (swimbait), A R2S Whopper Plopper 190 (Topwater) and a Blue Fox Spinner (Bucktail). He really wanted to catch his first musky on a swimbait after getting short struck on the last river drift with Tim but in the end, all 3 bites came on the bucktail.
Below you’ll find links to all of the available baits and gear Matt was using throughout the day. If you want to catch a musky of your own, some of the items, like the 30″ custom 135 lb Leader, were hand tied by Matt and would need to be fabricated on your own to be replicated. For the rest of the gear, the links go directly to Tackle Warehouse where you can see detailed photos and descriptions of each item.
The Baits…
-Savage Gear 4 Play 200 (Hitch):
-River2Sea Whopper Plopper 190 (Perch):
-Blue Fox Vibrax Super Boy (Black/Silver): Source Locally
Hook and Hardware Upgrades…
Hooks- Owner 4X ST-66 Trebles (1/0 and 2/0):
Split RIngs- Owner ULTRA Wire (Size 6):
Swivels- Spro Power Size 2:
Kayak…
-Old Town Sportsman AutoPilot 136:
Matt’s Rod/Reel Combo…
Rod- G Loomis IMX Pro 966C Swimbait:
Reel- Shimano Tranx 300 HG:
Line- Power Pro Maxcuatro 80 lb Braid:
Budget Musky Combo…
Rod- Dobyns Fury 806H:
Reel- Shimano Curado 300 HGK (Available to PRE-ORDER):
Line- Power Pro Braided 80 lb:
Related Kayak Videos…
-10 lb Bass From The Kayak:
-Bank Fishing and Kayaking Small River For Bass and Musky:
-Epic Golf Course Pond Fishing!:
-Backwater Bass Fishing- Kayaks and Flippin Sticks:
NEW Tactical Bassin Apparel…
TacticalBassin Reaper Hoodie:
TacticalBassin Shadow Hoodie:
TacticalBassin Sun Shirt:
TacticalBassin Hooded Sun Shirt:
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Equipment We Recommend…
Minn Kota Ultrex Trolling Motor:
Humminbird Solix 15 Electronics:
Minn Kota Talons:
Hot Foot Throttle Control:
Loc-R-Bar Boat Security:
Favorite Storage Box:
Favorite Pliers:
Favorite Split Ring Pliers:
Favorite life jacket:
Favorite sunglasses:
Hero8 Camera:
ElectroSamson Scale:
Frabill Net:
Lure Retriever:
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If you plan to do any shopping, using our links before doing your shopping at Tackle Warehouse is the single greatest way to support us! You won’t be able to even see a difference but they’ll know you’re one of us!
#musky #fishing #kayak
