“Patricia Strutz – Ms. Muskie – with Mepps”

Part 4: How to Step Up to Trophy Muskie Fishing

Editor’s Note: Patricia Strutz of Eagle River, Wisconsin, muskie fishing guide and operator of “A Blond and Her Boat” guide service, is passionate about teaching women, children and first-time muskie fishermen to enjoy the sport she loves. Strutz has caught and boated 50-inch muskie and can compete with the some of the best muskie fishermen in the nation. This week, Strutz explains how she fishes for muskie and how she teaches her clients to fish for muskie.

Question: Patricia, how do you decide to take a customer to a trophy lake instead of taking them to a lake where their chances of taking a muskie are much greater, but their opportunities to catch a trophy muskie are much less?

Strutz: The customer makes this decision. When I book a client to fish with me, I ask if it’s their first time muskie fishing, the number of times they've muskie fished, if they've ever caught a muskie and a few more questions to determine the best trip for that client. Sometimes a customer just wants to catch a muskie while others want to try to catch trophy muskies, even if their odds of catching trophy muskies are much less than catching a muskie in a smaller lake that homes more muskie. For some people, a 35-inch muskie is big. For others, a 45-inch muskie is big. So, I try to learn my clients’ expectations before we leave. Sometimes my clients want to stay on a particular lake even if it’s not a trophy-muskie lake. I let the customer make the choice regarding the day of fishing they want to experience.

Question: What baits do you fish when you fish for trophy muskies?

Strutz: We’ve caught 50-inch muskies before on a Mepps No. 5 Aglia early in the season, although that’s not considered a big muskie lure. I’ve caught numbers of big muskies while fishing a Mepps Musky Marabou - more than on any-other lure.

Question: What color Musky Marabou do you prefer?

Strutz: The color of my lure depends on the type of lake I’m fishing. On some dark-stained lakes, the pink Musky Marabou works well. On clear-water lakes, I catch more muskies on the white blade Musky Marabou with the black/white tail.

Question: What pound-test line do you use?

Strutz: I use 65-pound-test PowerPro line on 7- to 7-1/2-foot rods with a wide variety of Shimano reels. I like the Shimano Curado 300, a low-profile bait-casting reel that can handle big muskies. I primarily use Shimano rods and reels because I’ve never encountered problems with them. Since I’m a fishing guide, I prefer to use the best equipment possible. I’ve tried a lot of equipment, and I like Mepps’ lures and Shimano rods and reels best.

Question: What’s the most-productive day of trophy muskie fishing you’ve ever had?

Strutz: We caught two, 50-inch muskies and lost a third one. When you have three chances like that in 4 hours, life for a muskie fisherman is at its best.

Question: What made that day so special, and how were you able to find so many big muskies?

Strutz: We were motor-trolling in heavy wind in a big bay. The wind pushed the water out of the bay, so we only were in a couple of feet of water. On that day, most muskie fishermen were using deep-diving crankbaits that were digging the bottom. Our lures were barely running under the surface so the muskies were able to see our lures better than they could the big crankbaits digging the bottom.

Question: When you muskie fish on trophy waters with anglers who know how to catch trophy muskies, how many days will you need to find and catch a big trophy muskie?

Strutz: I don’t know. I have two types of boats and two methods of fishing. I have a boat we use for casting and a boat for row-trolling. When we row-troll, I row the boat so we can troll. We’ll have multiple lines out to increase our odds for success. You can fish for 3 hours and catch a big fish or fish for 3 days and not even see a muskie. The weather and the fish’s appetite determine how many fish you’ll see and catch.

Question: What lakes do you fish?

Strutz: I never tell the lakes I fish. I fish a number of our small 300- to 400-acre lakes in this area. These small lakes are action lakes. In these lakes, I almost can guarantee a newcomer will see a muskie. If you start to publicize a 300- to 400-acre lake, it will get pounded, and fishing on the lake will become tougher.

Question: Do you have more success on small lakes?

Strutz: When fishing’s tough on the big lakes, we’ll see several muskie fishermen on small lakes. As a guide, I try to put my customers on fish and allow them to see and catch fish. But if the fish on the big waters aren’t moving, you need a hot spot where your customers will at least see muskie. And, the Mepps No. 5 Aglia really shines on small lakes.

To fish with Patricia Strutz, visit www.ablondandherboat.com.