Michigan Muskie Alliance

Looking for some thoughts. I have been vacationing in Indiana in June and I am getting real tired of the surface temp already being in the low 80s. 2011 I am planning on going to Clam Lake in the middle of June. I am not looking for anybody to tell me their secret spots, I am just wondering what kind of action to expect. I will figure out where they are on my own, best part of the challenge.


Thanks,
The Musky Shakes-Mark

Slow! Tough water in that area for sure. But if you hook one she could be HUGE! Good luck!

It's 420 acres and my estimate of the resident population in June would be right around 10 muskies. No not 10/acre like Indiana, just ten.

Will Schultz wrote:It's 420 acres and my estimate of the resident population in June would be right around 10 muskies. No not 10/acre like Indiana, just ten.

LOL!!!

Mark - Maybe some of us will see you up there! We have an outing there in June. http://www.michiganmuskiealliance.org/f ... php?t=5981

Jim tenHaaf wrote:

Will Schultz wrote:It's 420 acres and my estimate of the resident population in June would be right around 10 muskies. No not 10/acre like Indiana, just ten.

LOL!!!

The funny but sad part is... that estimate might be high.

Will Schultz wrote:It's 420 acres and my estimate of the resident population in June would be right around 10 muskies. No not 10/acre like Indiana, just ten.

Are these populations adult spawning fish...or just fish over all?

vano397 wrote:

Will Schultz wrote:It's 420 acres and my estimate of the resident population in June would be right around 10 muskies. No not 10/acre like Indiana, just ten.

Are these populations adult spawning fish...or just fish over all?

My opinion is that those would be mostly young fish and not adults since the adults leave the lake after spawning. I've heard estimates, based on the research being done there, that the total adult spawning population is likely 30 fish for that section of the chain. Kind of scary when they are responsible for reproduction in more than 19,000 acres of water.

Those are pretty scary numbers, especially with the rate of harvest of the fish that have been tracked. Hopefully we can use the data from this research to get regulations in place that are best for this body of water.

Will Schultz wrote:

vano397 wrote:

Will Schultz wrote: I've heard estimates, based on the research being done there, that the total adult spawning population is likely 30 fish for that section of the chain. Kind of scary when they are responsible for reproduction in more than 19,000 acres of water.

This is similar to the very low sturgeon populations of many GL waters leading to several restoration programs. Then there are the genetic ethics questions of mixing genetics from outside the area to quickly build up the population or work very slowly using the local genetics of so few fish. That is a topic for another thread.

What lake in the chain would be my best bet and is it a reasonable boat ride with a 70hp from Clam?

Thanks for the input,
The Musky Shakes-Mark

Mark - Shoot ma an e-mail.