by The Troutist, August 11, 2013

Now I know I said I was taking a few weeks off get in some rest and work on that honey-do list, I did get a couple of the biggies on the list taken care of. My thoughts were this effort would put me back in good standing around the house and I will fit the rest of them in with my daily routine. The opportunity came up for me to hit Lake Tapps with Guide Todd Reis of Reis’s Extreme Musky Guide Service (253-985-0414) and my friend Kevin Bye. This adventure was put together early Saturday morning and we were to meet up Sunday morning at Allan Yorke Park in the City of Bonney Lake at 9am. These are the kind of hours I could get used to. Our quarry was the ever elusive Tiger Musky, something I have wanted to learn a little more about for some time. I also figured what better way to learn than go out with a professional and an avid Musky man.

Like any type of angling to be successful you need to understand how each lure works, type of equipment to use, and what works best in every type of weather, time of year, and water conditions. This all takes time and experience on the water, I was hoping just to get in the basics and pass them on to you. The one benefit that was in my favor is I had a great time gathering all this information and got to work the lake with a pro.

Let’s talk about the equipment we were using, the rods were Musky Innovation Select Rods, 8’6” MH for tossing Buck tails, 8’ H for tossing Bulldawgs, and an Okuma EVX 8’6” H rod. Reels included Shimano Cardiff 300, Corvallis CVL 400, Corsair CS 400, Ambassador 6500C, and the VCX 6600, all of these are bait casters. These were spooled with Power Pro Braid between 65-85lb test, 125lb flouro carbon leaders, 12-18-inch for casting and 36-inch for trolling. Reis recommends using Charlie’s leaders which can be purchased on e-bay. I have a whole list of different lures and spinners that work at different times of the year. In-line spinners, Ducktail lures, Musky Innovations Bulldawgs, Mepps Musky Killer and Giant Killers, Musky Mayhem Cowgirls, Shad-Raps, Chatter Baits, Little Ernie’s, and Jointed Bucher Depth Raiders, to name a few.

Lake Tapps covers 2,296 acres, that’s a lot of water to work so being out with someone that knows the lake is a very big benefit especially if you’re just getting started in this fishery. Let me give you a little history on these sterile Musky. They were introduced into Lake Tapps back in 1998 to bring the trash fish under control and in turn they also created another fishery that has been gaining popularity. These trash fish eating machines have been introduced in six other lakes to include Mayfield and Merwin. Which by the way Todd also offers guided trips on. These fish are some toothy critters and not the type you want to stick your hands in their mouth to remove hooks.

After all of my gear was loaded we were off like a shot headed to spots like Bonsai Point, Cove X, The Sand Box, The Honey Hole, Tacoma Point, and The Flats, to name just a few spots. When you start hearing these names you know that they have been working this lake for quite some time. Todd has been working this lake for Musky since 2005 and guiding for 2 years now, on top of that this is his home lake. Being a mid-west boy Todd was no stranger to chasing these predators. We pulled into the first area we were going to work and they handed me a rod, I looked at this bait casting reel and at first was a little hesitant knowing that one, I haven’t used one for 30 years and two, back lashes (line spinning around the shaft of the reel) can be a real pain to try and untangle. But to my surprise I picked up just like I had been using one on a regular basis.

Although I will admit I did have three backlashes but it only took a few minutes to straighten out. Seems the braided line doesn’t get as messed up as the mono. Just my opinion or maybe I was a little better than I thought at handling this type of reel. Shortly after we started Kevin had the first hook-up of the day using a Rapala Super Shad Rap in a perch pattern. All I heard was a very definite battle cry “Fish” from Kevin as he brought it to the net just like the old pro he is. I can’t say he was very big but I would guestimate that it was over two feet. Now I want you to understand that nice is around 30-50 inches with a 50-incher being keeper size and their weight can exceed 30-lbs. So to Musky anglers this was a warm up. I also want you to keep in mind that I have spoken to many a Musky angler and a good day is getting a hook-up and bringing them to the net regardless the size.

We worked a few more areas looking for one more hook-up and Todd switched over to a Black Buck tail, on his second cast once again I heard the battle cry “FISH”, yes Todd had one on. After a nice little fight Todd brought him to the net, not a monster but bigger than the first one of the day. Not the 44-incher he was hoping for (he boated one that size on Tuesday) but still a nice fish. We worked a few more spots and I heard Kevin scream something but it wasn’t “FISH”, seems he was day dreaming and got hit and missed the set. Oh well that is part of fishing.

After a very satisfying day it was coming to an end for me, I had to get on the road and beat feet for the homestead. I had gotten the education and experience I was hoping for, a guide that liked teaching the sport and some great company. If you would like to share the experience I recommend you give Todd a call (253-985-0414).

So until next time may your next trout be your trophy mount.
The Troutist-“Uncle Wes” Malmberg.




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