"Fish! Fish on!" I yelled, followed by an expletive a moment later. I've been doing this long enough to know the difference between a tiger muskie and a stump. I could say I was just fired up after being cooped up all winter, or offer some equally inventive excuse, but the truth is I still get excited every time I feel a bump at the end of the line. If a day ever comes when I don't, maybe it'll be time to quit. I was fishing Mayfield Lake with Steve Jackson, and the water was in bad shape. It was green, full of sediment, with visibility only a couple of feet, and cold. It looked like dam operations were moving a lot of meltwater from the mountain snowpack through the reservoir. Much of the lake was 58 degrees and we didn't find any water over 64 degrees. The only fish we saw all day was spawning suckers. But it was good to be out on the water anyway, and it isn't every day that I get to fish with the manager of WDFW's warmwater fisheries. We had plenty to talk about. I also fished the next day, after Steve returned to his job in Olympia, and conditions were even worse. Overnight, the water temperature had dropped 4 degrees and I found no water over 60 degrees all day. It looked like the water level had risen from the previous day, and was even murkier. Having been a mountain climber in my younger days, I know what meltwater from glaciers and snowfields looks like. Anglers fishing Mayfield Lake are completely at the mercy of dam operations, and you can't necessarily rely on weather reports or what the skies look like. What really matters here, more than anything else, is how water moves through the system. But having burned expensive gas to get there, I fished even though I knew it would be tough in these conditions. If the water was clearer, I would use a small bucktail, probably in red and black, in this water temperature range for this time of year. But because the water was so silty, I went with a large tandem spinnerbait in black and chartreuse. The idea behind that is a brighter lure with more vibration is easier for a tiger muskie to find when there's almost no visibility. You also work closer to trees, stumps, and other structure when visibility is poor, and space your casts closer together in open water, such as when working above weedbeds. You always want to think in terms of the fish's perspective. When fish can't see as well, you have to get the lure closer to him, and you have to give him more color and vibration so he can find it. You also need to work on your own mental state. Muskies are never easy to catch, and all muskie anglers have plenty of fishless days. If you get to the lake and discover unfavorable fishing conditions, go fishing anyway, because you never know. Don't let yourself get discouraged; practice optimism. Use your smarts to make long odds a little bit by adapting your tactics and lure selection to the conditions. Remind yourself that fishless days don't have to be unproductive; they're simply days to fish a little differently, to practice precision casting tight to cover, to work bugs out of your tackle and boat. And enjoy the scenery and tranquility! There's no such thing as a wasted day on the water. Fish, when they allow themselves to be caught, are merely more frosting on the cake. If you have the right attitude, even a stump can give you a memory and an interesting story to tell.

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