By Jim Robey

Dayton Daily News 2-16-05

Muskie madness, an incurable disease according to some fishermen, could strike anglers this year at Caesar Creek Lake.

After stocking the fish a half-dozen years at the 2,800-acre lake east of Waynesville, it's said the muskie is cruising for the bruising of some angler.

Then, this could happen, according to one authority on muskellunge: "The strike is like an explosion. The play is a series of beautiful jumps, wild lunges, and strong runs. When the fish tires it sulks on the bottom. . .

"Then it starts all over again. The chances are better than ever that the muskie will finally break loose," writes Herbert Foster, author of Guide for Sport Fishermen.

The fishing expert issued this warning a half century ago and nothing has changed. The muskie still is a classic, rugged fighter.

Modern experts on muskies offer similar warnings about this fish as did Foster. One of them is aptly named "Crash," as in Crash Mullins of Morehead, Ky., fishing guide at Cave Run Lake south of the Ohio line.

Mullins, speaking at the recent Miami Valley Boat Show, said from the information he has received this will be an excellent year for muskie fishing at Caesar Creek.

Hooking a muskie is one thing. Landing it is another, Mullins pointed out.

He advised fishermen to be ready with the proper equipment to handle a large, hard-fighting fish.

"You'll need a big, deep net," Mullins said, exhibiting his own that is 30 inches in diameter and 52 inches deep.

"I urge rubber netting instead of nylon. Hooks on lures tangle in nylon, but are easily removed from a rubber net," Mullins said.

The muskie man went on to say that releasing this fish is fashionable among muskie anglers. You want to lift the fish from the net quickly, unhook the lure and snap a picture for the memory book.

All this should be done fast enough to assure the muskie is in good condition when lowered back into the water.

Mullins suggests a stout fishing rod and a good quality bait-casting reel that will hold an ample amount of line. The muskie man said his choice in line is 80-pound test super-braided, which is about the same diameter as 20-pound monofilament.

As for lures, Mullins demonstrated a variety of them in the big fish tank at the show. His suggestions included spinner and bucktail combinations, in-line spinners, spinnerbaits, and a variety of crankbaits and stick baits. All are super-size.

Mullins allowed that he has been using modified baits with rubber tails. Some of Crash's creations are sold at tackle shops, including his own at Cave Run Lake.

Anyone who catches a muskie weighing 10- to 20-pounds at Caesar Creek Lake will have taken a real trophy fish, although that's less than half the size of the Ohio record muskie.

The record muskie is 55 pounds, 2-ounces. Joe D. Lykins caught it at Piedmont Lake in eastern Ohio in 1972.

International Game Fish Association lists the all-tackle world muskie record at 67 pounds, 8 ounces. Cal Johnson took the fish at Hayward, Wis. in 1949.

The Fresh Water Fishing Hall of Fame contends the world muskie record is 69 pounds, 11 ounces, caught in Wisconsin in 1949 by Louis Spray.

You can reach Crash Mullins at (606) 780-4260.

Contact Jim Robey at Dayton Daily News, 45 S. Ludlow St., Dayton, Ohio 45402.