Colby Simms,Simms Guide Service-Sport Fishing:Muskie on Lake Kinkaid

By: Colby Simms

Spring is a great time of year to be outdoors enjoying all that the wilderness has to offer, and it’s hard to find a better way to spend one of these warming days than fishing at magnificent Lake Kinkaid, in the heart of the majestic Shawnee National Forest in Southern Illinois. Southern Illinois is a great place to bring the family and offers something for everyone. Lake Kinkaid provides fantastic fishing opportunities and incredible scenery in one great package. The only tough decision is which species of fish to target, as Kinkaid offers superb angling for many different fish including largemouth bass, white bass, crappie, bluegill, catfish and many more. These fish species have all benefited greatly from the muskie fishery. Muskies control the large populations of big baitfish that quickly grow to an unusable size. If not for muskies, these big baitfish would quickly overpopulate and take over the lake, stunting the other species.

One of the biggest draws to Lake Kinkaid is the incredible muskie fishing, and spring is a prime time to get in on a good bite. Lake Kinkaid is one of the country’s premier muskie fisheries and is considered one of the best in the southern muskie range. Kinkaid is a great fishery for both numbers of muskies and big fish as well, and Kinkaid definitely has great potential to produce the next state record. Kinkaid muskies are very heavy for their length and stay fat year round on a steady diet of gizzard shad and spotted suckers. The muskie fishery is very healthy and continues to improve every year. Since the introduction of the spillway barrier in 1998, muskies can no longer escape from the lake as they do in so many other waters throughout the Midwest. The result is more fish per acre than most waters and more big fish still swimming in the lake. THE SEASON

The entire spring season offers great opportunities to tangle with big Kinkaid muskies, but today we’ll focus on the post-spawn period. The post-spawn spring period is marked by water temperatures in upper 50 to mid 70 degree range. This period can start as early as the beginning of April in some areas of the lake, and lasts until early to mid June during most years. Water temperatures and spawning will vary throughout the different areas of the lake.

During the early period of pre-spawn, the muskies will be a little lethargic from going through the rigors of spawning. It usually takes a couple of weeks before the majority of the population of fish in a given area really become aggressive again and start feeding heavily. There are a few methods that will tempt these neutral or negative fish to strike.

As the water climbs, the muskies become more active and start feeding heavily. During this period the muskies metabolism is on high and they gain a lot of weight, and begin to strike a variety of presentations. PRESENTATION

Downsizing is one tactic that I use to take Kinkaid muskies during early postspawn, in water from about 58 to 65 degrees. Big bass lures are excellent tools for taking muskies when they’re less inclined to bite. Long arm, safety pin style spinnerbaits are very versatile lures and excel during this period. Dunn’s Big Bite Premium Spinnerbaits are my choice for this technique (dunnssportinggoods.com). Dunn’s spinner baits have realistic baitfish head designs, and light reflecting, shimmering skirts and blades, for the look and action of real prey. I always add a soft plastic trailer to my spinnerbaits. In clear water I choose a 3 or 4 inch split tail trailer. When fishing in stained water or during low light conditions, I opt for a 4 or 5 inch curly tailed grub such as the premium models available from Dunn’s Big Bite Lures. These grubs add bulk and vibration to the lure, making it easier for fish to locate in lower visibility conditions.

Another good lure choice is a jig and plastic combination. I choose a quality snag resistant jig such as a Dunn’s Big Bite Rattle Jig in 1/2 to 3/4 ounce sizes, or a J-Mac Muskie Pike Jig in 11/4 to 11/2 ounces. I pair these lures with a 5 to 8 inch soft plastic trailer such as a Dunn’s Pro Grub, Pro Lizard, or Bush Pig. Lipless crankbaits in 3/4 to 11/2 ounces sizes will take muskies, and slow twitching with 5” to 9” floating minnowbaits is a great early post-spawn tactic as well.

As the water warms into the upper 60 to mid 70 degree range during the late period of the post-spawn, muskie activity levels rise substantially. They begin to take larger lures with more frequency and respond well to a run and gun approach of covering water and presenting lures at higher speeds. Large in-line spinners, long arm spinnerbaits and surface lures take lots of fish when burned through weedy areas, and 7” to 10” crankbaits will produce well on rocks and wood, as well as off the deep weed edge. The folks at Dunn’s Sporting Goods

ACTIONCYCLE Call formore information: TYorPAM Office: 636-464-4162 • Fax: 636-464-5634 #9 Milanna Drive • Arnold, MO 63010 LandPoutdoors@aol.com