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When I first started musky fishing I kept hearing about this thing called "Figure Eight".
It didn't take long to understand that this was a method of swishing my bait around in a figure eight pattern as I finished my retrieve. In my head, I was thinking what kind of fish is going to take a bait right at the boat starring me right in the face.
As a long time bass angler, I knew that when a bass seen me or my boat it was all over, the fish would head for Davy Jones locker and it was time to look for another fish. My friends… if your new to musky fishing let me just say "This Ain't No Bass" This fish is not afraid of your boat or you for that matter! Your boat is just another
Piece of cover. Let's just say that again.. "Your Boat is just another Piece Of cover"
For you guys that have been fishing for musky for a while you know exactly what I'm talking about. If you are new this type of angling you will just have to trust me till it happens to you. If you fish very long for musky your going to get a strike Just as you raise your bait out of the water.. Most likely it's going to get away with or without your lure. Once you loose a few of these fish your going to start asking yourself is there a better way to do this so I can land some of these fish that strike right at the boat.. The answer is yes there is.. As a matter of fact this is what the figure eight is all about. To understand this method, we first must understand what makes this fish strike at the boat. It is my opinion after 20 plus years of hunting this fish, he is truly the top of the food chain in most waters that he lives. I think this one thing removes a lot of the fear that other fish seem to demonstrate along with that a musky is a moody fish. One minute he will be a flash and ambush type of predator… then the next time you encounter him, he may trail your bait keeping it in his site but never taking it.. I have seen this happen hundreds of times.. The fish follows the bait to the boat.. You see him just lying there.. You have run out of line.. Now what can you do! This is the reason why anglers have started using the figure eight.. If you have read this far and you think you have it.. Let me just say.. We haven't told you anything so far to help you land this fish.. OK.. You figure eight at the boat and a 40" musky takes your bait with 10 foot of line out.. What do you think is going to happen? For you that have had this happen you know this is the best way to loose your favorite lure or break your rod.. A musky hits at the boat in two general ways.. One he follows your lure in then strikes as you end your retrieve.. The other scenario is, he has followed a previous cast in and is lying under your boat.. Like I said earlier your boat is just another piece of cover. To successfully land a figure eight fish we must practice some simple tricks that will give us a chance to get the upper hand. First you must practice the figure eight sweep.. Start with a crank bait like a Hellbender or magnum Bill Norman. Start small making the figure eight larger Once you get the hang of it.. Crankbaits are the easiest to learn as the will want to pull away as you turn the bait in the figure eight.. This should be a two handed grip If you do this with one hand sooner or later a fish is going to rip the rod out of your hand. I like to make a figure eight that is about 8 to 10 feet or larger depending on the bait I am using. Making short pauses in the bends. After you feel you have mastered the figure eight on a few different baits its time to employ some added tricks to make sure you have a better chance to land the fish.. This is the part that many anglers fail to learn.. I have even seen guides that never use the free spool method or button push method.. They depend on their drag To engage to try to play the fish at 10 feet or so.. I can tell you that this method will loose more fish than it catches. To use my method you need to practice two more moves.. One is pushing the button on the retrieve. This sounds simple.. But trust me you need to learn by sight when to push the button so you don't need remove the lure from the water. To explain this a little better.. As you are reeling the lure in you need to reach up and push the button as if you were going to make a cast… set your thumb on the line to act as a break.. Now go into the figure eight sweep.. If the fish takes your lure let him run with it, keeping just enough tension on the line so it doesn't backlash. Once he has about 20 to 30 feet of line.. Turn the reel handle over to engage the spool and set the hook. With this much line out you have a much better chance of landing the fish.. To become good at this method you must practice just when to push the button to make the whole movement smooth.. I call this the push button method.. The other method I have stated here is the free spool method.. I use this method when I am using top water lures or some other lure that is hard to figure eight. I usually see the fish or I believe a fish has moved under my boat. At the end of the retrieve instead of going into a figure eight I quickly remove The bait from the water and pick up a rod that is close at hand with the free spool engaged. I insert the rod into the water and drag out some line as I start a figure eight. I need to stop here for a minute and say.. I have tried to flip out line.. Make short cast to start the figure eight.. You name it, I have tried it.. Listen if you practice you can stick the rod right down in the water and drag out enough line to start your figure eight.. As you make the bends you can let out more line to increase your figure eight path. I have had fish take the lure as soon as I have put it in the water you just have to make sure your ready with your thumb on the spool. The question of why would we spend so much time on what many would think is a very small part of musky fishing…I think is worth taking the time to answer. I have had the opportunely in my fishing career to teach many people to fish. I can tell you that it is the little things that can make the difference between success and failure on the water. I believe that when you are musky fishing they are three "contact points" that should be given a lot of attention. (Contact points are places where you are likely to get a strike) The number 1 contact point is just as your lure leaves a piece of cover. The number 2 contact point is where the bottom ledges off more that two feet (flat edges) The number 3 contact point is the figure eight. So you see the figure eight is in the top few places where you going to make contact with the fish. Knowing that.. You should develop your skill learning the figure eight. It can be thrilling when you do it right and heart breaking when something goes wrong. I hope this will add some tricks to your game. Making your time on the water more fun and exciting. I will be adding an article on how to play and land "The Musky" This may seem to be something that every fisherman should know. It has been my experience that this one thing is the reason why most anglers hook but loose most of their Musky. Please practice good stewardship of our musky water. Catchum, Take a picture and let them go! Till next time Good fishing Chris Erwin KentuckyAngling |