BULRUSHES AND WARM BAYS Look for three keys in identifying potential spring Musky water. Lakes with established bulrushes provide excellent cover for spring fish. Also large bays with newly emerging shallow cabbage often hold fish. And, always, explore dark mucky bays that warm faster than any other area of the lake. Once targeted areas are found run parallel to them, using an electric trolling motor and visually check the shallows wearing Polaroid glasses. Look for panfish, small game fish and, of course, frogs. If any such forage is available Musky should be on the prowl. After scouting ultra-clear spring waters it's easy to understand how fish detect your presence. You must remain as quiet and sneaky as possible. If there is a wind present use the electric motor to stay within casting distance of the key fish-holding zone. Slowly and thoroughly work a section at a time. Think of yourself as the predator. Making long casts without spooking shallow feeding fish will pay off in great early season action. When retrieving these plastics hold your rod at a 45 degree angle. Retrieve them slowly, while gently twitching them to create a natural pulsating, swimming action. The movement of the rod tip should be as slight as possible. Make sure that the bait lands well past cover that a Musky would likely be holding in. Retrieve it through the area naturally instead of landing on top of the fish. A very delicate twitching is required to generate natural looking frog movements. It's best to lightly shake the tip and reel with
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