August 14, 2025: National Championship Musky Open Preview

Heavy rain and east winds made fishing a little uncomfortable, but Steve and his guests enjoyed five days in a row with muskies in the boat. One angler visiting from Ohio had a hot hand, and Steve reveals how he caught his fish. Finally, Steve previews the WWIA Eagle River Chal-Lunge, as well as other tournaments coming up.

This week, Steve opens with a live report after his son-in-law, Collin Johnson, caught his first musky during a northwoods visit. Steve then explains the fish’s location and the lure selection that got it to bite. Next, he discusses current conditions, and ends by listing a number of big musky events that are coming in the next two weeks.

The calendar says it’s still summer, but Mother Nature ushered in fall in a hurry with a massive cold front. But the muskies didn’t care and the results were great. In this report, Steve discusses what worked and what didn’t, and explains how he and a buddy enjoyed one of the most intense feeding windows he’s ever seen.

Musky action is occurring during short feeding windows, and in this week’s report Steve discusses ways to take full advantage of them when they happen. He also discusses current conditions and what’s happening on northwoods lakes.

Cool overnight temperatures have sent water temps downward, and it’s the start of Steve’s favorite time for fishing muskies. He describes various patterns that will work in coming weeks, and describes how a client caught a memorable fish.

One of the surest signs of the coming of fall is when muskies move into shoreline weedbeds, and this was very evident during the National Championship Musky Open in Eagle River. As tournament MC, Steve interviews the top anglers on stage. In this week’s report, he discusses their winning patterns.

It’s the week of the National Championship Musky Open in Eagle River, and Steve previews the conditions tournament anglers will see. He also discusses how money raised by the Musky Clubs Alliance has benefited Wisconsin’s musky fishery. Finally, he explains how anglers can make the most of boatside musky opportunities.

Nighttime air temperatures in the 40s lowered water temps in northwoods lakes. In this report, Steve discusses the types of lakes he fished and why, and reveals what lures and techniques produced a bunch of muskies, including his largest Wisconsin fish so far for the 2025 season.

Steve returns from a fishing trip to Ontario to find water much too warm in northern Wisconsin for musky fishing, so he rescheduled his guide clients. But his report from Canada includes important info if you’re planning to fish there soon.

As promised in a previous episode, Steve outlines the basics of night fishing for muskies. As he says, “When you get a strike at night, every musky is a 50-incher until proven otherwise. When you set the hook and the water starts flying, you’ll find out why I enjoy it so much.”