musky netting disaster, help

[ahartz]

20 minutes into our troll this morning a hog musky hit on the north end of the dumps, atleast a legal fish 18+ lbs. Slammed a T3 WB Perch on a two way rig. well up to the boat comes the fish and the captain, me, completely chokes and I managed to free the fish with three quick jabs of the now tangled net. good news is the beast was no worse for the wear, the bad news...see above...
I have now botched the netting on two nice fish in two seasons, can anyone please help me with a few pointers, I know it is an art, and I used to know how, somehow I have regressed. can anyone offer a word of advice on this subject.....most grateful..andy

[trout]

That's a Bummer.
Is the boat moving?
What is the person with the rod doing when you try to net the fish?
What type of net? Is it big enough?

Give Esox and I the GPS #s to where there biting so we can try to show you first hand how-to :D

I'm sure the people here will be able to help with more info.

[Gone Fishing]

Andy, wait till the time is right. Don't go out too far with the net. Never try to chase the fish with the net. If it takes off, don't go after it. You usually only get one good chance so it needs to happen with one quick action when the fish is ready. I use the biggest net I can find and wait till the fish has little movement. Quick swoop underneath and it's in the net. I know your pain because I've been there. I won't let anybody net a big fish in my boat because I don't want them to go through what I have been through. Nothing worse than losing a hog. Practice makes perfect and it seems like your doing that! Good luck, John

[Reeltime]

One thing I have found useful is to attach a line release from a downrigger to the handle of the net at the point were the net would be pulled straight back. This allows two hands on the pole while netting, when the fish hits the net, the net is release and never had a chance to get tangled in the hooks or fish before the fish is in the net. Hope this makes sense, IMO it makes a big difference.

[Gone Fishing]

Good point Reeltime, I do the same thing but forgot to mention it. After grabbing the rear cleat on my boat a couple times, I added the release and haven't made that mistake since.

[IT pimp 2002]

When I got serious about Muskies I went to Lakeside and bought the largest net they sold. When I pier fish up north, some people laugh at me but I land more than most because of this. It serves 2 types of fishing and all I had to purchase was the extention polls to reach the water on the pier. Unless you want to by one of those special muskie nets that is what I would do. the other method is to not use a net. Depending on how big your boat is grab the needle nose and w/o boating the fish, shake it loose from the back. This eliminates that muskie slime and is less tramatic to the fish.

[Alex]

Netting is an art form. Weather it's a muskie or a bass. I've had my share of mis-fortune with the net, we all have. But practice makes perfect (or near perfect). The biggest thing for the netter is to stay calm. I know I'm more nervous netting someones fish than I am actually fighting one. Anyway, here are my netting tips. Pretty universal no matter which species. First don't show the fish the net untill its time. Leave it out of the water. Muskie especially seem to know that the net means trouble (or so they think) and will bolt at the site of it. When the fish is at the boat and ready, put the net straight down into the water. The person with the fish on should "guide" the fish into the net, not the other way around. This is the biggest mistake people make. Like someone esle said never chase a fish with the net, more times than not you will knock off the hook or hit the line causing the lure to turn and free from the fishes mouth. If the fish makes a run that is not directly in-line with the net, pull the net out of the water and out of it's way. Sounds stupid but trust me. The only movement you should make with the net is at the very last moments when you have the fish in-line with the net, then you can bring the net to the fish while the fish is being brought to the net. Hope this helps.

[Downrod]

I wouldn't say you had a netting disaster. I'd call it an early release. The fact that you didn't get it in the boat didn't lessen the thrill any did it? Now if we could train them all to unhook themselves at boatside.

The trick with muskies is to wait till the fish is right next to the boat. ( I mean no more than 1 foot from the side of the boat) The problem is that the guy fighting the fish wants to see the fish get netted. That wont work, you have to have him walk back towards the front of the boat. Have the net in the water. ( I do not worry about the fish seeing the net. It doesn't matter) Let the guy handling the rod back up until the fish is directly over the net.
DO NOT REACH!! In one motion, come up fast and fold the fish in half into the net. I never try to net them head first, thats a sure way to come up with only the lure.

Again, do not reach. these fish are heavy and you will have no leverage to lift.

Now go get another one!

[Will_S]

With big fish tail first is about as foolproof as you can get. The person fighting the fish pulls the fish along side the boat and the netter scoops from behind. If the fish bolts there is no worry about having to get the net out of the way. As the netter slides the fish into the net even if the hooks hang on the net the fish is 90% in the net already. This requires a big net but you shouldnt be out muskie fishing if you don't have a 60" deep Beckman net - yes they're expensive but just think how priceless it will be when there is a 40 lb. muskie in the bottom of it.

Let em go - Let em grow - PLEASE!

[pikeslime]

I only net fish head first. If the fish is tired sufficiently at the side of the boat, you can get it's head up. At his point, the net should be dipped in, and the person fighting the fish should walk backward toward the front of the boat. The fish has no choice but to move forward into the net. I've never seen one swim backwards yet;) .

Everyone is different, but this works for me. it doesn't give the fish any options and it prevents the hooks from getting hooked in the net, which is how many fish are lost.

[ahartz]

thanks guys, I have been away for a week but just caught up on your posts. I have learned from each. I was especially wondering about netting tail first. I see the jury is still out on thatand thats ok, use what works for you. What about a second net aboard to use to dive into a bad problem??? an early release, i like that and considered describing it that way I just wasnt sure I could sell it. thanks again guys for all the input...andy

[Kingfisher]

I have to agree with Will S. , I have lost a couple from lure hooks getting the net before the fish was inside resulting in a stalemate where I had to unhook outside of the boat. We use a huge Beckman with the soft rubber coating and Have never lost one if the tail was first or we had the head up. Netter has to be very decisive and quick. My Wife is a better netter than I am or at least she is luckier. Muskies are a real handfull at boat side. Half the battle is getting them from the water to the photo. I use Bare hands and dont get cut up. But I dont recomend this without lots of practice on smaller Pike. Still in all dont feel to bad we have all been taken to school by the King of Freash water. Kingfisher

[ESOX]

NET???? Who needs a net?? My last few trips, I've been long range releasing them, I've been averaging 50' or so........... If you keep working on it, you can be this efficient too.
:rolleyes: :confused: