The month of September can truly be one of the very best times to bag a BIG musky and definitely one of the last opportunities to consistently encounter muskies shallow. In fact, this is one particular time of year where the vast majority of muskies are apt to be shallow. Why is September so promising? Three key reasons come to mind: 1) seasonal shifts in weather, 2) migrational movements in the entire ecosystem, and 3) photoperiodism — the
Changing amount of daylight. All three of these factors are the personality of September and it makes for an awesome musky fishing experience.
Subtle changes occur daily as well as weekly in water temps, weather patterns, wind direction and the actual amount of daylight — all affecting a musky’s mood and appetite. Eventually, these changes will be less subtle as night’s get colder, and nasty autumn weather squalls plummet water temperatures. Universally, plants, animals, and FISH are all reacting to these September changes similarly. In the case of muskies specifically, it triggers ‘em to feed more oftenand migrate into shallow waters.
Tactics might vary depending upon the waters you fish, but I have had great September success on my favorite musky haunts focusing shallow with various in-line spinners, spinnerbaits, topwaters, and jerkbaits. In other words, many items in your musky arsenal are likely to produce. This is particularly true in Canadian lakes. At the same time, countless big Wisconsin muskies have fallen in September crankin’ weed edges as well as deeper cropping clean humps with DepthRaiders. In fact, this has been a winning pattern for decades on deep clear waters in Wisco. September, DepthRaiders, and weedlines.
Finally, September marks the beginning of a more consistent trolling bite for muskies which really opens up the playbook. Instead of just running and gunning from spot to spot, try making a few quick trolling runs from one spot to another. As soon as cold snaps arrive, this trolling trick gets better and better. Plus, it isn’t just about trolling crankbaits. The lost art of trolling in-line spinners and spinnerbaits can be super deadly throughout September. The best example here involves large weed flats, which can be time consuming to cast thoroughly yet a few trolling passes overtop big weedy flats with blades can effectively cover acres in minutes. Hot tip: run your blades quickly at no less than 2.5 mph. Keep the lure near the surface in a bulge. A cast length of line out is all that is needed. Be careful not to set your drag too tight since strikes can be violent.
Summarily, the late summer early fall period can be truly magical for big muskies, as photoperiodism does its magic. A subtle change in the amount of daylight and water temperature drop really seems to trigger strong reactions from big fish. Make sure you keep an eye on the time of day when it appears that muskies are moving best. More often than not, these fish can be very time specific in their feeding movements. A spot that was dead a few hours earlier may suddenly explode for an hour or so. Quite often its related to a daily moon phase. Check our moon secrets for specifics.
However, sometimes a mid day solar bite is the ticket. Muskies tend to get most active when the sunis high especially on stained waters. Conversely, this is often the very best time to tag a tank after dark on busy high boat traffic lakes. This is how I broke the code on some of Wisconsin’s toughest gin bottles. Like I said, clear waters are particularly good in the early fall period after dark. In fact, an early September full or dark moon peak is often the pinnacle time for big fish action on such waters, and the darkness of nighttime is often key to catchin’.
Yes, I am honestly a fan of this time period for big muskies no matter where I am fishing. While I can’t argue that plenty of big fish are susceptible in the later fall, to me nothing beats September for aesthetics. I could literally fish every day in the month of September and be in musky heaven. Don’t miss out on this terrific time of the year.
Freshwater Fishing Hall Of Fame Angler
Joe Bucher