1) The most important part of your cast is the retrieve. Fly fishermen are so used to picking up yards of line to ready the next cast. For Muskies, 6 of 10 strikes are right beside the boat. You always hear fisher people preach the figure "8". It is a little harder with a fly rod.

Remember to always bring your fly right to the boat. A simple L or J motion with your rod along with a little pause will almost always entice those big toothy critters to bite.

2) Be sure to position yourself if possible so you are not casting with the sun at your back. These fish like to come up under their prey. They will be shallow and your shadow of the cast and retrieve will definitely deter them.

3) The use of poppers are a great attractor for shallow feeding muskies.

4) When using streamers of flies, tap the water a couple of times. Place these close to the area of your cast.

Read about Terry's Steelhead fly-fishing adventure (.pdf)

6) If you find an area with 1 muskie, you can bet your fishing gear there will be at least one more in the area. Remember they call it "musky hunting" so try to locate their favourite spots.

7) Use at least a 9 weight rod. You need backbone to set the hook. Muskies have a very hard mouth. I love my 12 weight Sage with LX 4.5 Islander reel!

8) Be sure to keep the tension on the line, let the rod do the work. Skits are notorious for spitting out the hook. You usually only have 1 hook on your lure, not 9 like traditional muskie baits. So keep it tight.

9) Use at least a 30-40 pound flora carbon tipet with a 60-80 flora carbon fight leader. Due to the size of the line and to keep the knots as small as possible, I put a little dab of super glue on the knot. This will make you a happy angler when you land the fish of your life.

10) Keep your boat as clean as possible to allow yourself room to move about during the fight.

11) A lure retriever is worth its weight in gold, when fishing in the rocks and timber. It will be used more than once if you are using a sink tip in shallow water.