12/25/2024
The 2024 Musky season is in the books! This season marked my third year guiding on Lake St. Clair and it was the most successful/ most challenging season I’ve had to date. Tough fishing condition days seemed to outweigh favorable condition days for much of the season in which we experienced many sunny, low wind, clear water days in the summer months and an unseasonably warm fall that at the drop of a hat, switched to freezing temperatures to round out the year. Even with the tough conditions, a lightning strike frying my engine computers, injuring my wrist mid-season, and getting into a bad car accident that nearly totaled my truck, we made it through with the best season for amount of musky boated, 50”+ fish caught, and highest numbers of first/personal best musky caught by clients.
Over the past few seasons the summer months have been some of my most productive, and this year that was no different. With the lack of wind/clouds/stained water we saw on a regular basis, often my game-plan was to fish deep, fish less pressured water, and capitalize on first & last light. With the middays having tough conditions, I would split a lot of my summer trips 4-6 hours in the morning and 4-6 hours in late afternoon/evening to help my clients conserve energy and fish more efficiently. This resulted in some highly productive trips and I will definitely continue to implement this option for clients in the future. This summer I was also proud my team would take the 3rd place finish in the 2024 Bondy Bait Musky Slam. The previous year we took 5th place. I set a preseason goal aiming to place higher, so taking the 3rd spot this year meant a lot!
The fall bite was much more difficult in comparison to years past. Above average temperatures held constant for much of the fall up until the tail end of the season when the switch flipped to cold, without much of an in-between. This resulted in much less activity in the traditional in-shore spots that musky transition to in the fall, even when we were marking fish in those areas. It was a constant battle between thoroughly working over these areas in hopes the bite would turn on, or running and gunning areas in hopes of more consistency. In the fall of this year, it often came down to capitalizing on opportunity between myself and my clients. We might’ve only got a few cracks in a day, so staying focused and holding ourselves accountable with missed opportunity often helped convert bad days to good days. On the days we didn’t boat fish we always walked away with the positives, which in musky fishing is a MUST! No matter if a beginner or a seasoned pro, we all have tough days. The learning, growing, and persevering will always be a part of shaping us as a fisherman/woman.
I’m extremely proud of what my clients and myself accomplished this season. I’m also thankful for all my clients for choosing to book trips with my outfit when there are many talented guides to choose from on Lake St. Clair. I will always go above and beyond for ya’ll and hope to see everyone again next season. Huge thank you to my clients, sponsors, wife, family, and friends!
My books for the 2025 Walleye & Musky season are OFFICIALLY OPEN! All of my rates will remain the same.
Merry Fishmas & Happy Holidays to all!
Sincerely,
Capt. Zach & Wolfpack Fishing Charters and Guide Service
