The RISE And FALL Of MILLE LACS MUSKIES - What MAY Have Happened?? 

Fishing pressure is the single biggest non natural factor on fisheries. I started guiding in 2005 and by 2010 between myself, several other guides, and the popularity of the sport exploding the fishing became so tough on my fishery that I began to lose clients because I couldn’t get the fish in the boat like I used too. And where I guide there’s no other options for quite a drive. I can’t blame anyone for going fishing but when there’s 14 boats in 5 acres of water that’s not too fun. Anyhow, I guess I’m venting lol. Great insight Lee, Ive followed you since the esox angler days and I give you big props for taking that first leap!

Lee & Robbie: great video on personal, lake and fishing history. It points out the fact that our fisheries are a huge blessing and they can go away almost instantly if not managed properly. Also want to point out the fact that your “Legend” series is educational and fun to watch. In fact wasn’t this the episode featuring someone with a vast amount of Muskie knowledge? Yes Lee I mean you! Thank you both. God Bless!

Really love this format guys! Very well spoken and genuine. My local lake is the biggest in Ireland, we experienced a similar population crash in our apex predator population some time in the early 2000s With global warming our perch and trout populations have struggled somewhat, while baitfish such as bream and roach have exploded. We now have a situation where trout anglers are illegally killing pike, believing their lak of trout action to be the pikes fault. When in fact there is just less trout, and more baitfish. Unfortunately for guys like us, who spend over 200 days a year on the lake, the average weekend angler is somewhat out of touch... Keep fighting the good fight over there lads, you two are great educators, imparting information in a way that those with large ego's, won't reject to readily Keep her lit!

Only Todays Angler could keep me entertained for 80 minutes...thanks guys!

Over fishing, plus the flooding,wow! that was a great story Lee thanks for sharing it

This video is one of my new favorites on RU-vid. It’s amazing the power of fish and the passion people have for fish

Just rolled into Isle today, going for a jumbo!

Growing up in the Detroit area it was Lake St. Clair for musky. Incredible fishery... big and shallow. Met Homer LeBlanc (Mr. Musky) and toured his basement museum and workshop dedicated to Musky. Good memories.

Never heard of the high water levels changing Mille lacs muskies what about the indiscriminate gill netting of walleyes in the spring ? Isn’t that a effect? I know the shutting down of how many walleyes you can keep fishing is hitting the resorts in the pocketbooks hard!

I remember 4 of us got 28 in a week all 40+. It was an incredible time in mid 2000’s

Legends of Musky fishing with guest Lee Tauchin. Great vid guys.

Would like to hear you talk about the different Muskie strains

In college (Morehead, Ky - Cave Run) I became a musky enthusiast, but have since moved South (NC) to which muskies have become a far-away dream. Thank you for amazing content (that I can show my son as well). God bless and thanks!

I lost it when I heard the James Lindner impersonation...hahaha

I was guiding there at the same time.... tougher for me to do it every day while raising two kids and having a business, but happy to say I was in on the heyday, and able to live right there. We fished it day and night, but caught the biggest mommas and the most numbers in the dark. This sure brought back memories. It was nothing to see 50+ muskies in an evening, suspended up in the weeds or cruising up and down the weedline. Some nights there was 50-100 boats just on the north end sand alone. Many, many hundreds of boats fishing muskies on the lake - especially on weekends. I was a purist for a long time.Dropped everything to go to Alaska for a decade, and a change of scenery. Now back. I don't chase muskies like I used to - but I still enjoy it on my terms. Hard on the body, that's for sure,. Still feel it today! The numbers are not there in my opinion, as evidenced by lack of seeing them (the way I used to) when I shoot carp in the spring. Educated fish. Dead fish. Open water abyss fish. But there are still some big-uns. Popped a 50+ in Vineland on the opener walleye fishing - which came unglued from a small jig.

Robbie & Lee Roy the dynamic duo of TA are sooo high on Musky juice you can’t help get caught up in their enthusiasm! Go get’em fellas!

I still refer to Cowgirls as Minnesota Wind Chimes. Cool memories Lee.

Loved listening to the history Lee! I still remember watching that Scony chase down the bucktail and eat in the figure 8. Great memories!!!

Amazing story. Nowadays you'll never get muskies left alone that long to create that type of fishery. Makes you wonder if maybe there are couple under the radar that people are fishing now with tight lips. I am sure you are on the right track for the down turn. Fish leaving the lake, mortality, lake changes, forage changes, fishing pressure both on big fish and the younger fish, might have moved the big girls off structure forcing then to open water. Good stuff guys!

I got the privilege to spend a week with Gregg Thomas on mille lacs in July of 2006. FREAKING INSANE! LOL. A blue cowgirl over the weed tops at night got me a 52 1/2 incher. We had Afew over 50 that week. Never forget it. Great memories. Thanks for reminding me. ❤️

Feel really fortunate to have been a young kid back in the day and get to go into our local d&s bait shop and have lee and joe at the desk always full of information. Great video loved it. If those fish did die off dont you think you would have seen pics of these huge slobs on someones shoreline??

Love these videos. Lee's exposure and excitement for mille lacs reminds me of myself, going from eau claire to madison as a college student. Tough musky fishing in eau claire from shore and then to be spoiled with endless muskies in the madison chain. It was jaw dropping for me. Such amazing shore opportunities in the madison chain, 46.5 wisconsin strain and 47" minnesota strain are my biggest from shore. Wish I still lived there. I see theres more and more 50"+ being caught in the chain!

Best youtube muskie fishermen around!

I read an article about Mill Lacs stating that people were pushing to increase walleye numbers for tourism revenue and we're fighting to reduce muskie numbers. If I remember right the article was claiming too many muskies were eating all the walleye.

I have FISH Mille Lacs lake for 40 years I have tens of thousands of hours on the water I fish for all species on Milacs I have seen the rise and fall of everyone of them jumbo perch rock bass whitefish burbot I understand lakes cycle out a lot of these fish never cycled back in big fish don’t live forever. I have noticed in the last few years the good weed lines have disappeared and you don’t mark balls of bait fish like you used to it’s a cool lake it’s in my blood hope I see it come back around in my lifetime lack of bait fish I think is the main problem right now they’ve eaten them selves out of house and home

Wow! Thanks! This was an informative video. I grew up in MN, unfortunately I didn't get bit by the musky bug until after Mille Lacs was basically over. Mille Lacs is a big, boring bowl so I likely wouldn't have been a disciple anyway. I like the 715 area and I'm glad to see lots of video coming out of there. I managed to get a 49.5 in a spot that Robbie has a ton of film of this year. A substantial body of water north and east of the Big Chip. I enjoyed that footage this season as well. I'm coming after your rivers, I need a mid 40"er on the fly rod.

Interesting theory on what happened to the muskies in 2008 for the fishing to take such a drastic downturn! I am somewhat skeptical that the fish moved out of Mille Lacs, down the Rum River and into the Mississippi River. The rum river is a pretty skinny river in spots and there are something like 150 river miles of the Rum between Mille Lacs and the Mississippi. On top of that, those fish would have to go over a dam in Anoka in order to complete that pilgrimage. One would think if that had happened there would have been substantiated reports of monster musky catches in the Rum and Mississippi River from the Anoka dam all the way up to the St. Cloud dam. I have only heard one substantiated claim of a musky coming from the Rum River, and I have done some digging to find musky information about this river. Are muskies caught between St. Cloud and Anoka on the Mississippi River? Absolutely, albeit rarely, and the fish that have been caught on that stretch of the river just aren’t attaining the mega sizes of those Mille lacs fish. Of course there are monster fish pulled out of the Mississippi each year, but most of those really big fish have historically been pulled out of the river north of the St. Cloud dam on up to Brainerd. I think the more likely scenario is what you mentioned about the fish entering connecting lakes within close proximity to Mille Lacs, as well as the impact of a mass influx of tullibee fry creating a ton of forage, thus shutting down the bite. These are my thoughts, not as a professional fisherman or fisheries biologist but as a local fisherman in MN. Could some fish have made it down the Rum and into the Mississippi? Possibly, but my gut tells me that would have to have been a rare exception rather than a mass exodus of giant muskies. Would be curious to hear what others think! Anyway, you guys had my undivided attention throughout the whole video. What a fascinating case study Mille Lacs has been! It really bums me out that I was not in the musky game yet during its peak....

interesting video. I have always tried to fish waters slightly off the beaten path. Can't stand a crowd, had time and energy to explore when I was younger, learned a ton of water, caught a bunch of fish, thought about guiding but ultimately decided I didn't want to exploit the fish to over fishing by a bunch of people that didn't want to put in the work and overall I just wanted to enjoy my discoveries in fishing as long as possible. Almost every place I described has eventually become discovered by someone who ended up blabbing to everyone they know or some guide and became overfished to the point where you get 10-25 percent of the action, I only enjoy going back to reflect the good times. The guiding, exploitation, magazine articles, and tv shows destroyed the Mille Lacs just like the places I went. As long as there's guys out there that want to pay a guy to find a spot and a guy willing to show them their spot for money this will continue to happen, simple. At this point learning to catch muskies has become so much easier, it's just not good in one place very long. social media, guiding, forums, less stocking, less natural reproduction, more fisherman, more exposure means fishing is going south, times are just different. they'll always be the good ol days though, I definitely read all the articles and took all the advice I could so I gotta give thanks to all the guys that put in out there.

Lee and Robbie a great video. My buddy Matt and I experience the same thing with Hoosier muskies, thou on a smaller scale. So many followers and expectations of always getting two to four fish with one in the mid forty inch range. But word got out fishing pressure increased and every time you found a new or tried a new techniques only last really good for one season. We were the first to find out there was a pre ice bite there lasted only two years to ourselves. When there was little ice parking lots where filled even during middle of week in January. Crazy!

Great discussion. The rise and fall of bodies of water is constant. Count ourselves lucky if we hit one on the upswing.

Lee's a great story teller!!

You guys are absolutely mint I watch all of it and Muskie fishing is the closest to quint getting jaws!!

It was fantastic and successful to be there with you in 2008 ! Mille Lacs on Labor day weekend I believe. You were just getting done filming with Pete Maina when Tim W. and I arrived. We caught a 42" (at the boat on figure 8) and a 55" in the dark on night #2.

As someone that started fishing muskie starting 2009 on Mille Lacs I can contests catching musky there is extremely hard. I always hear stories how big they are how many it has... I put in litterally thousands of hours in all the same areas he mentioned over about a 7 year period. Especially the north end. I have never caught a musky on there...I still fish it all the time because I know the potential. But I am cursed on that lake!!! I've caught many many 40+ pike though. Last year was the first time boating one my friend caught and it was 27". What I would totally agree on the weeds changing, I would record my tracks trolling and every year the cabbage line got smaller and smaller...the lake got clearer and clearer due to zebra muscles. Now it's mainly milfoil and the fish left. I still think that lake can produce a record but you need a strong mentality to fish as much as I have and never catch one. c

I blame fishing pressure. Time and time again places get ruined once people find out about them.

Have you ever fished Cass Lake?? We go up their every year and the zebra muscles have made it so you can see the bottom at 20 feet we’ve been going over walleye and have seen multiple musky feeding would definitely recommend trying cass!!

More musky stories and podcasts please

I love the long hair Lee! Totally my style if i could still grow any! Haha

Yall have me seriously contemplating my life. I need to move up north and hunt muskies every day of my life lol.

thank you guys for this video! Immediately one of my favorites you guys have uploaded. SO very interesting. That frikkin lake has broken my heart so very many times haha

Truly a great episode! Thanks for taking us on the journey.

Awesome content! Thanks to Robbie and Lee for another terrific video!

Great stuff. Mille Lacs has become a very low-density muskie lake populated by monsters. Ditto some other lakes in MN. Probably a combination of hooking mortality, cannibalism of smaller muskies by larger muskies, and like you noted cyclic changes in forage patterns. Mille Lacs still producing some truly enormous fish.

Love the story & history. Helps us all! Thx

I loved that episode! Thank you gentlemen....

One of the best RU-vid videos I have ever watched! I am only half way through and thoroughly enjoying it. Really interesting to hear all your success on that lake and how things changed over the years. Makes me think about fishing the Niagara River during the early 2000's and seeing how it has changed over the years. Captivating to hear your progression over the years in terms of baits and areas you fished. Also, sharing your passion for fishing that made you move 6 hours away - you just had to go! This series - including interviewing other Musky masters has been very entertaining.

This is the most informative and interesting video I think you've ever done, at least for me. I loved hearing how you started and all the history involved. I've always referred to Mille Lacs as the lake I hate to love. My first trip up here was just past the glory days, I think 2009. Back when Pete was wearing the pink hat haha. I was there for the sand bite when there were 100 boats out there and everyone had a fish in the net at the same time. I've been there a few times since and have seen how it has gone downhill. I fished an entire week in (I think it was) 2012 and saw 2 muskies, but one was in that 55" range that just plain missed my bait. Way up on the sand flat in a random pack of cabbage. We went there this past August, but didn't even fish for muskies. I think your theory on the fish going downstream could very well be correct as that has been my theory on my home waters in Indiana also. We had high numbers of fish of all sizes. You could get 20+ follows every day. But then we had 2 consecutive years of month long record high floods in the spring and the fish just DISAPPEARED. Literally from ice up to ice off, they were gone. There were a few after the first flood, but then none after the 2nd year. You had netting as a secondary effect, we had major weed kills. We have always had high fishing pressure here so I don't see that being a factor, not as dramatic as it all happened. Our lakes are just now starting to come back, but it's a slow regrowth. I have so many memories of Mille Lacs, but I sure wish I'd have gotten on it sooner. Maybe in another 15 years itll rebound. Everyone is fishing for smallmouth now, and even that isn't the same as it used to be since the bassmaster tournaments. I'm going to have to come fish with you, even if it's just to hear more stories like this. Well done Sir, and thank you for YOUR contribution to the history of muskie angling.

I think all lakes go through cycles regardless of the species. Lee mentioned a few reasons and all are valid, stocking will help but the results from that take time. I really enjoyed this video, great job guys.

Great information boys keep up the good work hopefully you can crush a big one this Fall!!!

Have there been any tracking studies of muskies on Mille Lacs? Would be very interesting and a sure way to know if these fish are leaving the lake.

Super cool stories and insight! Thanks for sharing!

Two musky openers ago got to see a 53.5 incher hit the net on mile lacs and that’s the last one we’ve even had in the boat out there.

Great video as always. I’ve been going to Mille Lacs for the last 6 years. It’s so sad that they will not stock that lake. The structure and forage have world record potential. Loved hearing your stories!

Can you make video were to look for musky in fall and winter and what bait to use? Thanks

Great great stories! I’m jealous. Only reason I ever wanted to leave Texas. Musky love from afar!

Caught my pb 49 at Mille lacs this season early

never heard anyone mention the idea that the fish left the lake down the Rum River.....very interesting!!

I have the best luck in a rain, wearing my rain gear in Michigan inland lakes

i got to shoot with Bill linder on lake of the woods one of my most favorite fishing experiences ever

Thanks for this Lee 🤘🏼

Are most of your videos in Wisconsin? Just asking cause I live in Wisconsin and found your channel! I am also a brand new fisherman

Went in July fished for about 9 hours caught a 39in not even 1/4mile away from the Garrison access, and I had a follow from a giant right off Indian point.

I found this talk fascinating Lee. Certain irony personally for me. I currently live now on the shores of Mille Lacs, just north of Garrison. Overlooking Myr Mar reefs. Had my place for about 8 years until just recently making it my permanent year round home. The ironic part is when you were here during the bonanza years, I was still living in Madison making most all my musky fishing pursuits to Vilas/Iron counties. Little clue what was going on here back then until I finally caught up with the "Just Big Muskies" videos guy's at a muskie show. I've since talked with neighbors here whom also got in on some of those 50+" fish. Interesting theories what might have happened and what went down. It was a phenomenon seemingly, like the Leech Lake rampage in 1955...just drawn out over a period of several years. The high water and swimming down rivers is possible, but you'd think there'd be backfill, or new younger fish eventually recruited up to the #'s of big fish like back then. We know that hasn't happened. Sure, some beasts are still out there. But the #'s are way down. Anyway, keep up the great content!

Great story! I'm lucky enough to live on the Ottawa River, fish get long here but not nearly as chubby :) Great video guys!

Im with you in your goal to put a charge in the WiDNR to start doing a better stocking program. WiDNR definitely needs to change their philosophy in regards to the Muskie stocking

Great video guys!

the bass fishing in Wisconsin has gone downhill super bad last couple years, really sad to see

Lee and Robbie you both mentioned nearly every necessary aspect of fishery conservation. We are the anglers putting money into the environment. It's our voices that are heard and if not need to be heard. It's all about voting for representatives that have our views. Robbie briefly said natural reproduction doesn't happen because of shoreline development. We can change legislation to protect shorelines! We are the ones funding the agencies so, we need to keep pushing them to get rules rewritten. We can choose to close fisheries or fish refuges(es) (there's enough water to fish somewhere else for a period of time), we can advocate for habitat rehabilitation, no wake zones, and so on. My opinion is that put and take fisheries (stocking) should not be the dominant way we manage our waters. There are fundamental environmental issues that need to be addressed first (habitat, invasive species, water quality) and then smart stocking of ALL species (including baitfish) can help kickstart a fishery. It's been proven time and time again that stocking is a very dangerous tool. Educate yourself on genetic bottlenecking before advocating stocking over natural reproduction. Collapse after collapse after collapse. You are working to be the voices and representatives of Musky fishing. You hold a lot of influence in your hands and therefore the weight of educated reason. GIANT Muskies grow in various waters for many different reasons but that doesn't mean they can get giant everywhere in a short period of time. It's all about perspective, what is better a 58 inch artifishally stocked 10 year old musky (THAT IS STERILE) or a 48 inch natttty 38 years old or a 55 inch natty thats nearly 50 years old and has been reproducing for decades... I'd go into the fish handling thread but I've already overstepped. So, all I'll say is go barbless and stop measuring every fish (out of the water)…

what happened to the big muskies on my number 1 lake in boulder junction wis. dont see big fish anymore. i know pressure and people dont know how to release but no one talks about spearing ive seen fish speared and just leave them for dead. because they can. its gotta stop people!

Had no idea you were from Madison, WI. I love pike fishing here to wonderful but never got onto a musky I wish, being a shore fisherman ain’t easy

Robbie and Lee I feel your pain I grew up along the banks of the upper potomac in Maryland. as a kid seeing a river with only stocked tigers go from only stocked tigers to some how and no one truly knows a full blown reproducing Southern musky fishing jem. From 1996 till 2017 the potomac was right there with the James and new river and with lighter fishing pressure was sure to pass those Virginia fisherys. In 2018-19 the potomac has dealt with high water as Well with the potomac normally running at a yearly average of 5 feet the river never fell under 8 that year with a average of 10. For the year and a high of 26 feet!!!! During late spring. 2019 brought high water and less fish and now 2020 my catch rate is so far a quarter of pre 2018 for musky and smallmouth bass. The smallmouth population has dropped so low that maryland d.n.r. has begun to emergency stock the river from brood stock caught from potomac. Until 2018 you couldn't be on the river and not see schools of white sucker,shiners,fall fish now you may go all day and see 2-3 sucker. The high water has not only destroyed 2 years of spawning but has also washed all the food away not to mention the c&o canal that runs along river and every time the river floods the canal the fish move into the canal only to get trapped and die because 90% of canal no longer holds water. I feel your pain!!!!!!

Do they float stock Mille Lacs or just pick a random spot and dump?

Right now I only get to go up north once a year and i fish by myself for a week trying to get musky on lake vermillion

Take a shot everytime robbie says "Yup"

Lol... I remember the sea of red baits being casted. 3 red dawgs at a time in the Hamm boat

I saw a 53" caught on suckerbay off Hardwood point back in 92'

Definitely gill netting played the biggest role in it

Well Done!!!!!!

Is there Spearing allowed on it? Size limit? Catch limit?

👍👍 legend Jason hamernick

...I have two friends that were catching multiple Musky over 50 lbs each yr of the 80s in small creeks in Ky,, once while canoeing one of those creeks we stopped to just take in the view, we were in 10' of water with a solid limestone bottom and there was a limestone wall on one side that was around 30' tall,, the water was crystal clear and as I focussed on the bottom I saw over a dozen Musky that were basically sitting still facing the current and every one of them were the same length, and this is just a guess, but I'm going to say that every single one of them were 38"-40"...

Man, what I would give to go back in time and fish the big pond in its prime! It's too bad it's gone downhill numbers wise. I more or less agree with what you said about the population collapse, but I disagree with how large of an impact high water may have had. The high water hypothesis is interesting, however I feel that with the sheer size of the lake it's unlikely that a significant number of the big girls would leave the system just based on current. Some of them probably did, but I'm not sure enough could have left to make a real impact on that fishery. I think the more likely situation that occurred was the influx of new forage and a change in aquatic vegetation that you mentioned. This probably just shifted where the fish positioned themselves and how much/what they ate, making them more difficult to locate. Compound this with an aging fishery, increased pressure and all that comes with it and you get a recipe for more difficult fishing. This is the same kind of deal we see with how walleye are being impacted by these same factors in some fisheries, except for some reason many fisherman want to blame it on the poor ski's rather than the changing lake environment. I think what Robbie said at the end was spot on "we need more muskies". I enjoyed watching this video and hearing your perspective on all of this. Hope you catch some fatties next season!

Nice video👍👍

That intro made me realize how much I miss bigfish365 😭😭

Great video guys- nobody has mentioned the technology factor..mostly Live Scope and what that can do to catching more fish by inexperienced musky fisherman handling them wrong. Thoughts?

As we know fish will migrate to food sources. Based on reports and surveys, Mille Lacs was suffering from low tullibee populations. It lead to open foraging muskies to find new hunting areas. With out getting into to much detail, this in return made them easier to catch and target. Just my two cents.

We really need to sit down and have a coffee or two.

Been waiting for this haha! Is your chopper or flap tail going to be back in stock anytime soon?

I got a couple of 46s out of there this year and lost a bigger one at the boat.

the last full season Hamernick guided on that lake from opener to ice up his boat netted 8 fish......something is wrong here

Jon is a member of the club i used to work at

was 2004 right around when they started destroying fish up near leach on suckers? seems like it was hot in the early 2000s and faded this decade

@Todays Angler, fishing management changed their focus on Muskie stocking. Less stocking equals less big fish.

I think millfoil is a huge factor! It may be killing the muskies in the Madison chain as we speak (so to speak) Pun intended. The cabbage seems to be disappearing.

over 700 fish were stocked in Mille Lacs this Fall, all yearling. Which have far better chance of survival

Hey lee have you been to Canada much? And if so how have your experiences been?? Oh and also was that 55.5 incher that was your previous pb one that you caught on Mille lacs??

No credit for filming that great video from 2011 in the snow storm? That great head shake video.

Is Mille Lacs any good in the summer

Oliver just released a video on Mille also! Watching still :)

I mean, you cant really expect that much from a body of water that barely gets stocked and had no natural population to begin with. You guys NEED to come to canada and fish lake of the woods or eagle lake, or the saint lawrence river. Would be really nice to see you guys up here