Tiger Muskies of Mayfield Lake
Posted: Thu Jul 17, 2014 5:06 pm2014 has a been a great year of fishing. I've managed to check several fish off of my bucket list. Growing up in Upstate New York, I had missed the days of catching big northern pike out of the Finger Lakes. It seems if I were to do any pike fishing, I'd be taking a long drive to the eastern part of the state.
It was a number of years ago that I had read that a bunch of Tiger Muskies were dumped into Greenlake to get rid of the lake's unwanted junk fish. I could kick myself for not getting out there and trying to catch one of them. Those fish have all but died off. I knew there were a few lakes south of Seattle (Tapps, Merwin, Mayfield and Curlue) that were stocked with Tiger Muskies but I didn't know anyone who fished for them. I researched the local muskie chapter down south and one of their members was able to give me a couple of pointers over email.
A buddy and I hit Lake Tapps last summer only to be discouraged by jet skiis and power boats racing up and down the lake. I had driven past Mayfield Lake on trips to Swofford Pond and Riffe Lake but had never wet a line.
Fast forward to 2014... after an expensive trip to Cabela's to pick up gear, I grabbed my buddy and our two kayaks and headed south to Mayfield Lake. We arrived in the late afternoon and fished for a couple of hours. I had heard how these fish were "a fish of a thousand casts" and it didn't take long before we began seeing fish in the 3 to 4 foot range laying in the weeds or a few following in our lures. They weren't spooked much and would just lay there with no interest in any presentation we threw at them. By the end of the day, I had managed to hook into three fish but only landed one. An oversized broken back Rapala seemed to be the only lure I could get them to strike. I've never spent $17 on a lure, but in the end this was a good investment. Needless to say, I'll be back.
It was a number of years ago that I had read that a bunch of Tiger Muskies were dumped into Greenlake to get rid of the lake's unwanted junk fish. I could kick myself for not getting out there and trying to catch one of them. Those fish have all but died off. I knew there were a few lakes south of Seattle (Tapps, Merwin, Mayfield and Curlue) that were stocked with Tiger Muskies but I didn't know anyone who fished for them. I researched the local muskie chapter down south and one of their members was able to give me a couple of pointers over email.
A buddy and I hit Lake Tapps last summer only to be discouraged by jet skiis and power boats racing up and down the lake. I had driven past Mayfield Lake on trips to Swofford Pond and Riffe Lake but had never wet a line.
Fast forward to 2014... after an expensive trip to Cabela's to pick up gear, I grabbed my buddy and our two kayaks and headed south to Mayfield Lake. We arrived in the late afternoon and fished for a couple of hours. I had heard how these fish were "a fish of a thousand casts" and it didn't take long before we began seeing fish in the 3 to 4 foot range laying in the weeds or a few following in our lures. They weren't spooked much and would just lay there with no interest in any presentation we threw at them. By the end of the day, I had managed to hook into three fish but only landed one. An oversized broken back Rapala seemed to be the only lure I could get them to strike. I've never spent $17 on a lure, but in the end this was a good investment. Needless to say, I'll be back.
- Tiger Muskie
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