Muskie Fishing’s Oldest Guide

BOB BRUNNER

Legendary is an honorary distinction bestowed only on a few fishing guides each year. It is an acknowledgement that a person has attained legendary status: a man who has made a visible impact on fishing over a period of many years.

The National Fresh Water Fishing Hall of Fame in Hayward, Wisconsin awarded Bob Brunner of Utica, Michigan, this distinctive honor several years ago. He was inducted into the Hall as a Legendary Guide.

Competition among people who lobby for their nominees can be intense, and those who are granted this high status by the Hall's voting committee are richly deserving of such an honor.

A lifetime of muskie fishing on Lake St. Clair

Brunner has been a muskie-fishing guide on Lake St. Clair for many years. And, unlike other guides, he does his fishing in a most uncommon way on this great body of water near Detroit: he chooses to cast rather than troll, unlike 99.9 percent of the other muskie anglers on that fish-rich body of water between Lake Huron and Lake Erie.

"I've fished Lake St. Clair since 1929 and caught my first muskie in 1931 when I was six years old," Brunner told me. "Dad and I fished the lake every Sunday for many years, but now at the tender age of 89, I still have people ask me to teach them how to cast for muskies. I rarely troll for them because I feel I can get my clients into much bigger fish by working the weed beds where trolling is very difficult to do."

Bob Brunner with a 50-pound muskie he caught a few years ago

Lake St. Clair is, beyond any doubt, the best muskellunge lake in North America. There are more muskies per water surface area than anywhere in muskie country. This is why Brunner chooses to guide on this shallow lake. The chances of catching one of the big girls is better on Lake St. Clair than on any other lake that holds these grand game fish.
The largest muskies of all are always females. Male muskies do not grow as large as females, and they are what he fishes for.

"I have never run an ad and I'm still booked most of the season," Brunner said. "People come from all over to fish with me because they know I work hard to put them on big fish. If a person is willing to travel 50 or 2,000 miles to fish with me, it's my job to put them on a big fish so they will hopefully catch the muskellunge of a lifetime.”

He loves to fish for most game fish species but muskies are the love of his life. That is one reason he has written numerous books about how and where to catch Great Lakes muskellunge. Brunner has developed a strong cult following among muskie anglers, and his methods differ greatly from guides who troll.

"I want people to be able to catch these great fish and enjoy life as much as I have," he said. "My books are not all about muskie fishing but some of them are focused just on these great fish while some cover other species as well.  I believe my book, Casting: The Feast Or Famine Of Fishing, is my best work. It explains where to fish, which lures and methods to use and where to use them."

Brunner is the author of several muskie-fishing books

Sadly, most of his books are long out of print and are very collectible. I have a few duplicate copies, if anyone is looking for a copy. I don’t have duplicates of all of his books but do have several of the highly sought-after titles. Contact me at dave@daverichey.com

Brunner says his best times on the water are those spent teaching kids how to fish. He enjoys having kids on his boat, but as long as he can put someone into fish, he's in his glory.

His first business card said "On-water lessons available at reasonable rates." His first two clients were a father and son for the boy's 14th birthday. After they spent a few hours casting around several Anchor Bay areas, the kid hooked and landed his first muskie. It was a fat 40-incher caught on a spoon and the boy was hooked for life.

"I knew then that I had to get more children and their parents out fishing," he said. "So here I am, many years later, and still trying to get kids and people involved in this sport. I have been releasing muskies since the early 1970s.

"When I teach someone how to catch fish I feel I'm doing what the Big Guy wants me to do. The look on a kid's face while he tries to reel a 48-inch muskie to the boat is something that words cannot describe. It makes me feel warm and fuzzy to see a child so happy because he caught a fish where I said one would be. I feel blessed to have helped so many kids land their first muskellunge."

Brunner feels that muskie fishing has exploded over the past 15 years and it is hard to keep up with the many changes.  He feels saddest that now his life's journey is nearing its end he won't be able to fish the many other great muskie hotspots that he has fished over for so many years.

"I have met some really great people in my life and some have taught me some very valuable lessons," he said. "Two are the Richey brothers -- Dave and George. We lost George nearly nine years ago to cancer, and he was a great person and a skilled fisherman.

“George fished with me once a year for over 10 years. He taught me that we are all the same, and he was great company on the boat. He was one of the very few anglers that could beat me casting for the big girls."

Legendary guides aren’t common but Bob Brunner fits into this category

There is no doubt about it: Bob Brunner was well qualified for induction into the Hall of Fame as a legendary muskie-fishing guide. He rightfully deserves this recognition, and I look forward to fishing with him this fall for one of his "Big Girls."

I hope we can make our schedules fit. He is a special person in my life of muskie fishing. The fish in the photo above is of Brunner’s biggest muskie, one that weighed about 50 pounds.

It’s obvious there are more small muskies than big ones, but the one thing about muskie fishing is it is addictive. Catch one big fish, and doing so may turn an angler into a die-hard fisherman that lives for the next vicious strike from one of Brunner’s “Big Girls.” It’s a risk than many anglers are prepared to take when fishing with this Legendary Muskie Guide.

To Contact Bob:

• Bob Brunner - 2435 Dawes, Shelby Township, MI 48317
  Phone (586) 254-9209
  eMail muskiebobbarb@comcast.net

Become a doer rather than a procrastinator

Hey! If this buck keeps coming closer, are you going to shoot or think about it?

Those who have taken a Dale Carnegie course come out of it with an attitude. This 'tude is what some bow and turkey hunters need. They must think positively and act.

Some people develop a false hunting attitude where they think they can shoot a buck or gobbler. Those with the right mindset don't think they can; they know that when a shot is imminent, they will kill that critter.

There is a huge difference between thinking you can and knowing you can. Thinkers are doing just that. They think too much, and by the time their mind solves the issue, the deer is gone or offers only a low-percentage shot. They miss an opportunity by thinking too much.

Shooting game means doing so without thinking. Just develop an attitude.

How can a bow hunter go from being a thinker to a doer. It's really pretty easy.

They practice constantly on targets at distances consistent with their skill levels. They have confidence in their ability to shoot straight without having to think things out before drawing their bow.

They size up the opportunity, and have enough confidence in themselves and their arrow shooting ability to come to full draw at the right time and deliver a killing shot.

Confidence is the key word in this whole discussion. Confidence comes from knowing you can do it and then do it right. Any questionable thoughts just eat away at your confidence and a shot is usually missed. Good hunters, if faced with a questionable situation, won't shoot.

Good hunters know that a familiarity with deer or turkeys, and especially bucks or gobblers, is important. A sizable whitetail buck steps out within easy shooting distance, and the decision is made and the arrow is released in much less time than it takes to read this sentence.

Establish a buck has antler big enough to suit you and shoot at the right time.

The thinker, if he were sitting side-by-side with the confident doer, would still be evaluating the situation while the hunter has shot the animal. Thinkers deliberate and procrastinate, and doers shoot.

This doesn't mean the doers don't think. They size up the animal, raise the bow, aim and shoot in one fluid movement. Their mind, because they have a large amount of self confidence, instantly knows this is a shooter. The doer, if the animal switches positions, also can stop and wait if necessary.

This type of positive thinking comes from looking at a great many deer, learning to size them up, and being able to draw, aim and shoot without consciously thinking about it. Shooting becomes second nature.

Some people have enormous amounts of self confidence and some do not. Those who lack this confidence building skill must spend more time outdoors, and spend more time in close proximity to game.

Think of it this way. The wind is your greatest enemy because it allows deer to smell you. Your next worst enemy is the inability to sit still. Learn to conquer both items, and you'll have gained a large measure of self confidence.

The next step is to have a buck or gobbler within easy shooting range. Things change dramatically from when the deer is 100 yards away to when it is within 15 yards. The closer a buck gets, the more a thinker starts concentrating on the antlers than where the arrow must go.

A lack of concentration is the hallmark of the thinker. The doer is five steps ahead in his ability to draw, aim and shoot in a second or two.

The thinker also procrastinates. Learn deer body language, and a hunter can often tell if a deer is about to walk or run off or stay in the area. The longer a deer stands nearby, the longer the thinker studies the antlers, and the longer it takes to shoot.

Let's go back to high school exams. It's easy to tell the right answers, but some questions are more difficult. Often, studies show, the person's first instinct is right in a yes-no or multiple-choice question. It's when students begin to second-guess themselves, deny their original instinct and thought, that they often provide the incorrect answer.

Develop an attitude that allows an instant decision to be made and act on it.

Bow hunting is similar in many respects. Dawdle or think too much, and the opportunity walks off into thick cover while you dither about. This doesn't mean that hunters must rush their shot, because in most cases, they have more time to draw, aim and shoot than they think.

The doer recognizes that ideal moment, and instinctively reacts to it without conscious thought. Ninety-nine percent of the time, when the bow comes back to full draw, a shot quickly follows. The entire shooting experience becomes instinctive.

Deer act on instinct as well. There is no reason a hunter can't develop the same style of instinctive reaction to a quality shot opportunity. Shooting a deer with a bow should become instinctive, and mind you, learning how to do it doesn't come overnight.

Only consistent quality practice, being near deer or gobblers, being able to read a buck or gobbler's 's body language, and doing these things often, will lead to becoming a better hunter.

An old friend had a saying that seems to sum up this hunting philosophy: "They don't ask 'can you?'; they ask 'did you?"

The doers can, all the time, and the thinkers can, only on occasion. The summer months are a great time to work at becoming a doer rather than a thinker. In the long run it will pay off.

Cause & Effect

This is about a topic first learned in school. It may not have been devised with whitetail deer in mind, but it certainly does apply.

It states that for every action, there is an opposite or opposing reaction. We've all heard this before, and it applies in many and varied ways to deer hunting.

Take an ill-advised shot at a buck or doe and miss, and the action of shooting causes an opposing reaction. The deer runs off, alarmed but unharmed. It also snorts and alerts other deer in the area to hunter presence.

There’s no mistaking a bad reaction to an unwise human decision.

This action-reaction plays out on a daily basis in the deer woods. Set up in the wrong place, place yourself upwind of deer, and once they catch your scent, off they go without a bow-shot being taken.

The same action-reaction could be called cause-and-effect. Your ill-advised hunting actions cause you to take a shot and miss, and the deer runs off, allowing for its escape.

Many bow hunters fail to heed the good advice of credible hunters. They seem to think they are invisible because they are dressed in camo. Well-worn camo can be ruined by wearing clothing washed in detergent with whitening agents. The deer spook from whitened clothing that just doesn't look natural.

Thousands of hunters believe they are quiet and motionless. They should have a buddy sit 50 yards away with a video camera to tape all the movements that are made.

We've all seen television hunting shows where the cameraman tapes the host pointing and loudly whispering "it’s a buck" four or five times in a row. These are called "cutaways," and are usually taken long after or before the buck has walked into range and caught an arrow through the heart and lungs.

Be cautious about what you think is learned from a TV hunting show.

Hunters who try such nonsense merely are seen, heard or both by the deer, and the animals run off snorting. Cause and effect or action and reaction.

Television hunting shows are expensive to produce, and the competition for advertising dollars is fierce as people compete for money to do next year’s shows. If they make noise at the wrong time, and the buck vamooses, the chance of getting future ad dollars from that company go down the tube. Again, a classic case of action and reaction.

Bow hunters are well advised to consider cause and effect, action and reaction, every time they go hunting. For every possible action, there is a possible reaction, and they may be damaging to your body or harmful to your hunting efforts.

Hang stands early. Insure that everything is safe. Wear a safety harness. Learn how to sit still and don't make noise. There are countless things to think about, but consider every action far in advance and think about any possible reactions.

Give live deer the credit they deserve.

Deer live in the fields, swamps and woods every day. We live there a few hours a day or a week. Give deer a great amount of credit for being instinctive, savvy and alert to changes within their home range.

One way to consider your actions while deer hunting is to consider your bed. If the head of your bed faces west, and you prepare to retire for the night and find the head of the bed facing east, you will quickly notice it. Deer always notice changes in their world.

Consider every change made while hunting, and give serious consideration to the reactions. This is such a basic concept that any bow hunter should learn it early in their hunting career. Alas, too many don’t learn it until it’s too late.

Just remember: for ever action, there is an opposite reaction. Anything you do can and will backfire if you don't think the problem through long before committing to it.

Conquer this basic thought, engage the brain before the body, think things through, and it's very possible that your hunting success ratio with climb.

Posted via email from Dave Richey Outdoors

Surf fishing is good now

If there is anything that turns me on, it is prowling a secluded Lake Michigan beach and casting bait or lures over the edge of the first drop off. The results of that one cast can be explosive.

This is the time of year when most of the coho or Chinook salmon have moved upstream but some stragglers may be caught from shore. The occasional brown trout or steelhead is also a possibility although the steelies are about ready to move upstream to follow the spawning salmon.

Of these two species, the brown trout are most unpredictable. Brown trout numbers have dwindled in recent years, and it would be nice if the DNR planted some fish.

Fishing such spots can be a hit-or-miss fishery.

Rivermouth fishing can pay off from now through times when it is too brutally cold to fish. Many anglers can be seen fishing off a mouth as the wind gusts and drives bone-chilling cold rain or snow into your face. Sometimes the action is good enough to make fishermen fight the cold weather until they limit out on steelhead or browns.

However, most of the time, the fishing will be strictly for steelhead. A brown trout is a bonus. Anglers must learn to read a rivermouth in order to know where to fish.

Watch to see where the river current meets the lake water, and the current flow often depends to a arge degree on wind direction and wave action. Often, a sand bar can build off a river mouth, and the current will curve one way or the other around the sand bar.

I remember once when me and a dozen other fishermen found a school of fall steelhead and a few browns off the Platte river mouth pm a foggy day. The fish could be seen swimming only 10 yards away, and every fish seemed to weigh six to 10 pounds. A few of the browns were even larger.

We used spawnbags tied with orange or yellow mesh material, and we added one or two tiny Styrofoam kernels to the egg sack. This helped the bait to float up just off bottom.

Bait produces mostly steelhead while spoons work best for brown trout,

Our fishing rig was simple. We ran our 6-pound line through a 1/4-oz. egg sinker and tied the line to one end of a barrel swivel, We then tied in a four-foot length of 4-pound leader, tied on a hook, baited up, and cast into the water where the river current and lake water met.

The bait would roll along bottom, and usually it may roll only a few feet before we felt the tap-tap-tap strike as a steelhead picked up the bait. We'd give the fish a bit of slack, let the line come tight again, set the hook, and then watch the explosive jumps of an angry and wild fish.

We hooked a few brown trout that day, but most of the catch were steelhead. If a spot stopped producing, we'd move 50 to 100 yards down the shoreline as we continued to fish the river current flowing into the lake.

Often, the fish would hold on the deep-water side of a drop off. Deep is a relative thing. Where we were hooking fish that day was only five or six feet deep, but the fish were on one side of the sand bar and we were on the opposite side. They couldn't see us, and they seemed to act like an outfielder camped under a high fly ball waiting for the bait to fall down to them.

Once the bait hit the water the fish would grab the spawnbag. We didn't get a hit on every cast, but rarely did we make three casts without hooking a fish.

Try casting spoons in the same areas.

We also experimented with casting 1.4-oz. Devle Dogs or Little Cleos with a silver, silver-blue, silver-green, silver-orange or pearl-colored spoon. The lures would be cast out past the fish, allowed to sink, and retrieved just fast enough to bring out the best action. It seemed to work best on the brown trout in that school.

Timing this event is a crap-shoot. It often happens sometime after early October. Either develop a local and reliable contact in your favorite fishing area, or try it on weekends.

A river mouth can get crowded, and if your neighbor hooks a fish, it's important to get the bait or lure in fast to avoid a serious tangle. Two or three lines tangled by one fish creates a great deal of wasted time for everyone concerned.

Fishing the surf is fun. Lots of fresh air, usually a good group of guys who are willing to help each other, and if one hits the right day, it can be some of the most exciting and spectacular light-line action of the year.

Posted via email from Dave Richey Outdoors