Because there was no
anti-reverse or drag system, you could not palm the reel or hold the rod in
front of the reel as many of us do with today’s reels. You needed to keep
your thumb at the ready to supply drag and to prevent the mother of all
backlashes.
Fighting
The Fish
If you were accomplished
and lucky enough to tie into a Musky back then, the whole experience
demanded your complete attention, as you can see from the photo below.
The hook set demanded the
use of both hands; one holding the reel handle and the other keeping a firm
thumb on the spool and grasp upon the rod. Just think about that for a
second…today we just reef back on the rod to set the hook and pay no
attention to the reel…Musky fishing has gotten much easier.
Once the fish was on, you
had to have your thumb on the spool at all times and a firm grip upon the reel
handle. If you think about how you fight a musky using today’s tackle, you
realize that your attention is not focused upon the reel at all…Sure, it is
a tool that is part of the process but your attention is not consumed by it.
A New
Respect
When I took this look back
at how Musky were caught using the old style tackle, I gained a new respect
for the anglers of the past. These anglers set out on big water in small
boats that were powered by anemic outboard motors. They did not have
fishfinders or electric trolling motors. They did not have nets that could
hold a small child. Landing the Musky was a two man job.
It is my hope that you too
will have gained a new perspective from this short article. As modern Musky
anglers, we have been blessed with a flood of technology that has made our
time on the water quite a bit more productive and to some extent easier than
those Musky anglers of the past had it.
Thanks to the
Cal Johnson Website
for the use of the photo of Cal fighting a Musky.
