Musky School at Lake Hopatcong

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Spring is finally here and that means it's time for Muskies Inc NJ's annual Musky School Fundraiser on May 14, 2011 at Lake Hopatcong. There are still some slots for anglers who want to learn how to fish for the mighty musky and at the same time support New Jersey's fabulous musky fisheries program. The proceeds from this fundraiser go toward purchasing minnows to feed fingerling muskies at the Division of Fish and Wildlife's Hackettstown Fish Hatchery. Musky School anglers may very well some day catch one of the muskies their donation helped feed before it was stocked in New Jersey waters.

The Musky School experience is more than just a guide driving you around in a boat all day. The seasoned anglers of Muskies Inc will teach beginners how to catch the wily musky as well as provide experienced anglers with tips and tricks that will put more fish in the boat year after year. In just hours, anglers will learn what takes most musky hunters years or even decades to learn including tackle selection, casting, lures, leaders, knots, best seasonal patterns, trolling techniques, where to look for muskies and much more.

The morning session starts at 6 am with coffee and bagels. This first session is a class room seminar followed by one on one instruction and fishing from a boat. Hopefully, some live catch and release instruction will be included! After a hot shore side lunch and collective discussion of how and where fish are being caught or seen, it's back out on the lake to hunt for muskies and learn trolling techniques. The day usually ends around 2 or 3 pm with a wrap up session, raffle and prize giveaways.

Muskies Inc provides all the gear including fully outfitted boats with all the equipment, rods, reels and lures. All you have to provide is a valid fishing license and a donation of $300 for the day. There's only a few slots left so reserve now by contacting Kevin at johnsonke@optonline or call 201-563-2554. The Muskies Inc website address is http://www.mi22.com/ .