The "Moot"

[Firefighter Jeff]

  Depending on the weather, I may consider trying Muskamoot.  Sp?   I've heard a lot of horror stories about trying to get in there.  I figure it may be a little safer with the current water levels.  I haven't gotten a chance to look at a good lake map recently so I'm going at this post a little blind. I've heard something about a cutoff or short cut from one of the river branches.  Would that be the route to go??  Ot should I take the "channel" in.  I have a lakemaster chip, not sure if it'll show a channel in or not.  Any advice or suggestions??  Or waypints to use to get in??  Thanks

[Got Fish??]

What in the sam פ#& is a moot?

[dartag]

Muskamoot Bay


I usually run up one of the channels on the side and Idle in through one of the feeder canals.  You can run it but I am not familiar with the route in.  There are underwater obstructions that will remove you lower unit.  Look at in on Google Earth.  Should be lots of bedding fish in there now.  Another good bay is Fisher bay.  Go up the Sni until almost to the north channel and take the channel to the right. 

[djkimmel]

You better make sure you take the 1 exact right channel into the back of Fisher Bay. It's pretty shallow at the Fisher Bay end too. Some maps call it Snake Highway. You can get back to the middle of Goose Bay using Doty Highway which is deep. The entry way off the Sni is a little weird and tricky, and the section by the houses is no wake.

It's not too bad running into Goose Bay as far back as Doty Highway on the right central part of the bay but as I will mention below I prefer to do it on sunny days when the water is clear if possible. There's moving bottom and lots of shallows. There is a small side trip you can take near the mouth of Goose Bay just left of center if you want to see a sunken car with some tuna boat scars on it. In low water years it could be close for a bass boat but this year should be okay for bass boats on plane.  Check it out here (I've never actually tried to fish it?): N 42 34.682 W 82 42.166

For Muskamoot you can idle and maybe run part of the channel that goes to Browns Restaurant but again the 'Moot' end is pretty shallow and can confuse a new person trying to run out or into that end. You don't want to take the wrong curve. They charge extra to pull you out of shallow water in the very backs of those bays - I can get a copy of a receipt from a close friend as an example! That was 6 hours of my life I won't get back!!

When the water was higher I used to just start fishing near the 'Moot' end of Snooks in the spring. Had some fun times with buzzbaits through there heading out around the islands. Haven't tried it in awhile?

I always recommend you don't just run all the way back to Little Muskamoot Bay the first time each year. The sand shifts with the wind and sometimes 'things' shift with it. There's plenty of logs and things that could rip your hull right open sometimes.

It gets narrow back at the end of the Spider Islands (some maps label it Muskamoot Ridge) and real shallow in spots. It likes to trap logs and other solid objects. I have 3 inches of paint gone from my skeg from multiple runs through there, across the back of Fisher Bay from fishing there and using it as a shortcut between the Sni and the Middle Channel (not recommended at this time...) and running in and out of the Browns channel (known as Snooks Highway). I also have a ding in the edge of one prop blade from taking off shallow back there and finding something hard under the soft silty sand. Should have idled out a few inches deeper

Just remember the bottom 'moves' all over in those bays so up-to-date satellite images can help but still be prepared by watching carefully and making sure you can stop, turn and/or get back on plane somewhere. People sometimes lose stuff too so new things can appear where they weren't before. I feel better about running back there on sunny days with pretty clear water.

[Waterfoul]

Ask Goetch or Taylor.

[motocross269]

The Moot is part of the reason that my last Bass Cat didn't have any paint on the Skeg..... .........I used to have trails saved on my lowrance but since I switched boats I haven't been in there to make new trails with the HBs.....

One time I cut in too early and ran just about stalled my boat....I had my wife with me, she wasn't too happy....

I don't think it is bad as some spots on Saginaw bay though.....I lose sleep over running some spots up there...At least in the Moot if you hit chances are it will be sandy..

[djkimmel]

Well... usually sandy. Not always... but usually.

Saginaw Bay is one of my favorite places but also where I have broke or lost the most small stuff. If you want to learn about rough water boat driving and how to minimize it that place can teach. Just sometimes... the lesson is a really hard one!

Until the water really cleared up there many of us had no idea how many rocks and other hard places are out there.

[Victor Cerabone]

I was in the moot yesterday.  I don't have a lot of experience fishing there.  I was able to get on the smallmouth pretty good once I finally figured it out.  At one point I was catching one on every cast!     This fun adventure was thanks to my fishing coach (my wife), who encouraged me to check out someplace new

Water was about 1.5 - 2 feet.  I did not find any safe place to put my rig up on plane or put it down safely.  I went in from the Middle Channel north of Browns and used the TM.  I ended up going out by Walkers hear the Old South.  That looks like a better way in.  Again, I did no plane in there.  Too shallow from what I found

Vic

[djkimmel]

Thanks for the update!