Lake Vermilion
One of the most picturesque lakes in the state, Lake Vermilion has become one of the crown jewels of Minnesota muskie fishing. Check the Web site or business card of most muskie guides around the state and they list Vermilion among the lakes they regularly fish.

Vermilion is truly a muskie angler's dream because there are so many locations to fish. Muskie Tom Wehler is one of the top guides on the lake and spends the entire open-water season fishing the lake. "The best thing to do is start out fishing the marker buoys and points that look good, but once you get to know the lake, better find your own spots and fish them," he said.

Wehler takes a rather relaxed approach to muskie fishing. Even though he's a fanatic, he maintains his common sense. "If it looks fishy, then fish it -- if it looks like another part of the lake where you had a follow or saw somebody else get bit, then fish it. Go shallow, go deep, throw topwaters, throw hair and throw lures that go deep," he said.

Because muskies are found throughout the lake, any boat landing that is convenient to an angler is a good place to start. Like other tried-and-true muskie lakes, it's just that simple.

Mille Lacs Lake
Known as the "Big Pond" to many, Mille Lacs is probably the most popular muskie lake in the state. With so much water to fish, combined with its proximity to the Twin Cities, this lake is a great day trip destination.

Hartman said it is his favorite lake and many anglers on FishingMinnesota.com posted similar comments.

The best way to approach Mille Lacs is to consider your boat and the wind conditions. If you have a boat that can take it all, then get on the side where the wind is blowing and use it to your advantage. If you have a boat that can't handle big waves, stick to the bays at the south end or the side where it's calm.

With a combination of weeds, rock, sand and mud, there are plenty of places to fish and muskies hang out throughout the entire lake. Walleye anglers catch them on the mudflats on fireball jigs, bass anglers catch them on the rocks with plastics, and muskie anglers catch them all over the place. Trolling can be a good way to get to know the lake and cover a lot of water.

Lake Bemidji
Lake Bemidji is a terrific lake to fish because it's way up north but has the city of Bemidji all along its shoreline. It's like being up north and in the Twin Cities at the same time with many amenities available from the water.

Oh, and Bemidji is full of big, fat muskies. That's a big part of the reason why the Professional Muskie Tournament Trail has named the lake as the location of the 2008 World Championship in October.

"It's a nice body of water that's not big enough for one of our normal-sized events but perfect for our championship," said PMTT director Tim Widlacki.