The WMT holds its southern region Madison 150 on the lakes of Monona, Upper Mud, Waubesa and the Yahara river, for a total of more than 5,577 acres. Perch, bass and walleye are the chain's biggest draw from local and distant anglers, but an ever increasing number of muskie chasers are making their way to the Madison chain in search of a trophy.

Although muskies are not native to the chain, a stocking program that started in the mid-70's of hybrid muskie proved very successful, and has since switched to a pure muskie stocking program in the early 1990's. The muskies have thrived in the slightly murky, fertile waters of the Madison chain.

Smaller spinner baits and bucktails along with 6" crank baits work well on the chain's muskies in the early season. Crank baits in the natural colors of perch and walleye work better in the spring on the chain when the water is still clear and less turbid. Silver bladed bucktails and neutral colored skirts will also produce in this early season. Spring will find the muskies in the shallow bays in their newly emerging weed beds and the points adjacent to their bays, along with the channels and the Yahara river that snakes through the chain.

As the season progresses, the muskies will start to transition from the shallow bays and channels to the rock and week humps, eventually staging themselves near the suspended cisco in the main lake basin. In the summer, trolling can be an effective method for catching these suspended muskies, fishing in and around the schools of baitfish. For the hearty souls, casting a deep diving crank bait or a jig and plastic combo can be just the ticket to scoring on the monsters of the deep. With all the boating activity that the summer brings on the chain, night fishing for muskies can pay off big! Nocturnal fishing on the rock and weed humps, points and outside weed lines and flats can produce some cisco fattened hawgs. Chartreuse and fluorescent orange starts working well in the summer due to the waters turning dingy, but natural colored lures should not be locked away in your tackle box.

Fall time on the Madison chain is a great time of the year to fish. The pleasure boaters are off the water, and the muskies are big and fat. Finesse fishing a big jerk bait is the presentation of preference, and fishing steep sloping areas, rock humps, points, and deep weeds that are the last to die off, are the ticket. Don't be surprised if you catch your personal best largemouth bass, walleye, northern or muskie at this time of year on the chain using a jerk bait.