Hometown: Kalamazoo
Occupation: Stay-at-home dad
Favorite species and biggest fish of that species: Muskie and pike. Biggest tiger muskie, 47 inches.
Favorite Michiana lake: Austin Lake.
Hobbies when not fishing: Spend time with family and tying muskie and pike flies (with big magnifying glass).
If you only had one lure and why: Rapala Original F11, hands down. It catches a variety of fish everywhere.
Favorite rod and reel: G. Loomis 902 and Daiwa SS 1600 spinning reel for bass; 10 wt. fly rod with triple density fly line or flipping stick with 59-pound braid for muskie.
Best tip to give a new Michiana angler: Pick a lure you have confidence in and keep casting.
Sportsman Spotlight
By Louie Stout
The next time you feel bad because you must work and can’t go fishing, think of Sky Baker.
The next time you struggle to tie a knot, think of Sky Baker.
He has the same passion for fishing that you do. In fact, not long ago he was fishing a lot of team tournaments and doing well.
That all changed in 2018 when he started losing his vision due to an auto immune disorder.
The former millwright and RV Company plant manager is now legally blind, isn’t able to drive and will likely lose complete vision in the coming years.
But he still goes fishing, be it for pike and muskie, trout and even bass. He fished two Stars and Stripes Bass Tournaments last year with the help of his good friend and fishing partner, Andrew Schug.
“When something like this happens to you, you find out who your true friends are,” says Baker.
If there’s a will, there’s a way. The 42-year-old father has turned to fly fishing for muskie and pike because the lures are easier to see and tie. He even has taken up tying his own flies for big fish, “with the help of a very big magnifying glass,” he jokes.
Here’s the Q&A we had with him:
MON: How often do you get out in the summer?
BAKER: I go at least three times a month. Before I lost my vision, I would fish that many times or more in a week.
MON: Since you can’t drive, how do you get there?
BAKER: My daughter will tow me and my 14-foot aluminum boat and put me in. I power it with a trolling motor. Sometimes the family goes and we’ll fish along the shore.
MON: What if no one is available to take you?
BAKER: I call an uber. I get some pretty strange looks when I climb in wearing waders and holding a fishing rod.
MON: Where do you go fishing alone?
BAKER: I love Austin Lake and Eagle Lake at Fort Custer. But I also will fish Portage Creek. I’ve caught a lot of brown trout there.
MON: So, you just walk the bank?
BAKER: Yes, or I take my belly boat and fish from that.
MON: Why did you transition from bass to muskie?
BAKER: I became frustrated because my knots were so bad and I was losing bass lures. Pike and muskie fishing require bigger lures I can see better. I’ve always loved catching pike on a fly rod, so I figured since muskie flies were bigger, I would spend more time doing that. The first time I went to Webster Lake in Indiana, I had a 40-inch fish swirl and miss my fly. I knew then it was something I wanted to do.
MON: What about trout fishing?
BAKER: Most people don’t realize Portage Creek has trout, and I love fly fishing for them. I’ve caught 20-inch browns there. I also will use a light baitcasters with jerkbaits and catch a lot of them. I just walk the bank. Of course, that’s not always easy. I’ve broken my share of rod tips in trees that I didn’t see.
MON; Jerkbaits? Ever worry about not being able to see well enough to remove the hooks without getting a hook in you?
BAKER: Oh, I’ve been stuck before. But I’ve started replacing trebles with single hooks, or I bend the barbs down.
MON: How do you stay so upbeat about your fishing?
BAKER: My wife is my biggest supporter and fishing with my kids keeps my morale up. I’m a family man and love spending time outdoors with the wife and kids when they’re available.
MON: What are your fishing plans for this summer?
BAKER: I plan to fish for muskie, pike and smallmouth, either at Austin or Eagle. My goal is to catch a 50-inch muskie. I swear I had one track my fly at Austin, so that’s definitely on my bucket list.