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Location: Chippewa Falls, WI | Check this story out that is on the fist page of MF web site, Found it interesting???
I am glad this guy released this fish, but have a VERY hard time believing this fish is still alive.
If he brought it home to take a Pic, then went back to bring it to the lake after who knows how long it was out of water, and how beat up it got, and this fish is still alive????
Wish we could educate all Fisherman to Practice the CPR (Catch Photo Release), in a matter of seconds, not Minuetes.
Dusty Carlson
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Here is the article....
Larry Nichols will tell you he doesn't pretend to be a great fisherman, or even a good one.
But since he retired last year, the 63-year-old Elgin resident has taken up the sport with more of a passion.
"I just kind of picked up on fishing again," said Nichols. "I've never been a great fisherman, but that's what I want to do all the time now."
Last week, fishing off Lion Park in South Elgin, Nichols hooked into a fish some people only dream of.
Nichols caught a 42-inch muskie last Wednesday morning out of the Fox River and Thursday he was still trembling about it.
"I'm still pumped," he said then.
Nichols battled the fish for about 15 minutes before managing to get it to shore. Once he beached the fish, he began pulling on the 6-pound test line, which snapped. He rushed to grab the fish by a gill and pulled it up further on land. He took the fish to his Elgin home and had his wife take a couple photographs before he returned it to the river. He said it swam away slowly.
Nichols was fishing with a medium-strength rod using a Storm-made Rattle Hot Craw artificial crayfish tube bait with no leader. Also fishing with shrimp for catfish with another pole, Nichols made just one cast with his tube bait when the fish hit.
"I must have hit him right on the nose," laughed Nichols.
"Some guys who fish for muskie make 10,000 casts before they get a fish like this and I hit one on my first cast."
Nichols measured the length of the fish, but did not have any equipment to weigh it. While he jokingly estimated it must "have been 40 pounds," friends tell him it was probably in the mid-20-pound range.
Several internet Web sites allow the length of a fish to be entered for an estimated weight. The Web sites the Courier News tried estimated a muskie of that length to be anywhere in the 22-28-pound range.
"When it first hit it was so fast. I just knew I had something big," said Nichols. "Two times I saw the tail and I thought I had a big, old carp. Then I saw the head. I mean I was ready to have a coronary."
A carpenter since 1969, the lifelong Elgin resident retired from Lamp Inc. in 2005 after eight years there.
"I'm far from what I would consider a good fisherman, but I caught what most people fish their life for," said Nichols. "I was in the right place right time."
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Posts: 32958
Location: Rhinelander, Wisconsin | Looks like this gent isn't a Muskie angler....  |
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Posts: 8865
| He's lucky he didn't get caught taking an undersized fish home...
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Posts: 1769
Location: Algonquin, ILL | "Once he beached the fish, he began pulling on the 6-pound test line, which snapped. He rushed to grab the fish by a gill and pulled it up further on land"
I would say it's probably dead by now
He most likley does not know any better 
Edited by JohnMD 4/13/2006 11:18 AM
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Posts: 654
Location: MPLS, MN | It's sad.
Once when I was like 12 years old I caught about a 28" musky. Big fish for me at the time. I put it on the bottom of the boat and speeded back to the cabin to show my parents {Who are not fisherman}. I did let it go and after about 30 minutes of trying to revive it it finally slowly swam away but I'm sure it died. I didn't know any better but it still bums me out now at age 29.
Edited by Obfuscate Musky 4/13/2006 11:26 AM
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Posts: 8865
| You can't blame the guy for accidentally catching a muskie, beaking the line, etc, but taking it home definitely is not something I would do with a fish unless I was sure it was legal and sure I wanted to eat it.
LOL, and I don't think I'd want to eat anything out of the Fox river... |
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| When I was a very young boy I used to spear carp and suckers near my home. I didn't even know what a musky was yet. One day I speared what I thought was the biggest fish I had ever seen but it got away. Not until I was older did I realize it was a musky. I still can't forgive myself. But I am glad to say I have never had a bad release so far so I like to think I have made up for it somehow. |
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Posts: 667
Location: Roscoe IL | Guest - 4/13/2006 11:45 AM
I guess the real sad part is that 42", while CERTAINLY a nice fish, isn't exactly a "fish of a lifetime".....Yeah it's dead
What would be even worse is if he caught flack from a muskie elitest ruining this for him. I'm sure it's a fish of a lifetime for the guy & he still released it.
Not the best method of CPR but if there were some flyers at parks where locals fish & at the boat launches informing people on the rules & regs he would have had a chance to know the rules. Simple things can make a difference.
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| Isnt this a FISH we're talking about? One man, who has been fishing for nearly 40 years, caught the fish of a lifetime, and how he caught it is causing all of you to take time out of your day to rip a guy who doesnt go on this board, has never done anything negative to any of you, who was fishing a body of water that many of you probably dont know where it is geographically? Truth is this guy probably doesnt fish muskies, caught this fish accidently, and probably didnt know that a fish out of water for an extended period of time really makes a succcessful release difficult. Would you rather he had just killed it? Lots of people do in ALL states (not just WI ya know), and probably less all the time. So really, he did more than he could have, but less than you would like to have seen him do. So, you go on a website and rip the guy to shreds. What do you think this gentleman will get from reading this thread? "Boy, I'm glad that I let an article be written about me, so I can feel educated by a bunch of Wonderful gentlemans. Now I think I'll release the fish better next time!". I'm thinking he'd probably get the impression that its best to never talk to any muskie fisherman ((text removed, ed.)) But maybe I'm reading your posts wrong.
Eduction MIGHT work better than ripping. But I might be wrong. |
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Posts: 214
Location: Central Iowa | at least he tried to release it...a lot of people would just thump it and call it a day. I'd guess instead of slowly swimming away it probably was slowly gliding away. |
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Location: Algonquin, ILL | HIGHnMIGHTY: I don't see where anybody is "RIPPING" this guy to shreds and as a matter of fact I do know where he caught it as it is just a few miles from my home.
I do agree that better education is the answer and as someone else had mentioned that posting flyers in the area may help
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