I'd Call This the Catch of a Lifetime

[BigG3206]

Saw this article online from the Pittsburg area.  This would make my ice fishing year!

http://pittsburgh.cbslocal.com/2015/02/13/musky-monday-ice-fishing-duo-reels-in-huge-musky/

[StonecoldCat]

  Catch of a lifetime. Catch and release so maybe someone else can have that also.

[ICEHOLE]

Woooooooowwwww

[RickWakeman]

I would be scared to pull that monster in.

[Jschumacher]

Yikes that thing is huge.

[taxi1]

Hope it doesn't become turtle food. It looks like they had it out of the water for quite a while for pictures.

[Poot]

Huge fish
I saw this posted on one of the main boards on the site.

[knotreelly]

on a 3" shiner, you never know

[elevatorman]

Yea I saw this awesome  fish !!!

[fishermantim]

Good fish, but I hate when the angler purposely holds the fish at arm's length to make it look bigger than it really is.

[MrE1979]

DEFINITELY NOT fitting through a 6" hole.

[taxi1]

Good fish, but I hate when the angler purposely holds the fish at arm's length to make it look bigger than it really is.

Ditto. We all know the reason why that's done so it loses credibility.

[taxi1]

The Haters  are hateing!!! As far as holding  the fish like that  i see people  on this site  everyday  doing the same????give me break  get a life 

Hater? Not hardly. Just pointing out some observations.

Kudos to the angler!

[fishermantim]

Hater? Not hardly. Just pointing out some observations.

Kudos to the angler!

Exactly my point!

Great catch!

(All fishing sites have anglers holding their fish this way, so it's not uncommon.)

[lowaccord66]

Hope it doesn't become turtle food. It looks like they had it out of the water for quite a while for pictures.

You were not and therefore do not know, article said 90 seconds which is a quick release any day.  I thik a PETA member got lost again....

[BASSQUATCH]

Good fish, but I hate when the angler purposely holds the fish at arm's length to make it look bigger than it really is.

that's why taking a picture by yourself makes it much more difficult for the arm stretch photos.

[sangell]

That is incredible and motivating. I was planning on taking the weekend off but all fired up though no Musky where I go. I had a friend send me a pic from one of his friends out in central CT this past weekend with 9 lb bucket mouth. Damn nice fish too.

[taxi1]

that's why taking a picture by yourself makes it much more difficult for the arm stretch photos.

delete 

[Pantucci]

Good fish, but I hate when the angler purposely holds the fish at arm's length to make it look bigger than it really is.

LOL, When taking photos, I always instruct the folks I'm fishing with to hold the fish straight out at arms length, look at the camera (not the fish), and smiles, makes for a great pic!
However, we don't really get big ones that much, so we need all the help we can get!

[taxi1]

You were not and therefore do not know, article said 90 seconds which is a quick release any day.  I thik a PETA member got lost again....

I think as a taxidermist I'm about as far away from being a PETA member as I can get.

That said I also raise gamefish for a living and wouldn't even think of keeping them out of the water for a minute and a half. It may not have killed the fish, but it would have been extremely stressful for a fish that had experienced a marked increase in lactic acid in it's muscle tissue cortisol levels in it's blood stream from fighting the hook. Actually there's a lot more that goes on with fish but it's very technical and I won't bore you with it.

Another factor is this species' immune system is not working in below optimum temps and handling it increases the risk of a fungal infection. When I produced largemouth and smallmouth bass I would not handle them in under 50 F. water and most fish culturists will not either. Same goes for other fish like musky in the same temp ranges.

And once a gain kudos to the angler. But I'm just stating observations. As anglers we can be our own worst enemies.

Can you hold your breath for a minute and a half after running a road race? 

[lowaccord66]

I agree to disagree.  The stress that fish faced just in being caught makes your comments contradictory.  If we all cared so much about fish health we wouldn't poke holes in them and bring them through the ice at all.  Or ever for that matter.  You can do your best but you can't have it both ways.

[bojango]

I would never keep the pike I catch out of the water for 90 seconds!!! Couple quick pics, then release

[lowaccord66]

I would never keep the pike I catch out of the water for 90 seconds!!! Couple quick pics, then release

Good for you!  Sometimes it doesn't go as planned and if you pike fish enough you'd know that they sometimes have a habit of getting hooked badly.  Some things are out of your control, but of course you'd have to catch a bunch to know that....

Poor guy who caught the musky can't win here.  If he killed the fish for the wall he'd get it.  If he handles the fish for what some guys consider too long he gets it.  People wonder why guys stop posting....

[bojango]

Good for you!  Sometimes it doesn't go as planned and if you pike fish enough you'd know that they sometimes have a habit of getting hooked badly.  Some things are out of your control, but of course you'd have to catch a bunch to know that....

I have so much to learn, please teach me!

[sorelippin]

Couple observations...It's a huge fish and no picture is going to make it look much smaller anyway.  Hold your fish how you want.  Don't really care if he releases it or keeps it.  If someone is fishing within the regs, none of us should give a damn either.  Congrats to the fisherman...heck of a fish.

[Pail Rider]

Poor guy who caught the musky can't win here.  If he killed the fish for the wall he'd get it.  If he handles the fish for what some guys consider too long he gets it.  People wonder why guys stop posting....

X2

Kudos to him for catching it, releasing it, and posting it.

[taxi1]

I agree to disagree.  The stress that fish faced just in being caught makes your comments contradictory.  If we all cared so much about fish health we wouldn't poke holes in them and bring them through the ice at all.  Or ever for that matter.  You can do your best but you can't have it both ways.

I actually agree with you for the most part. Since we can't and don't want to stop fishing it is what it is. I'm just saying a minute and a half is too long to keep a fish out of water.

Cheers!

[taxi1]

Good for you!  Sometimes it doesn't go as planned and if you pike fish enough you'd know that they sometimes have a habit of getting hooked badly.  Some things are out of your control, but of course you'd have to catch a bunch to know that....

Poor guy who caught the musky can't win here.  If he killed the fish for the wall he'd get it.  If he handles the fish for what some guys consider too long he gets it.  People wonder why guys stop posting....

Naah as  taxidermist I wouldn't have a problem if he kept the fish for the wall. 

[protivakid]

Came in here expected another lame post about getting married and referring to the wife as the "catch". Happy it was actually fish related.