ST PAUL, Minn. — An Iowa man is now a Minnesota fishing record-holder.
The Minnesota DNR certified Corey Kitzmann's catch-and-release of a 57 1/4 inch muskie on Lake Vermilion. The Davenport, Iowa resident reeled in the record-setting fish back on Aug. 6.
According to a DNR news release, the record-setting catch has special meaning for Kitzmann. He was alone at his family cabin on Lake Vermilion on Aug. 6, working on a homemade bucktail lure, when he received a call informing him that one of his best friends had died of a medical condition at the age of 40. With nobody around to help him grieve, Kitzmann decided to go fishing. He brought his new lure out on the lake, and reeled in the muskie at one of his favorite spots.
“I worked my way through my favorite milk run of spots with my newly tied bucktail, thinking about all the ways my buddy had impacted my life and the memories we had shared together,” Kitzmann said in the news release. “I’m not sure there is a better place in the entire world to reflect on life than in a boat on Lake Vermilion.”
A nearby boater witnessed KItzmann fighting to reel in the fish, and stopped by to take photos of the catch and assist with the release.
The DNR said Monday the 57¼ inch muskie weighed about 47 pounds. The prior muskellunge record was just shy of 57 inches and was caught on Pelican Lake in Otter Tail County in 2016.
Kitzmann says when he set the hook he knew immediately he had a good-sized fish, but it wasn't until the fish made its way to the side of his boat that he realized he had "a true giant."
The DNR keeps a complete list and guidelines for record-setting fish on its website.
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