From CBC - Thunder Bay - July 24, 2020

It won't break any records, but a northwestern Ontario angler says a recent catch a northwestern Ontario lake, was certainly one to remember.

On Tuesday Treven Ouellet, who is from Dryden and works as a guide at Andy Myers Lodge near Vermilion Bay, was fishing alone on Eagle Lake. The day started off slow, he said, but that changed quickly when he hooked something big: a massive muskie measuring more than 4.5 feet. 

"It was intense," he said, "as soon as I hooked him he went completely airborne and did a cartwheel in the air, landed in the water and just started barrel-rolling ... I was lucky to even land him."

Ouellet said luckily, his boss was on the same bay with some other anglers, within sight. He was able to call them over to witness the impressive catch.

"The fish was 54-and-a-half-inches. That was with the tail pinch and the nose, right on the bump board. It had, like a 23-inch girth and it was really heavy. I was struggling to hold it up. It was a really nice fish," he said. 

"I've caught 52's before, and those are big fish, and I knew this one was special for sure." 

While it's not unheard of to catch muskie of that size on the lake, Ouellet said it's still a rare occurrence.

The fish was just big enough to count as a legal catch for Eagle Lake, Ouellet explained, meaning he could have kept it. However, he instead chose to release it back into the water. 

And now that he's realized his long-time ambition of catching a legal muskie, Ouellet said he's setting his sights even higher. 

"I always told my Dad, I said, 'I'm out to get a legal. I want a legal fish.' And now that I've got this ... under my belt, he's like 'what are you going to go after now?'"

"I said, 'well, the next world record ... a 60 incher.' That would be the next world-record fish, and I think there's a good chance of catching one out here."

To read the original article and see more outdoors reporting, follow this link to the CBC Thunder Bay website.  https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/thunder-bay/eagle-lake-muskie-1.5660509