For the second 12 months in a row, Minnesota’s Lake Mille Lacs has produced a state-record muskie. Eric Bakke, of Princeton, Minnesota, caught the 58.25-inch muskie again in June, and the fish was licensed yesterday as a catch-and-release report by the Minnesota Division of Pure Sources. The earlier catch-and-release report was a tie between two 57.25-inch muskies that had been caught in 2019 and 2021, in keeping with the DNR.
Bakke was fishing Mille Lacs with two buddies on June 11 when he caught the monster muskie. They had been trolling a footlong lure that Bakke known as a Supernatural Massive Bait in a social media publish. He additionally thanked his buddies Troy Zuelke and Scott Ashby for being there to web the fish and share the once-in-a-lifetime expertise.
“This 56” x 24” Mille Lacs large got here to the online a couple of weeks in the past to brighten our day,” Bakke wrote on Fb later that day. “I used to be so fortunate to have the ability to share the second with a pair nice buddies.”
After getting the fish within the boat, the three anglers had been in a position to measure, {photograph}, and launch it in beneath a minute. This was vital for Bakke, who stated he believes that the important thing to a wholesome muskie fishery is to “allow them to go, allow them to develop.”
“In an effort to catch extra and larger fish it’s a must to put them again,” Bakke informed the DNR. “This report ought to and will likely be damaged within the subsequent 12 months or two if all of us make the selection to maintain all these large fish alive and swimming for the following particular person to expertise and catch a fish of their lifetime. I’d wish to say thanks to the entire individuals who have caught that fish over the previous 20-plus years, took care of her and put her again. She remains to be on the market for all of you to go attempt to catch once more.”
The Longest, however not the Largest Muskie in State Historical past
To make clear the kind of report that Bakke now holds, his Mille Lacs fish is the longest muskie in state historical past, nevertheless it’s not the biggest. Minnesota maintains a “licensed weight information” guide for all fish species, together with a “catch-and-release” report guide for muskie, pike, sturgeon, and flathead catfish. Anglers pursuing a weight report are required by the DNR to reap the fish and weigh it on an authorized scale, whereas the company accepts picture submissions for catch-and-release information, that are based mostly solely on the size of the fish.
The Minnesota Muskie File
Minnesota’s licensed state-record muskie was caught from Lake Mille Lacs final November by angler Nolan Sprengeler. His state-record catch measured half an inch shorter than Bakke’s fish, nevertheless it was 5 inches girthier and far heavier. Weighing 55 kilos, 14.8 ounces, Sprengler’s muskie was sufficiently big to lastly exchange the earlier state-record muskie, which was caught on Lake Winnibigoshish means again in 1957. Though we’ll by no means know the true weight of Bakke’s fish, plugging its size and girth into the method for esox estimates comes out to roughly 42 kilos.
Learn Subsequent: Minnesota Angler Catches Potential State-File Muskie on Final Journey of the Season
When Outside Life caught up with Sprengeler final fall, he stated he was truly going after the state catch-and-release report when he caught his trophy muskie. The fish was hooked too deep to outlive the discharge, nevertheless, and the angler determined that one of the simplest ways to recollect and respect the muskie was to reap the fish and get it licensed.
