When a Muskie is on, an 18-foot tri-hull with 3 excited fishermen can become very small. Everyone in the boat has to know what to do in order to support the angler with the fish on the line. In this case, the guide’s job was easy. John encouraged Rob to keep his line tight and gave him tips on fighting the Muskie as it foamed the water and inspected the bottom of the boat. For me, as the third man, I had some tasks to perform also. First was to get my lure in and ensure that my tackle did not get in the way of the fight. My next task was to watch the progress of the fight closely. It was up to me to make sure that I did not become an obstacle in the boat. Since the night had stolen our normal visual acuity, I made sure that head lamps and flashlights were available when needed. It doesn’t sound like much of a contribution to the battle, however, staying out of the way in a crowded boat is a very important part of the process. After about 10 minutes of tussle with his Muskie, Rob positioned him alongside the boat where John netted the fish. The lure, upon the relaxing of the line, dislodged from the Muskie’s jaw and came to rest at the rim of the net. John removed the lure from the net…I took the rod from Rob and placed it out of the way. I got the camera (s) out and got ready to snap a couple of photos for prosperity. John reached into the net and extracted the Muskie to measure him…a healthy 42-inch 20 pound Muskie. I snapped a couple of photos using John’s camera. As I readied Rob’s camera, John handed off the fish to Rob for another couple of pictures. Photos completed, Mr. Muskie was back in the water and on his way…a little tired but none the worse for the experience.
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy ODA4MA==