ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources says a huge muskie caught on Lake Vermilion is a new catch-and-release record.

The DNR said Monday the 57¼ inch (1447.8 millimeter) muskie weighed about 47 pounds (21.3 kilograms) and was caught by Corey Kitzmann in August. The prior muskellunge record was just shy of 57 pounds (25.8 kilograms) 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.”

Minnesota Public Radio News says a nearby boater helped him haul the muskie into his boat.
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Information from: Minnesota Public Radio News, http://www.mprnews.org

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