Giant Muskie Makes a Year of Effort Totally Worth It

Casting heavy lures over and over again is all worth it when that giant muskie is in the net.

Countless hours on the water seem worth it when Jake Tappe and Ross Provost land what qualifies as a truly giant muskie.

Provost and Tappe are fishing partners as well as partners in Burnin Eights, an outdoor media company based in northern Wisconsin.

The company's named after the muskie fishing technique of ending each cast with a figure eight. This entices the fish to hit lure near the boat.

Tappe recently hooked his personal-best muskie of the season—a 51.5 inch monster. Watch the excitement:

It was Tappe's last cast before they were getting ready to move locations. The fish slammed a topwater raider, and Tappe wasn't sure of its size at first.

"I didn't think it was very big when it hit," he says. "I just knew something hit it."

But when he caught a glimpse of the fish near the boat, he simply uttered, "Oh my god!"

Several weeks ago, the guys were fishing when an unidentified shooter on land adjacent to their boat fired an errant shot from a .22 that struck Tappe's boat at his feet. Fortunately, no one was injured, but it was a very tense situation.

So all of this year's effort, and even danger, was rewarded when Tappe and Provost landed this giant. They released the big fish after measuring it. It boasted a 22.5-inch girth and was 51.5-inch length, which would have put it at about 33 pounds.

Well done, gentlemen.

Like what you see here? You can read more great articles by David Smith at his Facebook page, Stumpjack Outdoors.

NEXT: CRAPPIE ANGLER CATCHES BIG MUSKY ON 6-POUND -TEST LINE AND ULTRALIGHT CRAPPIE ROD