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Carpentersville Man Reels In Huge Muskie On Fox River

(CBS) -- A day out fishing along the Fox River turned out to be well worth it for a Carpentersville man this week. 23-year-old Nick Wechet was with his fiancée Nicole Malkowski yesterday for their first fishing trip of the years when he cast his line from the banks of the Fox River near the Algonquin Dam.

He says he got a big hit. "I just started reeling it in. Put up a pretty good fight," the Carpentersville man says.

Unfortunately, Wechet did not have a tape measure with him after he caught the large muskie. He says, "I couldn't put a number on it. Someone said it could be 50". Someone said it could be smaller." Wechet leans towards the 50 inch estimate.

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He did take a couple of pictures proving he caught the fish and, afterwards, released it back into the Fox River.

"I kind of just respected the fish and threw it back. Took a couple of pictures and called it a day, he says.

Department of Natural Resources district fisheries biologist Frank Jakubicek says he's not surprised to see such a large muskie in the Fox River. He says the state has been stocking the Fox chain with muskie since about 1983.

Jakubicek says a there was a tagged 48" or 49" muskie caught a couple of years ago near Yorkville. He says male muskies grow to 40-42", while females are much longer. He figures the one caught by Wechet to be a female who was returning from spawning.

Muskie
(Credit: Nick Wechet)

As for age, Jacubicek says, "A 50 inch muskie in our part of the state is around 15 years old. A 48" fish are roughly 12 years old."

Nick Wechet says his fiancée was pleased with his catch. "She was just smiling, man. We were having a good time. It was a good morning, there," he says.

He also was getting the celebrity treatment today from his co-workers at Menard's where he works part time. He also goes to Elgin Community College where he's studying fire science.

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