Dylan Sampson with the musky he caught in Lake Ontario off Queen’s Quay final month. Picture: Submitted.
By JOSHUA McGINNIS
“I couldn’t contain myself. The video shows a serious excitement I haven’t felt in a long time. It’s a lifetime catch in the Toronto Harbour,” stated Dylan Sampson.
The East Toronto resident acquired fortunate in early December, catching a muskellunge—generally referred to as a musky—in Toronto’s Queen’s Quay Harbour. It’s solely the second recorded musky catch within the waters of Lake Ontario fronting Toronto in 30 years.
Two years in the past, Sampson’s brother, Will, additionally caught a musky in the identical space, which made headlines throughout Ontario. Such a catch is uncommon as a result of difficult situations of the lake close to downtown Toronto.
Rick Portiss, senior supervisor of aquatic monitoring and administration on the Toronto and Area Conservation Authority, informed CBC in a narrative two years in the past that no muskies had been recorded within the space for over 30 years till Will Sampson’s catch.
This time, Dylan Sampson’s fortunate second was captured on video by native filmmaker Darin Morrison-beer, who accompanied him on the chilly December morning.
The video, which has since garnered over 14,000 views, exhibits a day of fishing, beginning early within the morning and ending with the catch.
“It was a surreal moment. I felt like I blinked, and it was over,” stated Morrison-beer. “Filming and netting the fish concurrently required all my focus. Having simply realized about pike and musky that day, I held my tongue after I thought to myself whereas fumbling with the web: this fish does look just a little completely different than the final two.
“I considered it a real possibility until Dylan started yelling, ‘Is that a musky?’ We joked about catching a musky all morning and talked about how fortunate his brother was to have seen the only documented one in 30 years. When the musky was safely on the boat and Dylan confirmed its species, I was elated to know I had filmed the first Toronto Harbour musky catch.”
The musky Sampson caught final month measured 38 inches lengthy, nevertheless it was not weighed. After being measured, the fish was launched again into the lake by Sampson.
Sampson and his household are long-time East Toronto residents and have a deep connection to fishing.
“I come from a family of fishermen. My dad taught my brothers and me how to fish, and I’m sure I had a fishing rod in my hand by the time I could stand,” stated Sampson. “It wasn’t until the past few years that I started taking it more seriously. I began sharpening my skills and targeting specific fish.”
Catching the musky was no straightforward feat.
Sampson devoted hours to fishing in Queen’s Quay Harbour, experimenting with new strategies, casting extra reels, and investing in specialised lures for elusive fish.
“I had to change my gear, upgrade, and put more money into it—getting a proper reel. Then I began landing these big fish instead of losing them. I also started heading to deeper waters and spending more time on the boat,” he defined.
Muskies are referred to as apex predators and are notoriously tough to catch. Within the fishing group, they’ve a status for placing up a battle earlier than being reeled in. There are even reviews of muskies biting swimmers.
“The whole name musky means angry pike or bad, bad pike. They say they have an attitude problem, and half the time, they strike things out of anger,” stated Sampson.
To observe the video of the catch, go to Darin Morrison-beer’s YouTube channel by looking out his title or typing The Rarest Fish in Toronto into the search bar or go on to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jo3O6NMxgsQ
