Minnesota angler reels in record-breaking coho salmon on Lake Superior
David Cichosz pictured with his record-breaking coho salmon (Courtesy of DNR) (Supplied)
ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Minn. (FOX 9) - Minnesota angler David Cichosz broke a 53-year-old state record with a coho salmon he caught during a fishing trip on Lake Superior in September.
The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) certified Chichosz on Thursday as the new state record holder for catching the largest coho salmon, weighing 10 pounds, 14 ounces.
Chichosz made the catch on Sept. 4 during a charter fishing trip in St. Louis County with his wife, Chris Sky. He explained they were on Lake Superior and had nearly caught their limit of lake trout, so they switched over to fishing for salmon.
While enjoying their morning boat ride, the couple noticed the rod began to move.
"I quickly grabbed it and was off on the fight," Cichosz said in the press release. "I kept thinking to myself, ‘am I gaining any line on this fish?’"
Cichosz explained he was tempted to tighten the drag, but captain Kent Paulsen advised him to let the fish take out the line, which ultimately contained the record-breaking fish.
"Once the fish broke the surface, I could tell by our captain’s response that we had a big fish," Cichosz said in the release.
They brought the 29-inch-long fish to a certified scale at a Duluth grocery store and submitted paperwork the following day. The DNR announced on Oct. 12 that the coho salmon Cichosz caught broke the previous record set in 1970.
"I am thankful for the record but at the end of the day, I am happy to just share the joy of fishing with new friends and fellow [anglers] and to be on the lake with my wife," Cichosz told the DNR.
According to the DNR, coho salmon in Lake Superior weigh an average of 1.5 to 3 pounds, while the chinook salmon can grow over 10 pounds, but most catches are closer to 3 or 4 pounds. The current chinook salmon record was set in 1989 with a tie between fishes caught in Poplar River and Lake Superior, weighing 33 pounds, 4 ounces.