Big Northern Caught Near Jamestown

[marine_man]

This is from the Jamestown Sun:

-----------------------------------------------------------

Dustin Kliengartner would give anything for his friend, including a finger.

And while he still has all 10, that doesn’t mean Kliengartner, 22, didn’t offer.

Kliengartner and his friend of nearly 20 years, Brian Kropp, 23, went fishing the afternoon of Jan. 19, a trip the two don’t get to do that often because Kropp was in town on leave from his tour of Iraq.

John M. Steiner / The Sun Brian Kropp holds the 45-inch northern pike he caught in Pipestem Reservoir on Jan. 19. The fish weighed 23 pounds, 5 ounces and took more than half an hour to land.

Kropp is a specialist with the 817th Engineer Company (Sapper).

The two had caught a couple crappie and a half dozen perch, but some of the lines had gotten tangled, said Kropp’s mother, Mary, who wasn’t there but told the story on Brian’s behalf since he is now back in Iraq.

So Brian used his father’s Buzz stick, a gift from Brian’s godfather, John Kropp, who passed away about four years ago.

“John was with Brian when he caught that fish on Saturday,” Mary said.

The fish — a 45-inch northern pike weighing 23 pounds, 5 ounces — fought with Brian and Kliengartner for more than half an hour.

“His rod started bouncin’,” Kliengartner said.

He’s caught some big fish, Kliengartner said, but not that big. He said he didn’t think Brian had, either.

Even though northern pike have teeth, Kliengartner said he usually sticks his hand in their mouths to get the fish from the water.

“I didn’t know if I was going to stick my hand in that one’s mouth,” he said.

But he would have if he had to.

“Well buddy I might be losing a finger for you today,” Mary recalled Kliengartner saying.

So, instead of grabbing the fish by the mouth, Kliengartner settled for the eyeballs. As soon as it was caught, the men took the fish to be measured and weighed.

“I grabbed him by the eyes and ran out the door (of the ice house),” he said.

Gene VanEeckhout, biologist at the Jamestown Game and Fish Department, said the state’s northern pike record is 50 inches long and 37 pounds, 8 ounces. That record was set in 1968 at Lake Sakakawea.

“Big fish like that are few and far between,” VanEeckhout said.

Most northern pikes weigh 10 pounds or less, he said.

Kliengartner said Brian caught that northern pike the day before he left for Iraq.

“(It’s like a) going-away gift for him,” Kliengartner said.

Sun reporter Katie Ryan can be reached at 701-952-8454 or by e-mail at [email protected]

----------------------------------------------------------------

What a great story!

marine_man

[fishin58]

Great looking fish, jealous!!!

[Fish Toys]

Hey that’s great that he caught something that he will always remember and especially when on leave.

[10,000 Casts]

That sure would have made for a nice replica...

[goose89]

That sure would have been nice left unsaid.

Give em (and me) a break. Nice story. My thanks go out to the soldier.

[marine_man]

 Originally Posted By: 10,000 Casts

That sure would have made for a nice replica...

Perhaps, but the choice to keep or release such a fish is up to the person catching it. Maybe he fought the fish for a while and determined that the fish likely wasn't going to make it. Maybe he wanted a real mount. Regardless, keeping the fish isn't illegal by any means, and is the angler's choice.

marine_man

[iffwalleyes]

Well it is only a nothern after all .