Grand Rapids Radio Personality Catches Fish of a Lifetime

A Grand Rapids radio personality was river fishing and finally caught a fish he only dreamed of as a kid.

Michigan Winter River Fishing

The rivers connecting to Lake Michigan are all fantastic for winter river fishing. Fishing rivers in the winter is often overlooked because it's so cold and many fisherman are dedicating their time to ice fishing.

👇BELOW: See How Michiganders Fished From 1900 through 1943👇

Here is a list of rivers connected to Lake Michigan on Michigan's west side for those interested in wetting a line:

• Fox River
• Grand River
• Kalamazoo River
• Manistee River
• Menominee River
• Muskegon River
• Pere Marquette River
• St. Joseph River

Read More: Video: Policeman Helps Untangle Buck's Rack From Backyard Rope

Grand Rapids Radio Personality Catches Fish of a Lifetime

My name is Tommy Carroll. I work for Townsquare Media in Grand Rapids at WGRD. I'm an avid fisherman and hunter.

I grew up with a lifelong friend Alan Debolt. We used to fish every chance we could get. Alan lived near a lake so he and his dad rigged up some wagon wheels to some wood and he and I would pull the boat down the street to go fishing. That's how I caught my biggest largemouth bass. We fished for everything we could but the ultimate goal was to work our way up the fish chain and someday land a sturgeon.

I was fishing one of the area's rivers for walleye and caught the fish of my lifetime. The previous week I was fishing and hooked a sturgeon and had it on for about 10 minutes before it got off. It was a great feeling but thought I would never land one.

I got the fish on and thought it was a steelhead because of the way it was taking my line. The fish slowed down quickly and I knew it was a sturgeon. I fought the fish for about 20 to 25 minutes. It was cold and I was the only one on the river but I wasn't sure if I could get the sturgeon onto the shore without help. I put my fishing pole down and left the head of the fish in the net. I then grabbed the sturgeon by the tail to lift it out of the water so I could unhook it.

I was alone so this is the only picture I could get with the sturgeon. I was concerned about the 58-inch fish and wanted to return to the water quickly. The sturgeon was about 25 years old and weighed 40 to 50 pounds. It was great watching the majestic beast swim back into the river.

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This was the greatest moment I've ever experienced fishing. Who says dreams don't come true? I feel so blessed and will enjoy telling this fish story for years.