Early on a cold December morning, before the ice had come in at Toronto Harbour, Dylan Sampson took a friend out fishing. They putted along in Dylan’s dad’s boat, headed for a spot near Billy Bishop Airport. They were bundled. It was around zero degrees and the wind had picked up, waves chopping against the bow.
Dylan’s friend, Darin, a local artist, had asked Dylan to take him out. He wanted to shoot a documentary about Dylan and his family’s experiences fishing in Toronto. He sat in the front of the boat recording while Dylan manned the motor.
Dylan is a talented angler, but even he’ll tell you his experience pales in comparison to his dad, Don, and his twin brother, Will. Together, Don and Will operate Detour Fishing Toronto, a guided charter for anglers around the Toronto Islands. “They are the real professional fishermen,” says Dylan. “I’m the student.”
Dylan is a chef by trade, but he was let go from his job a few months ago. He’s since taken the time to reconnect with fishing.
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When Dylan agreed to take Darin out, he promised they’d land some pike. That’s what they were trolling for—a common catch in the area. What Dylan was more reluctant to admit was that he was also searching for a muskie.
“I’d been targeting it for probably the last six months,” he says. “Moving into muskie lures and catching huge pike. I was hopeful I’d get one, but did not expect to get one in the city.”
Dylan’s muskie drive could be chalked up to sibling rivalry. Back in 2022, Dylan’s twin, Will, caught a 43-inch muskie in the Toronto Harbour. It made the local news. According to the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority (TRCA), it was the first muskie recorded in the area in 30 years.
Dylan’s twin brother, Will, holding his muskie/Photo courtesy Dylan Sampson
Dylan and Darin’s fishing expedition got off to a good start. They settled into a shoal and within the first hour, Dylan reeled in a 15-pound pike. They released the fish and then did a few loops of the airport before returning to the same spot. That’s when Dylan snagged a second pike. This one even bigger, closer to 20 pounds.
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“I was like, ‘This is awesome. We’re getting these on camera. They’re nice fish. They’re so healthy,’” says Dylan.
But his hands were getting cold from holding the wet pikes, so they decided to do only one more pass around the airport. He wanted to give Darin a chance to reel in a fish, so he promised the next one would be his.
Photo courtesy Dylan Sampson
When Dylan hooked their next catch, he went to pass the rod to Darin, but that’s when he felt the weight. “I was like, ‘Okay, never mind. Let me take this one.’ I pulled the rod back, and I loosened the tension. I was messing around with the motor. I didn’t shut the motor off right away, and I lost the fish,” he says.
Darin encouraged Dylan to try again, so he dropped the lure in the same spot. Within a minute, he felt the fish bite. “It started running in the other direction like a freight train,” says Dylan. He cut the motor and started reeling. From the boat, the fish looked like a huge pike. Darin held the camera in one hand and a net in the other, trying to scoop the fish out of the water. But it wasn’t working. Eventually, Dylan let go of the rod and plunged his hands into the water, scooping the fish into the boat. That’s when he saw its pattern.
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“We got one,” says Dylan. “That was my first muskie ever.”
The muskie was 39 inches, and Dylan estimates that it weighed around 20 pounds. While it was smaller than his brother’s, he suspects, based on the pattern, that they’re from the same family. Two muskies in two years is also a good sign for the health of the Toronto Harbour’s ecosystem.
Dylan snapped some pictures with the fish and released it back into the water.
Since catching the muskie, Dylan’s decided to shift his career path. He plans to offer pike fishing charters around Toronto. “I’ve watched my dad do it my whole life,” he says. “And I’ve kind of been doing it without getting paid this whole time with all my friends. But now people are offering me money.”
Dylan also isn’t finished with muskies. His next goal is to break the muskie world record, set in October 2024 by Art Weston in Minnesota with a 54-inch muskie.
“I’m sure that there are bigger ones in Lake Ontario,” says Dylan. “There’s just so much food in there for them to eat. There’s got to be some giants secretly hiding away.”
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