His love of fishing was cast early

Fun trips with his dad and brother formed the foundation for Chris DePaola's lifelong love of fishing and laid the building blocks for on-the-water success that qualify him as one of this area's finest fishermen.
DePaola of Austintown is a man for all species. He has, at various times in his life, been passionate about panfish, bass, walleyes, muskies and steelhead.
Those who know him say DePaola and fishing are synonymous. His name was one of the most frequently mentioned in our recent poll to identify this region's top anglers.
Fishing is a family passion. Father Art and brother Mike are avid anglers themselves and uncle Ralph Cook once held the Ohio state walleye record. DePaola says the trips with his family lighted his fishing fire and even yielded a clue about his future career.
& quot;I still remember those family vacations up in Canada, & quot; he said. & quot;Especially the silly things. Like the time my brother, Mike, and I were fishing off the dock and we ran out of worms. We were eating Bit-O-Honey candy, so we chewed up a couple of wads and stuck them on our hooks and continued right on catching rock bass like crazy. & quot;
DePaola today is a regional sales executive for Nestle USA, whose product line includes Bit-O-Honey. & quot;I guess you could say I had a lot of early experience with the product, & quot; he said.
Getting serious
He got serious about fishing during his Fitch High School days and joined the Pymatuning Bass Anglers, a club of about 12 members who fished small tournaments on the reservoir straddling the Ohio-Pennsylvania border.
& quot;I was a buzzbait nut back in those days, & quot; he said. & quot;I loved fishing the shallow wood and weeds with buzzers, spinnerbaits and the old Barney Spoons.
A few years later, he was stricken with muskie fever.
& quot;I was in a bass tournament on Berlin and paired up with a guy from Deerfield, & quot; he said. & quot;I caught a muskie on my buzzbait -- around 13 pounds, 36 or 38 inches long -- and that was it. I was hooked and joined Muskies Inc. that same year, 1980. & quot;
DePaola is in his 26th year as a member of Muskies Inc.'s Cleveland Chapter and has served as youth director for 10 years. & quot;I'm really proud of the stuff the club has done with youth. Last year, we worked with more than 800 kids through Muskies Inc., including the event in Warren's Perkins Park with the Mahoning River Consortium. & quot;
His muskie fishing takes him to many great locales, including Lake Nippissing, Ontario, where last year he hooked up with the biggest fish of his life. The 55-incher weighed an estimated 44 pounds and hit a 10-inch perch-colored Tuff Shad, a wooden bait. The day before, he landed a 52 incher.
& quot;The big one had eyes the size of 50-cent pieces, & quot; he said. & quot;When it ran past the boat, I couldn't believe it, it was that huge. & quot;
Casting preference
His preferred muskie tactic is casting, which he learned with guidance from muskie expert Joe Scaglione, who formerly owned a bait shop on Pymatuning. & quot;I start by working the weedy points, the deeper edges, and then work in. A lot of times, you'll see muskie up there chasing carp around in the weeds. & quot;
DePaola also cites the influence of Hubbard's Mike Clemente, with whom DePaola has fished for 20 years.
& quot;Mike's the best troller I've ever known. He's so good with electronics, speed control and bait color. He can see the bait on his electronics and get the bait right in front of the fish. & quot;
Since 1992, DePaola's interest during the cold-water season has focused on Lake Erie tributary steelhead fishing. & quot;The Ohio Division of Wildlife's Phil Hillman got me interested. On our first trip, we landed 16 or 18 steelhead and I was done. & quot;
Today, he's a dedicated fly-rodder, tying his own flies and perfecting his presentation on the finicky fish. It's paid off big time.
& quot;I can honestly say I've caught hundreds this year since January. & quot;
The next generation of DePaola anglers is represented in son, Chris, a freshman at Westminster College. & quot;He's a good fishermen, especially when he puts his mind to it, & quot; said the proud dad. & quot;
It's easy to see that for DePaola, fishing is the sweetest deal -- almost like a Bit-O-Honey. Maybe even better.
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