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Paul is one of the most acclaimed musky experts in the business. He runs a musky guide service in Tennessee, where he now lives. He designs lures for Livingston Lures and is a spokesman for The Musky Shop in Minocqua, Wisconsin.

Paul also co-hosts “Musky 360,� a popular podcast, and has a new book out, “Next Level Musky Fishing.�

Paul’s been invited to be the keynote speaker at Muskie Odyssey 2024, an international expo in Toronto on April 13. “I was honored that Muskies Canada would invite me to come up and do that. It’s the world’s largest stage in the sport,� Paul said in a recent interview.

Muskellunge (usually shortened to musky or muskie) are big, toothy fish in the pike family. Paul grew up fishing for these predators in the Mud River and other local waterways.

“I was born and raised in Huntington. I’m always proselytizing to people about how great West Virginia is, and no one believes me,â€� Paul said, laughing. “The Mud River is home. My teeth were cut on the Mud, along with the Elk in ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä.â€�

His father, the late Stephen Feaster, was a longtime physician at Cabell Huntington Hospital. (Steven goes by Steven Paul professionally).

“My dad was known as Doc Feaster. He was obsessed with musky fishing. When he wasn’t delivering babies, he was out catching muskies,� Paul said. “He used to have one mounted on the wall of his office. The husbands would always ask ‘What’d you catch it on, Doc?’�

In the ’80s, when Paul was a boy, the state’s waterways held few muskies. “In my formative years, before there was a stocking program, you were relegated to the Mud, Twelve-Pole Creek and some of these other shallow waters that still had a few fish left. Occasionally we’d get squirrelly and go to Green River in Kentucky, or Piedmont Lake in Ohio,� he said.

“It’s funny, I was in Clarksburg recently, and everyone was talking about the muskies in Burnsville Lake. That’s the result of stocking. That shows how well West Virginia’s DNR has been handling it. The waterways are clean, and there’s natural reproduction.�

The Elk River is still producing muskies, and since Paul’s time, the Coal River has been added to the list of musky waters. “It’s wonderful that the sport is more accessible now,� Paul said.

Muskies are notoriously temperamental, which is why they are known as “the fish of 10,000 casts.� Devoted muskie fishermen are accustomed to fishing long and hard to get that single bite. That’s one reason the fish was not a popular game fish in previous decades.

Paul’s grandfather, Jim Feaster, was one of the early pioneers in musky fishing. “Jim was out of Shinnston, and he was one of the first to target this species,� Paul said.

“We’re talking 1950s and 1960s — musky angling just wasn’t a thing. Few people even knew how to catch a musky. He had a small club that would get together on Sundays after church to go musky fishing. It was just a hodgepodge of people. I always enjoyed hearing stories of those early days. Musky fishing is fickle. They almost never caught fish. But they had that drive to do it.�

As one of the elite few, Jim Feaster developed a friendship with Jack Cobb and Bill Crane, two West Virginians who were trailblazers in the making of musky lures.

“Some of the most iconic baits in musky fishing came from our state during this period, and they stand the test of time today,� Paul said. “The history of musky angling is wholly incomplete without the ’60s, ’70s and ’80s in West Virginia. I’m proud to be a part of it.�

When asked how many muskies he’s caught, he concedes he has lost count. “I’ve had quite a few in the net. It would be in the thousands,� he said.

One of those was the official state record musky for Tennessee. But, he said that was not the biggest he’s ever caught.

The biggest fish came when Paul was supposed to meet a client. The client called him and said he was sick and had to cancel. Paul was already at the location, and started to pack up. That’s when a man and his son approached Paul about taking them fishing.

“When are you free?� the man asked.

“I’m free right now,� Paul said.

So, Paul took them out and was showing them the basics. “This guy had never fished for muskies before. I was explaining the figure eight — that flourish beside the boat where you try to entice a musky who might be following your bait. I’d made a flip cast about five feet, and I’m talking, not paying attention.

“The kid looks at the bait and his eyes get big. I look down and see that a giant musky has come up and is following the bait. It’s the biggest one I’ve ever landed — and it was on a demo cast.�

Paul rarely weighs his fish. “Muskies are exceptionally fragile, believe it or not. I always try to handle them with a softer touch.�

He said most musky fishermen go by length. The West Virginia state record musky measured 55 inches. It was caught by Luke King in 2022 in the Little Kanawha River.

Does Paul prefer lakes or rivers?

“Lakes are nice, but being a West Virginian, I call myself a ‘creeker,’ because I’d rather be on moving water. I love fishing rivers, which makes no sense in the musky world. It drives people nuts. There are a couple of small rivers in Tennessee I fish — I’d rather not name them — and I love to fish them. They remind me of home.�

He said the most accessible musky waters are in Wisconsin. But, if pressed, he said his favorite all-time lake would have to be Eagle Lake in Canada. “That’s where my father and a bunch of the old West Virginia guys would go,� he said.

Paul spends a couple of months each year in Canada. He thinks the glacier-made lakes, like Eagle Lake and Lake of the Woods, offer some of the best fishing in North America.

Looking back on his career, from his household growing up, to his guiding and lure businesses, to being the keynote speaker at an international expo, Paul said, “It’s a little crazy.�

But he wouldn’t change anything. “I’ve spent my entire life working in this industry, from designing baits like the Titan and Kraken, to doing podcasts to writing articles and a book. I’ve kept grinding at it, and it’s been wonderful.�

Steven Paul’s book, “Next Level Musky Fishing,” can be ordered at The Musky Shop (www.musky ).

For more information about Muskie Odyssey 2024, go to .