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Post by creekhunter on Sept 11, 2009 8:08:20 GMT -6
Rockford angler Tom Healy hooks 41-pound brown trout that shatters state record by Aaron Ogg | The Grand Rapids Press Thursday September 10, 2009, 1:50 AM Tom Healy holds the 41-pound, 7-ounce, 43.75-inch-long brown trout he caught while fishing for salmon on the Manistee River on Wednesday. It awaits verification by world record keepers as the largest ever caught. ROCKFORD -- Tom Healy floated along the Manistee River in Manistee County on Wednesday morning hoping to hook a few salmon, but the longtime fisherman's fate was much weightier. The 66-year-old Rockford man wrangled with a 41-pound, 7-ounce, 43.75-inch-long brown trout for 15 minutes before hauling it into his boat. The fish breaks the species' state record and awaits verification by world record keepers as the largest ever caught. "When we hooked it, we knew it was a big fish," Healy said. "How big, we didn't realize." Officials with the state Department of Natural Resources' fisheries division Wednesday checked out the monstrous grab and said it meets all guidelines as Michigan's new champion. "This is one of the most amazing fish I've seen in my life," said Todd Kalish, fisheries supervisor for the Central Lake Michigan unit, "a real testament of the world class fishery Michigan provides. "It's a once-in-a-lifetime thing for someone like that." Healy, 15-year fishing buddy and East Grand Rapids resident Bob Woodhouse and guide Tim Roller of Cadillac-based Ultimate Outfitters caught some salmon before hooking the big one near the Bear Creek access point. Healy said the fish tried to jump a couple times, but he was able to wrestle it in open water with his Rapala Shad Rap lure and Cabela's rod and reel. "The reality of it is, I was pretty doggone lucky," Healy said. "It's just one of those things." The previous brown trout state record of 36 pounds, 13 ounces was set in 2007 by Casey Richey near Frankfort Harbor. The current world record is held by Howard Collins, who caught a 40-pound, 4-ounce brown trout in the Little Red River in Arkansas in 1992, according to the Florida-based International Game Fish Association and the Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame & Museum in Hayward, Wis. Healy said he plans to contact the IGFA to try to claim the record. "I'm a guy who generally practices catch and release," he said. Since Healy retired as president of Grand Rapids-based construction firm Owen-Ames-Kimball Co. nearly five years ago, he's been able to devote more time to his love. His trips include perusing the Bahamas for bonefish and hitting the Florida Keys for tarpon. He generally travels to the same spot on the Manistee River to pursue steelhead in October and November. Photographs, mounted pieces and replicas of trophy fish line his basement and office areas. "I'm a fisherman at heart," he said. His latest catch sits in a Manistee taxidermist's shop awaiting work. It likely will end up on his living room wall because there's not enough room in his office, he said. "I'm a guy who believes if you put your line in the water, you've got a five-times better chance than if you keep it in the boat" Healy said. Press Outdoors Editor Howard Meyerson contributed to this report.
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Post by creekhunter on Sept 11, 2009 8:12:33 GMT -6
Not to be the stick in the mud,,,or to try to take the shine off this awesome catch.. But What about CATCH AND RELEASE? Or did i read this wrong? I WOULD HAVE ! ALL HE NEEDED WAS THE PICTURE AND MEASUREMENTS AND HE STILL COULD HAVE GOT A FISH MOUNT DONE UP!!!
Would you have released this trophy brown trout? Sure would like to hear all your opinions on this..
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Post by sedgehammer on Sept 11, 2009 11:16:58 GMT -6
That is a magnificent fish and deserves to be placed back into the water. However I'm thinking that, that fish is aged a fair bit and if it did not have many more years to live keeping the fish is not a very horrible act, though releasing it would be respectful . But I don't know about the lifespan of trout. Does anyone know how long trout live, or even more specifically, how long that giant could live? I suspect like a monster like that is feeding heavily and could last longer than most trout...though I may be mistaken.
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Post by creekhunter on Sept 11, 2009 11:33:05 GMT -6
Yeah outta respect let the old brute go would be toxic to eat anyways..
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Post by RickL on Sept 12, 2009 15:40:30 GMT -6
It could be that the record may have required the fish for verification. That is one monster fish, but as someone mentioned it may have been near the end of its lifetime. I always let mine go, but if I'm sitting there with this possible world record fish draped over my tube's stripping apron I might be tempted to keep it. I guess I will only know if I am in such a spot. Better get ready to go then ...
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Post by Deleted on Sept 16, 2009 5:37:01 GMT -6
It's understandable that the fish is required to verify its exact weight and dimensions but it's a stupid system. If you catch a massive fish, say a trout, and it is a record breaking fish, unless you kill it and get it scored, you can never truly attain record status by the IGFA.
Again, it makes sense that they need to see the fish, however, it sucks that us catch and release fishermen would have to go against what we believe.
Really nice fish, don't get me wrong, but it would have been nice to see it swim away.
I think more lakes in MB should be designated Catch and Release only or only one fish under a certain size can be kept. Tokaryk is a prime example. That lake is hot right now but those stocks are depleting fast! Was there on Weds and saw two people load up four fish over 20" into their truck. Gear fishermen of course.
Twin Lake is known to have big fish and is an awesome lake! It's also great because you rarely get gear fishermen there because you cannot keep a fish.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 17, 2009 19:53:38 GMT -6
Funny, this is the pic I saw of the record fish on another site....
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Post by Deleted on Sept 17, 2009 20:07:44 GMT -6
Either way, both BIG fish... both have completed their 'contribution' to the gene pool... Much like when Manitoba releases its brood stock. (after 7 years). Respect a big fish yes, it being valuable to the population, no.
I am a strong believer in catch and release and conservation, but wouldn't give anyone an ounce of grief for keeping a fish that big (for a trophy and the record, not to eat). Chances are, being that old and tired, it would have died shortly after release anyway.
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Post by creekhunter on Sept 18, 2009 5:53:12 GMT -6
what about chance? how can one say this big ole brute will die right after being released lol i think asumeing things such as oh its not fertile anymore never to carry on its gene pool again is sure a educated guess but nothing more AND A EXCUSE TO KEEP IT lol ARE we that old fish?MAYBE he sees a nice female brown trout swimming freely in the water and decides sure why not since im the big dog in the river its time to make a few more minnows oh wait because it says in text books somewhere that the reproduction cycle is exactly this in mature brown trout it will never reproduce again lol and tto say i would keep it because its done it cycle lol I think it is a load of crap sorry im sure that old fish has been hooked many times before and would live through another one and after for more years>>ok maybe not making minnows if not oh well>>imagine the face of the next angler to land into that slab? im saying this not offend to anyone Not to offend anyone but what about chance? hell i seen and caught small fish all chewed up from bigger fish i let them go they swim off quite fine and strong and hell they are feeding just like the other fish u know that what i dont like about text book learning is there is room for the what if and the chance of the unkown in nature That IS WHAT makes nature SO great the unexpected but if you follow text books well i guess there is not much else to learn its all in the book>> you know everything its right there in black and text books help but being tune with nature and being in it is better><>> good example of text book vs nature is the bear guy that went up to Alaska with his girl friend to make friends with the grizzlys well we know how that all ended in the docunmentary he kept saying these bears are my cute and cuddley friends naming each one cute and cuddley names FOR PETA APPLICATIONS lol feeding the grizzlys playing around with them trying to touch them scratch behind their ears MAKING THEM SAFE TO PLAY AROUND WITH>> then one day along a comes a grumpy old hungry grizzly HE NAMED pooh bear and that was the end of the documentary and the fellows life and his girl FRIENDS life too pooh bear had lunch and after he sheeted them out all over the trail>> but i bet that guy was THINKING as he was getting eaten in the text book this bear is not aggressive and according to my book he doesnt have no teeth too beacause judging by the age of this bear he eats roots and grass bugs and berrys>>>>>not my girlfriends skull CRUNCH CRUNCH~~!!!!
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Post by Deleted on Sept 18, 2009 18:09:22 GMT -6
I fully agree there is a chance the thing may live and may spawn, but I'd rather keep a 14" fish to eat and a 30+" fish as a trophy before I'd keep a 24" guaranteed spawner. Most people keep a fish from time to time, so why not that one? I have release quite a few 'trophy' sized musky as I know I will be catching another in the future... I don't think that fella will ever see a fish that big again let alone catch one. Either way, I don't think I could say right now if Id keep a fish that size, it would depend on where it came from and the condition I caught it in. AH the grizzly dude... yeah, that guy was a little over confident...
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Post by kkansas on Sept 19, 2009 9:01:02 GMT -6
interesting ideas re the Grizzly bear guy and text books and large brown trout, although i have no idea what the heck your point is... the grizzly dude was not a text book guy, as a matter of fact he was shunned by the 'text book' world and look what that got him...not only that it was thought that he had an imbalance brain chemistry wise... that dude was bad enough, but i saw another documentary about an older gentleman, a canadian guy, who went to Russia and saved young griz from circus's and such and brought them back into the wild...his theory was that you could live and walk and talk side by side with griz and other bears...what an idiot...if folks listened to him people would die... another non-text booker... the best of what i think you are talking about is a combination of books and bush...how do you think 'text books', well most of them relating to animals and behaviour and habitat and all that, get written ? bush and books... by the way, most freshwater species spawn until they are deceased...
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Post by creekhunter on Sept 19, 2009 16:02:58 GMT -6
Ya i know im way off course just throwing ideas out there lol I best not decide to live with the grizzlys one day since i dont read much text books lol TEXT BOOKS KICK A$$ LOL NOT ALWAYS RIGHT BUT A GOOD GENERAL GUIDE... AND KKANSAS HOW DO YOU KNOW the bear guy WASNT SOME PENCIL PUSHING text book GEEK? KINDA like the ones who make up the fishing regs in our province? well its off to do some paper fluffing
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Post by Deleted on Sept 19, 2009 16:25:22 GMT -6
Ken, if they spawn till death, why does the hatcheries release the bigguns? Is there a 'less productive' age??
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Post by kkansas on Sept 19, 2009 20:56:04 GMT -6
shaneo...those old brood stock (and sometime not too old) are released mainly due there being surplus stock...they do get a little less productive in their 'twilight' years but that could be due to the meothod of egg extraction... creekpunter...i'm sure that phsyco looked at a book or two, i didn't know the guy...i am just reiterating what i remember about that movie/documentary...so, you got your shots in, c'est la vie...i'd better not get into it with you, the last time i traded thoughts in this type of venue it cost me...'pencil pushing geeks who make up our fihsing regs' ? nice...those slot limits sure suck eh ?
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Post by creekhunter on Sept 19, 2009 21:23:48 GMT -6
HA !! I TANKS ~CREEKPUNTER~; ;D
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Post by Deleted on Sept 20, 2009 16:41:29 GMT -6
shaneo...those old brood stock (and sometime not too old) are released mainly due there being surplus stock...they do get a little less productive in their 'twilight' years but that could be due to the method of egg extraction... Ken, please correct me if I am wrong but I'm under the impression that even if this brute did spawn "successfully", the eggs wouldn't hatch due to the need for cold oxygenated flowing water. Does that condition exist in the river it was caught in? I would think that fish wouldn't contribute to the gene pool or fish population anyway.
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Post by kkansas on Sept 20, 2009 20:37:09 GMT -6
flyboy i was talking about the Whiteshell hatchery brood stock...i think you might be referring to the hog in the photo ?
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Post by Deleted on Sept 21, 2009 23:24:20 GMT -6
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Post by itchyman on Sept 22, 2009 17:34:11 GMT -6
wuz thinkin on this since the other day ..... was undecided ............ dun thinkin now .....
C&R .... other than that - lookat the mess you got on your hands, gutting, cleaning, cooking, stinkin fish smell all over ... dogs lickin you all over the place, cats taking a shine to you like a rotty on a bloated goat ..... nah - take note (maybe a pic), chuck 'er back and smile ........
besides, wife would expect you to be bringin them sizes back all the time ........... ;D
itchy,
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Post by Deleted on Nov 5, 2009 10:04:59 GMT -6
Ya. Don't think I could bash the dude, after all, a fish that big is one seriously crazy adrenalin-pumping rush, and who knows what decision one would make in the heat of the "holy crap!!!!! Lookit this fish monster I just pulled in!!!!!". But, I'm thinkin I would probably give up the prize, take a few good non-photoshopped pix, and let the beastie go.
But I'll let you know, if I ever catch one.... ;D
Ken
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