FishwithJD

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Going BIG with topwater: A pending IGFA World Record Jack Crevalle

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Smile, dude...topwater is fun! (IGFA Photo)

You know me…I’m a huge fan of throwing topwater for anything that swims…but I’ve never come close to having my plug sucked down by anything like this pending all-tackle IGFA world record jack crevalle!

The 66-pound, 2 ouncer smashed a Willamson Jet Popper tossed by Carlos Alberto Leal Simoes, of Luanda, who was fishing Barra Do Dande, near Angola, Africa with guide Marcio de Oliveira Inocencio. The beast took 15 minutes to subdue and weighed nearly 8 pounds more than the current IGFA record, a fish that was also caught in Africa 10 years back.

Damn, I want some!

The kid’s first-ever steelie!

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Took Coop down to the ol’ backyard late yesterday evening for a quick plug pulling session and he managed to go 2 for 2 on small steelies, the first two of his young steelheading career. Not the biggest fish in terms of weight, but so huge in other ways!

I knew there were decent numbers of these little “egg-eater” size fish around and I figured they’d be the perfect size for a 4-year-old. Though the little fish were pretty scrappy on kokanee rods, the little dude was able to crank ’em in all by himself. He was stoked! But not nearly as much as dad…

We were only out for an hour and the problem now is convincing him you don’t catch a couple steelies every time out!

Reason for Living

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Our good friend and fellow member of the semi anti-social and fully masochistic Society of Steelhead Junkies (see if you’re one HERE), Roy Gray sent an email after his recent B.C. trip with this photo. There was no text or description. All it said in the subject line was “Reason for Living.”

Amen, brother!

A 30-pound laker on 2-pound tippet!

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IGFA Photo


While I’ve never quite understood the fascination with fighting monster fish on super light line (especially for the sake of the fish’s health), I must say that a 30-pound, 8-ounce lake trout caught on 2-pound tippet is a pretty impressive feat.

Frank Bluch of Corio Victoria, Australia pulled off the feat on August 7, while fishing Great Bear Lake, in Canada’s NW Territories with guide Captain Mike Harrison. The monster mack munched a white streamer and was weighed and released. If approved, will obliterate the current IGFA 2-pound tippet record, a 13-pound, 8-ounce fish from Canada’s Wellesley Lake.