Monster PB Wild brown trout 4/16/20 and other browns

[JDTuna]

Thursday 4/16/20:

Decided to do a little bit of first light trout fishing at a New Jersey stream before work on Thursday. I wasn’t going to have a lot of time to fish, but I decided to give it a shot anyway. I ended up walking to the spot in the dark and got to the stretch I intended to fish in the grey light just before sunrise. I began working the area over. Nothing much going on for the first few casts, except a follow of two. I worked up and down the same stretch when I suddenly go the jolt of a strike. The initial hit didn’t hook up, but the fish hit again and this time the hooks stuck.

I could tell it was a good fish initially, as it peeled drag all over the river, but I wasn’t sure how big. It never jumped, just boiled on the surface. It was still a little too dark to get a good look at it, but I could tell it was a heavy fish. For the first few minutes of the fight, I was unable to get anywhere close to the fish without it taking off either up or downstream. Once I got the fish under control, it was like walking an eager dog on a leash. I kept chasing it upriver, but it kept bulldogging, just out of reach. At one point, the fish charged me and I got a look at how big it was. I almost attempted to net it, but I’m never a fan of attempting to net a green fish without a clear shot. I held off, and a couple of minutes later slipped the net under a mammoth male wild brown trout. But how big?

After a few quick pictures, I measured the fish, which stretched the tape to 26 inches. Not only my personal best for NJ, but my largest brown outside of the Great Lakes watershed. I got him back in the water quick, and he kicked off strong with a swipe of his giant tail to continue to hold his throne as the king of the river.








Sun 4/12/20:

Ended up staying in the house all day due to an injured knee, but by the late afternoon I couldn’t take it anymore and I had to get out. I hit an easy access trout stream in PA for a short run. Today was quality over quantity. I landed three fish, all between 20 and 21 inches.

[Gerry Zagorski]

That fish is INSANE!!

[thmyorke1]

giant brown wow! Thing looks like it IS from the great lakes watershed and you pull it out of Jerzy fresh waters

[Lard Almighty]

Vibrant colors, every fin perfect, and big to boot. What a marvelous specimen of Salmo trutta. Congratulations!

[hammer4reel]

Awesome Browns , congrats

[Mikey topaz]

Next time your gonna go fish in my backyard you better call and ask me for permission first! 😝. Just kiddin, nice fish Justin I’m def jealous of that one ! 👍

[Adrenalinerush]

That’s a really nice fish, congrats!

[FASTEDDIE29]

Lol! That certainly is the King of NJ Trout waters. What an awesome specimen. Just think about how long that beast has been in the river. Amazing Brown! Congrats brother!!!

[Esox Luciano]

Damn nice fish JD! Congrats on continuously trumping your personal best man! That brown is gorgeous!!

[Hookmanski]

So when are you changing your name from JDTune to JDTrout???? Congrats on the new PB man, what an awesome fish.