The biggest rainbow of my life: a short story

[RyanLoughney]

April 29, 2020

Unfortunately, I sit here today at my desk, supposed to be completing work that was due yesterday, writing this short story.
I was fishing an undisclosed location and the fishing was going good as usual. We were about a combine 25-30 fish, between 2, when all of a sudden I hooked into a brick. When I mean brick, I mean I have never seen my rod bend like that in my life. I had caught a 2019 breeder (21 inch stock) last season but that was nothing like this. This fish was pulling drag and didn’t have a problem doing so. I knew it was big but I didn’t have eyes on the fish until it came full out of the water and did a dolphin dive. This fish was way bigger than my 22 inch personal record from last year. I had the fish pinned for roughly 5 minutes, pulling it the to the rocky, branchy edge that we were fishing on, every time it pulling my 4 lb line out into the current with a simple head turn. The shear girth of this fish was unbelievable and it had surfaced several times after its initial jump. After seeing this fish nearly 6 times, I estimate that it was roughly 25-26 inches. Here comes the sad part. Fishing in this smaller stream setting we did not expect to catch larger fish so our nets were simply much too small Simply for an 18 inch fish. There were 2 times that we had the fish close enough to the bank to have a chance to get a net on her but the ledges proved to be too distant to the waters surface to manure the large fish. On the 3rd approach to the bank, the fish was tired and had much less energy, but did one head shake were it popped the hook straight out. No bent hook or line fray so I know my drag was perfect but I must have just caught a small tab of his mouth that ripped upon extreme stress. I was/currently am devastated by the event but realize that it is simply a calling for me to go back and catch it for real this time, get photos, and tell my kids I pulled out a nearly 30 inch trout in a river that you can barley swim in.
I hope this sparks that inner rush that everybody knows they’ve felt at one time in their life, and pushes a few of you to get out more.

[bigfishy]

Gr8 story!!! GPS coordinates or it didnt happen😜
j/k

[thmyorke1]

oof, unfortunate situation, i hope you get back on that fish soon. It deserves to be photographed!

[JDTuna]

So sorry man. We've all been there...just part of the game. Nothing you could have done different. Keep at it and you'll get her!

You have to change the sad face in your caption to a smiley face. You hooked a trophy, fought her, got her to the bank and released her for someone else to experience the thrill of a lifetime. Sounds like a clear case of C&R to me.

Either that or the fish saw you, realized it wasn't JDTuna and spit the hook because we know ALL big trout in the state insist on being caught by Justin!

Either way, great story and an experience you'll never forget!

[thmyorke1]

Originally Posted by dakota560

either that or the fish saw you, realized it wasn't jdtuna and spit the hook because we know all big trout in the state insist on being caught by justin!

lol

[FASTEDDIE29]

Hahaha! Oh man, great story. Sorry about the lost breeder Bow. Now that you know where she lives you can always go back and take another crack at her.

[AndyS]

You never forget the ones that got away, but quickly forget the ones you landed, something like that

[Capt. Lou]

I love to fish big trout , you don’t always land everyone , it’s like Andy said , you will remember this fish for life . It’s part of the game .

[Treble Hook Jim]

I was at the Stanton Station bridge on the SB a few weeks ago with my wife just out for a drive on a nice evening and we stopped to peer off the bridge. There was a couple on the downstream side of the bridge and a guy on the upstream side fishing. As expected you could see numerous trout swimming about both above and below the bridge, I had on polarized glasses and my wife did not. My wife commented, “Look at the size of that one” being the dumbass I am, I could not see the fish she was referring to. “Where?” I asked. Right there below us she replied. Still couldn’t see anything... she then asked how I possibly couldn’t see the fish... I was looking for a standard 18-21” stocker. I finally saw the fish she was referring to and realized why I did not notice it. It was every bit of 30” long and thick as a log. The trout had big red cheeks and peck fins. By far the biggest trout I have ever seen in a Jersey stream. First thought was to come back the following day with my 6wt steelhead rod but then realized we were expecting 2” of rain the following day. This fish was every bit of 10# and would have been more than a match for most of the gear Jersey fishermen usually use...They are out there though and you never know when you will be the lucky one to hook up with one of these beasts!