giant quinalt steelhead

here is a pic of a giant quinalt steelhead taken on the lower quinalt river today. i got it from an indian who caught it in his net. it is 44" long by 26" girth.i saw one that was bigger than this one yesterday.

Unreal!!!!!!!!!!!
Keith

Man, I hope I run across one of those in March!

Wow!

Nice fish you must feel real proud buying a fish from an Indian net. Good luck catching a steelhead in ten years.

The fish I caught today would fit in its belly!

werner, you must be a moron. ive been fishing the quinalt for 30 years and they net it less now than they did 30 years ago. there are also just as many fish now as there were 30 years ago. so where is your logic ? i buy a dead fish that someone would have eaten , then i have a fiberglass repo made. the next time someone catches a fish that big, they can use my mold and have one made, thus letting their fish go. oh and by the way, its a hatchery fish.its dorsal is about an inch tall and the anal fins are half gone

Stunted dorsal fin, less than 2.25 inches. Nice Buck! Inky get it, or his sons? Andy

Hey Werner- CHeck out the dorsal fin .........Can you say hatchery fish. Before busting someones chops , Get Educated!!!!!!!

Ya want some dipping sauce for that shoe leather, Werner?

I'll I can say is WOW!!

James

Incredible, that is so cool to see a fish that large and so bright too, wow! Guess I have mixed feelings about buying a fish like this. The fish is dead yes and will be eaten by someone but do we condone this activity by making the purchase? Thank you for the picture!

RM

This is what has us addicted.... Nice feesh bardo. By calculations it should weigh 38.3794 lbs.

generally speaking, i wouldnt condone purchasing wild steelhead. but anything over 35 pounds and i think it would be a crime not to preserve it. how many hatchery fish have you seen over 35 pounds? instead of having one person eat the thing, i thought i would preserve it so hundreds could enjoy looking at it.

Didnt see lower fin I will eat my shoe on this Im sorry but can not understand why any true sportsman would buy a fish from the Indians Im not saying that all native people are wrong the quinalt river is a prime example that is a great thing they have there. But after fishing on some these rivers that still have chunks of net lying all over the river. I will never support Native and or white men netting the river. And by buying the fish and there eggs thats only adds profit to the problem.Yes that is one hell of a fish and it would look great on the wall.Hope you enjoy it.

Bardo,

I have been fishing hard for steelies for 25 years. I spent 3 years trapping adult fish for research on the Snake River where we tagged up to 500 fish a day in some weeks. I have never seen a steelhead even near that one in size or quality, that is a spectacular fish.

RM

crow is a dish best eaten dry....
Nice fish bardo....

bardo
Simply this...THANKS! WOW! Makes me have them kinda dreams....WOW! Thanks dude.

gooose

Not that I would want to blemish that fish but did you ever consider taking some scale samples? You could obtain proof of hatchery origin and also gather valuable life history information.

DaveD

HOLLY MOLLY !!!!!!!!!!!!
That is one big fish how long it take you to get that one in.

oh i didnt see the cuaght in the net part

yes, scale samples were taken.

Shibby... Thats a real knee shaker

What a pig!!! Great idea having it mounted.

Bardo, you seem to be around these Quinault bruisers regularly. Doesn't it make you nervous knowing that your next hook-up could be a steelhead this big or bigger? Look at the size of that tail! Crikey!

Ron

Hey Bardo,
What a fish to add to your museum. My dad lives at Mason Lake and I was wondering if sometime when I'm up there visiting him we could give you a call and drive over and see your collection. If that would be ok send me a private message with your phone number.
If you have a plack made when you have it mounted don't forget the silent u in Quinault.
Man what a fish, Thanks for sharing.

That monster doesn't look gutted. Why didn't you list a weight? I use a system to figure out the weight of a native based on length and overall fatness (so I can release them quickly). At 44 inches that fish would be about 35-36 pounds on my "scale". I find the weight equations usually overestimate the weight of a steelhead.

Bardo sent me another photo, same fish I think, that was 35.8# as scribbled on the picture.

Is this the same fish?

http://www.geocities.com/Yosemite/Rapids/3765/fishrepr.html

Has anyone been catching on the lower Quinault other than in nets? I was supposed to be going on Monday, but the guide said the river visibility is still very poor and he suggested I try later in the year.

the fish house scale said 35 lbs 8 oz. i weighed it on a cretified scale and it weighed 36 lbs. 9 oz.

Geez, I don't even catch steelhead that big in my dreams. I don't know what I'd do if I saw that thing on the end of my line.

You think there's anything to how that hatchery is run? Na, I guess all those 25+ pound hatchery steelhead are just a matter of luck.

I'm not a mount collector, but I'd sure love to meet up with a steelie that size..... I'm obsessing.

Way to go.