BONNEVILLE COUNTY, Idaho — A Georgia woman traveled to Idaho hoping to catch trout. She ended up landing a fish so rare it earned her a spot in the state’s record books.
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Georgia angler Caroline Langdale caught a 30.5-inch brown trout in Idaho’s South Fork Snake River on May 30.
The Idaho Department of Fish and Game has since verified the fish as a state record.
The South Fork Snake River is recognized for its productive brown trout fishing, which is known for its yellowish bodies and long, angular faces.
Brown trout are not native to Idaho’s waters but provide exciting fishing opportunities for anglers using a fly rig.
Langdale’s catch occurred during a multiday fishing trip along the river.
Ed Emory, a guide with South Fork Lodge, was with Langdale when she made her record-setting catch.
Langdale recounted her experience, stating, “I never dreamed when I started my day of fishing with Emory of South Fork Lodge that God was going to bless me with a fish of a lifetime.”
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She was drifting her rubber legs, flying down a massive hole, when she felt a tug.
Initially, Langdale thought she had snagged a root ball. After a nearly 10-minute fight, she brought the brown trout to the surface.
She and her guide measured the fish and Langdale submitted the measurements and photos to Fish and Game’s Sportfish Coordinator for verification.
Langdale described the moment, saying, “What an amazing experience that I will always be thankful for.”Brown trout more than 30 inches in the South Fork Snake River are exceptionally rare.
Martin Koenig, Sportfishing Program Coordinator for the Idaho Department of Fish and Game, commented on the challenges of tracking these larger fish.
Koenig said, “Really big fish can be difficult to capture with our typical survey gear, so there’s likely more of them out there since the data is a little biased by size.”
According to Fish and Game fisheries surveys, biologists have recorded measurements of more than 57,600 brown trout in the South Fork Snake River since 1986.
Of these, only four brown trout more than 30 inches have been documented, meaning only 0.007% of brown trout captured in surveys exceed that length.
Koenig says this is a rare accomplishment.
“Even brown trout more than 25 inches are rare on the South Fork, with only 30 brown trout more than 25 inches ever recorded in electrofishing surveys.”
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