Dan Anderson of Grand Marais with the beautiful brook trout he caught on opening day of fishing season on the Brule River in Cook County. The fish was 23.5 inches long and weighed just under 6 pounds. This is definitely a native brook trout and will proudly be displayed on the wall of the Anderson home for many years to come.
Dan Anderson of Grand Marais only caught one fish on Minnesota’s fishing opener on May 10, 2014, but it was a once-ina lifetime catch.
With area lakes still nestled in ice, Anderson sought out walleyes on the Brule River.
Five minutes after his first cast Anderson had a bite. Ten minutes later he stared in disbelief at the giant brook trout in his net.
Anderson, who was fishing alone in a boat on the Brule in 10-12 feet of water, caught the nearly 6-pound brook trout using 8-pound Trilene fishing line rigged with a ¼-ounce pink jig head tipped with an artificial white gulp minnow tail.
“It was 10 minutes to 4 p.m. when the fish hit,” he said.
“I thought it was a walleye with the head jerks. It stayed down. I fought it for about 10 minutes. It was kind of a fire sale there for a while, fighting the current and drifting towards shore while fighting the fish and trying to keep the boat in place. I never knew it was a brook trout until it was in the net,” he said.
The fish was 23.5 inches long and weighed just a smidgen under 6 pounds on his scale, not far off the Minnesota state record 6 pound 5 ounce brook trout caught in the Pigeon River September 2, 2000. That fish was 24 inches long and had a 14-½ inch girth.
“This was definitely a native brook trout. There were no clipped fins and it was a deep pink. I sent it to Artistic Anglers in Duluth to have it mounted. They only mount fish and do a great job.
“Some people have been mad at me for telling where I caught the fish, but the Brule is a big river with a lot of water and I’m not telling where I put my boat in,” he said.
When asked if he continued to fish or went home after his near record catch, Dan said, “No, I fished another four hours and never had another bite. It was a great day to be out. The weather was nice. I never even saw a walleye in the grass or shallows and I fish here a lot. It was kind of surprising.”
Surprising maybe, but not as surprising as his near record catch.
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