Big Wiper in community pond

[TopH2O]

My buddy and I were fly fishing for trout the other day when my buddy hooked into something big. It took a white balanced leech under an indicator and it stayed deep and wouldn't show itself for at least 10 minutes. Its fight was uncharacteristic of a trout and we figured it was either a bass or a carp that may be foul hooked. Finally after a solid 15 minutes of wearing this thing down, not to mention my buddy's arms, we were able to get it into the net. At that moment, both of our jaws dropped to the floor as we couldn't believe the size of this monster: 25 inches / 8lbs of solid mass. I'm sure its the record for a wiper caught in this pond and we quickly checked state records in case we had a shot at the catch and release or catch and keep records. 3 inches shy of the catch and release and 4.5 inches shy of the catch and keep (not to mention several pounds shy). Regardless, what an incredible fish for a local pond. Hats off to Utah DWR for adding these fish to many different bodies of water to provide some variety. Planter rainbows are fun but I would take a similar sized WIPER any day over them as they know how to put a bend in the rod.


I'd be willing to bet that dude is enjoying the catchable rainbows stocked frequently.  Very nice catch!

Mike