Skillful Angler Award Stories

[sqerl]

2005 Skillful Angler Awards
http://www.state.nj.us/dep/fgw/skwinn05.htm

Was reading through the 2005 NJ Skillful Angler Awards and there were 2 that caught my eye.

Kudos to Kenneth Mitzen of Hillsborough for his catch and release of a 20" small mouth caught in the Raritan River on a fly rod:

Smallmouth Bass - 20 inches caught by Kenneth Mitzen of Hillsborough on June 15. Ken was wading in the Raritan River in Bridgewater (Duke Island Park) when he reeled the fish in at 8:10 p.m. Four-pound line was used with a fly rod and a clicker reel. The lure was a brown wooley bugger. Girth was unavailable.

and the cutest story is this one:

Channel Catfish - 37 inches caught by 12-year-old Chuck and 8-year-old James Elmendorf (a team effort) on May 30. The youngsters were fishing from the shore of a Medford lake when Chuck actually hooked the fish at 9 a.m. As he fought, James ran home to get a net. Unable to find it, he reluctantly ran back and switched off with Chuck to continue fighting the fish until Dad arrived with the elusive net. Six-pound test was used with a graphite rod and a spinning reel. A hot dog served for bait. Girth was estimated at 28 inches.

It's also important to note that Chuck and James did a "catch and release"...

 

[Scott]

I know a guy who caught a 26+" LMB in ____ _____ _________ (location deleted) last summer. Said it weighed almost 11 pounds on his scale. He had his wife drive up from their house with the camera to get a picture of it.

He let it go. It very likely was the new State record LMB. He's been kicking himself ever since for not having it weighed on a certified scale.