Jefferey Sanford has officially caught the largest lake trout ever on Lake Champlain in Vermont.
On an August day, Sanford caught the 36-inch, 19.36-pound fish on his first cast of the day.
“I just got my first boat this year, and it was my first time out alone,” Sanford told EIN News. “It hit on my first cast of the day. Once I netted it and got it in the boat I was astounded at its size and lack of any lamprey scars or wounds.”
The Vermont State Record Fish Program has been keeping track of the largest fish caught in the lake since 1969 and the catch is important because on Lake Champlain, nuisance sea lamprey prey on lake trout and other fish.
“There have been much larger lake trout caught in other Vermont waters,” fisheries biologist Shawn Good said, but this Champlain fish is a big deal.”