Huge lake trout is a last-minute catch through ice, but who caught it?

Shane DuBois was photographed holding a big lake trout caught ice fishing, but did he really make the catch? It's complicated.

The Flaming Gorge Resort Facebook page posted a photo of Shane DuBois holding a massive lake trout caught while ice fishing on the Wyoming side of the famous fishery last Friday and called it a “great catch,” as it was just shy of 44 inches.

The Casper Star-Tribune followed up with a short writeup sourcing the resort…but did DuBois actually make the catch? It’s complicated.

DuBois, a fishing guide, explained to USA Today/For The Win Outdoors that he was the one who hooked the fish but his client Chris Covell was the one who ultimately landed it. DuBois was in a separate fishing hut when he hooked up; Covell was 20 yards away in another before joining DuBois.

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“Since I hooked and fought the fish for a while Chris wanted me to take a photo with it and I posted it on my Facebook and I’ve been without service and started seeing it appearing everywhere, so I’ve spent my birthday reaching out to outlets to correct the missing information on the story as I did not share it,” DuBois explained.

So, the Star-Tribune and the Flaming Gorge Resort updated their reports to reflect Covell (image below) as the fisherman who caught the fish. But there is much more to the story.

DuBois fought the huge lake trout for a few minutes as it nearly spooled him twice. Once he got the fish back below the hole, he handed the rod off to Covell, who fought it for another five to seven minutes, during which time an odd thing occurred.

“The lure shifted and we think the fish became unhooked and then hooked again on the other corner of the mouth,” DuBois explained to For The Win Outdoors.

In which case, one might argue Covell actually hooked and landed the behemoth on his own. OK, maybe that’s a stretch. But either way, it was an incredible catch (and release) that was close to the Wyoming length record of 48 inches set in 1995.

“We actually took my flip-over hut cover and made it into a sling to safely weigh the fish, and we’re surprised it only weighed 38 pounds, 10 ounces,” DuBois told For The Win. “We were all sure it was over 40 pounds.”

That the catch was made at all is a testament to their perseverance, and giving it a few more minutes before calling it quits.

“We were talking about big fish I’ve caught in the area about 10 minutes before I hooked this fish at 1 p.m., after I said let’s give it another half hour,” DuBois said.

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DuBois also stated, “I caught a fish about the same size at that spot last year about the same time, and we were looking at photos thinking it could be the same fish I caught on my day off last year.”

Just another twist to an incredible fish story.

Photos of Chris Covell sitting in a chair holding HIS fish and Shane DuBois holding the same fish outside a fishing hut courtesy of DuBois.