Angler releases potential record-shattering trout out of ‘respect’

A Northern California angler recently caught a rainbow trout so massive that it might have shattered the state record.

But Josh Giordano, who reeled the estimated 38.2-pound trout from a Feather River diversion pool on Dec. 7, chose not to kill the fish for the sake of a record.

(The California Department of Fish and Wildlife lists as the state record a 27-pound rainbow trout caught at Lake Natoma in 2005.)

Giordano, 43, from Bangor, told the Stockton Record that he released the trout “because of the respect I have for them, but also in hopes that one of our young upcoming anglers has a shot at becoming a legend or even a record holder.”

Giordano, who would have had to find a certified scale to have a shot at the record, obtained his weight estimate using a tape-measure formula.

The trout measured 41 inches, with a girth of 27 inches. Both measurements are significantly larger than those associated with the state-record.

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Giordano declared on Facebook that catching the massive rainbow trout at the Thermalito Diversion Pool, after a marathon battle, “was one of the most amazing moments in my life.”

The angler was casting a swimbait tied to a 15-pound leader and 20-pound braid when the fish struck.

“When I hooked this fish I knew immediately how giant it was when it peeled off 150 yards of line in about 20 seconds,” he told the Stockton Record. “I have never seen the power of a fish like It. The fish continued to jump, tail walk and do things I’ve never seen fish do on the surface.

“I was starting to get nervous as the fish got closer but it never got tired. I was about to land him when he decided to do another 100-yard run and the battle was on again. In an hour and 10 heart-stopping minutes, I was able to get my two hands on his tail.”

–Images courtesy of Joshua Giordano