Didn't Get Away

[87MH]

I received an unsolicited e-mail with the following pic and addendum.

Don't know who the author or photographer was to give them credit or check legality or authenticity.




"This Sturgeon was caught on the Willamette River just below Oregon Citytwo weeks ago.**


It weighed out at over 1,000 lbs and measured out at 11'1". It was 56" around the girth and took over 6 and a half hours and 4 dozen beers for the 4 guys taking turns reeling."

[Glowgood Jigster]

I can belive it. I lived in that area and fished that part of the river a lot. I never did see any oversized fish released, but many keepers and lots of undersized fish released. I think a keeper has to be between 36-60", under and over must be released unharmed.
They regularly catch 10-12' sturgeon in the nearby Columbia River and take pictures and release them. It's easy to see how a bottom feeder can get that big in the Willamette R., when the lamprey eels are running up to spawn, there are millions of dead eels floating in the river, and the sturgeon gorge themselves. Also a big shad run, spring Chinook, and the usual carp and panfish keep plenty of feed floating around the bottom. I'll betcha that's not the biggest sturgeon in the Willamette. Wonder if I went to school with any of those guys? Were there any names mentioned in that email?

[barn dog]

That picture was in a In-Fisherman Magazine December 2006 issue.

[hunt4crappie]

That would make a lot of quart jars of pickled sturgeon.

[handybat]

That's a big one, lol. I took some friends to Portland once and spent a month up there and they took me around to show me some sites. We went to one place, don't remember where it was, some kind of fish hachtery, but they had a 6' Sturgeon in a little pool. To me at the time that was a big fish but they said it was a little one, lol. I was from Arkansas at the time so had never seen anything that big. I live in Mo. now. Thanks for sharing the photo.

[mrwillis]

I read about that fish. However, it would have been a better story if it were caught by accident on crappie gear. That thing is larger than the boat!

[DENNIS BOWERS]

That would scare ya if you caught it at night!!

[mrwillis]

That would scare me if I caught it during the day...

[Phishermanjohn]

I would probably shot it or cut it loose before landing something that big.