The following is the formula for the use in estimating weight of fish by measurement. Take measurements as follows: Girth at the thickest point, length from the point of the lower jaw to crotch of the tail.

Multiply the square of the girth in inches by the length in inches and divide by 800 For example: a fish measures 38 inches in girth and 59 inches in length, so 38 x 38 = 1,444 and 59 x 1,444 = 85,196, then 85,196 divided by 800 = 106.39 or 106-1/2 NOTE: For International Game Fish records measurements, the girth and entire length of the fish should be taken.

The best fishing trip of the year for me and my friends from SBD Kayak Fishing was our trip to Antero Reservoir in Colorado. This placed was stocked regularly with BIG trout and constantly produces 4-7 pounders almost daily. We went there in our fishing kayaks and started getting into some big trout in the edge of this tall weed bed. All in a row we each hooked into giant trout- but MINE...oh that fish. When it hit, my light reel set up with 6 pound line just screamed...and screamed again. I was adjusting drag and worrying about breaking my rod, when finally my kayak began to go with the fish as he pulled me. My buddies reeled in and started paddling over to lend a hand netting if needed. About the time they caught up to my moving kayak, the fish changed directions...and went under the boat diving deep. This fish knew all the tricks apparently. He dived deep down taking my line under my boat, as I gave it a good pull to maybe change his direction he nose-dived into the weeds taking another 10 feet of line with him in the process. I pulled hard risking a broken line and he came running!! With my other 2 friends in kayaks watching, this trout (estimated by what we saw) was a good 26 inches long and leapt up out of the water right between our boats and spit my swivel straight at my chest as he broke the lure from it- and disappeared with a crash of water. Other fishermen nearby cheered as I noticed we had gathered a small crowd of boats watching...nobody seemed to mind that I lost it, because the battle was epic!

It was so sad. I grew up on Long Island and never really fished for Striped Bass because the size limit was 36 inches at the time. I have always preferred blue fish myself, to eat and to catch. I was fishing a Jetty in Hampton Bays and let my Crippled Herring drift over the rocks and then down into the dip with the current. I always mix bait with lures and had a 5 inch silverside attached to the crippled herring, I saw the flash and then the line screamed. I fought the fish for 30 minutes. My then girlfriend was screaming with excitement as I handed to her. My girlfriend said it was larger then 36 inches. I told her no and released the fish at the shore. When I got home I called a friend and was told that the new limit was 28 inches!!! then to add insult to injury, my girlfriend measured where the mark she made on my shirt and the fish was 43 inches long!!! My first keeper bass with the size limits and I let her go!!! After that I went after Striped Bass. Still took 4 years to get my legal Bass. I kept catching keeper size bass out of season and having to let them go but none were as painful as my legal size bass that I personally let get away.

It began like many other days. The weather was a nice warm late spring day, clear skies and the sun shining bright. I made my way down to a hole on the North Saskachewan river just outside and upstream from Edmonton. We have been fishing there for many years and it was usually good for some goldeye, walleye, pike, sauger and some red-tailed suckers. Some of the walleye were upwards of 10 pounds and it was common to get double headers of goldeye. Our preferred method to catch these beauties was to use a simple bait rig off of a bell weight about 24" and let it sit directly on the bottom in this big eddy pool of a small bend in the river. It was a very effective way of fishing and we used dew worms and minnows primarily, with the occaissional frog thrown in. I liked frogs because you could get several fish off one frog before it was too beat up to be good anymore. Our equipment for fishing the river was simple. I used a telescopic spinning rod ($20.00 special) with an open spinning reel set up with 12lb test line. You put the weight on the main line ahead of a swivel which stops the weight from travelling to the bait, and a 24" leader from the swivel to a single hook. (some guys used pickeral rigs) I like this method because when you get a bite the fish does not feel the weight and the line slides through the eyelet of the bell weight with no interference.

Now in previous years we would have to hike in to this hole about a 1/3 mile through brush, however the lands had been bought and developed into a golf course, so now we can just drive to within about 50 feet of where we fish and as it is off the course and beside the parking lot, the owners do not care if we fish there. The hole is between the front and back nine so there are always golfers driving by. (Important later) It was much nicer than before, because while the hike down the hill to the river with a full cooler and your gear was ok, going back up with an empty cooler was sometimes a challenge. My usual fishing buddy Jeff was unable to join me that day as his wife was in the hospital about to deliver their fourth daughter. So I was fishing alone this day, but enjoying myself nonetheless. I had caught several fish and rebaited with a minnow on my single hook, tossed it out into the pool and set the rod butt into a small hole in the bank as a rod holder. I tightened up the slack and was sitting there watching the tip for signs of a bite. The tip of the rod was making very small twitchs and I thought perhaps the bait was brushing up against a branch from a sunken tree we knew was in there and maybe the current was flapping the branch against my bait. So I pulled the rod out of the the holder and gave it a good yank to get it clear of the tree. Crap, snagged the tree!! I began trying de-snag operations pulling this way and that quite vigorously. I didn't really care about the bait set up, I just wanted it released so I could reset up and recast. All of a sudden the tree pulled back, nearly taking the rod out of my hands!! "Crap," I thought, "thats not a tree!"

So I began an earnest and cautious game of tug o' war with the behemoth that ate my minnow. I could not make the fish do anything as I only had 12lb test line and a regular spinning rod. I paced with him back and forth on the bank just keeping the line tight, and after 20 or minutes he finally showed himself. He jumped out of the water like a killer whale and I got my first look at a sturgeon!! He was about 6-7 feet long and a girth I don't think I could have put my arms around. He came out of the water straight up and gave a spectacular splash landing back in the pool and straight back down to the bottom he went. I started screaming in excitement "I gotta f'in Sturgeon, I gotta f'n sturgeon!!" A couple of golfers diverted over to see what I was screaming about and I am still yellin', "I gotta f'n sturgeon!" They had never seen a strugeon either so they decided to hang around and see this monster fish, waving all the next groups to play through ahead of them. It took another 1/2 hour or so for the fish to come up again in spectacular fashion, surprising all three of us and now all of us were screaming with excitement of such a big fish. Some more golfers stopped to check out the action and we started to draw a crowd from all the golfers that stopped to watch the battle going on between me and this sturgeon. About an hour went by and he came out of the water again, giving us all a good look at his fabulous prehistoric form. I start thinking" what I am going to do here? How am going to land this fish? And if I do land it, what am I going to do with it? It is too big to fit in the car. I am going to have to tie it to the roof!."

Slowly, very slowly, ever so slowly, I managed to finesse the fish into shallower water and got him close to the bank. I had him on for about 3 hours now, and I for one was getting tired. I don't think he really was though. I took a step into the water and he saw me and WOW with a strong flick of his tail he soaked me with river water, changed direction and headed for the middle of the river. He started to strip my line like I did not have a drag, and I raced up the bank and started to move with him upstream. He kept swimming faster and taking my line and finally after several hundred yards I came across a ravine filled with deadfall and I could go no farther. Monster fish kept swimming upstream taking all my line and this amazing 12lb test finally gave and the line snapped where it was fastened to the reel! I collapsed on the bank and waved goodbye to this fish that had given me an afternoon I will never forget!

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