Angler catches big trout with Super Spook during wade-fishing trip.
It has been nine years since an angler has taken a speckled trout that broke into Louisiana’s top 10 list, but on March 23 speckled trout history happened again when what appears to be the eighth largest trout ever taken in the state was landed on Sabine Lake.
The catch came when Jason Ellender, a 37-year-old angler from Sulphur, decided to enjoy some wade-fishing on the Louisiana side of the border lake.
“It was my buddy Steve Stodard’s idea to try at Sabine,” Ellender said. “Robby Trahan had also said they were catching pretty well over there.”
The anglers began catching trout, but Ellender said that the bite was initially disturbed by a boat motoring by.
After that, they noted surface activity and knew that a topwater bite was happening.
“We threw Corkys and Catch 2000s, and hooked up on some good fish,” Ellender said. ”We caught two over 5 and released those, but kept a stringer of trout we had taken close to the 4- pound range.”
And then about noon Ellender’s pink Super Spook was engulfed, and he knew a great fish was on.
“Oh he pulled some drag and I could hear that reel humming well,” the angler said. “I just couldn’t stop the fish at first.
“The fish continually ran in circles, and Steve approached to help.”
Finally the trout came closer in and ended its circular route, and Stoddard put the Boga-Grip to the huge fish.
“I thought it was an 8- pounder at first, but Steve said the Boga showed it to be over 10,” Ellender said. “I just couldn’t focus on fishing much after that, so I decided to head out to Cajun Fast Mart to put the trout on certified scales.
“The scale showed the trout to be 10.65 pounds.”
During the early part of the week of March 25-29, Ellender downloaded and filled out the application to the Louisiana State Fish Records, which are kept by the Louisiana Outdoor Writers Association.
He then had the trout identified by a LDWF fisheries biologist in Lake Charles.
The application has been mailed, and the fish will be sit at No. 8 in state record books, if it’s ultimately certified by LOWA.
Click here and scroll down to the speckled trout section to see the current Top 10.