GREAT FALLS — A walleye caught in Holter Lake near Helena has set a new Montana state record, according to Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks.
Trevor Johnson of Helena reeled in the whopper of a walleye - it weighed in at 18.02 pounds on a certified scale, and measured 32.25 inches long and 22 inches in girth. He caught the record-setting fish on a jig.
The previous state record was a 17.75-pounder caught in 2007 at Tiber Reservoir by Robert Bob Hart.
There has been a string of state record-setting fish in recent months, including a large-mouth bass in April, a long-nose sucker in Great Falls in March, a brown trout in March (details + video), a yellow bullhead in December, a small-mouth bass in October, and a Chinook salmon in August.
If you catch a fish in Montana that you think might be a record, FWP says:
- To prevent loss of weight, do not clean or freeze the fish.
- Keep the fish cool—preferably on ice.
- Take a picture of the fish.
- Weigh the fish on a certified scale (found in grocery store or hardware store, etc.), witnessed by a store employee or other observer. Obtain a weight receipt and an affidavit from the store personnel if no FWP official is present. Measure the length and girth.
- Contact the nearest FWP office to have the fish positively identified by a Fisheries Biologist or Manager.
