Fisherman lands a 32-pound whopper from Lake Powell

It was not at all what Sherm McDonnell expected. He was in Knowles Canyon on Lake Powell to scout fishing opportunities.

It turned out that McDonnell hooked into one of the biggest fish to come from the lake in some time.

He caught a 32.5-pound striped bass. It was 43.75 inches long and had a girth of 26 inches.

McDonnell is a resident of Bullfrog and therefore gets to go fishing often. And, even though he considers himself a good fisherman, this catch came with a little luck.

It was his first trip to Knowles, and he fished the entire length "just to get to know it."

He tried anchovy bait in the deep water and caught a walleye but no stripers. That was only the first strange event. The best bait for 1-2 pound stripers was the chartreuse plastic bass grub on a lead head jig. As it turned out, the bass weren't interested at all in the plastic offering in the 47-degree water.

According to Wayne Gustaveson, lake biologist for the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, the small stripers hit best in the afternoon from 1 to 3 p.m. As the deep water gave way to shallow near the end of the canyon, Sherm picked up his chartreuse bass grub on the light 6-foot Ugly Stick rod with 6-pound test to try a cast to the shoreline. As the grub descended in the clear water, he saw the flash of a nice fish and set the hook. It was a solid hook up, and Sherm was sure he had a 10-pounder. The first run was strong, but the trolling motor in high gear was enough to keep up as the fish passed under the boat and headed for deep water.

The first run played out at about 40 yards, but McDonnell couldn't gain much of his line back without using the trolling motor to take up the slack. He got just enough back before the second run started. The next run was longer but fairly steady, so he was able to keep up with the fish by using the trolling motor.

He felt lucky to still have the fish hooked up with some line left on the reel. On a warmer day the runs would have been quicker and longer, and the first run may have been the last. McDonnell was braced for the next run, but the huge fish came to the top and rolled on its side. At this point it was apparent that it was much larger than the 10 pounds he thought. The boat and fish finally got close enough together for the net to be slipped under the trophy.

Stripers in the 30-pound class have been caught during the past three years during May. Hopefully, said Gustaveson, this is a sign of more good things to come.

"Trophy fish are spread throughout the entire lake. The last three big fish have come from Padre Bay, Rock Creek and the San Juan. Now a 32-pound striper from the northern lake proves that a trophy can be caught anywhere in Lake Powell," he added.