HEBER SPRINGS, Ark. — Megan Gray reached a state record after catching a 5-pound brook trout from the Little Red River in central Arkansas on Oct. 14, according to the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission (AGFC).
The fish were not biting near the family’s property on the day of the catch, so she and her boyfriend, Oliver, tried the catch-and-release area below Greers Ferry Dam.
“I was struggling a bit, and Oliver was catching them pretty good, so I was thinking I’d have to start hearing about him finally outfishing me,” Gray said to AGFC. “That’s when we both noticed the large trout in the clear water. We thought it might be a brook trout, but we’d never seen one that big.”
Gray made a cast on the target. Although the trout put up a fight, Gray was able to capture it.
“When I lifted up to hook the fish, he took off on a good run and then another,” Gray said to AGFC. “All I could think was, ‘Please let me catch this fish!’”
The struggle between the fish and Gray caught the attention of nearby anglers, Mountain Home artist Duane Hada and his friend Gregg Patterson.
An official weight could not be recorded at the time of the catching, according to AGFC. Instead, Gray measured the trout — with the help of Hada and Patterson — by taking photos of the fish alongside her fishing rod. The trout came out to be 17.4 inches from nose to tail and roughly 15.3 inches around, making it a contender for AGFC's Master Angler Award.
Hada, who is an artist and taxidermist, said Gray’s fish stands out.
“This is the biggest brook trout I’ve ever seen caught in Arkansas,” Hada said to AGFC. “I know the state record was 5 pounds, 18 inches long, and had an 18-inch girth. I’ve done replicas of trout that were longer than 18 inches but didn’t have the weight of this fish. This one had a big humpback and was really big around. And it was marked up beautifully. It’s truly the fish of a lifetime.”
Gray is not new to catching Angler-worthy fish. She has also caught a 15-pound brown trout from the same river.
“I’ve fly-fished since I was probably around 4 or 5 years old,” Gray said to AGFC. “My dad would take me to Dry Run Creek on Norfork, which is reserved for young anglers. Once I could travel on my own, a friend and I would go all the time and visit new areas. Greers Ferry is about an hour from Hendrix (College), and my family bought some land up there, so I go there a lot.”
When Gray is not fishing, she attends Hendrix College as a freshman and plays for the Hendrix Warriors women’s basketball team.
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