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Record fish pulled from lake

Doug Busey

Hello fellow anglers, this is not a fishing report but a special report indeed.

Last Tuesday, a man came into my place of business: Energy Works. As we talked about sprinklers and whatnot, Chuck McMeecham told me he had been fishing that day. Chuck said he took his kids out fishing around the Cave Rock area and they had a good time. The kids had caught one or two 3-pound Mackinaw, then Chuck told me he caught a real nice fish. He explained to me, “Would you like to see it? It’s in the back of my truck.”

We all then ventured out to see this fish. And indeed, a very impressive catch. I grabbed my camera and took some pictures. Chuck told me he had weighed the fish on his scale at 14 pounds. All this time we thought it was a good-sized Mac. Then as we looked closer the fish before us was a rainbow trout. A great catch.



Not thinking, I said goodbye to Chuck. I then thought some more. So I called my friend, Dan Quilici, a former Nevada Division of Wildlife employee. I explained the situation. Dan told me since the fish had been caught on the Nevada side, that the rainbow trout would be considered a trophy. That would be recognized by the NDOW.

So I hung up and called Chuck. I left a message, “Don’t clean that fish! Call me!” A half hour later I found out that Chuck McMeecham had not a state record but the Lake Tahoe record for a rainbow trout.



So I frantically called Chuck back. Busy, busy, busy. I thought, “Oh, he’s on the phone bragging” (like I would). But I kept trying. Finally after 30 minutes or so the phone rang. Chuck answered. I asked, “Did you clean the fish?” He said he had it in the sink getting ready. Chuck had not checked his machine. After telling him what he had, Chuck quickly went to Lucky’s market to officially weigh his catch.

As it stands, Chuck McMeecham (as of now unofficially) holds the Lake Tahoe record for the largest rainbow trout caught. His catch was 11.67 pounds and 30 inches long, with a 16-inch girth.

Next time I think I can almost guarantee Chuck will check his messages. Great job. When the NDOW issues a trophy certificate and it is official, I will give you all a proud picture.

The Naw will be back next week to let you all know about when, where and all about the Kids’ Fishing Day coming up.

Special note: This Friday Ebbetts Pass above Markleeville is scheduled to be open to all traffic with no restrictions. This is the East Fork Carson River, Wolfe Creek, all the way to Angel’s Camp. So let’s go fishin’!


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