MCCALL, Idaho — A Utah man has set an Idaho state record, catching a 42-inch Lake Trout in McCall's Payette Lake.
Idaho Fish and Game says Aaron Goettsche caught the record fish on June 19 while trolling in about 80 feet of water.
Goettsche's catch just squeaks past the previous Lake Trout record, also from Payette Lake, 41.5 inches caught by Dylan Smith in 2018.
Idaho Fish and Game says you didn't always find Lake Trout of this size in Payette Lake. Lake Trout's main prey, kokanee, were dwindling in the early 2000s, resulting in thin fish.
To mitigate, in 2018, Idaho Fish and Game began suppressing smaller lake trout and started stocking more kokanee. Since then, Idaho Fish and Game says over 3,000 lake trout that are under 27 inches long have been removed from the lake.
The weight of Lake Trout has steadily increased since the beginning of the suppression program. In 2023, Idaho Fish and Game biologists caught a 54-pound lake trout, which is just 3 pounds below the state weight record.
If you hope to set the next Lake Trout Record, Idaho Fish and Game shared their tips for catching lake trout online.
