Gardner man breaks 27-year-old rainbow trout record
It wasn't a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, but the rainbow on the end of Ken Phelps' line was golden. The Gardner man was fishing with Power Bait in Shawnee Mission Park Lake on March 3 when he hooked a new state record rainbow trout.
After weighing, confirmation by regional fisheries biologist Richard Sanders, and a 30-day waiting period, it was determined that Phelps' catch tipped the scales at 9.33 pounds, a mere .02 pounds more than the old record of 9.31 pounds set by Raymond Deghand of Topeka. Deghand's record, set in 1982, had stood for 27 years. Phelps' fish was 25 ½ inches long and had a 17-inch girth.
State record fish are listed in the Kansas Fishing Regulations Summary, available wherever licenses are sold, and online. If you think you have caught a state record, take the fish to a grocery store or other business with certified scales as soon as possible. Do not freeze the fish before it is weighed. The weighing must be witnessed, and the species must be confirmed by a KDWP fisheries biologist or a Wildlife and Fisheries Division regional supervisor. (A tissue sample may be required.) A color photograph of the fish must accompany the application. All applications for state records require a 30-day waiting period before certification.
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