Is this a big un?

[morphius]

My dad and I went out fishing yesterday in an area known for brown trout and we hooked four 12 inch brook trout. This is one of them and I was wondering if this was a big trout for the NY (WESTERN) area? It went two pounds!!!

Decent sized trout picture by morphius33 - Photobucket

Also, it had no fins on the bottom? Any reason why?

[PAMike]

i fish the Pocono mountain area of PA and also Central PA near the "fishing creek". 10-15 inch trout here are the norm for the most part. not sure if its a big un for the area you were in but it is definatly a nice trout with great color. after every fishing trip i take (about 3 per week) most of the time there are no big 16+ inch fish. i think as fly fisherman we are more prone to savor the moment on the water. watching the hatches, studying the water and trying to become one with nature is my goal when i fish. and you gotta admit you feel pretty bad ass especially after you hunt a certain fish and get him to bite! good job and great fish!!!!!

[mcnerney]

Nice looking brook trout, love the vibrant colors!

Larry

[peregrines]

Very nice fish and a respectable fish anywhere.-- they all are You and your Dad must have had a blast catching them

The fins on the bottom may have been clipped if it was a stocked trout so that fisheries folks can keep track of different sources (different hatcheries or genetic strains of fish) or timing of stocking (early season, later season etc). They'll use a "code" so that if the adipose fin (fatty flap fin near the tail) is clipped it means one thing, if the left ventral (bottom) fin it means something else etc. If they do a creel census or electrofishing later they can tell what survival rates different strains have, how long they last before getting fished out, holdovers from previous years etc.

mark

[Rip Tide]

Those fins are missing because they were rubbed off in the hatchery rearing pond. Nervous hatchery fish have nothing better to do than to constantly swim along the bottom of their cement enclosures.
The fins get damaged.

[FrankB2]

I've seen people proudly display 7" native trout. I've seen people proudly
display 3" bluegills . The fish in your pic is fine, and you had fun catching
it .

[Steelhead Junkie]

Hey. As long as it bit its a big un'.LOL Nice fish.

[Hardyreels]

Morph,

They are all big ones, mine get bigger every time I tell the stories. I've never caught a bad trout or chub or anything else for that matter. Well........those spiney sculpins that hang in the tidal estuaries here can be a pain sometimes so...........