On that date a party of anglers, composed of Dr. J. W. Cook, R. j. Byrnes, Neeland and J.A. Fyfe, were fishing the Nipigon River at the McDonald Rapids (Rabbit Rapids). At 6 p.m. in the evening Dr. Cook hooked and landed on a five ounce fly rod, a speckled trout weighting 14 1/2 pounds!

There is some difference of opinion as to what Dr. Cook used for a lure. Some accounts give it as a fly, others a cockatouche, a small marine animal found among the stones along the shores of the Nipigon and eagerly sought after by speckled trout.

Andrew Lexie was the lead guide of that trip and as witnesses count greatly in such a matter, others in the party who witnessed the event were Lafelle Boudain, cook, and guides Joe Hardy, Sam King, Michael Bouchard, John Ogama, Louis Musquash, Jim shuse and Lawrence Martin.

The world record Brook Trout  was caught by Dr. W. J. Cook on July 21, 1915 in the Nipigon River and weighed 14.5 pounds (6.58 kg.) This monster measured 31 inches long and 23 inches in girth. (11 inch depth).  It was caught  at Rabbit Rapids below Virgin Falls (Scott & Crossman 1973)

So great was the incredulity of the general public upon hearing of this specimen examined by ichthyologic authorities at Washington and Ottawa, as well as by scientist of the Department of Biology at the Royal Ontario Museum of Zoology, Toronto. All have pronounced it as unquestionably a true Speckled Brook Trout (Salvelinus Fontinalis). It's authenticity therefore is beyond question.

The skin has been mounted on birch bark paneling, the native custom along the Nipigon, and the name of the angler and witnesses inscribed upon the paneling.

It’s the stuff of legend, the target of skeptics and an intriguing reminder of a bygone era. What else would you expect from an 89-year-old world record?

Big Fish