Similar to Pinetree's thread, what are three fish you've never caught and might never catch, but you do dream about them:

Arctic char: for their location and fight

Permit: for their speed and wariness

Peacock bass: Because they're pretty and hit surface lures


My third fish would be the easiest and cheapest.

Tarpon on light tackle
Snook on the same
Redfish.

Tiger Fish, Tarpon, and Salmon Shark off the coast of Alaska would be my top three . Of the three, I think the Salmon Shark would be my first pick.

Goliath Grouper ( looks like a big smallmouth :))
Blue Marlin
Great White Shark

Tarpon on a fly rod on one of those flat boats
Marlin on a charter boat
Blue fin tuna starting at about 100” long or 400 pounds.

Rooster
(BIG) Peacock
Bluefin tuna

Grayling , Taimen. I don't have a third; both on a fly rod.

Hmmm.......tough call right?

I'm sort of close with Parker.

I could dig catching those rooster fish on top water near some cliffs. Is that in Costa Rica where I seen them do that?

And those big Amazon river Peacock Bass would be a hoot.........In the jungle throwing big surface woodchoppers and blasting 15 and 20lb Peacock bass while some parrot and monkeys are sounding off.

And yes, Arctic Char sound lovely. Beautiful scenery, beautiful fish.

Fish I do not want to tangle with........ giant Bluefin Tuna (although a Yellowfin around 200lbs would be OK), A goliath grouper over 100lbs (I have caught them over 80 and that was enough, they can be a little boring > sort of like pulling up a 50 gallon drum with fins) Tarpon over 100, I have hooked them around 200lbs and it was to much like work for the brief period I had them on (give me one around 35lbs any day) and an Amberjack pushing 125 (80lb jacks will leave you literally bruised and whimpering and not wanting to drop another bait down for awhile).

This is the right size and kind of Grouper.........excellent fight and excellent table fare. The Goliaths you have to let go and often they are completely spent and die. The one I caught around 80 had made fun of several other anglers but I did catch it. After letting it go it floated belly up and as it drifted off a lone seagull landed on top of it. I was ticked about the whole scenario. I should of been able to purchase a tag and claim it.

1. Dog tooth tuna
2. Giant Trevally
3. Papua New Guinea black bass

Big peacock bass are tough hard fighters.
Roosterfish are my favorite species to fish for that I have caught. A big rooster will smash a popper and pull 20 lbs of drag for half an hour. Casting for tarpon is right there. 3 more weeks until I get to do both.

1. Lake trout

2. Blue/Purple Walleye

3. Silver Pike

This spring I will catch a laker ;)

murphylakejim: "1. Lake trout


2. Blue/Purple Walleye


3. Silver Pike


This spring I will catch a laker ;)"

If you want a blue walleye just go to Kawnipi.

1. arctic grayling
2. yellow fin tuna
3. a monster laker, like the ones you see in north western Canada

1. state record walleye
2 state record black crappie
3. state record sunfish

BlackSwanAdventures: "1. state record walleye
2 state record black crappie
3. state record sunfish"

Well you don't ask for much ;-)

If that is your goal you may well look into it........There are different line classes and sometimes a slot isn't filled with an exceptional fish. How about a 1lb sunfish on 1lb test? That just might make the record book in some states.

35 yrs ago my brother caught a burbot on Silence Lake. Back then he didn't know what it was, and its appearance startled him enought to suggest it was a product of acid rain.

Of course we know now what he caught, but the fish I want to catch most is a fish that nobody believes lives in a particular lake. Like pulling up a musky in Kawnipi, or something like that. Finding a honey hole of giant perch, that sort of thing.

1. Mn state record brookie
2. Sutton river brookie
3. Copper river salmon
P.s. Two nights ago we were fishing for tarpon in Anguilla and I hooked into three of them but they all threw the hook. One jumped high a couple times. It was very thrilling! I have no experience with them. Next time I will bring some bigger hooks! Marc

mastertangler: "

BlackSwanAdventures: "1. state record walleye
2 state record black crappie
3. state record sunfish"

Well you don't ask for much ;-)


If that is your goal you may well look into it........There are different line classes and sometimes a slot isn't filled with an exceptional fish. How about a 1lb sunfish on 1lb test? That just might make the record book in some states. "

hehe no way we need the actual records that are in each years rules and regs :) :)

Arctic Char

Grayling

Tiger Trout

I like this thread.

1. Large Taimen

2. GT

3. 50lb musky

All on the fly.

Ill never have 15k to spend on a fishing trip so maybe a big fat musky in the fall on mille lacs is my dream come true.

Has anyone on here fished for GTs or Taimen?

I have caught most of the species brought up here from commercial fishing off Key West, to Panama, to tossing flies on the Russian and Kenai rivers, this fall six of us came back from Seward, AK with 120lbs each of salmon and halibut. I had to buy a separate freezer before getting home from the airport. My three tops would be walleye, pike and lake trout from a canoe in the BWCA. Why? Simplicity, solitude, tranquility, escape, no airplanes or hotels, no passport, no pollution, no deadlines, no traffic, no stress.

missmolly: "Similar to Pinetree's thread, what are three fish you've never caught and might never catch, but you do dream about them:

Arctic char: for their location and fight

Permit: for their speed and wariness

Peacock bass: Because they're pretty and hit surface lures



My third fish would be the easiest and cheapest. "

Good thread idea.

You could take permit and peacocks in a single visit to FL.

My three: blue or black marlin—wouldn’t a grander be something to tie into?!

Sturgeon on the Columbia River—possibly catching a fish older than I am

Cheating here by not naming one fish but a multispecies fly fishing trip to the Amazon. Pacu, piranha, arapaima, aruana, etc.

WIMike: "

missmolly: "Similar to Pinetree's thread, what are three fish you've never caught and might never catch, but you do dream about them:


Arctic char: for their location and fight


Permit: for their speed and wariness


Peacock bass: Because they're pretty and hit surface lures



My third fish would be the easiest and cheapest. "

Good thread idea.


You could take permit and peacocks in a single visit to FL.


My three: blue or black marlin—wouldn’t a grander be something to tie into?!


Sturgeon on the Columbia River—possibly catching a fish older than I am


Cheating here by not naming one fish but a multispecies fly fishing trip to the Amazon. Pacu, piranha, arapaima, aruana, etc.
"

The Amazon is on my bucket list also. But I was thinking multispecies so I decided that it was more then 3 fish, so didn't post.

1. 40in+ Musky or Pike
2. Lake Trout
3. 30in+ Walleye

4. Would be Sturgeon

Basspro69: "Arctic Char
Grayling
Tiger Trout"

I've gotten two of your three, arctic char and grayling. Tiger trout exist in waters a couple of hours from our new home in Northern California, just across the Nevada border. I should get a shot at them one of these days.

The bull trout is the big hole in my char list. I have caught all of the other char existing in the western hemisphere. Hopefully, that omission will be taken care of when I travel to Billy Chinook Lake in Oregon this Spring.

Tarpon
Peacock Bass
Goliath Grouper