Ed Emory is a fishing guide on the South Fork of the Snake River in Idaho who guides out of South Fork Lodge. He has guided for 36 seasons and logged about 67,000 guided river miles, which he points out is roughly 2.8 times the circumference of the globe with clients in his boat. He is known for targeting and landing exceptionally large brown trout and for an analytical, psychology-driven approach to guiding and fighting big fish.How big was the brown trout Ed Emory's client caught on the South Fork? The fish measured 30.5 inches, with a girth Ed describes as about as big around as his thigh and a pectoral fin large enough to cover his client's entire hand. It is the largest brown trout he has landed on the South Fork since his 31.2-inch brown in 2011, and it cleared the 30-inch mark that Idaho recognizes for a catch-and-release state record. The fish was caught, measured, photographed, and released on film. Who caught the 30.5-inch brown trout? A client named Caroline Langdale, whom Ed describes as a petite angler from Georgia, on her first-ever day fishing the South Fork. She turkey hunts and had caught saltwater fish such as tarpon and redfish before, and Ed credits that saltwater experience for how she fought and landed the fish, keeping the rod bent at the right angle and sliding the fish sideways into the net rather than trying to lift it. What is Ed Emory's approach to fighting a big trout? Ed treats it like a prize fight. He throws a jab to test what the fish will do, reads its response, and refuses to accelerate the fight, letting the fish tire itself rather than forcing it. He stresses situational awareness, knowing the river bottom, the hazards, and the depth where the fish lives, and keeping big fish in the 10-to-15-foot water they are comfortable in rather than dragging them into deep holes. He says landing big fish is mostly between the ears. Why is the South Fork producing so many big fish this year? Ed's theory is that the population of smaller guardian fish is near a historic low, so a fly reaches the largest trout instead of being intercepted by the many smaller fish that would normally feed first. With fewer fish between the angler and the big ones, anglers are gaining access to trophy browns that usually sit concealed at depth, feeding on the easy food that drifts to them. What is the conservation debate on the South Fork of the Snake River? Idaho Fish and Game has worked to remove rainbow and hybrid trout, including by electroshocking, which was halted when funding ran out, to favor cutthroat. Ed argues the river is no longer a native cutthroat fishery but a wild, naturally reproducing one, since hatchery Snake River fine-spotted cutthroat have passed through the dam from Palisades Reservoir for decades. He favors cutthroat-centric management, such as placing egg boxes with Snake River fine-spotted cutthroat eggs in the river, and letting anglers decide what they keep.
