What is the length you would say is a trophy. Please don’t add 2 inches, I need to make a decision
Fly Fishing
Trophy Brooke trout
Nice catch ifb !! Released?? A few years ago I caught a 23” , 4lb brook trout on a Lake Michigan tributary while chasing some migratory rainbows. These Great Lake Brookies that run larger than inland fish are called Coasters . A splake will have a forked tail where as a Coaster /Brook would have a straight tail , otherwise very similar. I would say an inland 15 “ is a trophy in WI.
About 1977/78 I was fishing at what is known as Sheboygan North Point, a reef that projects into the lake. It's a spawning area for Browns and Brookies on Lake Michigan. Watched a guy land a pretty good fish while casting a blue/chrome Cleo. This fish was a tad over 8#. It wasn't until the fish died on the guys stringer that the colors started to come out and everyone realized it was a Brook Trout...a monster. He ran it up to Trilling Hardware and they weighed the fish on an official scale. They entered the fish in the annual Field & Stream contest and I believe it won.
It really depends where you live. If you're fishing smaller creeks in NY, Michigan or maybe Wisconsin, a 14-inch brook trout is a really good fish. If you're in eastern Quebec or anywhere in Atlantic Canada where you can find sea-run brookies, you don't even bother taking a picture of anything under 20 inches.