Carp Record From Lake Erie-Being Processed

Sandusky, Ohio - Rich Cady shot what he believed was the next state record carp about midday on May 28 but he had to wait a bit longer to get the big fish to the scales.

That's because Cady, and his fishing partner, Jack Brooks, figured they had some more daylight to try to top it.

But, as it turned out, Cady's 47.65-pound carp from earlier in the day set the mark for the new record in the bowfishing division.

Cady's fish, 38 inches long with a 31 1/2-inch girth, breaks the record that was previously held by Jake Kerstetter of Springboro, who shot his 39-pounder on Lake Erie on June 17, 2006 (Ohio Outdoor News, Aug. 4, 2006). Prior to Kerstetter breaking the mark, the record had held for 25 years, making it one of the oldest records on Ohio's books.

Now, it's been broken twice in the past two years. Cady's record was recently certified by the Outdoor Writers of Ohio, the official keepers of the state's fishing records.

Cady, 53, of Newark, said he and Brooks had made the three-hour drive to Lake Erie early in the morning of May 28 and were on the water at daybreak. But, the fishing was slow until just after lunch when they found a pod of bigger carp.

"Jack had just shot at one on his side of the boat and here comes a big one out on the other side of the boat," Cady recalled. "He said 'shoot it, shoot it' so I shot it."

Cady estimated the shot was about 10 yards but it took a bit to get the fish into the boat.

"He ran two or three different times before we got it to the side of the boat and realized we couldn't pick it up," Cady said. "We could barely get it in the net, and I've got a pretty good size net. Then, we couldn't pick up the net by the handle, so we had to reach over the side to pick the net up and get it over the side of the boat.

"Usually, we can just pick them up by the arrows, but this fish was way too big for that," he said.

After Cady came off the water, he spent about three hours trying to find a certified scale to weigh the carp. He ended up finding a fish cleaning house in Port Clinton, Bay's Edge, whose owner, Lou Peterson, came back to his shop after hours to officially weigh the fish.

From there, the record carp was positively identified by state fisheries biologists at the Hebron hatchery in Licking County.

Cady, a dedicated sportsman who counts among his pursuits reel and line fishing, duck and goose hunting, and deer hunting, is a member of Claylick Bowhunters, a conservation club in Licking County.

But, Cady said he and a few friends typically find the time each year for several trips to Lake Erie for bowfishing.

"We're only going up there for one reason and that's to beat that 40-pound record," he said. " ... The biggest we had got before this was 35 pounds."

Cady said he gives carp to local farmers who use them for fertilizer.

Though Cady says he'll still bowfish on Lake Erie and its tributaries, he and his crew have their sights set on the south to bowfish for alligator gar.