What was your most memorable or favorite fish you caught on the fly this year?

[Alwaysonthewateer]

I’ll start. I haven’t been fly fishing for all that long, less than 2 years, but have fallen in love with it this year completely. I had been wanting to take a trip out to some more wild waters than what i had around me in south western pa to central pa. I lended up taking a trip out there in an unrelated trip and got to fish penns creek for the first time and i hooked into my first true wild trout and it is something i will never forget. I was fishing a dry dropper with a green weenie under either a bwo or stone fly dry fly, fishing a little pocket when this beautiful 15 inch wild brown ate! Got him in the net measured and released safely but it was the best feeling ever!

 

[dudemanspecial]

Thread 'Best of the Year! 2025 Edition'

Dec 19, 2025

I imagine we're close enough to dump em out. What was your best catch of the year? Let's see em!

(Repost of) My favorite trip of the year, pounding carp in west Texas

And a buzzer beater today that, while it won't floor people here, is my best Battenkill brown at ~16 in but was also way cool because it was caught slowly swinging in torrential rain and 25 mph wind fishing a bugger my daughter helped tie.

Show us your happiest fish moments!

• hooker-of-men
• Replies: 42
• Forum: Paflyfish General Forum

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[Olddominionsmoke]

I found my stream in 2025. Beautiful mountain stream. Beautiful gems of native brookies with some browns mixed in. I have fished it every other week or so for the last 6 months and I have seen no other anglers. It is a stream name that I will not share with anyone and at this point it feels like my home stream even though it’s more than an hour away from the house.

I will never forget the first fish I caught on that stream, it was all of maybe 5 inches. Parr marks and all of the beautiful colors that make brookies so special.

 

[Shawn_H]

My most memorable was def “one that got away” - as it often is. I was tight line nymphing and it was my first time ever (and last honestly) using a micro leader - so I felt pretty uncomfortable in general. Cast into perfect pocket in some high gradient pocket water, sighter stops and I set. I was certain it was a snag - rock solid. Take 2steps up and pull upstream to try to release and guess what - it tears off downstream, reel screaming, big head shakes. I was so surprised - just out of position and not ready for the fight. Fish continued straight downstream while I fumbled with the tiny leader. Was probably 20 yards below me when head shakes again and everything goes slack. Didn’t even break off just spit the fly. I never saw the fish but I know in my bones it was the biggest wild brown I’ve ever hooked. I learned a lesson that day - a mistake I will not make again.

 

[kbobb]

It wasn't my fish that was most memorable but it was my older son's. After a number of years of living out of state he finally got back home to fish with me for a day during cicada time and he landed a very nice 17" brown among many others. The rising fish came up and ate the foam cicada just like that and after a fun battle it was in the net!

It was great to get out with him again, even tho we had high water and started the day with leaky waders. Fortunately I brought him my backups and he stayed dry after that.

 

[NRD]

19" male brown hit my streamer an instant after it hit the water just downstream of a boulder on the Colorado. I have a picture, but won't post it because I look like I'm handing the fish to an armed gunman : (

 

[CinnamonJoe]

For me, it was the Brownie I posted in the 'best of 2025', as I shared there. That fish sipped a dry in May, in a beautiful Iowa driftless limestone stream, just like it was minnie. After I set the hook, it became clear it was no minnie! Not the biggest brown ever, by any means, at 15", but that it was totally unexpected, and on light tackle made it memorable for me.