Not sure how many people here know about these. I didn't till I moved out the east MT. This was my big catch last season. Not sure on measurements but I'd guess it in the 50-60 lb range.

That's a dandy! Congratulations. Bet he put up quite a fight!!
We have those in the Arkansas river, too. This spring they had a commercial fishing season on a few mile stretch of River at Fort Smith. Using nets, some individuals caught enough paddlefish to sell over $100K in "caviar".

They are definitely bruisers. We have some local group that collects the caviar for grants and things to help the local economy. If someone likes that crap I guess. I just like the fish

looks to me like you could be at Intake,MT,where I went paddlefishing some 30 odd years ago.The landscape looks very similar to what i remember it looking like.

you would be right jb, it's on sluice side. gotta love the paddlefish

Awesome, thanks for sharing.

Missouri State record for a spoonbill is 154 lbs or so!

What bait were you using?

paddle fish eat plankton so you have to snag them . I have also seen people rope them around the bill. they are great to eat and fun to catch.