Evan Yarbrough was fishing the Willamette River with his friends outside Eugene when he hooked something big.

At first he thought he was snagged. Then he figured it was a huge carp or sucker fish. But when he reeled it in he discovered a fish he’d never caught before. It was a huge 29-inch, 8-10 pound walleye — a beloved but controversial fish with a mysterious history in the Upper Willamette Basin.

“I was ecstatic,” said Yarbrough, who caught the walleye in early October. “We were all hyped and knew they’re good eats and rare where we were fishing.”

Yarbrough cooked up his catch with an egg wash and flour fish fry.

“It was white like cod and delicious,” he said of the meat. “I would love to catch more.”

He may get his chance.

Large numbers of walleye were flushed into the Upper Will

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