Fish caught at Lake Lillinonah sets new state record

There is a new state record for the largest freshwater fish caught in Connecticut.

Rafal Wlazlo caught a 45-pound, 8-ounce Common Carp at Lake Lillinonah in May, setting a new state record.

This is the largest freshwater fish on record, according to the state Department of Energy & Environmental Protection website.

Wlazlo, who lives in West Babylon on Long Island, has a rental on Lake Lillinonah and has been focused day and night to target a record.  

He began his quest to find a record-breaking carp early last season and has spent much of this April and May fishing the lake.

“It’s a difficult lake to fish, but we know it holds some very big carp,” Wlazlo said.

Around 9 a.m. on May 25, he accomplished his mission.

“The fight was absolutely epic,” Wlazlo said.

The fight was absolutely epic.

Rafal Wlazlo

For 15 minutes, it was gut-wrenching not knowing what’s on the other side, he said.

“It was a complete tug of war with the fish,” Wlazlo added.

He knew it was a big fish, but when he saw the catch, he was in “absolute shock.”

Immediately after catching the record-breaking carp, he reached out to friends nearby to have witnesses help weigh and document the fish to meet the state’s requirements before he released it.  

DEEP said this is the largest freshwater fish by weight in Connecticut thus far.

The prior record was 45 pounds, 5 ounces.

Wlazlo, whose business is Carp Angler, said carp fishing is a big pastime in Europe and it’s a niche pastime in the United States, but it’s growing.

Something he said is important about Lake Lillinonah is that it protects trophy carp because it’s catch and release, so an angler can catch a fish and release it, all while claiming a state record.

“This allows us to harvest the fish, release it, so it lives,” Wlazlo said.

That allowed him to achieve his dream and for someone who works to promote carp fishing, he sees this as an opportunity for others to achieve their dreams too.

Now that Wlazlo has accomplished his mission and secured his first record, his next goal is to find the first 50-pounder in Connecticut.

DEEP said Common Carp have the ability to routinely reach 30 plus pounds and a 50-pound fish is what many anglers are looking to find.

According to DEEP records, the next largest freshwater fish weighed in at 29 pounds.

The state records say a Channel catfish, a lake trout and a Northern Pike all weighed in at 29 pounds.