22-inch, 6-pound smallmouth caught.

A Lake Leelanau father made his 3-year-old daughter’s day when he returned home last week with a 6-pound smallmouth.

BRYAN RAY of Lake Leelanau, shown with his daughter Daylen,
caught this 22-inch smallmouth bass last week on South Lake Leelanau.

“It was way big,” said Daylen Ray — too big for her to hold, she said.

Bryan Ray usually releases the smallmouths he catches in South Lake Leelanau, but kept this one to be mounted.

“He’s an avid fisherman,” said his wife, Angela, who answered the family phone while Bryan was at work. Angela emailed to the Enterprise a photo of the 22-inch bass, which had a 16-inch girth. It was caught last Thursday, Aug. 9.

Angela Ray reported that smallmouth fishing has “been pretty steady” the past two weeks on South Lake Leelanau. While her husband prefers to concentrate on smallies, he has boated enough walleyes for an occasional fish dinner, she added.