Another monster Waitaki River salmon. Note the depth of the body! The Waitaki River always produces the heaviest salmon each year.
It is thought that salmon in North America grow to a much larger size than the same species in New Zealand because the rivers there are much longer - as much as 2000 km as opposed to only a couple of hundred km in New Zealand. A bigger heavier fish is better suited in terms of muscle and fat reserves to make the much longer journey upstream to spawn.
Salmon might be difficult to catch but a big fish like this one will provide many salmon dinners and life-long memories.