Small fish enthusiasts, we had some amazingly tiny entries during the September Smolt of the Month contest submission window. Picking just one winner was tough, but we’ve come to a decidedly worthy, and stunningly miniature smolt.

The September Smoltie goes to… Brandi A. and this beautiful Allegheny mountain brook trout. We’re hoping Brandi’s heart, shoulder and flyfishing gear are off to a speedy recovery after the encounter.

Brandi writes: “I caught this wild brook trout on a Smokey mountain candy fly. Found him 2 miles into our hike through the Allegheny mountains! Buddy had an ego the size of my fly and a fight like a champion!”

Above: The Flyfish Journal’s September Smolt of the Month, a fittingly miniature Allegheny mountain native brook trout. Photo: Brandi A.

We’re sending many smolt-sized congratulations to Brandi; enjoy those tiny ass bragging rights, that monster was definitely worth the 2-mile hike. Go smolts!

All monthly winners are eligible to win a grand prize package from Decked—including a full set of their D-Co Cases (valued over $900)—as well as a trophy custom-made by The Flyfish Journal staff, in May 2025. Monthly winners receive prize packages including a Stealth Work Station from Patagonia Fly Fishing and good goods from The Flyfish Journal.

And, of course, tiny ass bragging rights.

A big thanks to our prize sponsors Decked and Patagonia Fly Fishing.

Head on over the the main Smolt of the Month contest page for more information on how to enter your enormously small catches. Each monthly contest entry window will be open for the duration of each month, so get after it!

We’ve also compiled a runners up list with a few outstanding entries in no particular order:

Above: With an appetite fit for a king, this Grande roosterfish sure does fall into the smolt category. Photo: Alex Blouin

Submitting on behalf of his brother Bryan Blouin, Alex Blouin writes: “Catching a Rooster on foot in Baja is near the top of many angling bucket lists. But to tangle with a beach bruiser like this was beyond even my wildest dreams.”

Above: A judge favorite, this miniature California King bonefish is the smallest fly caught bonefish we’ve ever seen. Photo: Kevin Bateman

From Kevin Bateman: “While plying the waters around Laguna Manuela in Baja California, I encountered not only to my surprise a bonefish, but perhaps the smallest ever to take a fly.”

Above: Rad dad points. Oliva Porterfield with her very first fish, quite the way to kick off an angling career. Photo: Kevin Porterfield

Kevin Porterfield checks in with his daughter’s monstrous smolt: “Hi SMOTM team, Here is my daughter Oliva with her first fish on the fly. Living in Central Oregon, bass fishing (her favorite fish to fish for) spots can be hard to find. With a little hunting on the web I found this little pond 20 minutes from our house. The description sounded promising for bass and bluegill fishing from the shore and as it was getting late we headed out to check it out. As the skies darkened she hadn’t caught any fish with her spinning rod but we could see fish rising all over the place. Like any good dad I ran back to the truck and grabbed a fly rod that I had with me and set it up with a hopper. With a couple of quick practice throws she landed this whale of a fish. The rest is history.”

Above: More rad dad points to Nick Roman, as he shows his son how things are done with this beautiful trout. Photo: Nick Roman

Nick Roman’s entry is such a nice photo, of it he writes: “The father was forced to endure an entire season of his son’s boasting about all the big fish he’d caught on the very same river he had taught the boy to fish two decades earlier. On the final day of the season, he decided he needed to show the boy he still had the magic touch. It took the better part of the evening, but the old man found his trophy. It wasn’t the biggest but it may have been the prettiest.”

Enter your miniature monster moments here!