The Big Trout

One of Australia’s over 150 world-famous big things, the Big Trout in Adaminaby is the personal project of an artisan and fisherman who simply wanted to bring attention to his sport and industry in the popular Aussie style of fiberglass recreation. 

Co-sponsored by the Snowy Mountains Authority, local fishing enthusiast Andy Lomnici built the colossal piscine in 1973. The 33-foot tall fish is made of fiberglass built over a steel frame which was then recovered in another layer of fiberglass that created the scaled effect. Propped up on a squat stone pedestal in the middle of a shallow pond, the giant fish looks as though it is tossing itself above the waterline in a majestic spasm, right in the midst of a public park. After being weathered by the elements for decades, the big novelty was recently refurbished in 2012 by a group calling themselves the “The Friends of the Fish” who reapplied the sculpture’s healthy pink glow.