Maricopa County, Arizona — It was a quiet day of fishing. Apache Lake, And for Logan Hall and his father Glenn, catching any fish would have made the day.

Little did they know that one fish, a very large fish, was going to change their lives forever.

In mid-April, a father and son went to a lake in the East Valley and had no success catching any fish.

But later that day, their fortunes changed, and Logan and his father caught a mysterious fish that neither could identify.

Logan said the pair had never caught such a unique fish and believed the solemn anniversary they were celebrating that day played a role.

“My mom died a little over a year ago from a rare, aggressive form of lymphoma cancer. She fought like a warrior for eight months,” Logan said.

And it was no easy capture.

“We wrestled with this fish for over 10 minutes and got it right next to the boat. I can’t believe what we got. It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience,” he said. “We absolutely left him alone, but five minutes before we caught this fish, his wife called and said he had to put the dog down.”

Logan explained that June Bug, a little blind and deaf dog, had to move on to the next life.

After he and his father released the giant fish, they contacted experts to find out what species it was, but even Mark Voyta of Ocean Floor in Phoenix couldn’t identify the fish.

“It looks like some kind of Asian grass carp. It has a slightly different mouth shape. It’s probably a black buffalo, but it looks like some kind of big carp,” Voita said.

Regardless of the kind, it was a special memory. Knowing her mother Cindy was with them in spirit, her father and her son duo won’t be forgotten anytime soon.

“This was such a sacred moment and a special moment to share with my father. When people pass by, they are still watching over you, you can still feel them, they are still watching over you.” I wasn’t sure it was until this moment, but I’m 100% sure it’s going to happen,” Logan said.

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