The Fish

WARNING: The following entry is graphic in nature and may be unsuitable for some viewers. Pictures contain the actions of catching a very large fish which may be upsetting to small children and vegetarians. Viewer Discretion is advised.


I CAUGHT A 90 LB HALIBUT IN JUNEAU, ALASKA!!!!!!!! Check it out....

This is the Bob Cat, a 20 foot catamaran style boat with twin 225 horsepower motors which means it really hauls ass. I went along with my cousin Patrick, his girlfriend Lisa, and the boat owner, Rob.

This is our view as we left the harbor in Juneau, a glacier in the background. Rob at the helm, Patrick and Lisa looking ahead...











It all started with the rod tip bowing. I waited a few seconds to let him take the bait, and then the reel started screaming as line was being pulled off at an alarming rate. Rob came over to check the drag, and to let me know that this was no German brown trout like the fish back home, I was in for a fight...



















The next ten minutes or so was spent slowly pulling up in the rod till it was at about a 45 degree angle to the water, and then reel like crazy till it was parallel again with the water. My arms were getting tired and I could tell by the amount of line on the reel that I had a ways to go...



















As I was fighting, Rob was calling out instructions all the way, and at one point he told me that I would have to move to the back of the boat whenever the fish decided to take a break. With a little help I was able to traverse the 8 inch wide railing along the side and made it to the back where I could land this thing...














And I can't tell you how happy I was to make it back there without falling overboard or losing the gear.


After another 5 minutes of this, out of breath and my arms on fire, the fish surfaced to a collective "holy shit!!!" from the crew. Rob grabbed the harpoon and put a line in him. This drove the halibut into a rage and he started thrashing around the boat and snapped the line on my rod. Thankfully the harpoon was tied off to the boat and we didn't lose him.














After giving the fish a minute to stop thrashing, it was time to bring him on board. Rob gaffed him just below the head and dragged him into the boat. We all stood there for a minute and just stared at him. We were all giddy and laughing but not saying much at the same time. I couldn't believe what had just happened.




























That white stripe in the last picture is the tape measure, he is 56 inches long. The book estimates that the weight of a 56 inch halibut is between 88 and 92 lbs. I am going to say it's 90 lbs. My arms were still tired when we got it back to the dock, I couldn't lift it off the ground all the way. I have a lot more stuff to show you guys about my trip to Alaska, so keep checking back in!!!