450 lb. Thresher Shark caught and released on the Big Game
Capt. Paul Roydhouse
March 30, 2008
Fort Lauderdale - Saltwater Fishing Report
There are some sea monsters off the coast of Fort Lauderdale right now. Today's fishing report is a 450 lb. thresher shark caught and released on one of our half day fishing charters. These guys got to the boat in the morning and said, "We want to catch something giant!" Well, they got their wish. Capt. Adam went out to shark territory and put out a spread of big bloody baits on the top and on the bottom. It was about an hour and a half into the trip when we got the bite. The rod doubled over and the mate, Joey, yelled up, "FISH ON CAP'!!" Without a second's hesitation, Adam put the boat ahead with the engines and throttled up. The hooks set deep into the fishes' jaw and we strapped the angler into the fighting chair. The fight was just beginning.
The fish took some massive runs. Fortunately, we had him on the right tackle. Joey put out the biggest fishing rod they make, a Penn 130W. If you have a big fish on the line that you really want to catch, that is the rod you want to have him on. It can catch pretty much any fish in the ocean; at least, any fish that I've ever seen or heard of out there. I haven't had a chance to test out that theory in Loch Ness yet.
It was over an hour long fight before we got to see the fish. When the shark was about 50' down below the surface of the water, we could see the iridescent purple color of his back. Joey yelled up, "It's a Thresher! A thresher! It's a 13 footer!" The angler and others aboard were ecstatic. When the leader came to the rod tip, Joey very gently grabbed it and began to wire the thresher to the boat. Wiring a thresher is like trying to pull up a 200 pound anchor… it isn't easy. We'll, we got the thresher to the boat and as you can see, we got some AWESOME photos. The photo with the thresher right next to the boat is about the best picture of a thresher shark in the water I have ever seen. Cheers to whoever took that photo.
It was an awesome day of fishing, and it was such a cool fish, that I felt it deserved its own fishing report. The shark fishing is awesome off Fort Lauderdale right now. There are lots of big fish out there biting. Our sportfishing boat, the Big Game, has been catching more big game sharks lately than anybody lately. Most likely, because I get an inexhaustible supply of fresh bloody bonitos and kingfish to use for bait from our drift fishing boat. Most charter boats have to spend an hour or better trying to catch a couple fresh kingfish or bonitos to use as bait, where as I get the luxury of heading right out there and spending that time looking for big game fish. Anyway, the shark fishing has been awesome as of late and should continue for the next few months. If you're looking to go fishing off Fort Lauderdale, give me a call to set up a trip. (754)214-7863. I look forward to fishing with you.
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