tf211 Posted October 5, 2011 Share Posted October 5, 2011 Well, here is the whole story. First, let me state that I am completely committed to "release at the boat" for any billfish (Marlin and Sailfish). They are just too beautiful to kill. We had been fishing the East Cape of Baja California, Mexico. In our five years, we had never seen it so slow. The first two days we got nothing, and the third day we had a reasonable day of four Yellowfin Tuna and two medium Dorado (Mahi Mahi). The fourth day, our last, we wanted fish to take home. Tuna and Dorado. Our very experienced skipper spent four hours without a bite, and we decided to head to shore for some bottom fishing. As we trolled towards shore, a big hit on the outrigger. Blue Marlin !! I took the rod and began a forty minute fight. Fifteen minutes into the fight, I had the fish almost at the boat. I could see the "double" knot that tied to the leader. Right then, the fish took a huge run, and the next thing I saw was the fish 300 yards away, taking ten leaps out of the water. As the fight went on, I was getting tired. As the fish got closer to the boat, I said to my wife "I hope this fish doesn't have another run in him, because I don't think I have". When I got him to the boat, I realized why the last 15 minutes had been so hard - the fish had become tail-wrapped, and had died (drowned) in the fight. I had been dragging the dead weight. We got him home and weighted him - he went exactly 200lb. Not huge for a marlin, but not a bad fish. What made it much harder is that I have a disability and had to fight him from a sitting position. The crappy little plastic chair had no gimbal and a fixed back, which meant I had to use a fighting belt on my lap, and could not lean back on the fish to any extent. A couple of attached photos will give you an idea of the fight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Converted 2 Posted October 5, 2011 Share Posted October 5, 2011 Hi Mate, Thats a good fish . But it was a great effort with a disability and the fishing conditions . Hats down. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Poacher Posted October 5, 2011 Share Posted October 5, 2011 Congratulations, you can't help it if the odd fish gets tail wrapped and dies. Glad you had a great trip. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest hawkesbass Posted October 5, 2011 Share Posted October 5, 2011 Great capture good to see the disability has not stopped you enjoying yourself heres to many more big fish in the future Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MidNrthFisho Posted October 6, 2011 Share Posted October 6, 2011 Great fish! That is exactly what happened to the marlin I caught off Cabo. It's sad to have to bring it in but at least you can get some good photo's! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kadavu Posted October 6, 2011 Share Posted October 6, 2011 Great fish m8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now