about marlin

[blitzhunter]

That's some fish.

The one that didn't get away: Doctor catches record 300lb marlin 'with his bare hands'

By Daily Mail Reporter
Last updated at 2:28 PM on 17th March 2009


A British doctor claims to have broken a record by catching a giant 300lb marlin - without using a rod and line.
Titus Bradley speared the giant on a fishing trip off Ascension Island in the South Atlantic.
The 10-feet-long blue marlin is believed to be the largest caught by a British spear fisherman.

Trophy: Titus Bradley with his gigantic catch


Dr Bradley was 15 miles out to sea in water about 1.5 miles deep when he saw the huge fish.
He had waited for this moment for at least the last four years, when he has visited Ascension Island annually in the hope of spearing a blue marlin.

In all that time he has spotted just eight of the species.
Dr Bradley, who lives with wife Lucy and their 18-month-old son Riffe in Portesham, Dorset, and works in nearby Weymouth, said: 'It was about 10 feet in length including the sword.
'They are very intimidating animals - very big and aggressive with a big sword. They can do about 50mph in the water.'
He added: 'It was only when I was back in the boat that I realised what I'd done.'

He has been spear fishing since childhood and is a member of the London International spear fishing club, whose members do not use air tanks but must dive while holding their breath
The fish was divided among islanders as well as friends and family - and was 'absolutely delicious', Dr Bradley said.

[crosseyedbass]

Is the marlin population in trouble? This guy Rob Kramer, from IGFA seems to think so. We have strict regulations for commercial fishing of marlins on the Atlantic but according what about the pacific? Are there any real numbers out there that can be discussed? What is your opinion?

http://www.takemarlinoffthemenu.org/..._Ed_021009.pdf

[DarkSkies]

One of the last behemoths of the deep left from the early stages of evolution, blue marlin are highly prized as one of the hardest fighting fish in the bluewater arena! You do battle with a giant blue marlin, and you're sore for days, but the aches are worth it.

Post up anything you want to about blue marlin, facts, figures, pics, videos, anything at all you feel like throwing up here.

If whatever you quoted comes from a published or copyrighted source, please add the link. Thanks.

[baitstealer]

Wet-N-Wild gets 460-pounder in Big Rock on Friday

Chris Miller
The Daily News

MOREHEAD CITY — This meant a lot to Joseph Engleby.
Though the angler aboard the Atlantic Beach-based Wet-N-Wild didn’t reel in the biggest blue marlin of the 52nd annual Big Rock Blue Marlin, his catch of 460 pounds Friday was good enough for Engleby for a couple of reasons.

First, the 460-pounder put Wet-N-Wild in third place behind Citation’s tournament-record 883 and second-place Carnivore (528 pounds) from Morehead City. That doesn’t sound like much, but consider this: the Wet-N-Wild is in position to claim $144,380 of the tournament’s $1.66 million purse.

But there was another thing Engleby took great pride while he, Captain Tony Ross and the crew celebrated their catch.
“I grew up in Beaufort dreaming of fishing in this tournament,” said Engleby, who now lives in Nazareth, Pa. “And then all of the sudden I meet a great group of guys and they embrace me like brothers. This has been a great experience and, oh, my gosh it’s such a great feeling.”
This marked the first time Ross, of Beaufort, captained a crew that reeled in a big blue, despite having participated in the Big Rock the last nine years. Yet, the spotlight was clearly on Engleby, who embraced his roots and seemed thrilled to have made the Carteret County locals proud of his catch.

“You dream about it and now it’s something that’s hard to describe,” Engleby said. “You hear that your friends and your family are waiting for us. That’s means everything.”
Wet-N-Wild boated the marlin at 2:03 p.m. and reached the scales nearly 2 1/2 hours later. The fish measured 107 inches in length, unofficially, which is 3 inches under the length required by the tournament. But it was well over the 400 pounds needed to qualify.
“I knew it would be a nice fish,” Ross said. “We figure it was around 450 pounds when we measured it.”
Prior to the marlin, Wet-N-Wild had just reeled in a 62.8-pound tuna, which took over first place in that category. The catch will be worth an extra $6,077 for the crew if it holds.
“We had just gotten off the tuna and had a bit of a lull, then he came,” Engleby said. “It was 100 yards starboard when it danced back around. I thought he would take every bit of the reel off the line.”

Ross elaborated on where his crew actually went.
“We made a long run today, and we made the decision last night to go to the Eastern wall,” he said. “And that’s where we went.”
Then it was game on for Engleby and the marlin.
“It was a fight to bring it in,” he said. “I flip a lot of tires … and carry heavy logs and that helps me a lot.”
But while Engleby took the spotlight Friday, the angler of the week remains Citation’s Andy Thomossan, who reeled in Hatteras-based boat’s 883-pounder Monday. Citation fished Friday and will again today and is in position to win $912,825. Carnivore is in position to win $217,570.
Fishing on the last day is not unusual for the leading boat because it gives the first-place crew a chance to take their minds off the chance of winning. However, Thomossan said he hasn’t been on edge and he won’t be today.

“It’s not nerve-racking. What it is, is what it is,” said Thomossan in a telephone interview Friday. “You go out and catch a fish like that, that’s a once in a lifetime deal and the thrill of the catch is the significant factor. We will fish (today).”
And while Thomossan hasn’t been nervous, he said he and his mates have checked for updates when other boats bring in a marlin.
“We were out in the boat (Tuesday) and there was no way to follow other than the captain (Eric Holmes) knowing someone had boated (a) fish,” Thomossan said. “When we got to the harbor we went on the Big Rock Web site and said ‘OK’ they didn’t beat us and we are still on top.

“Today the same thing happened. I saw on the computer (Wet-N-Wild’s catch).”
Captain Lacy Henry of Atlantic Beach and the Miss Judy leads in the billfish released category with two blue marlin. Defending tournament champion Sea Creature, captained by Steve Coulter of Hatteras, has led in the winner-take-all dolphin division (52.4) since Monday



http://www.jdnews.com/articles/moreh...under-big.html

[buckethead]

Beautiful fish.

[voyager35]

What a fish.




Tuesday, September 27, 2011 9:18am PDT

Monster blue marlin caught after 28-hour battle off Cabo San Lucas

By: Pete Thomas, GrindTV.com

Some reports listed the weight of a blue marlin landed Sunday off Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, at an eye-popping 1,213 pounds, a record for the resort destination. Others claimed the behemoth fell short of "grander" status, weighing only 972 pounds on a marina scale.

Whatever the weight of the billfish, it was an extraordinary catch, especially considering that the battle played out for nearly 28 hours, giving this yarn a Hemingway quality that seems more like fiction than fact.

The angler credited with the catch is Richard Biehl of Traverse City, Michigan, but he had help from the crew aboard the 31-foot yacht, Go Deep, which was plying the Pacific Ocean north of Cabo San Lucas at Baja California's tip.

After an offshore marathon that began Saturday morning at 8:20 and ended close to noon Sunday, those aboard the yacht either resembled or felt like very old men of the sea.

"That was the hardest thing I ever did in my life by far," Biehl told Pisces Sportfishing general manager Tracy Ehrenberg, who on Monday evening published the first detailed account of the remarkable episode. "I've shot bull moose and trekked out with 200 pounds on my back and it doesn't even compare."

Nobody knew what was in store when the marlin attacked a trolled lure at what is known as the 95 Spot, and dashed toward the horizon. The fishermen were targeting much smaller striped marlin and using only 60-pound-test line -- far too light for giant blue marlin.

When the great billfish first jumped, about 400 feet from the boat, the crew guessed its weight to be about 700 pounds.

Word of the catch didn't spread until Monday, when many in town and in the billfishing community considered the catch to be a rumor. Then photos and sparse details began to appear on Facebook. One photo showed the weight at 972 pounds, but that did not tell the story.

Ehrenberg on Monday afternoon interviewed Capt. Luis Abaroa and his crew, and briefly spoke with Biehl. (Efforts to reach Biehl for this story, via cellphone, were unsuccessful.)

Abaroa told Ehrenberg that the marlin registered only 972 pounds because the hook of the electronic scale used to weigh the fish was not high enough for all of the fish to clear the ground, so a time-tested measurement formula -- using length and girth -- was used to determine the 1,213 pounds. The marlin measured 137 inches long, or 11.4 feet, not counting its bill or tail. It was 75 inches, or 6.25 feet around.

Weight records for marlin caught off Cabo San Lucas are not kept officially, but an 1,111-pounder caught in the 1980s is believed to be the heaviest.

More recently, in this era of high-speed reels and other technological advancements, overnight struggles with giant billfish have become increasingly rare.

Biehl, bemoaning the use of light line, fought the giant blue marlin by himself until about sunset, then relinquished the rod to a deckhand. By then food and water had been exhausted and another vessel captained by Abaroa's brother, Frankie, was summoned via radio to deliver supplies.

The marlin leaped again, closer to the boat, as darkness fell. The weight estimate was revised upward to between 800-1,000 pounds.

A long night was fitful because to keep the line from breaking the captain and crew had to keep just enough pressure on the marlin, and constant maneuvering of the boat was necessary.

At sunrise a rejuvenated Biehl reclaimed the rod and resumed the fight. With the line and leader weakening, the crew aboard the other boat had devised a snag rig and managed to setting more hooks into the cheek of the wearying marlin.

Finally, the billfish tired and was brought alonside the boat, and according to Ehrenberg, Biehl chose to have it gaffed and brought to port. "It's a once-in-a-lifetime fish. I want to take him," he said.

Surprisingly, Biehl went fishing again Monday and caught and released a striped marlin, before himself succumbing to all he had been through by coming down with a bout of seasickness.

-- Images of giant marlin are courtesy of Go Deep Spoprtfishing. Top image shows angler Richard Biehl (holding fishing rod) next to his prize catch.



http://www.grindtv.com/outdoor/blog/...abo+san+lucas/

[stripercrazy]

Awesome!

[Robertx201]

Wow 28 hours

[voyager35]

A 500lb blue marlin chases a 20lb mahi in Costa Rica. Great footage.