"__IT" happens

Dead Blue on the deck

Dominican fishermen with our dead blue alongside

Snagged in the side

Every so often "it" happens. As sportfishermen, we do our best to release all of our billfish. Every so often one will die or become injured during the battle.  It happened yesterday. Our second Blue Marlin of the day piled onto the left short rigger bait. It was not a giant fish but it was a good one. It peeled line off the reel with lightening speed. I watched from the bridge as the fish jumped and greyhounded away from the boat as the crew cleared the rest of the lines. Once the angler was geared up with the stand up fighting harness, The line was getting dangerously low. I had seen the fish and while it was only about 225 lbs, it was fighting like a much larger fish. We nearly lost all the line off the reel as I was backing the boat to the fish as hard as I could. The fight soon settled down into a down and dirty battle with the fish straight down below the boat. The angler fought it for an hour and could gain no more line. He did a great job. but was exhausted and turned it over to the boss.  Another 20 minutes went by and the line came one inch at a time. Finally we saw the fish. The hooks had at some point become dislodged from the fishes mouth and snagged right in the middle of the marlins side. Marlin have to swim forward to pass water across their gills. If they do not they die quickly. The fouled hooks had the fish being dragged side ways and slightly backwards. When the fish hit the surface it was dead. the last 30 minutes of the fight had been purely a fight of dead weight. It sure takes the wind out of your sail when you kill one of these magnificent creatures. But it does happen from time to time. We boated the Blue and began trolling again. As we fished I kept my eyes peeled for one of the Commercial Pangas that had begged us for marlins. I refuse to give them a live marlin, but giving them one that had died in the fight seemed the noble thing to do. The Panga that we gave the fish to had two dead 80lb to 90lb blue marlin already inside of its hull. We doubled the weight of his catch for the day.  The fish just lay there in the sun all day with no ice. I cant imagine the quality is that good by the time that fish ever hits the market.

reel nearly empty of line. 

All in all though it was a good day. Two more blue marlin chalked up for the Blue heaven.