July eBook pages 1-91 (16.1 MB) - Latitude 38

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Page 58 • Latitude 38 • July, 2010
COURTESY MESHACH
COURTESY CASSIOPEIA
LETTERS
"Free divers are capable of taking large fi sh. This includes
a 545-lb giant sea bass taken by Bob Stanbery at Santa Cruz
Island in '68, and a 425-lb shortfi n mako taken by C. Steward
Graham off the Coronado Islands in '99.
"When I go for large pelagics, I use a 70-ft Norprene bungie,
which acts like a drag on a fi shing reel, one or two infl atable or
foam-fi lled fl oats,
and a four or fi veband
custom-built
speargun which
fires an 11/32
x 65-inch shaft.
Each rubber pulls
something like 75
lbs. I rig the shaft
with a 3/16-inch
One last piece of photographic evidence.
stainless cable
shootline of just
over 20 feet in
length, and use a
6-inch Morifi sh speartip that 'breaks away' from the tip of the
shaft on 1,000-lb Spectra cord. This is the cord you can see
exiting the fi sh's back in the pargo picture. A slide-ring slips
along the shaft to keep the shaft and tip attached. The tip
toggles into or on the far side of the fi sh, then detaches from
the shaft. This prevents the shaft's becoming a lever and either
ripping out or bending. This rig is ideal for wahoo, amberjack,
yellowfi n and so forth. I use a vinyl fl oat-line for reef fi shing,
as Norprene is expensive and not abrasion-resistant.
"While I usually horse grouper and pargo up to the surface
to keep them from holing up on the bottom, this particular fi sh
made a freight train rush to the bottom. So after a bit of tug 'o
war, I ascended my fl oat-line to the fl oats. Each fl oat has about
40 lbs of fl otation. The fi rst fl oat was completely underwater,
and the second was half submerged. I straddled them like a
pool noodle, and began hauling the big fi sh up.
"My shot had been a good one, with the tip toggled under the
spine. So after the fi rst long run, I was able to make pretty good
progress getting him up. After he was up to the cable shoot line,
I clipped the fi sh off to my buoy with a long-line clip. Then I dove
down, tackled him in a bear hug, and stuck him in the brain.
"I'm happy to share the intimate
details, although based on experience
I'm concerned how those who have
mindlessly divorced predation, and even
death, from their styro-trayed, meatsection
delicacies, might respond."
Rennie's entry in the
Latitude Fishing Derby.
⇑⇓"I STILL SAY IT'S PHOTOSHOP"
Despite the additional photos of the
pargo, and the claims that it's for real, I
still think it was Photoshopped. In the
fi rst photo, the right side of the man's
head and body is in the shade, but the
same side of the fi sh is in the sunlight.
Similarly, in the third picture, the one
of the fi sh on the boat with the kids,
the fi sh has no visible means of support.
It's in semi-upright position and
the shadow of the man's left leg on the
deck stops at the fi sh. In other words,
the fi sh covers the shadow of his leg.
And here's another reason I think it's
been Photoshopped. As others have pointed out, it looks too
big to be 75 lbs. This wahoo, caught on Cassiopeia during