Fishermen on a charter boat 75 miles off New Jersey expected to catch sea bass, pollock, bluefish and cod, so it was quite a surprise what regular Joe Welsh reeled to the boat earlier this week.
Welsh of Hopatcong landed what was estimated to be a 475-pound mako shark, the biggest fish ever caught on the 125-foot Jamaica out of Brielle, N.J. The two previous bests were a swordfish and bluefin tuna of undisclosed weights.
Sea bass to 7 pounds are what fishermen typically catch on this trip with the occasional cod to 30 pounds. But a mako shark, and one that size? Not a typical catch.
“We have caught large sharks at this time of year before, but not quite that big,” Capt. Howard Bogan told USA Today/For The Win Outdoors. “Normally we see more large sharks on our Canyon tuna trips in September and October. But during the winter when we’re on the offshore wrecks, there are bluefish, bonito, weakfish and other species that sharks like to eat.”
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Prior to the catch, a number of fish being reeled in were getting bitten off and fishermen assumed it was by bluefish, at least until Welsh’s catch, according to the Asbury Park Press.
Welsh, fishing in his usual spot at the bow of the boat, was reeling in a dogfish when the unexpected occurred.
“The shark followed the angler’s line up and ate the dogfish he was reeling in,” Bogan told FTW Outdoors. “He put up a little bit of a fight but then swam close to the boat where we were able to gaff it.”
Bogan said on Facebook that “by the time the tail rope was on the shark, three gaff hooks were straightened out, and the other gaff poles practically exploded.”
Even Bogan was a bit surprised by the catch, particularly because of its size. He said on Facebook, “When I saw that he had a large mako hooked up, I never expected [it] to get anywhere near the boat.”
The fishermen who went home with tasty shark fillets were no doubt happy it did.
Photo of Joe Welsh and skipper Howard Bogan behind him courtesy of Howard Bogan.