A Big Fish Story

Ketchikan, located in southeast Alaska, is a good place to fish for halibut. Sally and John Balch live in Ketchikan and have a favorite spot nearby to halibut fish. It’s a secret spot, so don’t ask where it is.

The Balches were fishing there one Sunday and having good luck landing cod and halibut, so they decided to stop about mid-morning. Sally started pulling in her gear and felt a tug on the line.

It was more than a tug, really. Sally said that she thought she had snagged the bottom of the ocean. Sally reeled in the line with all her strength, tired, and turned the rod over to her husband.

John and Sally fought the halibut over the course of the next hour. They reeled it to the surface three times, but each time the halibut regained strength and swam back down to the bottom of the ocean.

After more than an hour the tired Balches were successful in subduing the halibut, and after another hour were able to bring the halibut into their boat.

Back in Ketchikan the Balches towed their boat over to the local lumber yard where John works and used the fork lift to unload the halibut from their boat. A crowd gathered to listen to repeated tales of the adventure, and the Balches filleted the fish and gave away pieces to anyone who wanted a piece.

They had plenty. The halibut was 7 feet long and weighed 323 pounds. And Sally caught the large halibut with a bargain $39 Penn rod and reel combo.