PORT ANGELES — Catching a 177-pound halibut might seem like a fish tale to some, but Mike Constant of Port Angeles had the proof Thursday swinging from a scale in the parking lot of Swain’s General Store.
Constant, 58, said he caught the halibut after a 45-minute struggle with the behemoth in Freshwater Bay.
“We ripped one harpoon out and got him with a second one,” a beaming Constant said while onlookers admired his catch as it was being weighed at the store at 602 E. First St.
Constant said he used a Rainshadow rod — a brand made by Batson Enterprises of Sequim — and herring bait to hook the beast at about 11:30 a.m. in 180 feet of water.
Constant began his fishing expedition at about dawn Thursday.
This is the largest fish he has caught in waters off the North Olympic Peninsula — the second weighing in at 168 pounds — and the second largest he has caught in the 53 years he has been fishing, he said.
The largest fish he has hooked, he said, was a 302-pound halibut in Alaska where he once ran a fishing lodge before moving to Washington state.
Constant said the catch was a good warmup for the 16th annual Port Angeles Halibut Derby coming up May 28-29, in which he will compete.
Fishing “is a passion and a hobby,” Constant said, adding he is a sturgeon guide on the Columbia River.
Fish and chips
Constant said about 70 percent of the halibut he caught Thursday is edible.
“A lot of friends are going to be happy,” he said.
“It makes good fish and chips.”
The recreational halibut season opened May 7 in all Marine Areas (3-6 and 9) off the North Olympic Peninsula.
Marine Area 2 is closed to halibut fishing because there are not enough quota pounds remaining, according to the state Department of Fish and Wildlife.
________
Reporter Chris McDaniel can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 56650, or cmcdaniel@peninsuladailynews.com.
