Sitka's Bottom Beasts

The waters off Sitka, Alaska are known for hosting some serious sea monsters. Gigantic Halibut to well over 200-pounds, dinosaur-sized Lingcod, and mind-boggling-big rockfish are the famous targets of this remote Pacific Northwest destination, for both their gamefishing and table fare value.

Below: Yelloweye Rockfish // "Small" Pacific Halibut

Mike “Cappy” Capucetti and Travis Johnson fished the Sitka-area near the Peril Strait for a few days. Drifting large rubber grubs on 16-ounce leadheads in about 250-feet of water, the boys hoped to entice a few gargantuan bottom-dwellers to bite. They were not disappointed…

Below: The crew with and the gorgeous Alaskan coastline // Cappy shows the bottom-side of a Halibut

The guys experienced a wide open bite on Halibut ranging in size from 15-pounds all the way up to a staggering 245-pound behemoth. The big “barn door” put up an incredible fight, clinging to the bottom and trying to head off the ledge for deeper waters. Luckily, Mike and Travis were able to get its head turned and eventually able to coax the beast to the surface before gaffing and boating the great fish.

Below: Monster 245-pound Halibut // Another Alaskan bottom bitter

Cleaning the monster was no small task – but, the tender, white meat of the fish is well worth the labor and will surely feed many mouths in the weeks to come.

Below: Would you look at those fillets! // Another cold-water monster: Octopus