I thought i would post a saltwater story...This is a monster.
Recently it seemed as though a pall of despair had settled across the Delaware Bay,
the big stripers had been hit or miss, the annual drum run seemed non-existent
and the weather wasn't doing anyone any favors. Then in the last two weeks or so
it seemed like the switch had been thrown as some quality bass and steady catches
of big drum started hitting the scales with a fury. The action has bounced between
red hot and lukewarm, but a good run had established itself. Yesterday morning
however, this run found the mark that would note it in history when the scale at
Capt. Tate's hit 109 pounds.
Captain Tim Smith on the Bodacious out of Port Norris was running one of
his productive party boat trips on the Delaware Bay Wednesday night, fishing
for black drum. He showed how he can find the bite and get his 60-foot aluminum
hull right over top with a nice catch of drum, but one would make all the others
look like pups. Nick Henry of Millville was on the trip and hooked into the brute of
all black drum. When it came onboard it was clear that is one worth taking to an
official scale as it was the largest ever boated on the Bodacious.
Early Thursday morning, Captain Tim Smith, Nick and the fish headed to
Captain Tate's Bait and Tackle in nearby Dennisville to find out what the beast
truly weighed. When it was set onto the scale it caused a stir as the readout went
right into triple figures, finally settling at the 109-pound mark. The fish was built
like a heavyweight boxer and fought like it, having a total length of 59 inches and a
girth of 49-1/4 inches, almost as wide as it was long and as powerful a fish as
New Jersey has seen since 2006 when William Kinzy pulled a 107-pound out of
Delaware Bay.
Kinzy's 107-pound monster set the state record at that time, but upon certification
by the State of New Jersey, the record books will be rewritten
with Nick Henry's 109-pound black drum holding top honors. The process should move
quickly along and the fish should soon be the official record.
Subject: Huge Black Drum...Story from 2008 
Tue Aug 11, 2009 7:16 pm
