It can take several hours for sport fishing enthusiasts in the Fraser River to reel in a giant white sturgeon.
But it only took a group from Kamloops about 50 minutes to bring in the latest monster fish, estimated to weigh about 1000 pounds, said owner Dean Werk of Great River Fishing Adventures.
It was Sept. 21, and a group from an accounting firm were on a team-building trip on the Fraser near Chilliwack.
The firm’s managing partner Norman Daley hooked the dinosaur fish, which he found out weighed five times more than him.
It was 11 foot, eight inches long and had a five-foot girth.
“It was another miracle,” said Werk, referring to the fact that two big sturgeon were caught and released in the past three months, in record time as well.
He and fishing guide Jeff Welch were proud to be involved in both catches.
The earlier one saw British visitors, Margaret and Michael Snell, who posed with a similarly massive sized monster fish on July 16. It took them 90 minutes to land it, before releasing it to recede slowly back into the depths.
“We are so fortunate to have these great giant creatures swimming around here,” Werk said.
“We are honoured to be able to do this, make a living at it, and ultimately share this with the rest of the world.”
Few people are aware that less than two per cent of the big sturgeon are ever landed.
“Most get away,” he said. “This is huge and it continues to put Chilliwack on the map as a world class sport fishing destination.”
He’s even more excited about this particular specimen, which they measured and took samples from as part of ongoing research into the mighty species.
This fish had never been tagged in its long life.
“We are very hopeful that the science that we were able to help with by taking samples, could show that this may be an ocean migrating sturgeon,” Werk enthused.
The hope is that the information could shed light on an ongoing puzzle about the ocean going sturgeon population.
A video taken of the group’s experience, captures a memorable moment.
“When they released the fish, it was so heartfelt. That experience changed those people forever. They watched him swim away, knowing that it will help us learn more about this most incredible species.”
See more at www.greatriverfishing.com.
jfeinberg@theprogress.com
twitter.com/chwkjourno’Another miracle’ as second monster sturgeon caught
