When captain Richard Bradley of Marathon-based Reel Destiny Charters sent his lines down in 1,600 feet of water on Nov. 15, he was hoping to reel in a solid swordfish for his crew on board. What came up instead would blow their minds.
Rather than the long bill of a sword, the crew finished an hour-and-a-half fight to find the blunt forehead of a 182-pound louvar.
An exceedingly rare deep-water pelagic fish, hardly ever hooked by recreational fishermen, the louvar is nicknamed the “imperial tuna” for its white, mild meat – prized table fare for those lucky enough to land them, but hardly ever found in fish markets.
Once aboard, Bradley told the Weekly, it was clear his hook had torn out of the fish’s mouth almost immediately, a common outcome for the rare louvar hookup – but thankfully, it snagged on a hard gill plate, allowing the Reel Destiny crew to bring it to the surface.
“We got lucky,” he laughed. “Really lucky.”
Once ashore, steaks from the fish made their way to Castaway Waterfront Restaurant for patrons to enjoy.
