A blue marlin so big it barely fit through the tuna door just rewrote the record books. On August 19, Captain Damon Sacco and the crew of the Castafari hauled a 1,260-pound blue marlin into Falmouth Harbor — the largest blue marlin ever caught off the East Coast, and just 142 pounds shy of the IGFA all-tackle world record. On The Water was on the dock as crowds gathered to watch the giant swing off the crane scale.
The marlin struck while the crew trolled through Atlantis Canyon — home turf for Sacco, an offshore fishing legend in New England known for his canyon expertise chasing billfish and tuna.
Walter Chapman powered through three hours on the rod until the fish rolled over at boatside allowing the crew to secure the catch. In the water, they measured the fish at 142 inches. Keep in mind that billfish measurements are made from the tip of the lower jaw to the fork of the tail. Based on the length of the fish and its immense girth, Damon dared to dream that it might break the coveted 1,000-pound mark.
Word circulated around Falmouth, Massachusetts on Wednesday afternoon that a possible “grander,” a 1,000-pound blue marlin was headed for the scale at MacDougall’s Cape Cod Marine Service. A crowd gathered around the scale at dusk, waiting for the Castafari to arrive with its catch. Spectators ranged from local anglers to the crew’s family and friends to summer tourists who happened to be wandering by.
As the boat backed in, nearly half the marlin was sticking out the tuna door, the full fish being too large to fit inside the 45-foot Jim Smith Express sportfisher. The tail was immense, large enough that a small child could fit within its lunate shape.
A crane hooked up to heavy straps was placed around the marlin’s tail, and with some careful maneuvering of the boat and crew, the fish was raised onto the dock. With the fish on land, a weighmaster arrived with a certified scale. Estimates circulated around the crowd. Some thought it would fall just short of 1,000 pounds while others were certain it would make the mark. Damon himself made a guess of 1,040 after staring at the fish on the ride in from Atlantis. Everyone underestimated.
As the fish hung and the scale settled, the weighmaster announced the weight of 1,260 pounds and a cheer erupted from the crowd. A Massachusetts Grander, and a massive one at that.
Sacco’s marlin crushed the previous Massachusetts State Record of 873 pounds caught in 2015. It is the largest marlin ever caught on the East Coast (North Carolina is the closest with a 1,228-pounder) and is only 142 pounds shy of the IGFA World Record Atlantic Blue Marlin.
After weighing the fish, the crew removed the head, which is destined for the Pelagic Fisheries Lab of UMaine, where they will examine the otoliths to determine the age of the great fish. Meat was distributed among the crew and crowd, and Damon headed off to prepare for his next offshore trip.
