Outdoors | Deep fishing can bring in some pretty hefty fish

When bottom fishing structure in 600 feet of water, there's a good chance big fish are going to be below. Reeling from that deep can be grueling when pounds of weight are needed to reach the bottom.

"It doesn't take that long to reel up, maybe 5 to 10 minutes," said deep-water angler Trever Flathman. "I use an Accurate ATD-30T with twin gears. The first 50 feet I use low speed to get fish off the bottom, then I use high speed after that."

By hand cranking in such depths, Flathman may soon find himself in the Florida state records, something that would not happen if he was using electrics.

Flathman, the owner of Florida Discount Signs, joined friend Capt. Jason Boyll for a run to the depths aboard Boyll's 33-foot Hydra-Sport with triple 300 Suzuki engines. The crew ran about 120 miles west of Sarasota despite the 5- to 8-foot sea conditions, much higher than the predicted 2-foot seas. When they reached their spot in 600 feet of water, they dropped baits below to the hard bottom with 10- to 15-foot peaks for giant groupers like warsaws, Kitty Mitchells, snowies and more.

"The wind was blowing opposite of the tide, so it helped us sit in one spot. I hooked a big grouper and was able to work it up," Flathman said.

"It was a big Kitty Mitchell. When we got it to the top we didn't think much of it, maybe 30 to 35 pounds was guessed. I took a picture and put it in the fish box. It wasn't until later I really learned how big it was."

Flathman said big Kitty Mitchells are common for them. When he arrived back at the dock, an onlooker informed them just how big the fish may be.

"He told us to weigh it. It was over 43 pounds. The state record is 42 pounds and 6 ounces. That's when we knew we might have something."

From there Flathman began the process of submitting his state record. He had to get a certified scale, have the weight notarized, and get two other anglers who were present to verify the catch and weighing of the grouper. A fish biologist will also need to verify the species, and when everything is complete Flathman will be in the state record books.

For those interested in seeing big fish up close, next weekend's 33rd Annual Crosthwait Fishing Tournament should see big fish brought back to the scale. With the potential for good weather, offshore teams leaving after Friday's noon captains' meeting will fish deep into the Gulf of Mexico in search of the biggest fish possible.

Inshore boats will leave from the Manatee River on Saturday after the ceremonial 7:30 a.m. bimini start.

Fishing will end at noon on Sunday, with offshore boats weighing in following the conclusion of the inshore teams at the Bradenton Yacht Club.

With the excellent fishing in recent weeks, it should take a large catch in all divisions to bring home a crown.

This story was originally published May 7, 2016 at 11:59 PM with the headline "Outdoors | Deep fishing can bring in some pretty hefty fish ."