The Alaska halibut is the world’s largest bottom fish. Halibut are a flatfish, which means that their eyes are both on the same side of their body. This enables them to lay in wait for their prey on the bottom of the ocean completely camouflaged by their mottled green top skin. The halibut swims with both of its eyes always pointed up, more like an eel than what most people think of a fish swimming. The makes for some amazing fights when reeling the fish in that can last for a half hour or longer. In fact, when extremely large halibut are caught, they need to be shot like a bear before its safe to bring them aboard the boat. If they were simply hauled up they could thrash around enough to toss someone overboard.
If you want to try your luck catching a halibut, they can be found in the waters off of the southern coast of Alaska. However, if you’re trying to find the best fishing, you can’t beat Homer or Cook Inlet. These two areas are the most productive fisheries in the world for halibut. Remember, the bag limit for Alaska halibut fishing is two per day. These fish have been known to swallow whole salmon, so if you’re planning on breaking the world record of 469 pounds make sure to do some extra curls before you go so you have the power to reel in your trophy catch.
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