Barstool Outdoors Episode 4: The Monsters Of Montauk
One day in June of last year, I had a STRONG hankering to finally scratch the itch I’d had my entire life by catching a Thresher or Mako Shark. I’ve been fishing the Florida Keys since I could barely walk and caught hundreds of Bulls, Lemons, Blacktips, and other types of Sharks in Florida, but had never been lucky enough to tangle with the mythical Thresher or Mako. After moving to the Northeast a little while ago, I couldn’t stop thinking about the fact that I was closer than ever to making this dream a reality. I put out a tweet to see if I could get the ball rolling…
I got a few DMs suggesting that I talk to a guy named “Mako Mike” and that he was the guy for the job. I contacted him and as it turns out, Capt. Mikey Finiguerra is an absolute stud. We hit it off quickly and agreed to help with the cause. As it turns out, while we were filming the pilot in Islamorada he was on a shoot nearby in Marathon. On his way back up to Miami he stopped by and walked out on the dock with me. Sometimes nature has a weird sense about it and as we stepped onto the dock a big Lemon Shark swam right up to the chum bag and was HOT. I had been sitting there all day with not a ton of action and somehow Mikey brought some magic within 30 seconds. I had a good feeling about this relationship.
We set off to Montauk on a Friday afternoon and I could not have been more excited. Growing up, I’d read so much about the legendary fisherman of this area and specifically the one and only Frank Mundus. My mind was racing at the weekend ahead. After we put our stuff at the Airbnb, we threw caution to the wind and went out to eat at a cool Mexican restaurant in Montauk to unwind after the train ride. While I had to fight the urge to join in on the party atmosphere of hundreds of people flocking to the bars downtown, I was still so excited that I ordered a few margaritas and a shitload of Mexican street corn. They were serving it in little cups and every single time I would finish one the waiter would be standing there and I would order another one. Its like when you try to take one last handful of chips, sometimes the train is just on the tracks.
After a 4:50 AM alarm wakeup, I was wide awake and so was my stomach. Anyone who has been up for an early morning trip knows that there is nothing better than being able to go to the bathroom before a long day on the water and nothing WORSE than not being able to but having a bad stomach ache. Its just unfinished business right from the jump. We got to the dock and set off. The crew was as solid as it gets with Mikey, as well as Capt. Krista and Sam Root from Mustad. All of them have worked on shows and fished all around the world so I knew we were as fully loaded as it gets to capture some magic.
As soon as we got out there and set up shop to start chumming, I knew I was in for it. The diesel fumes and chum block mixed with a heavy dose of Mexican Street Corn and Margaritas multiplied by the rolling waves was GAME OVER. Chunks city. Some people would say I was seasick but any veteran knows I was just selflessly creating a bigger chumslick to ensure that we’d attract a big Thresher. That’s just selfless team play right there.
We had good luck on getting bites and after one disappointing pulled hook, were able to finally get a gorgeous fish up to the boat and I couldn’t have been more elated. The Thresher Shark is one of the coolest animals in the entire world. That tail is so hard to wrap your mind around when you look at it. It defies every single thing you’ve seen up to that point in the ocean. They are so unbelievably strong, I was extremely impressed while fighting it. Zero doubt in my mind it is one of the top 5 strongest fish I’ve ever had the chance to tie into. Sturgeon or Sawfish type of strength combined with athletic runs and jumps. What an incredible creature.
The Mako on the other hand is spectacular in its own fashion. As crazy as the Thresher’s tail is, the Mako’s mouth might be just as crazy. Giant slender teeth come out of every single place you could possibly imagine and are so insanely sharp. The entire Shark is streamlined in every way to be a biological torpedo. The fish that it hunts are some of the fastest things that swim on the entire planet and the Mako is even faster. Their pointy nose is insanely specialized for high speed pursuit. This shark has been my phone background ever since and I still look at it and just stare all of the time. One other note on the Mako, the color of the skin in real life is absolutely INCREDIBLE. There is such an insanely deep blue/purple iridescence to the skin and whether it shows up or not on the video, when you are face to face it is mesmerizing. I am addicted to them and just typing these words about them now makes me want to see one so goddamn bad. It was also special to be able to tag this Shark for NOAA’s Apex Predators Program and it would be so cool to get a recapture some time down the road on a healthy fish that has grown up to be a giant.
To be able to go to Montauk and catch a Thresher and Mako in back to back days was legitimately a dream come true. Its a testament to Mikey being nails and knowing the waters of Montauk like the back of his hand and probably a little good fortune added in. Thank you to Mikey, his legendary dad Stan, Sam Root, Capt. Krista, and Nick Lettire for making this episode possible. It was an incredible experience and I cannot wait to go back.
