ILWACO, Wash. — On August 15, 2026, a group of off-duty law enforcement officers from Oregon set out for a routine day of trolling for albacore. Instead, angler Tim Durheim ended up battling an ultra-rare Pacific Northwest billfish that is set to rewrite the state record books.
The Unexpected Hookup
Fishing aboard the charter vessel F/V Four Sea'Sons with Captains Robbie Norman and Danny Schenk, the crew was 45 miles offshore over 4,000 feet of water. They had already put together a solid morning, boating a few bluefin tuna and over a dozen albacore.
Right around 1:00 p.m., the trip took a wild turn. Capt. Schenk spotted a fish "greyhounding" across the surface just as one of their trolling lures got absolutely hammered.
A Smoking Reel and a 10-Mile Chase
The striped marlin dumped 80-pound braided line off a Shimano Tekota reel mounted to a light-action rod—tackle that was severely undergunned for a fast, long-range billfish. The ensuing 45-minute fight was pure offshore chaos:
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The Danger Zone: The frantic fish made a run that narrowly missed the boat's rudder and propeller.
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The Chase: To prevent Durheim from getting completely spooled, Capt. Norman threw the boat in reverse, aggressively backing down on the fish for nearly 10 miles.
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The Heat: The Tekota reel was screaming so fast and running so hot that the crew debated pouring water over it to cool the drag down.
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The Twist: Mid-battle, the braided line wrapped around the marlin's tail, turning the fight into an agonizing tug-of-war for Durheim before it finally slipped free.
Shattering a Two-Decade Record
By the time they made the three-hour run back to the Ilwaco marina, word had already spread. A crowd, along with Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife biologists, was waiting at the docks to positively identify and verify the rare catch.
"We all knew how rare and big of a catch a striped marlin off the Washington coast was, and everyone was just ecstatic. Adrenaline was pumping high, and everyone was euphoric," said Capt. Schenk.
On the certified scales at Sportsmen's Canning, the 9-foot marlin officially weighed in at 151 pounds. This easily crushes the standing 134-pound Washington state record set by Phil Wolfe in 2005.
The anglers took the processed meat back home to Oregon, while Capt. Norman plans to commission a replica mount for his living room to commemorate the ultimate offshore surprise.
What is the most unexpected species you have ever hooked into while targeting something completely different?
