A great white shark that can grow up to 13 meters long was caught on a beach in Florida by a professional shark fisherman and his clients.
John McLean, a boat captain who operates Big John Shark Fishing Adventures, Pensacola’s only land-based shark fishing charter, ran a 24-hour charter in February that caught and released white sharks.
McLean told Fox News Digital that he and his clients were dressed in great white on Sunday, February 12th around 2pm EST.
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The shark was caught off Pensacola Beach, the same beach where McLean caught a great white shark with a group of seven fishermen in 2021. Instead of using a boat, this time McLean and his clients cast the line from shore.
John McLean, charter boat captain and owner of Big John Shark Fishing Adventures, told Fox News Digital that he and a friend led four clients shark fishing in February 2023, which resulted in the catch of a 13-foot great white shark. Pensacola Beach, Florida on the ocean. . (John McLean)
“This shark was caught 800 yards from the beach,” McLean wrote in an email to Fox News Digital.
A “massive tuna head” was used as bait and McLean said he believes this choice of bait helped them catch a large shark.
“I had four clients put off the shark ride and I even had my friend, Capt. David Miller, help me proofread the letter,” he wrote.
The shark was released within 1 minute and 20 seconds and was never removed from the water.
“David was my first friend who got me into shark fishing,” McLean continued. “He’s a full-time boat fishing captain based in Pensacola, and he helps me with my shark tickets during the off-season months.”
It took the group of six about an hour and seven minutes to catch the great white shark, McLean recalled.
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“It was the second longest fight I’ve had since the beach,” he said.
McLean used a specialized shark fishing rod, shark rig and braided fishing line to catch the great white shark.
John McLean, charter boat captain and owner of Big John Shark Fishing Adventures, said the great white shark his clients caught off Pensacola Beach in February 2023 measured 13 feet. (John McLean)
“My fishing gear was pushed to its limits, but this great white shark was up to the task,” explains McLean. “Because I was using the right equipment, we were able to make a quick release. Shark fishing and conservation starts with using the right equipment.”
McLean noted that February’s great white shark was freed in 1 minute and 20 seconds and never made it out of the water. Photos and videos of the shark were taken on portable sports cameras.
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“I didn’t measure the shark,” McLean wrote. “(But,) from the 12-foot sharks my clients have landed, I knew this was something bigger than what I had seen before.”
McLean told Fox News Digital that targeting and catching sharks from a boat is usually easier, but the size of a large shark can make it more difficult compared to land-based shark fishing.
“It was the second longest fight I’ve had since the beach,” John McLean told Fox News Digital. (John McLean)
In open water, sharks are able to swim, which makes capture and release more difficult, according to McLean.
“The great white shark that my clients caught was never going to get off the boat,” McLean wrote. “My clients boasted this white shark with a fight time of just over an hour, but if they tried to catch a shark of that size and weight from a boat, it would have been a five-hour fight.”
It took the group of six about an hour and seven minutes to catch the great white shark, McLean recalled.
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McLean notes that it is “impossible” for fishermen to “target a specific species of shark”.
“I wasn’t targeting great white sharks on this card. I was trying to get my client to catch the biggest shark possible,” he explained. “It’s very rare to catch a great white in this area, especially off the Gulf Coast.”
Before McLean opened Big John Shark Fishing Adventures, he was a professional hockey player.
“I grew up in Minnesota and had no experience with saltwater fishing until I played professional hockey in Florida in 2017,” McLean wrote. “I pursued a career in shark fishing after connecting with some amazing friends, Henry Everett and David Miller, who introduced me to the sport.”
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McLean founded Big John Shark Fishing Adventures in 2021, and his business reportedly took off when a group of his clients made headlines for catching a 12-foot great white shark off Pensacola Beach.
“I think all my clients who have been on charters with me and recreational shark anglers are drawn to sharks and the sport because of the 1975 Steven Spielberg movie ‘Jaws,'” McLean told Fox News Digital. customers have the opportunity to make the catches of a lifetime.”
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McLean’s shark fishing trips can be viewed on YouTube, Instagram and Facebook under the Big John Shark Fishing Adventures account.
Cortney Moore is an associate writer for the Fox News Digital Lifestyle team.