You've Got to See What He Caught in Raritan Bay

Middletown, NJ - Eddie Grant has been fishing in Raritan Bay his entire life, ever since his father taught him how.

But he's never reeled in anything quite like he did this past Sunday afternoon. Grant, 45, a resident of the Leonardo section of Middletown, was fishing just off Keyport on his friend's boat. That's when he reeled in this fluke. It had a large bite mark and a chunk taken out of its one side. Miraculously, the bite was completely healed and the fish was in otherwise perfect health.

"We were all shocked and could not believe what he looked like. But it was not a fresh bite," Grant told Patch. "He was healthy and healed — just missing a large part of his body."

He thinks a bluefish or a shark may have taken a snap at it, but the wily fish managed to get away. Grant tossed the 18.5 inch fluke back into Raritan Bay, deciding it had gone through enough and deserved to live. Grant was fishing with his father, Edward Grant, Sr., and friends Doug Corbit and Bob Soscia at the time.

"I was just going to put him back in the water, but my friend Doug said let's get a picture. When I released him he took off like a rocket," said Grant. "Mother Nature is incredible and he must be a tough fish. We all thought it was the right thing to do to let him live."

He said he's seen the health of Raritan Bay come back tenfold in his time fishing these waters.

"I have fished in the bay most of my life. My father taught me everything. Fluke is what most people fish for in the summer," he said. "There are more in the bay this year than I have ever seen. There is something to be said for conservation."

All photos used with permission from Edward Grant