A Corpus Christi fishing guide scored big for his clients after helping them hook a 10-foot-8-inch hammerhead shark near Bob Hall Pier on Tuesday, September 23. Tristan Bardin, also known as Sharka Brah, told MySA it was the third-largest hammerhead shark his business has caught this year.
Bardin, 29, dropped the line 500 yards away from the shore and landed the beauty around 7 p.m. It took about an hour to reel in the shark, he said. It ended up being his clients’ first time catching a hammerhead shark. He said he was not expecting to catch a 10-foot hammerhead.
“There are sharks out here all year, really, but the big ones kind of come and go at certain times of the year,” Bardin, who has been a fishing guide for the past five years, said. “I was not expecting to catch a 10-foot hammer yesterday. We were looking more for a tiger shark, but you really never know what you’re gonna catch.”
With his fishing business, the 10-foot hammerhead wasn’t the largest Bardin had reeled in. He also hooked a 13-footer and an 11-foot hammerhead this year, he said.
“It was a special catch, because that shark is the 10th shark over 10 feet this year that we’ve got,” Bardin said. “I’ve been trying to get that 10th one for quite a while now, like six. Ten over 10 is a new record for me.”
As he does with all his catches, the hammerhead was safely released, Bardin said. You can find his fishing guide service on Facebook at Sharka Brah.
Great hammerheads are large, even by shark standards, growing to more than 15 feet long, according to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. Large as they are, these sharks can turn quickly with the help of their broad, flat heads. The shark’s eyes and nostrils are at the outer ends of its head, making it better to see and smell food.