Landing a halibut without a gaff?

[todd one]

Originally Posted by Old Man in the Sea

This special technique works really well especially for big halibut. You can then slide a heavy white rope through their gills and pull them on the deck for a quick thumbs up picture before releasing them back into the water...It only works if you have a flat surface to place the white belly to lay on, so it doesn't work well from a kayak...I learned this trick as a kid catching blue belly lizards as a kid in Ventura...

It look like that thing would have Took you for a swim if you tried to pull him in with a rope.