Kingsize kingy caught off Kāpiti Island

Lee Claxton, pictured with Reece Claxton, with a kingfish caught off Kāpiti Island. Photo / Karl Webber

After a long spell fishing off Kapiti Island, Lee and Reece Claxton were about to call it a day, when one of their fishing rods "went off".

Something had taken a liking to the live jack mackerel attached to an 80lb braid.

Reece handed the rod to Lee who would begin a very physical battle to land a whopping 28.38kg kingfish late on Wednesday afternoon on their boat called Fish n Chips.

Lee Claxton and her kingfish.

Lee initially thought it was a barracuda but quickly knew it was something a lot larger.

"It was full on for about 10 minutes.

"You think you've got control of it and then it takes off again.

"Reece just kept talking me through it and saying what to do with the rod, and not to lose the rod, which he was worried about.

"It was perserverance, that's for sure, and determination.

"I was so close to giving up but I thought 'no I've got the expert beside me, I've got to keep going'.

"You put your whole body on the line.

Reece was manoeuvring the boat, offering advice and encouragement as well as filming the action live on Facebook, while Lee was "holding onto the rod for grim death and thinking I wasn't going to let go and let the fish beat me".

"There was a fair bit of effort involved."

Lee Claxton, with husband Reece Claxton, with a kingfish caught off Kāpiti Island.

Lee, whose biggest kingfish before then was 13.6kg, said the whole experience was "was pretty amazing".

Reece, who targets kingfish when he goes fishing, said Lee's effort was "excellent" especially as kingfish were a "tough fighting fish".

- photos by Karl Webber