SPRUCE HEAD — Every once in a while, a guy just gets lucky. To catch a whopper of a halibut — fun. To catch two such whoppers a day apart — great. To catch one of those exceptional creatures as your elementary school-age daughter watches — out of this world.

Erik Waterman, a Spruce Head fisherman, motored his Sea Star vessel away from shore May 17 with no expectations beyond spending the day with his 10-year-old daughter, Abby, while fishing.

Little did he know, an eventual tug on his ground line at sea would exercise not just his hand muscles, but his heart strings as well.

Waterman, Abby and Waterman’s sternman rose early Sunday morning to take advantage of the nice, calm day. Abby likes to do the work involved in fishing, as opposed to Waterman’s older daughter, Leah, who likes to be captain. (Leah missed out on Sunday’s adventure due to a dance recital.)

In the first trawl of the day, Waterman felt a halibut on the line. The line felt good, but heavy. He continued to haul the line by hand while the boat continued to turn, so the fish wouldn't go underneath the hull. When the fish neared the boat, the sternman took the line while Waterman reached for the gaff.

The fish went under the boat, out of sight, then came back. Abby, standing in the stern, was told to look out while Waterman gaffed the fish and hauled it into the vessel.

Abby was pretty impressed, according to Waterman. This was the first time she’d seen a 68-pound, 55-inch-long fish. 

“I’ve caught bigger fish, but that by far was the best time I had catching a fish,” Waterman said as he sipped a coffee in a local café. “Because she was there. On our way in she said, ‘I’ll never forget this day, Daddy.’”

The words are sweet, but so is the subtle repetition of history. Waterman said his grandmother also accompanied her father while he trawled.

Catching the halibut on Sunday ought to be a once-in-a-lifetime experience. At least that is what one would believe, until Waterman caught a bigger one the very next day. The halibut hauled in on Monday weighed 106 pounds, one pound more than his personal best.

A fisherman for all seasons, Waterman has fished for lobsters, scallops, shrimp, halibut and sea urchins. He calls this “fisherman’s ADD.”

“It’s exciting. The anticipation of what you might have on the trawls. Just think about that tug. The next trawl you might have one. Feeling something on there. Feeling the tug.”

Ever since he was 18 years old, he has yearned to land those 250-pounders he’s heard so much about. He’s asked many questions of the old-timers, added his own twists, and continues to search.

He also admits that success in fishing is 80 percent luck.

“I think a lot of it is right time, right place and having a hungry fish nearby,” he said.

One of Waterman’s halibut has been filleted and sold, the other one went to a buyer in Boston, but, as fishermen do, Waterman said he made sure to thank each fish for giving of itself.