Angler hooks fish... ends up face to face with massive crocodile

 
Surprise: the fisherman hauls in a little more than he bargained for (Picture: Ben Stack)
Sebastian Mann25 March 2015
WEST END FINAL

Get our award-winning daily news email featuring exclusive stories, opinion and expert analysis

I would like to be emailed about offers, event and updates from Evening Standard. Read our privacy notice.

These pictures show the terrifying moment an Australian angler hooked a fish and nearly pulled in a crocodile.

Ben Stack, from Queensland in north east Australia, assumed his catch had snagged his line under a log when he noticed the unusually heavy strain.

But what emerged from beneath the murky water was much more frightening.

The fisherman, who runs the Cape York Guide to Explore, Hunt and Fish Facebook page, wrote in a post yesterday: "Leaning over the side of the boat, hand over hand, I began pulling the leader in.

"By this stage, I was expecting to see a large branch or log come to the surface from under my boat. The water was a bit murky so I was really hanging over the side to get a good look."

Fright: The crocodile's head appears just beneath the surface (Picture: Ben Stack)

He continued: "What took place in the next few seconds felt like a lifetime ... I lifted the leader some more and leaned over further to see what the fish was hooked up on.

"It was at this moment, I realised I was staring eye to eye with a solid salt water crocodile. We were face to face and no more than 20 inches apart."

He said the shock of the incident caused him to fall backwards into the boat. But it did not stop him from snapping some photos of the large reptile.

He added: "I didn’t think anybody was going to believe me. Thankfully these pictures had turned out."

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in