halibut anglers!

[chomponthis]

hey i just started fishing for halibuts, so far ive only caught two 1 16 incher and 1 7 in. i was wondering wut kind of baits to use and when is it a good time to catch them?
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[tubeN2]

They are good to catch from the incoming tide up to the start of outgoing tide.

I like to throw Krocs from the shore or light green plastics on a 3/4oz leadhead.

If you have live Sardines or Anchovies it would be better and put on a slider.[cool]
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[chomponthis]

does any body else fish for halibut? i was wondering if grunions are good to use because the grunion runs is gonna start pretty soon.
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[JapanRon]

Hi there Chomponthis,

Silver Kroc's have been good to me. I've got some fluroscent pearl tape to stick on them too.

JapanRon
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[tubeN2]

Grunion would be very effective for the Halibuts but they are against the law to use for fishing while the grunion run is going on.

I will generally catch grunion and save them for the non run times and fish them frozen.

You are allowed to fish for Halibut during the run but not with the grunion.

Just like JapanRon said, the chrome Kroc with white pearlescent sticker or even the prismatic sticker on them is a killer lure to use and is legal during the Grunion run or anytime.

There are also many plastics now that resemble the Grunion. Those are also effective and legal to use during the Grunion run or anytime.
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[chomponthis]

grunion run last night was great lots of grunions but i didnt have any luck in catching any halibuts with my silver kroc or my baits . but catching frunions was fun tho.
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[tubeN2]

What beach were you fishing from?? We all know that the Halibut can be anywhere, but there are a few beaches that the Halibut fishing is a little more exceptional.[cool]
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[Tarpon4me]

I wish we had Halibut over on this side of the US. If you get the chance, import a few over next time you catch a few small ones and i'll send you something of ours back. [laugh] I wouldn't know what to think catching a Halibut. I'm use to these 3 and 4 pound flounder, if I reeled up a 150 pound flounder, I don't know what i'd do. Probably stare at it for a while, pinch myself a few times, drink a cold beer[cool]
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[chomponthis]

hahaha i was fishing at seal beach. and ill try to catch some halibuts for ya
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[tubeN2]

[]If you were on the beach, then you were not too far from the favored spot. Have you been to the BigFish Tackle store over there yet?? It's on Seal Beach Blvd and PCH.

1/2 block south of there is a bridge. Go across the bridge and down to the slough on the left hand side. You can nail them from there to 1/2 mile East of there in the slough.[cool]
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[tubeN2]

Perhaps we can work out a trade. We will trade you some nice Halibut for some nice Bull Sharks.
Here is one of the nice "Butts" that I caught last year. This little guy was only 32inches long and weighed around 22lbs.
[inline Halibutwof.JPG]

Very good eating though and excellent for the beer batter recipes.
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[Tarpon4me]

I wish we had bull sharks as far north as SC. You have to go just a little bit farther down the east coast for those guys. Now we've got spinner sharks. Those are some fun dudes to strap a hook into. They got their name honest, they make spectacular spinning leaps into the air. They are equally as challenging to land though, they will shurely test out your rigging skill level and find any flaws. One fatal mistake people make is using single strand wire, a mistake I use to make myself until about the 100th time of being broke off. They spin so often and upredictably, alot of times the single strand line just can't hack it. I tell ya, I wish I had all the money in rigs and equipment I lost or broke learning lessons. I could probably fly the members of BFT to Los Cabos for a 5 night vacation.
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[chomponthis]

i needa catch some that size
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[Tarpon4me]

At this point, i'm game for catching anything. I've struck out the last few trips, of course the conditions were all wrong and I half expected, but still; that eats on the moral. But, all those slow trips are going to make it worth while when that magic day of breaking the slump hits. Around here the fishing doesn't gradually get better, it jumps into butt kicking action right away. When they start up, it's all the way till the water cools off again.
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[tubeN2]

I would love to try some of those spinners. I imagine a heavy swivel could solve the problem with the wire twist.

I use the Spro 200lb heavy swivels when I am fishing for Thresher Sharks. They also have some acrobatics of thier own. They like to peel off about 200yds of line before making an areal acobatic move to tease you.

I will be in a Thresher Tournament and a Mako Shark Tournament this year. They are tons of fun.[cool]
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[chomponthis]

yea ive been to the big fish tackle store. so if i go down pch to seal beach blvd bft is on the right side i make a left and go over the brige how do the area look like? so i go check out that spot, thanx
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[tubeN2]

After you go over the bridge, hang a left right under it. You might want to go around the back side of the other buildings there. You will find a couple of small docks. The docks there are the best spot.

Play your Kroc from deep to shallow like you would an LMB in a lake in the morning. Watch the tides as well. Incoming tide does better. Then go back as the tide changes to out going.[cool]
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[Tarpon4me]

I put a ball bearing swivel on every rig I use, even on the end of my lures because of how much if frees the side to side movement. The sharks actually spin different directions each time, rapping the line around their bodies in different directions until it finally kinks up so bad it breaks. I've gotten back leaders that looked like an accordian. If they just leaped strait out of the water, single strand would be fine. Even pro shark hunters, they use super heavy gage braided steel cable, like what you would see on a truck wench for leader material. I rode along for a shark tournament out of Murrells inlet one year on the Silver Stallion. I wasn't involved, just a spectator, but it is no joke. I'm shure you know that if this won't be your first rodeo. Getting them to the boat and tag and release isn't too bad, i've done plenty of that, but you bring'em back in a tournament, and man-handling a 500+ pound fish is not for the faint of heart. I do my fair share of shark fishing, mostly tag and release unless I snag a small 3 or 4 footer, then he is going to be introduced to the grill. But I target the smaller sharks, in the 6 to 7 foot range. I don't think my poor old back could handle anything any bigger.
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[tubeN2]

I know what you mean about the braided steel. That is the leader material of my choice.

3 yrs ago, my 4th place, 580lb, Shortfin Mako was caught on 80lb mono with a 230lb braided steel leader. 10/0 Octopus hook with a live/injured trolling Pacific Mackerel.

1 1/2hours later, I had something to weigh in for the tourney.[cool]
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[Tarpon4me]

Still, if you landed a 580 lb mako with 80 lb test in under 3 hours, you're doing super good. You doing it in an 1 1/2 is outstanding. He wasn't still green? I guess that would make it interesting anyways. [cool] You've probably got an experianced crew as well, and that makes all the difference in the world. Alot of people don't realize the importance of a skilled crew: Captian, leader man, gaffer, angler, spotter. Without those key elements, landing big game just wouldn't happen. [laugh] Alot of people do double and sometimes triple duty. One guy might be the captain, leader man, and gaff man. But an experianced enough individual can get away with it; it's just a tad dangerous is all. But wrestling with large sharks isn't exactly the safest thing in the world, and it takes a "unique" angler to even attempt "hard" landing a large shark. But that's what makes us salty dawgs special I guess, we're willing to trade a few fingers to bring a trophy shark to the house. [sly]
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