Fishing tips...Fish coming off hook

[islandguy2]

I went fishing around the dana point area christmas eve in perfect conditions. I had two 7 foot rods with 40lb braid and 40 lb fluoro carbon leaders, fishing with anchoives and dines... Me and my brother had about 6 to 7 combined calico and sand bass on the boat by the end of the day all released even the legals....but my question is about the 4 times we hooked up with something massive and each time we got an empty hook back... two of the 4 fights were 45 minute fights and then BAM, line comes up with evrything intact...I dont know what fish we were fighting, but it didnt move side to side just stright down , slow pulling ....
Were we not trusting the rod and reel enough and 45 minutes is too much time or was i not using the right hooks..(octopus hooks) maybe I should only use circle hooks???...I was expecting the line broken after a long fight but not the hook back intact FOUR TIMES in a row...it was like we kept getting another chance at this fish 4 times...please give me some info if you have it I want my revenge on what ever it was.....Does it matter how long the fight is because I thought I should just let it go for hours tiring it self out...thanks in advance for any tips...

[salmotrutta]

wow, I would go back and throw the tackle box at 'em

[exfactor]

The longer your on a fish, the more likely the hook will pull. The hole the hook makes in the mouth gets bigger and bigger, and the right head shake is bye bye. Also, work angles on the fish when you are fighting him. When he's pointed away, not much you can do. When he's comin towards you, make him pay. Lost alot of fish in my life from just what your implying.

[islandguy2]

so I should just trust the line and rod and pull it up no matter how hard its fighting?? might as well i guess if I keep getting my hook back.

[smokehound]

From your description, you were hooking into Batrays, Shovelnoses, or Diamond Stringrays.

However, batrays give brutal runs, so i'm guessing you were hooked into Diamonds.

I've seen a few MASSIVE diamonds just chilling nearby Dana Wharf.

[DockRat]

What kind of bait did you use ?


However, batrays give brutal runs, so i'm guessing you were hooked into Diamonds.

I've seen a few MASSIVE diamonds just chilling nearby Dana Wharf.

Diamonds ? Don't recall ever seeing one ?

Could be White Sea Bass. They have soft mouths and pull out easy, but at 45 min sounds more like a Stingray.

http://i22.photobucket.com/albums/b323/reefisher/Carnival%20Spirit%2012-6-08/100_0281.jpg

The diamond stingray is found in the eastern Pacific Ocean from southern California to northern Chile, as well as around the Galápagos and Hawaiian Islands; it is very abundant around Baja California and in the Gulf of California. At the northern and southern extremes of its range, it is generally only present during periods of suitably warm water brought about by El Niño.

A bottom-dwelling inhabitant of inshore waters, the diamond stingray favors sandy or muddy bottoms, often near rocky reefs or kelp forests. Off southern California, it usually occurs from the intertidal zone to a depth of 7 m (23 ft) during the summer, shifting to depths of 13–18 m (43–59 ft) during late fall and winter.[1] For unknown reasons, it prefers to overwinter in kelp forests rather than sandy flats.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diamond_stingray

[fish4keep]

IMHO, I don't think it's a ray. Usually when you hook into a big ray, they'll take you for a ride not. They'll swim out while staying on the bottom not just stay down. I think you guys were hooked up into some big black sea bass. Dana is also known for blacks because of the kelps around there. There's not much you can do except for maybe changing the hooks to circle like you said. Trust your gear and let it do it's thing. If you don't throw it away and get something you do trust. I haven't hooked into any big blacks but thats my $.02 worth............

Edit...
Also I think you meant to say Butterfly ray????????????????

[rickk71]

Take a gun next time...lol

[LA Smoker]

Are you sure it was a fish? Any headshakes or tail beats? If it was slow pulling up and down, Im thinking kelp... which has been known to fool people into thinking they're hooked up. I for one have been guilty to that in the past. Remember kelp can make intermittent "runs" too.