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Thread: Surf Fishing for Halibut 101

  1. #21
    Join Date
    Nov 2009
    Location
    Rat Beach
    Posts
    7,272

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    Nice write up. Just wanted to add another method. Live smelt. Couple years ago I was going to the Redondo Short Pier after work and useing a sabiki rig with a 1/8" piece of squid tenacle on it and bread for chum. Catck 6 to 8 smelt and put them in a 5 gal bucket then go to your spot. No airiator needed for smelt just dump out some water and add fresh every hour or so. I have had smelt last over 6 hours with no airiator.

    Having had good results using live smelt and landing a 26" butt this way.

    Also works good on the jetties but you will need a net. Trying to land a halibut on a jetty with no net usually ends up being crab food when dropped in the rocks.
    DR

  2. #22
    Join Date
    Jan 2007
    Location
    SoCal
    Posts
    1,638

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    I've heard that smelt make a decent live bait, but since I am artificial only, unless I'm on the party boats, I didn't mention it. I don't use it because it would be impossible to transport it and carry it around with me using my fishing style. You can't really cover water quickly to find active fish with live bait, and that's critical to surf fishing for halibut. I also prefer a more active fishing style, and unless they're boiling around the boat, sitting in place and finessing a live bait isn't exactly active.

    It is a good thing to keep in mind if you're fishing off of jetties though. Long Beach at 72nd street is where I have seen people have a lot of luck with live smelt, but I am sure they would be productive anywhere. Grunion are another prime live bait to use when they are running. Lots of large halibut, WSB, and calicos have fallen prey to a live grunion in the middle of the night during a run. Frozen grunion are supposed to be good too since fish love grunion in any form. It's a different style of fishing and one I am not familiar with, so thank you for sharing your experience with it.

  3. #23
    Join Date
    Jan 2010
    Location
    Alhambra, California
    Posts
    12

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    thanks a lot for all this useful info.. cant wait to go out and try it...

  4. #24
    Join Date
    Nov 2009
    Location
    Rat Beach
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  5. #25
    Join Date
    Mar 2009
    Location
    s.p
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    1,864

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    good bump
    Quote Originally Posted by DockRat View Post

  6. #26
    Join Date
    Aug 2009
    Location
    AV Ground
    Posts
    862

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    Great infor, can u use lure at night time for hali? Can they see?

    Thanks

  7. #27
    Join Date
    Aug 2006
    Location
    Anaheim, ca 92805
    Posts
    2,666

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    I like to use lighter line like 6-8lb pline or izor, even 20lb power pro with about ft of mono leader. For night time halis use dark colors or black baits, bigger baits also.

  8. #28
    Join Date
    Apr 2007
    Location
    Orange County
    Posts
    15,447

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    I want my first Halibut from the surf. . I know I will have to work for it and I will .Thanks for the info. & tips . I will put it to good use .

  9. #29

    Default Thanks for the info!

    Hi Marc,

    Great info! Thanks for writing such a detailed post!

    I just moved to the area (Irvine), and found this forum googling about local fishing. I have to admit that surf fishing (especially for halibut) has really captured my imagination, reading the reports from all the experienced surf fishermen on this forum makes me want to go hit the surf...

    I wanted to ask you a question about rod selection. I went out today and bought a Shimano Clarus 8-6 rod and a Shimano Sedona 4000FD reel. (I've never used baitcasting reels before, so I opted for the spinning setup).

    Then I got home and read YOUR post. Wish I found it earlier. Looks like the reel is WAY too big...AND the rod, which is a medium-light strength, medium-fast action rod, may not be suitable either. Only thing is I got the rod for a great price (less than $70), and I want to see if its usable at all? What do you think?

    Thanks in advance for your help!

    Regards,

    cactusfan

  10. #30
    Join Date
    Jan 2007
    Location
    SoCal
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    1,638

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    It's great that you want to get into surf fishing! That said, I would not recommend getting into halibut fishing right off the bat. Some people do have luck with it, but if you don't develop the basic skills of learning to read the surf you are in for a lot of frustration.

    I'd recommend trading in that Sedona 4000 for a 2500 first off. Fill it with 8lb Izorline XXX. That rod is a steelhead rod. Not suited to halibut fishing at all, but a very good perch and croaker rod. If you can get it in Medium then I would opt for that. Start out by fishing for surf perch and yellowfin croaker with a Carolina rig.

    http://fishingnetwork.net/forum4/sho...SURF-PERCH-101

    This post gives a lot more detail on the fundamentals of surf fishing, and was written by a now passed away friend who helped many get into surf fishing. It will explain everything you need to get started.

    Now, if you are determined to start out by targeting halibut, I would return the rod. It's too light powered to throw LCs even though it's mod-fast, and mod-fast is too slow to dropshot with even though it's got a lighter power. Even though you got it for a good price, it will cause you to lose halibut if you start fishing for them seriously. You then have to pick whether you want to focus on dropshotting and small soft plastics or throwing the Lucky Craft and other hardbaits. Two totally different rods for each application, and I go into the details of each in the article. Then, find a rod in your budget that fits the necessary criteria, and start hitting the beach!

    Let me know if you've got other questions!

    Marc

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