Over time, I’ve been lucky sufficient to expertise some actually cool moments fishing the surf. I’ve additionally been fortunate sufficient to satisfy and fish with some actually educated anglers. I imagine it’s a standard false impression that larger fish and particularly [today] larger halibut may be caught solely in deeper waters on far casts. On this article I’ll be telling the story of a latest surf fishing session that resulted in some very nice catches actually near shore in shallow water.
I’ll be doing my finest to inform this story in a means that elicits the important thing studying factors as to make it instructional and relevant to future techniques.
Surf Fishing Circumstances
It was late February and I made a decision to go surf fishing for halibut with a buddy of mine. We hit the sand round 3pm and started testing the waters. The tide was falling till round 4pm and we had till round 6ish earlier than daylight would fade away.
The surf was small and winds weren’t a problem. Skies have been principally cloudy/overcast for the night and kelp situations have been extraordinarily manageable. Backside line… every part regarded good.
Gear and Sort out
My setup for the day was the same old proven under.
My actual lure selection was a 4.75 inch pearl flash biospawn paired with a 5/0 Gamakatsu 1/8 weighted swimbait hook. This was Texas rigged with a 1/4 oz bullet weight.
The Story Of The Session
As we arrived on the sandy shoreline, we started scanning the waters for notable construction and any zones value focusing on. We’re sometimes searching for sandy troughs and holes or laborious construction created by reefs and rocks.
Earlier than we might develop a radical evaluation of the seashore in entrance of us, a authorized halibut breached the floor and splashed again into the water. If that wasn’t an indication we’d be in for an superior session, I don’t know what’s. Danny wasted no time, making his first forged, and inside moments, his line went taut. A fast struggle later, he beached the primary authorized of the session – a halibut measuring 23.75 inches. The tone was set.
If The Chew Dies… Transfer On
Danny continued casting, touchdown a shorter specimen in the identical promising spot. After these two fish, the chew appeared to gradual, so we determined to discover additional down the seashore, in quest of some new zones.
We stumbled throughout what appeared to be some attention-grabbing construction. The waters have been calm and shallow behind what gave the impression to be a little bit of a rock ledge.
From dialog with some skilled fishing buddies of mine, I’ve heard the larger halibut will typically spend a lot of their time in shallower waters. I’ve caught huge halibut in shallow waters earlier than, however this was one to recollect.
Facet notice
I forged my line, let my lure sink to the underside, and started reeling. As I continued my retrieve, I felt a refined bump, adopted by a momentary snag and launch. “Was {that a} chew?… maybe I bumped a rock.”
When my lure crept nearer to me and I lastly caught a glimpse of it, I slowed my retrieve to examine the way it was swimming and if any vegetation may be caught to it. All of a sudden, a shadow loomed in my peripheral view, and simply as I spotted that shadow was really a good-sized halibut, it engulfed my lure.
I set the hook with precision, bracing myself for the following battle. The fish took off, participating my drag. Between some stable runs and sketchy headshakes, I performed it as easily as attainable fearing a pulled hook.
Specializing in the construction in entrance of me and utilizing the little water motion there was to my benefit, I maneuvered the fish over the rock ledge and onto the mushy sand.
Danny was between 20-30 yards down the seashore from me now. I waved him down for a fast measurement, snapped a photograph, and we set her free. She taped in at 26-inches and he or she stuffed out each little bit of her size.
The Fish That Would Cap Off The Session
It had been a heck of a day to this point, however our journey was removed from over. We wandered additional alongside the seashore, exploring new zones in quest of a monster. Alongside the best way, we landed a handful of assorted species, from rockfish to calico bass, and even to a shock cabezon.
Because the solar started to set, we labored our means again to the shallower part the place I’d landed my 26-inch halibut. I started strolling towards the water as Danny made his first forged into the zone. Earlier than I might even moist my line, Danny’s rod bent with the load of one other stable fish.
This one was huge although… larger than mine.
After the primary few runs had subsided, he started to again pedal, navigating the construction as to not get snagged. Pulling the fish from deeper water into shallower water, and finally onto the sand, the dimensions of the fish appeared to develop exponentially. It regarded large.
We snagged a fast measurement and I took a pair photographs. At 28.25 inches in size, she was chunky. Higher but, and he or she’d reside to see one other day and develop even chunkier.
