Halibut Reports 2009 South Island

Make that 11. I am still waiting for my kayak sleigh ride. :D
 
good post wolf , I did a boat count at Constance Bank and as far as I could see with binos at the derby a few weeks ago. I counted 67 boats fishing for halibut with an average of 2 guys on board. If everyone gets their limit(didn't happen) thats 134 fish! multiply that over the whole coast for the recreational sector and you MAYBE have 1000 fish. I have seen One Commercial Hali boat get that in two sets! We shouldn't have to hide our catchs from public view because we are afraid of someone seeing we are half decent fisherman.
 
I'm with Wolf on this one. The number of boats out over the weekend was staggering. I remember guiding Constance in the late 90's (on the weekend to boot) and there would be little to no pressure out there. Hali fishing has become a major force down this way, but I'll tell you what, it sure seems to be the same old story; 10% of the guys are catching 90% of the fish. Add up all those boats and you will see that it does take alot of effort to see the numbers of fish we are talking about. Don't let the pics fool you. There are alot of man hours going on and like Roy says, it's small pockets where one or two boats will slay and guys only a few hundred yards away are going TKO.
 
7 boats at flemming coming in at 3:00 yesterday afternoon..... call it three guys per boat... 4 fish at the cleaning station total... like you say roy, some guys get em and some guys don't... that's why they call it fishing.
 
Vic/Sooke is not a for sure thing that you are going to get fish, they really move around from one area to the next, the pursuit is half the fun.
June 1st the majority move over and target Springs. The dogfish become thick in most areas wich takes the presure off the Hali.
October and November are great times to get out between Blows to get time in on the water. A real shame to lose that in 09 with rumour of a August closure looming.

As far as i am concerned, the time to bonk some flatties for the freezer is now on the South Island, don't feel guilty!

www.tailspincharters.com
 
Wolf, by no means do I have a problem with guys hitting the old brag board.. That is what a site like this is for. All I was trying to get at is there are many an angler, myself included, that are pissed with the way our sportfishery, commercial sportfishery, and commercial alike are being mismanaged by D.F.O.
If we as anglers, beit, for pleasure or professionally we have to decide if protesting these actions(such as this friday) will outway the lucky anglers that do have success and show the world wide net that they are doing that well on the water..
I guess ranting will only get one so far, but up against our illustrious govt. that we have here in Canada, we are most definately s@#t outta luck.. Look at the mess with the so called salmon treaty between the states and us.. We too will only get as far..-cheers dirty[B)]
 
Heres one for ya! I am NOT a newbie to fishing the south island for hali! I have spent over 65 hours and my grandfather and Dad have spent over 100 hours this year and guess how many hali we've landed? Oh ya thats right not a single one! So all you guys getting 4-5 a day! One day will be my day! i spent the derby weekend 8 hours each day and lost one! now it could be my equipment is not to standards, but i sure do believe it only takes one well placed anchor drop, and "UR IN THE MONEY"!!!!

-My 2 Cents for the day...

-Steve
 
It's like Steelheading in many respects. Lets not forget, they are not difficult to catch if they are there. Too many guys( including myself) will over anylize everything. It is not rocket science out there. What does make the differance in regards to consistency however, is the ability to hone into where the fish are at any given moment. Thats what seperates the novice form the expert.

Hats off to you experts out there!
 
Anyone else see the photo of a 223lb sport caught hali from the Pt. Townsend area on one of the Seattle news shows tonight.
 
hey-- Chrome. Dont know where that myth came from, but its NOT true. The biggies ARE good eating. The difference is in the texture of the muscle fiber. The fibers are firmer , but the taste is identical. And for the record, the barndoor I caught last year had less belly worms than many fish under 100 lbs that I have caught.

All 254 lbs are gone (three families made short work of the filets) Looking forward to getting out this season, and if the luck of the draw puts another big momma in the boat-- so be it.

If anyone chooses to release a large butt, that is his choice. But statistically and foodwise, it really isnt necessary. My .25
Cheers
CL



Intruder2-2.jpg


20ft Alumaweld Intruder
 
Well I didn't have the opportunity to make any grand moral decisions this morning regarding monster butts but The Rock and I got a couple just shy of 40lbs this am by 9:30 off the waterfront. One anchored and the other drifting. Traded some fillets for crabs at the docks ~ great morning. My only complaint is that I had time to mow the lawn. :D
 
What were the currents like out there?
From the charts I was looking at it was going to be ripping pretty good?

Tips
 
looks like I missed a good weekend......oh well I get to live on the Striper for almost 2 weeks.....no wife no kids:D



Gonna live off of what I catch....I might be on diet for a couple weeks:)
 
One 40lb'er and 3 doggie's today...
best bait so far this year has been Tuna or Mackerel.
Haven't had a touch on the octopus yet ??
 
Hey Craven, I also have not had a Hali on the Octopus, A few Cabazons, but no hali. Herring has got me a few good hits though!

-Steve
 
Guess it comes down to what works I have gotten most of mine on octy but I do find if its not fresh it doesnt work 1 day use only.What I really like is a dog fish may take a chunk but its still good to go.

Tips The currents were ripping out there its like fishing for salmon on an outgoing tide we all know its better on an icoming flood but we still go dont we you do what you have to do,but your chances are deffinatlly incresed when you fish better and slower tides.

Wolf
 
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