Corey_lax
Crew Member
That seems like a waste of good bacon.
I suck at lingcod fishing
- Thread starter SaltyAlice
- Start date
uclueletcharters
Well-Known Member
Big bait big lings as a rule, regular cod jigs usually hook 8 - 12 pounders with the odd larger one. Large whole herring or big squid work great, banana weight and 4-5ft leader. Bumping you motor in and out of gear barely moving along walls can work great as well. Caught a lot of big lings in that neck of the woods as a kid growing up, haven't fished there for many years so I'm sure things have changed. Next to no one used to run across from mainland. Many of the great areas are protected zones now, the passes were awesome back in the day couple quick drifts through on tide change or fishing eddies put many nice fish in the boat 
Used mooching rods not a fan of the broom handles kind of takes away to sensation of the fight feels like a winch. If your a meat fisherman the winches with big line if your a sporty mooching rod with just enough weight is way more fun IMO
Used mooching rods not a fan of the broom handles kind of takes away to sensation of the fight feels like a winch. If your a meat fisherman the winches with big line if your a sporty mooching rod with just enough weight is way more fun IMO 
Fish Camp
Well-Known Member
Well after a week of camping and the hog herring run out many days before ,your pork bellys will be tainted as you cook em after morning fish ,and not many people like the smell or the taste of tainted bacon cooking . I found a way to save on herring in the wild and put to use the old pork bellies.The tail end of bacon off the hook is hard for those buggers not to bite.and 1lb of bacon from the store is 1.99 where as a pack of hogs @8 pieces is 10.00$ .
Corey_lax
Crew Member
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Steplift
Well-Known Member
Lmfao one of my favourite ling holes is three hundred yards east of my dads spring spot. When springs slow down we troll over there and smoke a few lings off the reef tip catch a few bonus black sea bass to. I’m going have to give the live bait thing a few times on the salmon rod just to say I did.
cracked_ribs
Well-Known Member
If I learn nothing else from this thread, at the very least I want to know what stores have bacon at $1.99/lb, that's a great price
wildmanyeah
Crew Member
we use a Mega bite and drift of rock piles, hit the bottom reel up a bit, and drift. We find the big bites get very few rock fish and usually always end up with a legal size ling,
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Rain City
Crew Member
Mega Bite?
wildmanyeah
Crew Member
yeah thats them
Rain City
Crew Member
Yeah that's what I use. We cast them as we drift and hit rock piles as we pass. If it's a real slack tide and low wind I use a spreader bar with herring. Just set it and forget it. We don't catch lots but don't really get skunked either.
cracked_ribs
Well-Known Member
I also use a lure in the mega bite style after someone at Harbour Chandler recommended them. They are unbelievably lethal. I get bigger lings, faster, and no rockies anymore. I drop them down to a reefy, rocky area, touch bottom just so I know where it is, then give them a fairly slow, steady jig, maybe working them through six feet or so of water. I let them drop at full speed and the lings usually hit them on the way down.
Tinny
Well-Known Member
I agree - the Mega Bite is a great lure and keeps rockfish off. I drop em retrieve fast and wait to see if I get hit when slowing down then drop and repeat. I once had a ling hit a megabite three times on the way up. Finally hooked him about 60' off the bottom and once in the boat realized why it had a tough time swallowing the mega bite and getting hooked. This particular ling had already swallowed a rockfish that could not fit in its gut and the tail of the rockfish was sticking out of its throat. This was getting in the way of it biting properly on my lure. Not sure how their small brains work but their instinct is to chase things and as mentioned earlier they are gluttons.
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Rain City
Crew Member
Guide I met in French Creek gave me one that he set up that way. Worked like a hot damn.
G-Auto
Active Member
I have personally never tried it but I have seen it done lots, mostly by guides. I have never had an issue catching lings without a trailer so if it isn’t broken I don’t try and fix it.
Fishboy89
Member
Lots of good advice here, not an expert but here are some things I have noticed:
- slack tide is best (like salmon)
- a 5 ounce banana weight in front of any paddle tail with herring is good. Drag it or jig and drop it, see what they want
- A Norwegian cod jig is the best jig, try a fast jerky retrieve if nothing else is working
- Bowling ball and bigger rocks on shore = many smaller lings; steep drops/cliffs underwater = bigger but fewer
- Seaqualizer is key for rockfish survival
- first drop pay attention!
- do not spend too long in one unproductive area, run and gun and cover water
- release the big females over 20, they are the future and not as good eating
- slack tide is best (like salmon)
- a 5 ounce banana weight in front of any paddle tail with herring is good. Drag it or jig and drop it, see what they want
- A Norwegian cod jig is the best jig, try a fast jerky retrieve if nothing else is working
- Bowling ball and bigger rocks on shore = many smaller lings; steep drops/cliffs underwater = bigger but fewer
- Seaqualizer is key for rockfish survival
- first drop pay attention!
- do not spend too long in one unproductive area, run and gun and cover water
- release the big females over 20, they are the future and not as good eating
adanac
Well-Known Member
Lots of good advice here, not an expert but here are some things I have noticed:
- slack tide is best (like salmon)
- a 5 ounce banana weight in front of any paddle tail with herring is good. Drag it or jig and drop it, see what they want
- A Norwegian cod jig is the best jig, try a fast jerky retrieve if nothing else is working
- Bowling ball and bigger rocks on shore = many smaller lings; steep drops/cliffs underwater = bigger but fewer
- Seaqualizer is key for rockfish survival
- first drop pay attention!
- do not spend too long in one unproductive area, run and gun and cover water
- release the big females over 20, they are the future and not as good eating
disagree on slack tide . These fish generally aren’t swimming around actively hunting like salmon ( some cases yes but not usually ) . You want to be drifting over whatever structure / reef you are fishing , giving the ling a chance to ambush your bait or lure . Some places i fish the gulf islands the ling bite can go straight dead on the slack, as soon as the water starts pushing hard we fill the boat . ( live bait is king )
