...Because I didn't want to loose my mind yesterday. (it was windy and I couldn't surfcast)... I started to wonder. I managed to come up with a few stupid questions to say the least - feel free to add in questions of your own... maybe I'll start a debate about halibut surfcasting opinions eh? :nyanya:
1: The tide was very far out at the river mouth, and waves were rolling in as far as the eye could see. I imagine the halibut wouldn't be anywhere near those waves... but where do they go? Just how far do they travel? When do they come back to the river mouth to feed? Do they come back immediately to eat the beat up fish/crab/shrimp that were caught in the storm or stay out in deep waters for a while? Where do they hold, are they active? I don't know much about halibut movement, but know they travel very far off the shelf to spawn. How much ground are we talking about that these little burgers can cover?
2: Dealing with the best times to surfcast... I've heard mainly 1 hr before high tide, and 2 hrs after. However, I've gotten halibut 2-3 hrs before high tide. I've also noticed fishing is better in smooth water just before a large storm comes in. I was thinking about trying later this evening... it's raining but I've caught many sharks in that weather (usually when windy). Why not flounder or some chickens? In addition, I've never caught halibut surfcasting randomly, all the sudden there is a wave of them, just like stripping for reds. BAM. You start seeing others' rod tips moving. Is this because they're running along the shoreline of the ocean and then get to your location? I know trout do the same thing if your'e icefishing. They cruise the shorelines.
3: Depths and channels: Well this is a mixed bag. Everyone seems to crowd at the river mouths in the channels... but why? People catch them at clam gulch, whiskey gulch and such. I don't understand the point of battling for a spot before high tide at the river mouths. To me when they move in they move in, and as long as you're bait isn't stuck in the mud flats I'd think they would find it. However, with all the people in one area, I guess you can tell if they are there or not, and it makes a bigger variety of scent trail in the ocean/channel.
Well that about sums it up. I'm hoping this will bring up some interesting opinions and ideas... and also hope it will help us all maybe figure these little mastermind chickens out. Sorry it's kind of all jumbled up... I can't make any sense of it all and have so many thoughts.
tightlines,
AKFishfight
1: The tide was very far out at the river mouth, and waves were rolling in as far as the eye could see. I imagine the halibut wouldn't be anywhere near those waves... but where do they go? Just how far do they travel? When do they come back to the river mouth to feed? Do they come back immediately to eat the beat up fish/crab/shrimp that were caught in the storm or stay out in deep waters for a while? Where do they hold, are they active? I don't know much about halibut movement, but know they travel very far off the shelf to spawn. How much ground are we talking about that these little burgers can cover?
2: Dealing with the best times to surfcast... I've heard mainly 1 hr before high tide, and 2 hrs after. However, I've gotten halibut 2-3 hrs before high tide. I've also noticed fishing is better in smooth water just before a large storm comes in. I was thinking about trying later this evening... it's raining but I've caught many sharks in that weather (usually when windy). Why not flounder or some chickens? In addition, I've never caught halibut surfcasting randomly, all the sudden there is a wave of them, just like stripping for reds. BAM. You start seeing others' rod tips moving. Is this because they're running along the shoreline of the ocean and then get to your location? I know trout do the same thing if your'e icefishing. They cruise the shorelines.
3: Depths and channels: Well this is a mixed bag. Everyone seems to crowd at the river mouths in the channels... but why? People catch them at clam gulch, whiskey gulch and such. I don't understand the point of battling for a spot before high tide at the river mouths. To me when they move in they move in, and as long as you're bait isn't stuck in the mud flats I'd think they would find it. However, with all the people in one area, I guess you can tell if they are there or not, and it makes a bigger variety of scent trail in the ocean/channel.
Well that about sums it up. I'm hoping this will bring up some interesting opinions and ideas... and also hope it will help us all maybe figure these little mastermind chickens out. Sorry it's kind of all jumbled up... I can't make any sense of it all and have so many thoughts.
tightlines,
AKFishfight
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