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Well, it took me a few tries over a couple of years, but I FINALLY got my first sablefish ... followed by a second and a third on subsequent drops!
Here's what details I can share that may help anyone wanting to fish for them:
Started on 600 foot drops & went successively deeper ... caught a bunch of arrowtooth flounder from 600-900 feet (isn't there some kind of repellent or something to keep them away?). Finally found them at 1200+ feet deep on muddy bottom on a calm day during the tide. Without the tidal movement it was hard to get a good drift over potential spots.
Gear: Shimano TLD-30 2 speed with extended 5" handle loaded with 80# braid (about 900 yards) & Ugly Stik Tiger Lite extra-heavy jigging rod. 2 hook dropper rig tied on a 6 foot leader with 2 lb of sinker. Used strips of arrowtooth flounder as bait, cause it stayed on the hooks very well (guess they have some use after all, eh?)
Observations: They bite harder than I expected, and have zero fight once hooked. They apparently stay tight to the bottom, because all my fish came on the bottom hook (2 feet off bottom), and the bait on the top hook (4 feet off bottom) was untouched. Each drop & drift was about 30-35 minutes ... cranking that much line is a breeze with the right reel! They have some SERIOUS teeth, with a secondary row on the roof of their mouth about an inch behind the first row.
Will post photos once I figure out how. THANK YOU to the guys who have shared advice on locating & catching these DELICIOUS fish!
Here's what details I can share that may help anyone wanting to fish for them:
Started on 600 foot drops & went successively deeper ... caught a bunch of arrowtooth flounder from 600-900 feet (isn't there some kind of repellent or something to keep them away?). Finally found them at 1200+ feet deep on muddy bottom on a calm day during the tide. Without the tidal movement it was hard to get a good drift over potential spots.
Gear: Shimano TLD-30 2 speed with extended 5" handle loaded with 80# braid (about 900 yards) & Ugly Stik Tiger Lite extra-heavy jigging rod. 2 hook dropper rig tied on a 6 foot leader with 2 lb of sinker. Used strips of arrowtooth flounder as bait, cause it stayed on the hooks very well (guess they have some use after all, eh?)
Observations: They bite harder than I expected, and have zero fight once hooked. They apparently stay tight to the bottom, because all my fish came on the bottom hook (2 feet off bottom), and the bait on the top hook (4 feet off bottom) was untouched. Each drop & drift was about 30-35 minutes ... cranking that much line is a breeze with the right reel! They have some SERIOUS teeth, with a secondary row on the roof of their mouth about an inch behind the first row.
Will post photos once I figure out how. THANK YOU to the guys who have shared advice on locating & catching these DELICIOUS fish!
LOL 
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