Best Way To Land a Halibut?

[jorluivil]

Now you'll have a halibut on your deck that can go ape sh*t at any moment with a hook in its mouth, a spear in its body and a gaff jammed in it?

[summers in kuwait]

Originally Posted by jorluivil

Now you'll have a halibut on your deck that can go ape sh*t at any moment with a hook in its mouth, a spear in its body and a gaff jammed in it?

Ha.
The triple threat.

[Mr. NiceGuy]

Originally Posted by ful-rac

Are you still trying to figure out how to land a halibut....?

No. I think that has been covered pretty well. Thanks to several excellent contributions to this thread.

My only concern is losing a large one the next time an opportunity presents itself. That's what I have been mulling as I linger here and visit with kindred spirits. I want to reduce my risk of failure to as close to 0% as I can get it.

This place also serves as a social and networking environment, and not a bad one at that. I like meeting people and listening to all the diverse ideas.

Please start the next topic

Originally Posted by jorluivil

Now you'll have a halibut on your deck that can go ape sh*t at any moment with a hook in its mouth, a spear in its body and a gaff jammed in it?

That would be a neatly tethered and surgically placed spear tip only, not a spear. No need for a flailed hook gaff in this case.

The next one will be sufficiently dead, bled, unhooked and on a game clip before I pull him or her onto my lap.

[ful-rac]

What's a large halibut to you anyway?

Whether it's 20 or 50, 60, 75 pounds, it's not gonna be much different in the way you land them. What's gonna be different is how you keep them.

[Mr. NiceGuy]

Originally Posted by Harry Hill

How long is the handle on the gaff? What is the best size for kayaking?

Opinions will vary. It depends on the size of your boat and the distance to the water. I like exploring ideas and building things from scraps laying around my workbench.

For my Outback, I like 32" total length for a normal hook gaff, with a 2 1/2" (2/0) hook. It's compact enough to tuck out of the way on my kayak and it comfortably gives me all the reach I need. I tend to grab that one at the end of the handle with the wrist strap. 1" or 1.25" makes a stout pole size, depending on the size of your hands. Shovel handles work well for strength and the tailored shape fits the hand nicely. I would shave down the excess bulk at the hook end, unless you also want to use the back side of the hook end as a club. Personally, I don't like the idea of clubbing animals. I would rather put them to sleep gently by bleeding them.

Squidco has nice gaff hooks for about $6 and they are nice people. You can get 100' of 550# paracord from amazon prime for $9. That's enough cord for 2 to 4 gaffs, depending on how much ornamental wrapping you want to do. If you only want to wrap the hook, that much paracord will last until you get tired of making gaffs.

I've never made a straight gaff before. This one turned out 42". It balances nicely at the bare wood area between the paracord wraps. If it was any shorter it would feel point heavy from the stainless steel hardware. The zip tie is only to keep the cable from flopping around as the varnish hardens. The large swivel hooked to the zip tie will clip to a nylon cord or other lanyard/leash secured to the kayak.

When my previous gaffs bounced around in the pole holders of my kayak, it knocked off the varnish finish where they stand on end. That's why I added the butt caps to these two.

[Mr. NiceGuy]

Originally Posted by ful-rac

What's a large halibut to you anyway?

Whether it's 20 or 50, 60, 75 pounds, it's not gonna be much different in the way you land them. What's gonna be different is how you keep them.

I'm a noob. I'm learning my way through these things. I lost a very nice halibut at the beginning of this thread when I tried to gaff him. His head-shake snapped my 25# Blackwater shock leader like it was nothing. I'm learning from my mistakes. I'm also blessed with rip-roaring ADHD so I tend to hyper-focus on challenges that excite me

You already know what the sizes are for the top 1/3 category of local halibut. You probably know some of the local guys who can target and land them consistently. I want to join that club. I want to do it from my kayak.

I like the pictures Paul posts ...



Life is sweet, eh?

[makobob]

SORRY Mr. NiceGuy
Every time I see your avatar I just want to make a comment. Please do not take this the wrong way.
You are no longer a NOOB.
AND if you get your tush on a trip to Baja you will no longer be MOIST, you will be DROOLING. Maybe forever after. So if you can jump on the Baja Express and take a walk on the beaches of Baja feel free to joins us. Tight lines.

Originally Posted by Mr. NiceGuy

I'm a noob. I'm learning my way through these things. I lost a very nice at the beginning of this thread when I tried to gaff him. I'm learning from my mistakes.

You already know what the top 1/3 larger sizes are locally for halibut. You probably know some of the local guys who can target and land them consistently. I want to join that club.

[Mr. NiceGuy]

Originally Posted by makobob

SORRY Mr. NiceGuy
Every time I see your avatar I just want to make a comment. Please do not take this the wrong way.
You are no longer a NOOB.
AND if you get your tush on a trip to Baja you will no longer be MOIST, you will be DROOLING. Maybe forever after. So if you can jump on the Baja Express and take a walk on the beaches of Baja feel free to joins us. Tight lines.

Thank you Bob. I always enjoy your posts and I'm looking forward to the day we can meet in person.

I've flown my little Cessna 172 to Baja 6 times to explore Gonzaga Bay, Bahia LA, Mulegé, Guerrero Negro and several other amazing places with small landing strips. I have enjoyed many driving trips to explore primitive camping, photography and lush fishing. On my last trip, the honcho in charge of the airport at Cabo threatened to confiscate my airplane with his desk drawer of wadded up cash open for "parking fees." I've had trouble in Mexico on other occasions and stopped going there about 10 years ago.

I'm very sorry about this because I love Mexico and many kind people I have met there. Because of the culture of corruption and the risk of being a target of opportunity, it's no longer worth the risk to me. If there's no problem, then there's no problem. When a problem arises, there can easily be no solutions.

Moist, drooling or sopping wet ---- I'm envious of your coming adventures and I will be enjoying them with you vicariously.
I will be waiting to meet you in person north of the border


BTW, I don't look anything at all like the guy in my avatar, and I don't wear lipstick.

[ful-rac]

A little bit better...not by much...but better nonetheless...

[Mr. NiceGuy]

Originally Posted by ful-rac

A little bit better...not by much...but better nonetheless...

Wow, ... he was quite fetching in his nubile youth, wasn't he?

[Mr. NiceGuy]

Originally Posted by ful-rac

What's a large halibut to you anyway?

For those of us who are curious, here's how the average length and weight numbers line up for halibut:

22" legal minimum is about 4 pounds

30" is about 12 pounds
36" is about 20 pounds
40" is about 30 pounds
44" is about 40 pounds
47" is about 50 pounds
50" is about 60 pounds

[jorluivil]

Originally Posted by ful-rac

What's a large halibut to you anyway?
.

Originally Posted by Mr. NiceGuy

For those of us who are curious, here's how the average length and weight numbers line up for halibut:

22" legal minimum is about 4 pounds

30" is about 12 pounds
36" is about 20 pounds
40" is about 30 pounds
44" is about 40 pounds
47" is about 50 pounds
50" is about 60 pounds

You still didn't answer the question.

[Mr. NiceGuy]

Originally Posted by jorluivil

You still didn't answer the question.

I don't have an exact answer for you.

Without getting it on a tape measure or weight scale I don't want to guess about the size of the halibut I lost. Our minds can play tricks on us and I wouldn't want to exaggerate.

Around San Diego I would be appreciative of catching halibut from 20 pounds up. I would like to be prepared to successfully land a halibut in my kayak over 40 pounds.


As a visual comparison to the length/weight figures above, this one weighed in at 43.3 pounds. That would put it at about 45" long.



I've heard people in forums boast of higher numbers as if 40 pounds was as laughable as a small dick, but who knows? Talk is cheap and BS is sometimes known to flow freely in fishing forums.

Maybe this will help answer your question. It would be nice to see some bell shaped curves as well, so can know the percentages by the number of standard deviations.



65 cm is about 25". According to this chart that comes at about 7 years. That makes me a little sad. If a 7 year old fish is only 25" then how old are the fish we see in local photos that are in the 40-60 pound range?

According to Wikipedia, typical California Halibut are between 6-50 pounds.

From another source, the top weight of this species is 72 lbs and the lifespan is 30 years.
Females reach sexual maturity in 4-5 years; 2-3 years for males.
California halibut are generally older in southern CA compared to central CA.

http://animaldiversity.org/accounts/..._californicus/


67.3 pounds
https://www.fishwithjd.com/2011/07/0...-world-record/

55 lbs
https://youtu.be/AFdq72KXOy4

[ful-rac]

40 pounder...? Is that all?

My dog caught a 40 pounder...all SHE needed was a Gaff.

[jorluivil]

Originally Posted by ful-rac

40 pounder...? Is that all?

My dog caught a 40 pounder...all SHE needed was a Gaff.

Yep, got three of those, its almost like they're given them away.

[Mr. NiceGuy]

Originally Posted by ful-rac

40 pounder...? Is that all?

My dog caught a 40 pounder...all SHE needed was a Gaff.

See what I mean?

In what year did your dog catch that fish?

Just curious.


PS - your dog's a keeper

Originally Posted by jorluivil

Yep, got three of those, its almost like they're given them away.

All three on the same cast?

That's great! Even if they are only 40 pounds each!

That's better than Tony's dog!

Chapeau!

---

I may have to hide it in a brown paper bag around here, but I would still be willing to take a 38 pounder home for dinner.

Even if I had to doink it with my new straight gaff to make sure I get it in the bag.

I'm a humble guy like that and I've heard that size doesn't matter.

[Sheephead]

I can tell you from what I learned landing a 22lb hali in SD bay is that you DON'T want to put the hali on the game clip before he's dead. My 22lb almost flipped my 12' pro angler several times while trying to kill it. While your bringing the hali to the surface make sure everything you'll need is ready and the game clip is on the correct side of your yak. When you get the hali 1/2' - 1' below the surface gaff them just below their pectoral fin and immediately hold them out of the water as far as your can paralyzing the fish. I'll then turn the tip of the gaff towards me to prevent the halibut popping off as I begin to club it. Once clubbed I'll game clip and bleed the fish. Keep your gameclip on a short leash. I kept mine on a 3' section of rope and it created way to much drag. As far as Im aware you can use a hawaiian spear, preferably a paralyzing tip, to help land the halibut but the game warden I asked didn't sound like he was that knowledgable. Good luck! !! Never bring a live Halibut onto your yak!! It's not fun.

[Mr. NiceGuy]

Originally Posted by Sheephead

I can tell you from what I learned landing a 22lb hali in SD bay is that you DON'T want to put the hali on the game clip before he's dead. My 22lb almost flipped my 12' pro angler several times while trying to kill it. While your bringing the hali to the surface make sure everything you'll need is ready and the game clip is on the correct side of your yak. When you get the hali 1/2' - 1' below the surface gaff them just below their pectoral fin and immediately hold them out of the water as far as your can paralyzing the fish. I'll then turn the tip of the gaff towards me to prevent the halibut popping off as I begin to club it. Once clubbed I'll game clip and bleed the fish. Keep your gameclip on a short leash. I kept mine on a 3' section of rope and it created way to much drag. As far as Im aware you can use a hawaiian spear, preferably a paralyzing tip, to help land the halibut but the game warden I asked didn't sound like he was that knowledgable. Good luck! !! Never bring a live Halibut onto your yak!! It's not fun.

That's an interesting addition to this discussion. Halibut can have remarkable strength.

It's the first time I've heard NOT to use the game clip before the halibut is dead. I thought the game clip was part of how we secured the halibut alive from the hook, then gaff so we could prepare to bleed it or otherwise dispatch him to the afterworld.

The short leash for the game clip is interesting to me too. Mine is on a comfortable long arms reach, so it doesn't bind or get tangled. I will reconsider.

I am not familiar with a paralyzer tip, but I see it on this chart:



What I used for the halibut gaff I just made is called a "slip tip" here. It's also called a "breakaway tip"

It's a 5" bullet tip held on the gaff shaft by a rubber O-ring. When it punches through the fish the tip slides off and turns sideways, tethering the fish to our kayak by the cable clipped to a line on the other side of the fish.