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Lingcod Thread

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lingcod
17K views 80 replies 33 participants last post by  SilverFly 
#1 ·
Lingcod season is just around the corner and I am going to try to find one this year on the fly. I found a couple last year with a buddy of mine, but we were using gear. I'm building a new head for my 8 wt and tying up some big ugly flies. Last year chartreuse was a great color for Rockfish and Lingcod, so I'll start there.

I don't know much about this fishery, so I figured I'd start this thread.

Fish pics, flies, techniques... anything Lingcod related.
 
#28 ·
For anyone interested;
We have bulk spools of: T-10, T-12, T-14, and T-18. It costs $0.75/foot or if you'd like us to rig it for you with loops it is $1/foot. We also stock 7 different varieties of running lines and three 'integrated' shooting head lines that can work very well for bottomfish. Also, I've been fishing for Lingcod on a fly since 1995 and would be happy to share some advice on lines and flies.
Anil
 
#33 ·
Those are big enough to do the trick. Colors look like what has worked for me using jigs. Most recently, I was using a plastic twirl-tail baitfish about 6" long on a lead jighead that was at least another inch, and that was a little smaller than what the other yak anglers were using. They had red/pink/white plastic monstrosities around 8" long, rigged on what looked to be at least 2 oz, (maybe bigger) heads. I was too busy fishing to go over and ask what they were using until they paddled by me as they were leaving, and then one of 'em held his jig up for me to see.

I recall that my friend got his 29" "hitchhiker" Ling on a 15" Kelp Greenling he hooked using a sand shrimp for bait. So I think that you can hardly tie 'em too big for the Lings. A 6" fly may be on the smaller end of what is effective. I think that you want 'em big enough to get their attention. If you shake out line and don't have to worry so much about casting a behemoth concoction, then you can present some huge junk to those monsters.
 
#35 ·
Yes, i am going to try some really big ugly jigs next time. At least 8" long.
I plan to tie up some big flies, too. I still have to get my 8 wt shooting head together (just need to make some loops and I'm done), and I have a reel with backing set up, some 3/0 siwash and some 5/0 octopus hooks, and plenty of tying materials.

Might have to sneak in tying some trout lake flies and do some lake fishing here shortly, but my go-out along the jetty last tuesday got me fired up for the bottom fish. I had several shallow water hookups with the black rockfish, an undersized ling, and a greenling.
 
#36 ·
Steve, I can hardly wait to see your tube patterns.

I'm also thinking of tying feathers and synthetics onto my jig heads for gear fishing, instead of using soft plastics. Sometimes I wonder where all that lost soft plastic goes.

Those big flies look like they eat up a lot of materials! The jig head I plan to tie on is going to eat a lot, from the looks of it. I might be able to tie up as many as two of 'em. Lings might rip 'em to shreds. So tying Ling flies on tubes sounds like a great idea if it results in less ravaging of the fly body.

I'm going to finish putting my shooting head together today!
 
#37 ·
I've been thinking about lingcod lately too. Has anyone ever heard of them around the Bremerton area (Dyes, Sinclair, Bainbridge, etc)? I know of some habitat that would seem like a good place for them but haven't heard of anyone fishing for them around here.
 
#39 ·
I just (yesterday) picked up a Rio Outbound 9i6s (9wt intermediate running line with a type 6 head...) that I also picked up two 15 foot lengths of T-8 (for fishing Kelp beds) and also two 25 foot lengths of T-20 go get down and dirty. I figured I would actually underline my 10wt since the whole rig (line and T-8/20 plus a big fly) would load the rod for what I want.
If anyone else has suggestions on custom rigging/splicing, chirp in!
 
#44 ·
Ha Ha yeah about 80 to 200 feet deep under the bridge. There are a few small spots that hold a few fish in shallower water but a lot of them have been fished out. With the small numbers of fish it is a real challenge on a fly rod. I am sure there are a few spots I don't know about yet that might fish better if no one has fished them to hard. Unfortuntaley a lot of the artaficial reefs in the area are marine preserves and are illegal to fish also. I think area 10 and 9 would be more promissing, with the straits and ocean being ideal.
 
#47 ·
Nice work on the Lings Yellowlab! I notice that the one in the last pic has puked a baitfish up into its open maw.

I paddled my yak out along the South Jetty in the harbor entrance here yesterday afternoon just after the low tide change and spent over half my time drifting and jigging straight up and down with an 8" rabbit, fish hair and flash monstrosity I concocted, bouncing bottom in 40 -50 feet at the base of the jetty incline, but the Lings weren't biting. Same spot where I had a few good bites and caught one last week. I also cast jigheaded twirltails right to the rocks and retrieved down the staircase. Only lost about a half dozen jigs to the rocks just to get one med black rockfish.
Wind wasn't to bad, and the rain showers had abated. I fished until about 7pm.

I'm closer to getting my shooting head system completed, and can hardly wait to go try that out.

I bet that the bite would have been better here on the morning incoming-to-high tide, as the moon would have been directly underfoot at the 10 am high. When I fished, it was just starting to rise. But the wind was OK and I always like to fish the incoming tide in the harbor entrance.
 
#48 ·
Nice work on the Lings Yellowlab! I notice that the one in the last pic has puked a baitfish up into its open maw.
Thanks Jim,

I have a nice article which talks about tide and how a Ling Cod wants its prey presented, I have it posted on my blog: the April 19th issue. I usually like to fish for them when the tide is slack and not moving very much, they seem to be locked up with the big tidal exchanges or with turbulent movement during a storm or with alot of wind. Most of the Lings that end up getting netted usually cough up all sorts of snacks: squid, sand lance, rock fish, bottom fish, sand dabs, and smaller lings which also came out. I've also seen adult Pink salmon in some Lings!!! Don't be shy about using big flies and hooks, I like the Orvis stainless 4/0 chemically sharpened versions.

Good luck!
 
#52 ·
Thanks for all the info and advice guys... hooked up with this pair of Lings today, plus about a dozen rockfish between three of us. Camera died after second fish, so no rockfish shots unfortunately. They can be strong bastards! A couple of them went 5-7 lbs, great fish. This is an absolute blast and a great fishery. Can't wait to get back out there.

Water Glasses Vertebrate Sunglasses Goggles
Water Sky Boat Watercraft Vertebrate
 
#55 ·
howdy.
i'm heading to the san juan islands in a few days and wanna try my hand at fly fishing for lingcod.
i've got a 10wt fly rod but this sort of setup is new to me, so i'd appreciate some help.

as i understand it, i'd be doing something along these lines, in this order:

30# backing ::: how many yards would you suggest putting on the reel?
to>
running line ::: rio slickshooter monofilament shooting line 35lbs
to>
shooting head ::: rio tungsten shooting head 30' T-14
to>
leader ::: 6-12 inches of 25-35# mono
to>
tippet ::: 6 feet of 16# mono
to>
fly ::: 6-10" yak clousers / sandlance / blanton's whistler

can you confirm or correct me?
 
#56 ·
That looks perfect to me. I ended up changing my leader to 6-7' of straight 30# Maxima because I had to stop them dead and turn fish before they got wrapped up in rocks, but if you are fishing more vertical, that will be fine.

Not sure about backing, the fish I hauled in made a ton of runs, but nothing long, usually each time they see the surface or boat they blast down again. I never went into backing.
 
#57 ·
Does that basically mean that you're going straight from shooting head to the 7' of 30# mono to the fly?
I hadn't really understood why one would use 30# leader and then compromise the "weight rating" by downsizing to a 16# tippet...unless the lings are just spooked by the width of the 30# line?

Also, I've read that some people mention a short section of "bite guard." Is this just another word for leader? Or does heavier "bite guard" line get added right against the fly to literally keep fish from biting through it?

Action-wise, is it best to let the fly sink to depth and then "jig" it up and down across the bottom or on a slow retrieve?
 
#58 ·
The ling cod season in Puget Sound (including the San Juans) is 6 weeks long- from May 1 to June 15th.

The bite leader is short piece of heavy leader material between the fly and the rest of the leader that helps protect from bite offs; I attach the fly with a loop.

Action-wiseit depends on how the fly is tied. A weighted fly will provide a nice jigging type action with strip and pauses. I prefer an unweighted fly with a large spun deer hair head; that type of pattern provides a different type action with the fly hovering and fluttering in the current during the pauses. Plus I find the unweighted flies much easier to cast.

Curt
 
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