Lingcod Questions / Help

Karlo said:
I fish mostly in Haida Gwaii, and aside from a couple of hard-fished areas, the lings don't see much pressure. My go-to lure for years has been a 7-ounce Gibbs Minnow, but they don't seem to make them anymore. (LET ME KNOW if anyone knows a source!!!!) I prefer to fish reefs that come up as shallow as 30 feet from the surface, drifting across the top, then bouncing down the dropoff to 120 feet or so. For obvious reasons involving hooking Canada instead of a fish, drifting from deep to shallow is a bad idea. The fluttering action of the Minnow is far more effective than the more bullet-shaped jigs that have become popular lately. I'm not trying to reach great depths, so a fast drop isn't my aim. Swimbaits are my second choice.

A very effective form of "live bait" fishing is to jig a smallish black rockfish from the annoying schools near the surface, and let the weight of the jig send it spiraling toward the bottom. Pick it up a few feet every little while to keep it active, then drop it as the depth increases. Many of the biggest lingcod I've caught had large rockfish in their stomachs, so one in distress looks like lunch. (I don't see many sand-dabs in our rocky lingcod habitat.) It's rare to actually hook the lingcod on the rockfish, but a lingcod usually grabs a rockfish across the body, squeezes it to death, then turns it to swallow it headfirst so the spines are lying flat and not gagging the ling.

Because of that ingrained process, and because lingcod are not very bright, lings are reluctant to let go of a fish they've captured. You need to be ready to gaff them just as they come into reach, because they aren't hooked. It's not at all uncommon to have a larger or even similar-sized ling latch onto the tail of the ling that's latched onto the rockfish. Several times, we've gaffed two lings, neither of which was actually hooked, using this method. For the same reason, if a ling does let go, lowering the bait quickly will often get him or the bigger competition to take.

That brings up the matter of ling size. My ideal ling weighs 12-20 pounds, and I'm increasingly reluctant to gaff anything bigger. The larger lings are usually mature breeding females, and they tend to load up with parasites as they age. I see lodges advertising "Trophy Ling Cod", and I shake my head.

As to tackle, I fish from smallish boats, so I use a fairly stiff 7' fiberglass rod with a Penn reel loaded with about 200' of 80# mono, backed with enough 50# braid to fill the reel in case I encounter a halibut that wants to run. I hate handling braid, abrasions in heavy mono are obvious and less likely to be terminal, and the springiness of the mono can help with unsnagging. For the novice jigger, once you know you're snagged, applying power is a bad idea! It's best to run back up-drift until your line is at a fairy shallow angle from the snag, then drift back toward it, giving little pumping jerks to dislodge the jig. If all else fails, wrap the line around a club or gaff handle, and motor slowly in the direction you drifted from. That often dislodges what you're hooked on, or straightens the hooks. The mono also tends to break at at the knot, so there's no need for a leader.
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If you want to save yourself from catching Canada often try top rigging the hook on some tuna cord. Way better lure recovery
 
Last edited:
seahorse said:
Do you have a picture of how to rig the hook with tuna cord? Thanks
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My gear is all packed away right now. I make a loop with a 2/0 treble hook thru the top eye so the hook is hanging about halfway down the jig. They still hook themselves well
 
Karlo said:
I fish mostly in Haida Gwaii, and aside from a couple of hard-fished areas, the lings don't see much pressure. My go-to lure for years has been a 7-ounce Gibbs Minnow, but they don't seem to make them anymore. (LET ME KNOW if anyone knows a source!!!!) I prefer to fish reefs that come up as shallow as 30 feet from the surface, drifting across the top, then bouncing down the dropoff to 120 feet or so. For obvious reasons involving hooking Canada instead of a fish, drifting from deep to shallow is a bad idea. The fluttering action of the Minnow is far more effective than the more bullet-shaped jigs that have become popular lately. I'm not trying to reach great depths, so a fast drop isn't my aim. Swimbaits are my second choice.

A very effective form of "live bait" fishing is to jig a smallish black rockfish from the annoying schools near the surface, and let the weight of the jig send it spiraling toward the bottom. Pick it up a few feet every little while to keep it active, then drop it as the depth increases. Many of the biggest lingcod I've caught had large rockfish in their stomachs, so one in distress looks like lunch. (I don't see many sand-dabs in our rocky lingcod habitat.) It's rare to actually hook the lingcod on the rockfish, but a lingcod usually grabs a rockfish across the body, squeezes it to death, then turns it to swallow it headfirst so the spines are lying flat and not gagging the ling.

Because of that ingrained process, and because lingcod are not very bright, lings are reluctant to let go of a fish they've captured. You need to be ready to gaff them just as they come into reach, because they aren't hooked. It's not at all uncommon to have a larger or even similar-sized ling latch onto the tail of the ling that's latched onto the rockfish. Several times, we've gaffed two lings, neither of which was actually hooked, using this method. For the same reason, if a ling does let go, lowering the bait quickly will often get him or the bigger competition to take.

That brings up the matter of ling size. My ideal ling weighs 12-20 pounds, and I'm increasingly reluctant to gaff anything bigger. The larger lings are usually mature breeding females, and they tend to load up with parasites as they age. I see lodges advertising "Trophy Ling Cod", and I shake my head.

As to tackle, I fish from smallish boats, so I use a fairly stiff 7' fiberglass rod with a Penn reel loaded with about 200' of 80# mono, backed with enough 50# braid to fill the reel in case I encounter a halibut that wants to run. I hate handling braid, abrasions in heavy mono are obvious and less likely to be terminal, and the springiness of the mono can help with unsnagging. For the novice jigger, once you know you're snagged, applying power is a bad idea! It's best to run back up-drift until your line is at a fairy shallow angle from the snag, then drift back toward it, giving little pumping jerks to dislodge the jig. If all else fails, wrap the line around a club or gaff handle, and motor slowly in the direction you drifted from. That often dislodges what you're hooked on, or straightens the hooks. The mono also tends to break at at the knot, so there's no need for a leader.
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Great advice!
 
Pressured lingcod, like those around Nanaimo are hard to hook. Take solace in in the fact that, if they were easily hooked, there wouldn't be a population in the Strait of Georgia.
 
Just another tip for getting stuck on bottom - havent seen this on the forum anywhere but my dad taught me this as a kid and used it myself for years...
If you get snagged while on a drift, let a quite bit of line out while everyone else reels up (you kinda have to unless you want to break it), start the boat up and loop back opposite the current. (meanwhile the guy with the rod is NOT reeling up just holding the rod after a good amt of line has been let out) Driver turns boat around, to against the current, and slowly (2-3knots) makes ground to back over where the snag happened (Rod holder still not reeling, now there's a loop in the line) Because you let a lot of line out you'll have to drive (against the current) past where the snag happened. When the line starts to get tight, slow the boat down (to the point you're barely at all making ground against the current), and have the rod holder bear down and hold the reel tight. 80% of the time or more, if you get the hang of this well, you will get back everything leader and all. We fish pretty reefy bottom, flirt 3-5' off the bottom, thru fast currents and get a lot of snags this is quite effective!.... unless you like bringing $200 of jigs everytime and losing them. Its a bit of a hassle when you got the rookie snagging and its wasting your time fishing (reeling out to do this etc)
It's a bit more tricky when you're solo fishing but still doable.
 
Aces said:
My gear is all packed away right now. I make a loop with a 2/0 treble hook thru the top eye so the hook is hanging about halfway down the jig. They still hook themselves well
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I also top rig my hooks but do this with a swivel on a split ring on the top and a second split ring with the hook off the other end of the swivel.
 
Baxter said:
I am going to get into fishing for Lings this year - first time trying this. I will only be fishing in Area 14. May venture to other inside waters, but nothing off-shore. I won't ask for your Area 14 secret spot, I know nobody likes that, BUT if you feel like sharing, PM me ;) (Kidding - or am I?)

1.) I have been told that I should use 80lb braid with a metal leader. Agree or disagree with this?

2.) I am happy to simply buy a leader (similar to this: https://www.harbourchandler.ca/shop...cellaneous-jigs/mustad-leader-with-snap-lock/) But curious how to go about making one. There seems to be few resources about this online. Should I just buy them off the shelf, or should I make them myself? Any advice here would be appreciated :) $7+ for a leader sounds a bit pricey, but considering 80lb braid and a meta leader, probably won't lose a lot of them. Thoughts?

3.) Also, I'll most likely start out with swim baits over jigging - what weight swim bait do you guys use?

4.) Net or Gaff. Most videos I see people just gaffing them. This of course is great if you are certain it is a legal fish, BUT, if unsure, is there any issue with netting them? I am not sure I have seen a single video with them netted. Wondering if their teeth, etc, wreak havoc on a net - or what the reason for gaffing is.

I'll have more questions I am sure :) Thanks everyone in this awesome forum for any advice you give!
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No retention of Lings in Area 14 thru April 30 2021 - so be sure to check the Regs.
 
I’m looking to add artificial sandab to my arsenal for catching lingcod. Can’t find any locally. Would any one know where to source them? If you ever used one, have you had luck with them?
 
capman said:
I’m looking to add artificial sandab to my arsenal for catching lingcod. Can’t find any locally. Would any one know where to source them? If you ever used one, have you had luck with them?
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Look for a jig made by "Westin Lures", called the "Flat Matt". It fishes well with the action of a darting sand dab. Also I seen Halibut of all sizes take it when I was fishing out of Masset.
 

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Aces said:
My gear is all packed away right now. I make a loop with a 2/0 treble hook thru the top eye so the hook is hanging about halfway down the jig. They still hook themselves well
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This has proved very productive for me. Hope this helps.
 

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Pineapple Express said:
Here's the Westin page:
www.westin-fishing.com

Buy FLAT MATT JIG at Westin Fishing

FLAT MATT JIG at Westin Fishing - Fast delivery and easy returns
www.westin-fishing.com www.westin-fishing.com

Have you ordered from them online? How was shipping to Canada?
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I was able to source the flat mat jigs in Canada. Harbour Chandler had them in stock in the past. However I hear Westin Lures are no longer selling to Canada. I believe they are a Norway company?

Now I order all my Westin jigs from the company below. They have an amazing selection of gear and shipping is cheap. Works out to $25 cdn shipping for my last order that was over 20lbs. Also they have cheaper prices than in Canada even after the exchange rate.

My favorite BIG Ling rig is called the "big bob". Its also made by Westin. Last year we had a bunch that ranged from 40-50lbs off this jig. However the winner of the trip was about 55lbs and was caught on a "Big Ed". (From westin)

Search results for: 'Westin'

Havfiskeshop.com is the specialist in fishing tackle for fjord and sea fishing. Buy your pirks, jigs, rigs, rods and all fishing tackle simply and quick on www.havfiskeshop.com!
www.havfiskeshop.com www.havfiskeshop.com
 

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ILHG said:
I was able to source the flat mat jigs in Canada. Harbour Chandler had them in stock in the past. However I hear Westin Lures are no longer selling to Canada. I believe they are a Norway company?

Now I order all my Westin jigs from the company below. They have an amazing selection of gear and shipping is cheap. Works out to $25 cdn shipping for my last order that was over 20lbs. Also they have cheaper prices than in Canada even after the exchange rate.

My favorite BIG Ling rig is called the "big bob". Its also made by Westin. Last year we had a bunch that ranged from 40-50lbs off this jig. However the winner of the trip was about 55lbs and was caught on a "Big Ed". (From westin)

Search results for: 'Westin'

Havfiskeshop.com is the specialist in fishing tackle for fjord and sea fishing. Buy your pirks, jigs, rigs, rods and all fishing tackle simply and quick on www.havfiskeshop.com!
www.havfiskeshop.com www.havfiskeshop.com
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These look awesome. Do you use the big 400 grammers?
 
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