Halibut anchoring question

spring fever

Well-Known Member
Nobody Laugh!! I have come over to the dark side and with the help of several knowledgeable members I have put together an excellent halibut anchor system complete with quick releases,30 ft of chain etc etc. I don't intend to fish any deeper than 220 mainly because I'm a lazy B**terd and I don't particularly like halibut fishing that much. I understand how the system works but when I ask this question I get blank stares-either the question is stupid or nobody has thought of it before.

If you have a gentle wind out of the north say 8 to 10 knots and the swell is from that direction and the tide is in the last hour of flood which where I usually fish means from the north then your boat should point at the north ( roughly). What happens when the tide switches? The wind and swell should still keep the boat pointing North and more importantly if you have a bait bag down on the anchor now your scent trail is away from the boat? Or does nobody really care or even use bait bags?

My guess is there will be a good halibut anchoring rig coming to a garage sale near you come next august!!! LOL!!
 
Depends how strong the current is ??
usually the boat will slowly swing around the scotchman (if the current is strong enough) and ends up pointing the opposite direction.
in a weak current, you may have to reverse the engine to keep from drifting onto your anchor.
I haven't really used bait bags , so can't comment.
 
For chum bag I attach it to the downrigger and send it down. I don't like the idea of the chum bag being on the anchor because with wind and different currents from top to bottom of water column you could be off the scent trail and also the hali could go right past your gear and be hanging up current at your anchor. As soon as I see a nibble....hit the DR to avoid a tangle. Once the slack hits, pull it up to avoid tangle also, then put back down once current has switched. Your gear will hang back not too far back from DR but enough to not have tangle issues.
 
I will use the kicker in slow reverse in weaker currents to swing the boat away from the anchor and to bring it around to the opposite side. Once the current picks up speed your rod line angle will let you know when you can shut the kicker down.
 
Thanks guys -I appreciate that-makes sense especially the bait bag on the rigger-I was drawing diagrams and could see that in certain circumstances the hali could be going away from your boat. Also if you do the Pythagoras theorem (remember that) it really is quite amazing how far you could be from the anchor and hence the bag.
 
I just hook the cannon ball onto this and attach too down rigger wire...:)
 

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usually put frames and heads and guts when I'm cleaning my fish the day before ...put the tube into a fish bag..on ice and its ready to go the next day or freeze it so its ready to go. fresh is best..have about 3 tubes in the rotation...:)
 
it works good if you put a bit of weight in the bottom of the pvc tube also... a few inches of concrete works good.
or maybe your just leaving the downrigger ball on as well?
 
I just hook the cannon ball onto this and attach too down rigger wire...:)

Wow i remember the good ole days when you used to be a cutplugger, now you have switched over to the dark side and use enough bling to give P Diddy a run for his money, and now this contraption for hally. I might have to quit hanging around with you it makes me look bad :) You and Sammy what a pair....
 
which ever is stronger will control direction boat faces bait bags are great for dogfish halibut have large eyes for a reason
 
Wow i remember the good ole days when you used to be a cutplugger, now you have switched over to the dark side and use enough bling to give P Diddy a run for his money, and now this contraption for hally. I might have to quit hanging around with you it makes me look bad :) You and Sammy what a pair....

u have taught me well... ahh u wont stop hanging with me..I'm your only friend .. :)
 
usually put frames and heads and guts when I'm cleaning my fish the day before ...put the tube into a fish bag..on ice and its ready to go the next day or freeze it so its ready to go. fresh is best..have about 3 tubes in the rotation...:)

Seems like cheating to me. Where's your sense of fair play?
 
At least i know you won't sh*t on me when i post

Now who would do that to you, you low down and dirty Canuck poster boy :) Derby you r still my one and only buddy...Steve is looking for some blanks what you got shooter??
 
Just a thought here. Myself, Wolf, and lots of guys who do well for halibut don't use bait bags. The biggest problem I can see with them, is what the current does on the surface is often very different then what it does on the bottom. I can see in a lot of cases the line from your boat to your anchor sitting perpendicular to the currents near the sea bed. Several times, I have had it where the lines from the boat drift forward to the anchor as well, when the currents do not do what the book said they would.

If it was a perfect drift, then yes, maybe the chum bag would do it, however, I think you would wind up with lots of fish staring at your anchor having swam by your bait. Several times we have had a fish take the bait, spit the hook, and circle back to take it again. I think with a chum bag further upstream you may miss these hits.

Also, I don't think the scent would trail in a nice line from your chum bag on the anchor, I bet you would get a "wake" effect, with it spreading quite wide as it drifts back, so halibut could go cruising by 30-50 feet to either side of your bait.

However, if it puts fish in the box, keep doing it :)
 
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