Catching herring with castnet

[the butcher]

Was watching a few videos on YouTube about guys catching herring with castnets off a pier in California. Was curious if anyone here has ever used a castnet from your boat in Vancouver harbor or between north and south arm when you see a bait ball or during the herring spawn. Would like to be able to get some herring for crab bait and for bottomfishing. If anyone has had success can you let me know what size of net and what mesh hole size(3/8", 1/2", 5/8" or 1")... I assume if the herring are deeper than 20 feet you can't catch them as the net would drop too slow etc..

With all that's happened with the Chinook nonrention I need to find more things to do to keep me busy on the water.

 

[Dogbreath]

One issue that most videos don't show is the bait rapidly sinking out of sight as the net hits the water-one way to deal with that is to throw a generous handful of chum mixed with sand (or something you think will work) just before the net hits the water and the chum/sand disguises the 'death from above'-obviously this takes two co- ordinated people and is trickier than it sounds.

I haven't done it here though just in the tropics but I imagine Herring/Anchovy would react like any other schooling baitfish.

 

[wishiniwasfishin1]

May be easier to just keep a small casting rod set up with a sabiki rig on hand (if you can keep from tangling). They definitely work and you can fish any depth.

 

[spoiler]

May be easier to just keep a small casting rod set up with a sabiki rig on hand (if you can keep from tangling). They definitely work and you can fish any depth.

I do at least 2-3 trips a year to lodges on the coast (this year might be different) I always pack a 9' fly rod with a spinning reel and some sabiki rigs. I don't know how many times that jigging some fresh herring has saved the day for me when the fishing has been tough. Seems like there is something about some fresh blood in the water that turns on a Chinook bite when nothing else is working!

 

[the butcher]

I do at least 2-3 trips a year to lodges on the coast (this year might be different) I always pack a 9' fly rod with a spinning reel and some sabiki rigs. I don't know how many times that jigging some fresh herring has saved the day for me when the fishing has been tough. Seems like there is something about some fresh blood in the water that turns on a Chinook bite when nothing else is working!

what's the technique for using live bait on Chinook? Clip onto downrigger clip and bring down to depth where the Chinook are and let the live bait swim around on a 6 ft leader with no flasher? Assume you would be going super slow to allow the bait to do all the work with creating action? Perhaps even a drift?

 

[Viking]

Banana weight and 5 to 6 ft leader a couple treble hooks is how my old man taught me. Secret cove still sells live herring for mooching I think.

 

[adanac]

what's the technique for using live bait on Chinook? Clip onto downrigger clip and bring down to depth where the Chinook are and let the live bait swim around on a 6 ft leader with no flasher? Assume you would be going super slow to allow the bait to do all the work with creating action? Perhaps even a drift?

They don’t fish well on the rigger, up in Haida we would get the big horse herring at times ( 10 “) , either anchor up on a spot or drift and fish on your regular mooching setup , but we usually use much lighter leader and small single hooks as it is easier on the fish and they swim more naturally. Can be a deadly tactic , been jigging them and trying this over at thrasher recently with some success

 

[spoiler]

what's the technique for using live bait on Chinook? Clip onto downrigger clip and bring down to depth where the Chinook are and let the live bait swim around on a 6 ft leader with no flasher? Assume you would be going super slow to allow the bait to do all the work with creating action? Perhaps even a drift?

where I was fishing it was either fresh cut plug off the downrigger or pinned into an anchovy holder and run behind a flasher. I did lots of fishing with live herring up on the Sunshine Coast in the 70's

 

[spoiler]

where I was fishing it was either fresh cut plug off the downrigger or pinned into an anchovy holder and run behind a flasher. I did lots of fishing with live herring up on the Sunshine Coast in the 70's

also fished a lot up at Haa Nee Naa L

 

[spoiler]

also fished a lot up at Haa Nee Naa L

Also fished a lot up at Haa Nee Naa Lodge in the past and we would always get up early and jig fresh herring for the day's fishing. Just cut plugged them and power mooched with a 6-8oz weight. Our fleet always out fished the Eagle Point boats that were using "frozen TV dinners" as our guides always referred to them!

 

[Oly1]

Also fished a lot up at Haa Nee Naa Lodge in the past and we would always get up early and jig fresh herring for the day's fishing. Just cut plugged them and power mooched with a 6-8oz weight. Our fleet always out fished the Eagle Point boats that were using "frozen TV dinners" as our guides always referred to them!

When you say you use the fresh herring cut plug style, are you brining them at all or just using them fresh. Do they last any time down there???

Oly