Stupid Halibut Tricks

Phil Layer · 04-28-2002, 06:39 AM

More halibut questions:

So, I've motored out to the ranch, dropped my herring to the bottom and successfully buried my 16/0 circle hook into a flattie. My 80 lb. line worked in dragging him up from the bottom and he's now beside the boat.

I grasp my trusty gaff and hold it beside the halibut's head. Dang, I don't want to screw up now!

What's the proper technique for gaffing a flattie? When do I put the gaff back into the gunnel and pull out the spear instead? How about my sidearm...when do I shoot the monster? Do I bleed the flattie before hauling him into the boat? Are there sharks out there?

How about the flopping in the boat? Is there anyway to stop them from doing that? They seem to do it even when obviously dead.

Pilar · 04-28-2002, 07:14 AM

As Mr. Fisherman can tell you a missed gaff attempt will send FB back to the bottom. I've never used the harpoon but from what I have learned and observed, this may be the best way to go. The circle hook should wrap around the jawbone but often as not it encircles a flap of skin. This makes landing tricky as one hard flip and he is gone.

So an awful lot depends on the fish. Don't let the head break the water, that will make the fish thrash. If it just lies still at the boat then put the gaff in the water, point facing up, under the fish. I try to stick the gill cover or cheek. Get it aimed and pull up hard. If it sticks the fish should come right over the gunnel and into the boat. If you miss, old FB will find the bottom and the drag on your reel will get a work out.

A net is ok for the smaller ones and will save a barely hooked fish.

Someone that actually has experience with a harpoon should chime in here.

Gunfire?

If the fish is really big it will beat the boat and everything in it senseless. I have a large fishbox with a heavy lid. That seems to work up to about 50 lbs. Most of them will chill right out if you apply the wood shampoo to the right location. Behind the eyes about an inch.

Dont forget to bleed them thoroughly. Drive a knife through the 'wrist' of the tail at the spine. Also cut the gills where they join at the bottom. It is essential to bleed the halibut for the fine dining you are looking forward to.

Once the fish is on the harpoon and float, reach over the side and cut some gills for a bleed out. Shooting your fish is an option if it is really big. In the water (doh!) and in the head is the best. Be considerate of your neighbor boaters. A gunshot on the water 20 ft away is quite startling and can be deafening. For some reason, people want to use 44 and 12ga at the chicken ranch.

We see blue sharks and some threshers at the chicken ranch. Especially in August. They seem to cover the surface for miles, hundreds of them.

I've never had one approach the boat. Anyone else?

Capin' Dan · 04-28-2002, 07:58 AM

Gaffing, I recommend gaffing them in the stomach area. It is tough and rarely pulls out and yet is not as hard as the head. A lot of times a head gaff results in FB heading back to the depths. Gunshots a .22 is great and that to the head should do it. Over 50 lbs then bam bam bam. Harpoon once again in the stomach area. This is info that I have observed from nermerous guides over the years. Good Luck Dan!

Mr. Fisherman · 04-28-2002, 10:56 AM

Johnboy,

I remember that day like it was next week :grin:

I am looking forward to giving my new birthday present (Thanks Capin' Dan!) a workout.

I have been reading and have heard that the ideal spot to harpoon a flattie is through the gills. This sews the gills shut and bleeds the fish. However, this may be a very difficult feat due to the bones in that area. I have heard from reliable sources that spearing the fish in the soft tissue of the belly works great. Fewer missed attampts. I thought the soft tissue here would give away and the head would pull out but I am told that this has never failed by a reliable source and he has seen it work on Halibut up to 400#.

A misconception that I had was that you could tie the head to a big float with about 10' of rope and have another tag end about 15 to 20' so you could tie it off to a cleat. DON'T DO IT! My buddy says he has seen corners of boats ripped off as BFB went back to the bottom for his car keys. Cleats have been removed, boats have sank as a result. He says to spear the fish and get the ball over AND STAY CLEAR OF THE ROPE AND BALL! The fish should still be on the line and as it goes back down it will be fighting the ball and the rod. Play out the fish and work it back to the boat. If you are going to shoot the fish do it now, BEFORE BRINGING IT IN THE BOAT. The Coast Guard reports every year that "Darwin" shoots the Halibut on the deck of the boat. Guess what, yer finger ain't gonna plug htat hole. Boats sink from this type of crap every year. Don't let it happen to you.

Bring the fish into the boat after it has been subdued. A large fish can and will sink your boat. They are powerful fish and should not be taken for granted. Bleed the fish as Pilar mentioned above. Place it on ice and pop open a celebratary beverage. You earned it. Gear up for target species #2 and 3.

I hope this helps. Maybe we'll see ya on the water....

Mr. F. out......

Threemuch · 04-28-2002, 05:56 PM

I love the gaff. Much more fun and easier than a net.

I always go for the head shot. Why waste the meat? A gaff sunk in the head won't come out either.

The gaff must be sharp! Spend some time and grind a knife edge on it. It should be sticky sharp.

Gaff like you mean it! For me, the motion that drives the hook home and lifts the fish into the boat is one move. I gaff underhand, and once the gaff is under the fish I pull back and over the rail comes the flatty. Make sure you tell your crew not to stand behind you. It's not a spectator event. The angler and the gaff man are on the same side, everyone else should get as far away as they can and stay out of the landing zone.

By the way, my gaff is 6' and has a 3" hook. I wouldn't mess with anything smaller than this if you can help it.

KB

04-28-2002, 07:40 PM

I prefer to harpoon them. :grin:

I have a detachable harpoon head made out of a 1/2' X 6" SS bolt with a 5/16 hole for the
shaft. The shaft is 20" long and is attached to a shovel handle. The harpoon head is cross
drilled ahead of the shaft hole and has 200lb SS cable threw it and looped back to a LARGE
SS ball bearing swivel with a 3/4" SS lock washer ran threw it and tig welded closed. Attached it the lock washer is 6' of 3/8 rope and a 24" ball (like the one that come with the anchor pullers. Drive this puppy threw a butts head behind the eyes and its yours. It is also amusing to see a big butt pulling the ball around. :grin: If anyone is interested in building a harpoon I can email you drawing.

After your butt is tired bring it up to the boat
and without getting its head out of the water pop it in the head with a 22 HP. Then run a rope
threw its mouth and out its gills and it is all over.

As for cleaning all you have to do is follow
the dotted lines. :grin:

Phil Layer · 04-28-2002, 07:52 PM

Kurt,

You don't bleed them out?

tailchaser · 04-28-2002, 08:29 PM

Ok, there's a pretty simple way of handling these bottom dwellers. I've had experiences with them from 300 lbs. down to the 5 lb. ones.

First thing is there is no need to ever shoot a halibut. I've heard too many people claiming they shot off thier leader and stupid crap like that, and plus I don't like gunshots going off around me either. Buy a harpoon and have small rope tied to a cleat with a 'poon tip on each side of the boat. When the fish gets to the top never bring his head out of the water. They will instantly cause panamonia and often this is when people become too excited and misplace a harpoon shot. Get him next to the boat but about a foot under water is perfect. Harpoon the fish thru the stomach region because it will always make it thru. If the fish is large enough get him a second time behind the head. There are no fish that will need a buoy under 200 lbs so don't bother with it. We have never lost a fish with a good 'poon in the midsection.

Secondly, to keep a fish from going hog wild on the deck of the boat lay him down with the white side up only!! Get a good grip on the tail with some gloves and slap him dark side down and he should stay put.

Don't make landing a fish too complicated. With the tips and rope coiled on each edge of the boat you merely have to bust out the stick, click on a tip and get some dinner. If you really want me to get detailed drop me a line and I'll set you up.

tc

Hamachi · 04-29-2002, 03:08 AM

Pilar, did I hear you say there's Threshers up here? Do any of you guys fish them? Talk about fun fishing and fine eating!

Pilar · 04-29-2002, 05:16 AM

Hamachi, I've seen them twice now. Once during a late summer all depth halibut day and once during a Tuna run. How do you fish for them? How do you fish for blues?

rcl187 · 04-29-2002, 07:57 AM

Spears are good in a small boat but If you've got a real big boat and the manpower I'd go with the gaff. We've lost about the same number of fish with both methods but the gaffing is usually quicker and works the same. If you do buy a spear buy larger cable for the spear head. I've had 2 fish snap it off on strong runs.
When you are gaffing or spearing your fish make sure to keep the drag somewhat loose. If the person misses or gets a bad shot you want the fish to be able to make a very fast dive without breaking anything.

bullhead · 04-30-2002, 07:58 AM

Moby,

One other thing I've done after spearing them, is while they're still in the water, run a separate rope through their mouth out their gills and then run it around it's tail. Draw the head and tail together by tightening the rope, and they're going nowhere...Essentially, a hog tie.

I've done this when I just didn't want to take the chance of them going nuts in the boat....A hog tied tail/head is a great way to lock 'em up.

Someone else might have mentioned it above, but I'm in a hurry this a.m. and thought I'd throw that in......good luck!

Threemuch · 04-30-2002, 08:17 AM

Moby, I bleed everything I kill. I cut both gill arches and then a quick slash from the spine down at the base of the tail, just like the book says. I just don't bleed em in the water. I do it when they are on the deck.
KB

Roeboat · 04-30-2002, 06:45 PM

I fished with a top guide in Alaska that had the harpoon technique down to an art. The brain is behind the eyes and slightly to the side. He'd just drive the harpoon right thru the head of the big guys and they'd just twitch and die. He dispatched the big butts with ease. No floats, gaffs, or anything else. He'd just laugh as he heard people around the boat just blasting away with their guns, screaming and yelling, calling them amateurs and from what I witnessed he did indeed know his fish.

04-30-2002, 08:38 PM

A large butts brain is smaller than yout little finger. Their optic nerv is much bigger than their brain. I forgot to say abiut tying them ip threw the gills and tail. Never bring a live butt into your boat!

Phil Layer · 05-01-2002, 08:35 AM

Thanks to all for the suggestions.

After reading all of the posts, I've mapped my strategy for dealing with my halibut when I get him up to the boat. Hopefully, he is huge and can't just be muscled into the boat.

Summary: Anything under 40, I gaff and toss in the box for bleeding.

For larger boys, my harpoon is ready and tied to the rear cleat of the boat (I can't imagine getting one that would sink the boat). Once I have FB beside the boat, I make sure his head does not come out of the water. I loosen the drag on my reel. I raise my harpoon and make a clean shot right behind his eyes. I watch him die beside the boat. I then get a rope and work it through his mouth and gills and then put a loop around his tail and tighten it up. Poor FB couldn't flop now if he wanted to. I toss him in the boat. I slice his gills and just before his tail and let the red stuff drain. After thirty minutes, I untie the rope holding him and toss him in the box. Flattie is mine and ready for fileting.

I perform the required toast and take aim at some lings.

Hey, what's the state record for halibut?

05-01-2002, 10:26 AM

I wouldn't even bring a 40-lb butt into the boat alive. They can wreck your gear or break
a leg. [img]graemlins/1zhelp.gif[/img]
I have also seen cleats ripped off of the sides of a boat by a large butt.

It is also my opinion that anything over 60-lbs is not worth eating and the larger ones are usually hens. I have killed large butts in the past but after eating a few big ones we started to let them go. After a few years of catch and release we learned how to target the smaller 30-50 lb fish. :smile:

[ 05-01-2002, 11:27 AM: Message edited by: Keta ]

05-01-2002, 12:49 PM

It is not taste it is overall quality ie. worms, mercury, PCBs, other contaminants. The thicker fillets are not nearly as good as one on a smaller butt. We just used 60-lbs as the cut off point, but we were able to harvest butts all year long and could keep two fish per day.We also could catch many more per trip so we could aford to be selective When they get over 5 feet they aren't worth eating. I have cut loose many over 5 feet.

Once you have a picture of a big butt :grin: why bother killing anymore?

[ 05-01-2002, 01:50 PM: Message edited by: Keta ]

puffins crew · 05-01-2002, 02:05 PM

I have been out a few times after the FB's, and a trick for getting them to settle down after you bring one on board is to lay'm on his back(white side up)and wearing a rough surface glove, stroke'm nose to tail a couple of times

. They quiet right down.. I asked the mate on a puker boat what was up with that, and he told me that it feels like the sandy bottom on their bellies. Makes sense to me, and I have tried it, and it works great.

A for sure must is to bleed'm out, and take pictures of the FB after. Bloody Halibut pics, with the grinning fisherman holding'm up is a proud sight.

Salmonator · 05-01-2002, 11:11 PM

Keta, two years back my 65 pounder tasted identical to my kids 35 pounder. Maybe the bad-taste cut off is at 66lbs....

AngleThis · 05-07-2002, 09:04 PM

The biggest fish I ever hooked and boated in my life was a pacific sunfish off of Catalina Island. I sh*t you not, this fish had to top a thousand lbs. It took three hours to get to the boat, and I was determined to strap it to the stern and tow it home. This was primarily a diving drip, and I had with me no gaff, but a very high powered tripple barbed cable breakaway point speargun on 200 lb test line. When the whipped monster finally gave up beside the boat, I took three 5-8" bands back, carefully aimed for the skull just above the eye, fired, and MISSED the fish...I forgot to account for the refraction!!!. This snapped my retaining line and sent my $180 stainless steel shaft and head 2,000' to the bottom, and ended my spearfishing weekend before it started.

The moral of the story is, if you use a harpoon, don't forget about the correction!!!