Keeping your eye on the sand

hmmm....

What is it halibut season or something? Everyone's been getting them. Well I went out on a night dive with Mike and Keith last night in search of some halibut in a spot that produced just the night before. We jumped in at sunset and just scoured the area, but all we found were shorts. Mike grabbed a nice 22inch spotfin croaker. But Keith and I got skunked. Conditions were just perfect for halibut diving. Flat and calm. So when Keith and Mike decided to call it a night I picked up my gear and drove to another halibut spot. Scoured the entire area and just as I got to the last spot in the dive I found this guy. He was just settling down in the sand so he was fully exposed. I had to push a huge kelp strand 30ft away so it wouldn't mess with my shot, but I plunked him dead center. Went out to be 27inches and around 6-7lbs. My 2nd halibut ever!

Quote from Dan

Are the fillets from both sides the same thickness?

No, the fillets on the top side are always a little thicker than the fillets on the bottom. Guess it was designed that way to be flatter on the bottom.

Quote from ladvr

Congrats. Its rewarding when persistence pays off.

Mike

That it is :thumbsup2: And with the flat conditions it was a joy swimming around looking for the halis so close to the shoreline.

Quote from LunkerBuster

very nice...i imagine they are extra hard to brain when they are really green.

fine job on the filleting too.

I enjoy the pics as always...nice poses

I'm not compassionate enough I suppose, since I just rip out the gills and let the fish bleed. I only brain fish if I have to.

Quote from Stephan

Nice work Daniel. I was hoping to go out again tonight but priorities needed to be set. Plus with my halibut luck I'd probably get skunked and ruin my perfectly good high from getting my first last night.
Good luck if you go back out tonight.

Stephan

Congrats on your halibut too Stephen! Looks like you got yours in the daytime. I've never seen a legal one in the day, that takes skill! But it sounded like Darren shot one too. How big was his hali?

I think I may jump in again tonight with Alex. He's so amp'ed up to get a halibut I'll be lucky to even see a legal one. Just hope my light lasts the night. I forgot to charge the batteries.

Quote from sdeisen

you.., are a good filleter of fish

If you factor in the amount of time it took me to do that, than I'd say I'm just an okay filleter. I bet if I had a fillet table things would go a lot faster.

Quote from Dan

Ripping the gills is a reasonable/ethical way to dispatch a fish. It can get time consuming though. Do you use a knife for this?

Only time I ever need a knife is with white sea bass. Every other fish I can rip the gills out with my hands (with gloves on).

Quote from halibutmike

Nice Daniel and Congrats Stephan! ... long time in coming.

The grunion are running..................

Daniel... I'v never shot one at night! (but I may have too......with my current lack of success!...._)

3 short dives this week S central and N laguna.... all decent hali spots........... Monday S Central dive... was enough to make me think the MLPA "it's a waste land" types are right..... there was nothing about. Tuesday N - what I expect.... lots of bass, and goats (I'm looking for "buts......).. a couple of short halis...... and today N agin..... lots of fish.... and a couple of "probably legals" but not worth pulling the trigger......

so...... but I always say - - I enjoy the hunt..... (and the eating).... so I'll keep hunting...........

At least it's finally starting to seem like summer......... but the water is still 5*F less than normal.

Dan.... why use a knife when you have (gloved) fingers!

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You've never shot a single halibut at night!? That's the only time I've ever tried shooting halibut. Besides the staying up late part, it works out alright for me.

But bummer Mike, you didn't catch any halibut in Laguna? I don't know your track record, though I bet you've slayed tons of halibut in Laguna. Even so, you can't say it's a waste land yet, even as a thought! Still plenty of nice fish out there The grunion are running, though I didn't see any beach themselves when I went diving these last two nights. Water is not as warm as it could be, but I'm loving it. I felt like I could dive out there all night long in my wetsuit. Feels like the perfect temperature.

And the visibility has finally returned to Laguna. So it's a lot of fun to experience the area again with a clear view.

Quote from halibutmike

RE night halis...... come on guys..... It's almost too easy at night.

Shooting halibut at night is not almost too easy! It is too easy But only when conditions are perfect. If there are 2-3ft waves most shorelines are too rough to even dive for halis. The sand just gets kicked up constantly and you won't be able to find any halibut near shore. Things just came together when the grunion run coinciding with a super low swell. I think that's why everyone's getting them this time around.

But now that I've got plenty of halibut in the freezer my new goal will be to find a legal halibut during the daytime.