Neah Bay/Hobuck

On a side note- why is halibut talk on this website so taboo? I understand that it is dangerous and we don't Want people who are unprepared getting hurt. However, I think it would be best to have an open forum where we can discuss halibut fishing and the safest ways to accomplish it.

Halibut fishing from a boat, much-less a kayak, is a more extreme version of the sport of fishing for many reasons I won't go into. Halibut are over-fished, becoming more scarce, and their meat is a prized, expensive table fare. One fish can feed a household for the year. For these reasons & many more Halibut fishermen historically are protective of their knowledge & resources surrounding their pursuit.
Now addressing locations, simply said Hobuck is an isolated and sacred place that most people would like to keep that way. Moreover, many of the members on this site have a strong history with emotional & spiritual ties to this specific location. Unfortunately, most of the time conversations surrounding halibut fishing on this site tend to include this specific location.
Personally, I've been fishing and researching our OR inshore halibut fisheries & drifts along the Pacific coast for many years. I would be interested in having a conversation about the nature of these fish and how to predict their behavior in hopes to find them closer to my home grounds & safely time my trip accordingly. I doubt this type of Halibut talk would be taboo or offend anyone...

Thanks for the feedback MurseStrong!  I can understand that people do not want to blow up the fishery

I too am beginning to research closer halibut fisheries as well because leaving the wife and the 2 year old for that long of a trip has its draw backs. I have heard of a few locations local including pacific city. It would be dint to get a group of experienced kayakers out there exploring local waters.

Maybe when someone asks a reasonable question, if you don’t want to respond, just don’t. No need to rail on folks. If you have a secret spot, there’s one sure way to keep it that way. Lots of folks think anyone fishing in salt from a kayak is crazy in the first place. No sense validating it.
Zack, will be checking tides and watching the post. Great questions.

Looks like earlier is better than later

I like Hobuck.

I like halibut.

I like Hobuck better when halibut's not open.

I don't think anybody has railed on me. .but thanks for looking out for me trident13. I have fished with MurseStrong on several occasions and I think he is aware I would check more than just the tides lol. I am just A research freak and like to be prepared. He  and I have shared a laugh about the spreadsheets I maintain for my personal fishing knowledge  . I am an accountant by trade so analytics are in my blood 

I know this is an very advanced fishery and should not be taken lightly.i can see how just posting questions or discussing halibut from a kayak may somehow make it seem less dangerous.

I would like to build on what Murstrong and some others have said in this thread and past threads already.   

However, let me use an analogy to hopefully get the high points across so it does not look as much like an "elitist fishing camp" ideology, and clarify what the real reason Hobuck halibut isn't as public conversation as others would like it to be. 

Note: That this is my opinion on the matter, and others may or may not agree for their own reasons.  This is how I see it, based on my experience with Hobuck and halibut fishing.

Here is a way to look at it from those that regularly attend, yet choose not talk about or advertise it on a open public forum viewed by anyone with an internet connection.


A few good friends know of this absolutely awesome place to take their guns to shoot, and do some camping together.  It has the best layout with natural shelves to put targets on, fresh spring water flowing out of a rock outcropping, abundant firewood for use to keep warm, among other hypothetical nice things a shooting/camping location could ever have. 

Now, it's a really long drive just to get to the trail head leading up to the shooting range.  This trail head itself is several hours away from the next city with any kind of life saving medical services. From there it's a strenuous 10 mile walk in, over some pretty tough terrain. 

Hard work but totally worth the effort getting there. 

Somewhere along the line, the friends invite a well known buddy or two to join them on their next trip out there for a weekend of shooting targets and camping.  Over time, this group slowly increases each year.  What gets the next guy invited is trust in the individual regarding gun safety, and back country self sufficiency.  When a guy makes this trek, he knows that he is responsible for himself, but will lend a hand if needed for an emergency situation being this far away from civilization. Many of these guys have spent time with each other at target shooting locations much much closer to home, and already comfortable on how they are safety wise. 

Nobody from the core group talks about this location in any detail in a public forum where anyone with internet access would be reading it.  Likewise, odds are low that many will respond to specific questions about said shooting/camping location publicly either. 

This mentality is primarily to preserve the safety for those that already frequent the area, and greatly reduce the odds of folks without a good working knowledge of gun safety, or self reliance from showing up to this very distant off grid location. 
It is a lot less about just hiding a sweet spot for themselves.

Think about it for a minute.
Would you feel comfortable going to a great location to camp and shoot with good friends that you know well and trust highly, just to have new comers without the proper experience or knowledge of gun safety/self reliance show up and possibly put you and everyone else there in danger, or in a position to deal with an otherwise avoidable emergency with no outside help within hours/miles?

Depoe Bay, PC, and other more local fisheries are a lot easier to handle the unknown experience of a new comer having the Coast Guard fairly close, as well as a ton of other recreational and charter boats in the area. 

Hobuck does not have that built in additional safety factor at all.  Please try to understand the severity of that factor and why Hobuck isn't talked about in an open public forum.


Now, I know some folks reading this will just think out loud (with their keyboard) and say explicitly that they have years and years of experience with kayaking in the ocean, and know how to deal with anything that "Mayhem" himself can throw at them and that they shouldn't be excluded from the know hows of Hobuck.  Keep in mind, not everyone that treks to Hobuck knows you or your experience levels, or are willing to risk their own lives on that.  Very similar to gun safety, not everyone that treks to the back country shooting area wants to share this space with a person with unknown experience with guns and gun safety.

In due time you may get into a non public internet based conversation with someone that you are good friends with that has experienced the Hobuck halibut and the inherent dangers involved, and will help you get your "T"s crossed and "I"s dotted and on your way up there with them.  But that is between them and their comfort level with your skills.

I really hope this made sense and steers the argument away from it being an "elitist group" feel to more of a "extremely cautious group" feel. 

Thanks Insayn,  I like your analogy and it makes sense.  I know I can reach out to a few buddies of mine who have been in the past it just seems odd to push off safety talk on this forum because that is typically what this forum specializes in .

I look forward to this year and learning the ropes first hand.  This is something i have been eyeing for quite some time and something i have not taken lightly (i have fished with many of you and i hope that my actions show that.  I hope to be successful my first trip and was hoping this safety oriented forum would be a good place to ask questions before i go.

I will take my questions offline and ask those who are willing to share over a dinner and beer. 

On a side note- why is halibut talk on this website so taboo? I understand that it is dangerous and we don't Want people who are unprepared getting hurt. However, I think it would be best to have an open forum where we can discuss halibut fishing and the safest ways to accomplish it.

Halibut fishing from a boat, much-less a kayak, is a more extreme version of the sport of fishing for many reasons I won't go into. Halibut are over-fished, becoming more scarce, and their meat is a prized, expensive table fare. One fish can feed a household for the year. For these reasons & many more Halibut fishermen historically are protective of their knowledge & resources surrounding their pursuit.
Now addressing locations, simply said Hobuck is an isolated and sacred place that most people would like to keep that way. Moreover, many of the members on this site have a strong history with emotional & spiritual ties to this specific location. Unfortunately, most of the time conversations surrounding halibut fishing on this site tend to include this specific location.
Personally, I've been fishing and researching our OR inshore halibut fisheries & drifts along the Pacific coast for many years. I would be interested in having a conversation about the nature of these fish and how to predict their behavior in hopes to find them closer to my home grounds & safely time my trip accordingly. I doubt this type of Halibut talk would be taboo or offend anyone...

For some reason? I can think of one reason that has about 20 thousand views on YouTube and and half dozen others like it, lol. Also there is a lot of literature about that place on line. I don’t think a handful of kayak anglers are going to put a huge dent in the quota or population. Commercial fishing however is a total bummer. Poachers/people who keep more than their share also totally suck. Safety and not wanting to bring new people along that you are not familiar with is totally understandable and probably the main reason people are hush about this fishery on here. Don’t get me wrong I wouldn’t be sharing coordinates or wanting to drag along people I don’t know either.
There are some good places here in Oregon that are productive a little later in the season. The fish are not not typically as big as the ones up north, but they do exist. I will definitely be getting after both options as long as the ocean conditions are good.

So not to intentionally take this conversation onto a more productive tangent; I'd like to ask what specific surficial geological habitat halibut prefer? I'm under the impression it's gravel mix & coarse sand.

It's interesting that when a legitimate question is asked it's nothing but "crickets." Some people are ready to quickly respond with pessimistic assumptions but facts are difficult to argue. My intent is to focus on what's relevant in pursuing a species, regardless of location or "secret holes."
Zach you're the man for your attention to detail, passion for the sport, and more importantly your humility & preparedness for your goals. I wish you the best this season at Hobuck, and I cannot wait to see your Hali-BUTT porn.
Hugh

My pessimistic crickets tell me I still have a lot more to learn on the actual finding and catching of these said flying carpet with teeth.

Actually, you have more experience than I do regarding what kind of substrates that h'butts prefer.  You actually hooked and landed one. I'm still 0/4.

It's interesting that when a legitimate question is asked it's nothing but "crickets." Some people are ready to quickly respond with pessimistic assumptions but facts are difficult to argue. My intent is to focus on what's relevant in pursuing a species, regardless of location or "secret holes."
Zach you're the man for your attention to detail, passion for the sport, and more importantly your humility & preparedness for your goals. I wish you the best this season at Hobuck, and I cannot wait to see your Hali-BUTT porn.
Hugh

I don’t know the answer to your question. It would be cool to hear from someone who knows the answer. I’ve read that they tend to come up rocky sandy hills from around a thousand feet to feed on the flat sand or mud bottoms around edges. The first few times I halibut fished I was given a general direction and from there it was just finding a fish able depth and trying it. Most the time we’d get about 30 miles west of the bay and there would all of the sudden be a huge fleet that made it pretty obvious where to try. The inshore places that I’ve fished were a similar story.
My apologies that you feel I’m pessimistic. I was just stating the obvious. Also it kind of sucks that it feels like I’m doing something wrong for wanting to try a well known public fishery a shot because people who have already done it don’t seem to think it’s ok for me to do that. I’m not going to just sit on my thumbs and hope someday someone invites me halibut fishing if I kiss enough ass and play my cards right. Life’s to short for that shit.

Let me offer a different perspective.

Hobuck isn't a secret.  Where to launch isn't a secret.  Where to camp isn't a secret. How to catch halibut isn't a secret.  The days you get to fish Hobuck isn't a secret.  The danger isn't a secret.  If you show up at Hobuck on an open day and walk up to a a camp of kayak anglers, you're more than likely to be offered a beer and plenty of story around the fire.

Now, what is it that you wanted to know?

-Allen

It's interesting that when a legitimate question is asked it's nothing but "crickets." Some people are ready to quickly respond with pessimistic assumptions but facts are difficult to argue. My intent is to focus on what's relevant in pursuing a species, regardless of location or "secret holes."
Zach you're the man for your attention to detail, passion for the sport, and more importantly your humility & preparedness for your goals. I wish you the best this season at Hobuck, and I cannot wait to see your Hali-BUTT porn.
Hugh

I don’t know the answer to your question. It would be cool to hear from someone who knows the answer. I’ve read that they tend to come up rocky sandy hills from around a thousand feet to feed on the flat sand or mud bottoms around edges. The first few times I halibut fished I was given a general direction and from there it was just finding a fish able depth and trying it. Most the time we’d get about 30 miles west of the bay and there would all of the sudden be a huge fleet that made it pretty obvious where to try. The inshore places that I’ve fished were a similar story.
My apologies that you feel I’m pessimistic. I was just stating the obvious. Also it kind of sucks that it feels like I’m doing something wrong for wanting to try a well known public fishery a shot because people who have already done it don’t seem to think it’s ok for me to do that. I’m not going to just sit on my thumbs and hope someday someone invites me halibut fishing if I kiss enough ass and play my cards right. Life’s to short for that shit.

There is no butt kissing or playing your cards right to get an invite to go fish Hobuck halibut.  Everyone has their own view on how Hobuck works, so view it in whatever context you like as Hobuck will still be there.  I stated very clearly in my earlier post that this was "my opinion" on why I feel Hobuck halibut is not talked about openly on NWKA and that others may agree, others may not.  So, with that I will respect the thought process that brought me to that conclusion in the first place.

Hobuck is different for everyone, and Pole Pole makes a very good point. 
You know Hobuck exists, you know halibut are there, and possibly even when to go. 
You know it has it's own dangers, and you can figure out how or where to camp.

No secrets, it's just not publicly discussed for whatever reason each person has for not discussing it here. 
You know my thoughts on it as I posted above, and from there I am just figuring it out one step at a time. 

And no, I wasn't handed an invite to go to Hobuck to halibut fish, rather it was compounded in casual conversations over a couple of years before I was able to make my first trek up there for the flatties.  I am still in the trial and error phase regarding tackle, and one day something will work.

Let me offer a different perspective.

Hobuck isn't a secret.  Where to launch isn't a secret.  Where to camp isn't a secret. How to catch halibut isn't a secret.  The days you get to fish Hobuck isn't a secret.  The danger isn't a secret.  If you show up at Hobuck on an open day and walk up to a a camp of kayak anglers, you're more than likely to be offered a beer and plenty of story around the fire.

Now, what is it that you wanted to know?

-Allen

I like this response and am glad to see that people may be more open in the area itself.

I will take you up on your offer to answer questions if that was a serious response  (I am terrible at reading sarcasm) but i will PM you in case i am off base.