Hanlding a sabiki rig on a kayak?

Are there mackerel here in Oregon?

There should be, but don't ask me where.  We get them in the Sound and up at Moutcha, BC, they are thick as flies around the cleaning dock.

-Allen

Ahhhh..... La Jolla.... Memories!

Yep, getting bait next to the Scripps Pier at 3AM before paddling out to the corner, part of the drill.

About an hour of sabiki jigging got you a Bait Tank Full of Mackerel

Weee!!!

Are there mackerel here in Oregon?

There should be, but don't ask me where.  We get them in the Sound and up at Moutcha, BC, they are thick as flies around the cleaning dock.

-Allen

I think you just need to get out there, find a bait ball and see what the sabiki brings up.

Thanks for the input guys.  I may just use my ultralight , which is a cheapo shakespeare setup.

Are there mackerel here in Oregon?

I've heard of some near Buoy 10. Might have to ask the locals where exactly.

Z

I use an 8' 10# spinning rod for my sabiki rod.  When storing it in the holder I make sure the line is tight enough to bend the rod thus holding the hook away from the rod.  The 1 ounce sinker is wrapped around the spinning reel handle.  I don't have too many problems rigging this way.

-Allen

Allen, When stowing inside the yak for a surf launch, do you have the sabiki tied and rigged already or do you tied it up on the water? I can see those hooks snagging other rigs when trying to load/unload rods.

Thanks,
Jay

I use an 8' 10# spinning rod for my sabiki rod.  When storing it in the holder I make sure the line is tight enough to bend the rod thus holding the hook away from the rod.  The 1 ounce sinker is wrapped around the spinning reel handle.  I don't have too many problems rigging this way.

-Allen

Allen, When stowing inside the yak for a surf launch, do you have the sabiki tied and rigged already or do you tied it up on the water? I can see those hooks snagging other rigs when trying to load/unload rods.

Thanks,
Jay

For sure take the sabiki off before stowing.  I wind it on an old leader spool or a wine cork.  The same sabiki rod I use doubles as a light swimbait rod.  Stuck a CA halibut on it a few weeks back.  This was after I sabiki'd a jacksmelt up on it and used that as bait on the other rod.  Yes, multiple rods are allowed when halibut fishing the ocean in CA.  Actually I also had a few bonus squid in the footwells that I also sabiki'd up.  You never know what you're going to pull up on a sabiki.  I recall one time I caught a 29.5" ling while sabiki-ing.  Not legal though since too many hooks ...

-Allen

Thanks,
Next time I get out on the ocean, I think I'll try to make bait and do something new. I guess I need a bucket to keep everything alive for a while.

I've never used live bait. Do you just hook them through the lips and drop some iron to get them down?

Jay

Thanks,
Next time I get out on the ocean, I think I'll try to make bait and do something new. I guess I need a bucket to keep everything alive for a while.

I've never used live bait. Do you just hook them through the lips and drop some iron to get them down?

Jay

You can rig like you would for mooching with a crescent sinker and a 3-6' length of leader.  Or a sliding sinker.  It really doesn't matter much.  A slido rig will let you adjust sinker size easily, sometimes on a 6-18" dropper.   I like to go on the heavier side with longer leaders.  That way the bait is free to swim a bit but the heavier sinker keeps them on a leash so to speak.  Match the hook size to the bait.  For a 4" anchovy you may go as small as a #4 or #6 hook.  For an 8" herring you may go as large as 4/0 or larger.  It really depends.  I'll start with a 1/0 hook as it will usually fit most baits.   If the bait is predominantly larger or smaller, I'll adjust accordingly.  For the larger baits I like to feed the bait to them, sometimes as long as a 10 count.  The smaller kine bait will get inhaled completely and you don't really need to wait.  I like to cross hook live bait through the nose.  Some people like to go through the lips but I like to let them open their mouths to breath.  They stay alive longer that way.

If you find blacks on the surface, I like to back hook them just behind the dorsal and free line them without any weight whatsoever.  Using a slido lets you remove the sinker easily.  If you see salmon working the surface on a bait ball, try this method as well.  The pickup is a rush!!!

If you bait dies and you run out of live ones, plug cut them and keep fishing.

-Allen

Any place in PDX carry sabiki rigs?

Fisherman's?

I'm going to do some live bait fishing on Sunday out of Santa Cruz.  I'll try and take some pics to demonstrate the relevant aspects of catching and fishing this style.

-Allen

Fishermen's has 3 different kinds.  Just my luck, I made a sabiki rod and have taken it out with me the last 4-5 times and haven't seen a bait ball since. The big balls of bait and the birds seem to have moved further offshore.  I ready though!

Fishermen's has 3 different kinds.  Just my luck, I made a sabiki rod and have taken it out with me the last 4-5 times and haven't seen a bait ball since. The big balls of bait and the birds seem to have moved further offshore.  I ready though!

Thanks Pelagic, I'll head out at lunch today and see what they have. I guess I'll need a bait bucket as well.

I'm going to do some live bait fishing on Sunday out of Santa Cruz.  I'll try and take some pics to demonstrate the relevant aspects of catching and fishing this style.

-Allen

Allen, Any pics would be appreciated. I'll be using my little spinning rod for initial sabiki duty. Maybe in the future I'll put together something like the NCKA guys have been making out of PVC or conduit.

Jay

Picked up a sabiki rig at fisherman's, 6 hook. I figure I can split each one into 2 3-hook rigs for ease of handling. Unfortunately they don't carry any bait buckets, only styrofoam boat models. Now that Joes is no more, where else in PDX area should I try. I'd like to shop local and have one for Monday.

Thanks,
Jay

Edit:I'll try Bi-Mart after work. Any others?

If you are fishing PC it will take you longer to catch live bait then it would take you to catch a limit of blacks. Tie up a triple rig and use your finder to sit over a school and you can have a limit in 10-15 minutes.

If you are fishing PC it will take you longer to catch live bait then it would take you to catch a limit of blacks. Tie up a triple rig and use your finder to sit over a school and you can have a limit in 10-15 minutes.

At this time, it's more for learning a new technique. I was thinking more targeting bigger lings and blacks down deep. I've been filling the freezer on blacks lately so it isn't just limiting these days that I'm most interested in. I pretty much expect I can bring blacks home if I hit the right spots, I want LINGZILLA now!!!

BTW, how many hooks can you legally use when targeting blacks and lings. I doubt I'd ever want to use more than 2 or 3 in any case.

Jay