Lings/halibut

I am hoping to try my hand at some lings and possibly halibut this spring. I have a little experience for lings, none for halibut.

That said, are there some spots around the sound where you could reasonably target both within a morning of fishing?  I've done some research on the preferred structure of both, just curious about thoughts from members of this site.

Which gets me to my next question. I need to get a beefier rod for halibut. Can you cross over on both species with something like an Ugly Stik Tiger (roughly 1 to 6 or 8 oz rating)?  Anyone looking to sell a used rod in this category?

You can use the ugly stick tiger on lings too.  But you can also catch then on any standard rod you may already have. 

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Thanks. What about the halibut? Can you realistically fish them with a 6'6" Ugly Stik Tiger rated 3/4 to 6 oz and 15-40 pound line.

I know there isn't a magic answer to this, but curious if in general this set-up is in the ballpark for light halibut action from a kayak in the sound.

N.M.I.F.,

Because of the depths where you're likely to find halibuts (at LEAST 100-150', but maybe as much as 300') and the typical currents in the Straight (almost never less than 1/2 to 1 knot), I can't imagine that you'll have much of any chance to keep your bait near the bottom (where they are nearly ALWAYS caught) with anything less than 12-16 ounces of lead.  My advice would be to take whatever rod you are thinking will get the job done and test it out by tying on an even 16 oz. and then test it out by standing on an elevated porch or maybe a pickup truck bed and make like you're bobbing that weight along the bottom.  You'll know right away whether it's a workable situation or not.  If the rod is already doubled over just to lift the weight off the ground, then you aren't going to be able to work with it off of the bottom very well and you probably don't have much chance to deal with the additional load of a 10 to 70 lb fish on line.

As for the line weight... Howard McKim in Ketchikan has managed to catch SEVERAL 100+ lb halibuts over the years using only 30 lb line.  The issue is whether you'll be able to break it off if you hang the bottom when you only have you and your yak for leverage.  If you have to cut your line, you stand to lose 300' of line.  I have personally been able to break off a 40# line, but it's sure not easy.

Fishin-T

Look at the heavy Shimano Trevala jigging rod. will handle both Dinos and Butts. Depending
on currents in the Straights you'll probably need 12-24oz to stay near the bottom. Fishin-t and I fished near Dallas Bank last year and I needed 2lbs to stay at the bottom.PITA to bring up +tired arms/not fun. Run 30-65lb braid with 80-100lb leader. Keep a good knife handy to cut off if you get into trouble. The above is mainly for butts. for lings I run 20-30lb braid with
a leader of 20lb mono, 2-6oz wt for a twin tail scampi or whatever you want to use.

An FYI re: rods and reels

One week ago sportco and outdoor emporium had Diawa Beef Sticks in the. 6 1/2 to 7 foot 15-50 line range for under $30.00

You could couple that to say a Penn 320 / 321 GT and spooli it with 30-40 lb braid and walk out the store with a nice combo for under $150.00

And T's advice? Prudent. Though he doesn't post much he's one of our master fishermen.

Thanks. Would the Beef Stick be more in the range for lings and not halibut? I may upgrade a bit from that, but that gives me an idea. Thanks again.

Depends on how you rig it i'd think. Could be overkilll on most lings on the washington coast but with the rating it has, i'd say small- medium halibut  up to around 100lbs you should be fine. I look at it as a multipurpose rod, depending on what reel/line combo i'd put on it. we all know there are loads of fish caught that are way heavier than what a rod is usually rated at.

Say, for lighter stuff, a Penn Squall or Fathom with 20-30lb braid, going to medium range an Avet MX or similar sized reel such as the Penn 321 i mentioned earlier, then maybe a step up again in reel size, maxing it out size wise with that next step up. **I'm only using the Penns and Avets as exemplars for size. What reel you choose to mount is your personal choice**

It's a one piece rod, with a shorter butt than is the current rage lately. Tip is probably 11mm diameter with a roughly 27mm butt diamenter.  actually felt really good in the hands when i picked it up.

personal preference, this is the heaviest rod i think i would be comfortable on a yak with for a long time. I'm not much of a heavy gear guy unless i'm on a much larger boat and can use the "lean it on the rail " technique. still, i do not think i would feel under armed with this.