Where are the Halibut?

Well, that's a simple yet complex conversation! There's a few things that are noteworthy. While there are definitely more Halibut around during the Spring and Fall, I've caught these fish every month of the year. My biggest one came on March 31, back when I was younger and my hair wasn't gray! Early spring is when the big mamas are around, but there are far fewer of these, so be prepared to put some time in, and strike out often, but you gotta stay in the game. I'll share a few things.

Current: They prefer current, but unlike bass, I've caught lots of nice ones during tide changes. Usually this happens on days with large tide swings, Too much current and they burrow a bit.

Boys and Girls: Males generally don't reach legal size, In all my years, filleting many many halibut, I've cleaned exactly one (1) legal male! Don't despair though, typically if you catch a short (male), redrift the area, typically there are many males aroud the female, maybe even a couple female (legal) fish.

Bait: Go where the bait is! If you're fishing flats, fish where you meter bait.

Structure: Halibut love sand, but they love structure more. So always fish the sane next to the structure. Or fish patchy structure with sand patches in it.

Picture from many moons ago...