Tips on flyfishing for rock cod/ lingcod at Capitola (Monterey Bay area).

[torbotek]

Hi guys! Can anyone enlighten me on what rig to use for fly fishing for rockfish/cod and lingcod? My buddy and I have fished the Capitola area by renting a boat by the marina there. We have used regular tackle and have fished for rock cod and lingcod successfully. I want to up the ante by fly fishing for the quarry instead. What should I use? I have a 6, 8 and 9 wt rods ( i prefer the 6 wt to be honest as i like to fight the fish - but never caught a rock cod or lingcod on a fly so no idea if i am too under gunned with the 6wt.) . What line should i use? We fish close to the kelp beds but not on the kelp beds. I would venture a guess that the depth we usually fish around are 15-30 feet of water only. So basically here are my questions :

1) i prefer to use a 6 wt but I have an 8 and a 9 wt as well. What were your experience with the quarry I have mentioned?
2) What type of fly line should I use? I have read a shooting head with a fast sink rate. Rio outbound short perhaps? No clue at all and would love to have your input
3) how about the leader/tippet ? What do you guys use? How to set it up?
4) What flies has been used to take these sea creatures out of the ocean floor? Clouser, deceiver? Any particular tip on the fly and color?

Thank you so much guys and gals!!!

[Darian]

The depth that you're going to be fishing at is going to dictate your choice of line type/weight which in turn will help with the choice of rod weight. Add in the need to cast in windy conditions.

Both Ling and Rock Cod are basically bottom fish, other Rock fish can be anywhere in the water column. Given those are your target and casting great distances isn't necessary, I'd choose a heavy shooting head like T-14, T-17, etc., backed with a mono running line and plenty of backing (dacron or braid) to get down to the fish as quick as possible. Use a reel that has some anodizing (to resist salt water corrosion) with a good drag. The rod for a rig this size will most likely be a 9 weight or above until you become more proficient at the game. Later you can tailor your outfit towards a lighter combo.

The leader doesn't need to be long or tapered, just a straight piece of 15 or 20 pound test maybe 4' to 5' in length. Learn to countdown and be patient. If you decide to target the Rock Fish only, you can change up to lighter rigs and fish closer to the surface. Maybe Scott Vaughn will chime in on this as he's done some fly fishing for rock fish off the NorCal coast. Another good source of info might be the books by Russell Chatham.

To get an idea of what's necessary to fly fish at depth, you might want to take a look at the Facebook page for the Calico Syndicate. They're a bunch a saltwater fly guys that specialize in targeting Calico Bass in deep, boiler rocks around Catalina Island. They've developed some interesting fly gear combos and patterns. Several good videos by them cover the subject.

Good luck.... :cool:

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

Thanks Darian......



In the summer they are fly fishing for White Sea Bass near Capitola too.


I think that some would use very similar gear to the Delta Striper fishing.



I would also post your questions on Dan Blanton's message board:

http://www.danblanton.com/bulletin.php

.

[k.hanley]

Howdy Tor. You might want to pick up a used copy of my book "Fly Fishing the Pacific Inshore." You can get it dirt cheap from Amazon and various outlets. It will provide you with a solid foundation for exploring our coastal habitat and celebrating a wide variety of gamefish.

https://www.amazon.com/Fly-Fishing-Pacific-Inshore-Strategies/dp/1890373117/ref=pd_cp_14_1?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=1890373117&pd_rd_r=QF8PYWQA6H49WDBH6BPM&pd_rd_w=ZptYc&pd_rd_wg=liRbY&psc=1&refRID=QF8PYWQA6H49WDBH6BPM

Stay safe out there.
Cheers, Ken