JEFF’S GUIDE

How To Use Circle Hooks Effectively

Jeff's Guide to Fishing for Alaska Halibut with Circle Hooks

When I anchor up on a halibut fishing spot in Alaska, I like to immediately get some meat in the water to start a scent trail. I do this by hanging a 6” chunk of fresh pink salmon or pacific cod with a herring on a large 16/0 circle hook. You want a couple of these “meat rods” up in the bow of the boat, unless the wind and tide are opposite of each other and you’re sitting sideways in the trough.

These meat rods fish well unattended as circle hooks don’t require a hook set. You can simply set the drag to about 5-lbs and put the clicker on so you can hear a halibut taking line if you’re not paying attention. Halibut love fresh pink salmon. Don’t make the mistake of thinking a halibut will bite on rotten pinks, they won’t. Old stinky salmon work great in crab pots when you are crabbing for Dungeness in June, but halibut prefer fresh pinks. Ideally, I will do some salmon fishing in the morning, catch a few pinks, then head to the halibut grounds.

The Circle Hook Trick

Many people miss halibut by trying to set circle hooks. The trick is to just keep tension on the line. Once the halibut has the bait in its mouth and turns to run, the circle hook will roll into the cheek or jaw—that’s when you can start cranking on the fish. Any jerking or fast reeling in an attempt to set the hook will typically just pull a circle hook out of a halibut’s mouth before it has a chance to roll the sharp point through some lip.

Halibut Jigging Strategy

Once the meat rods are out, the scent they put off will start spreading in the water and halibut “down wind” will start moving in. At this point, you want to get some jigs out on the back deck. Many times, you can get a halibut to come to the bait but if the bait doesn’t look enticing, the halibut won’t bite. That’s where jigging comes in.

I like to think of a halibut like a cat. You can throw a piece of fur tied to a string in front of a cat, but it won’t pounce unless you tease it by jerking the string. Halibut fishing in Alaska can be the same way.

  1. Send your jig down to the bottom.
  2. Reel up a couple feet so your bait is suspended just off the seafloor.
  3. Jig up and down, letting your weights bounce off the seafloor as a guide.