South Coast Oregon Fishing

I am going to be camping along then coast of southern Oregon, specifically Sunset Bay in Coos bay. I do not have any knowledge of tactics in that area, whether I am better off in the estuaries or bays, and what species I should be targeting this time of year. I will also be doing some surf fly fishing for perch. Can anyone help me with any tips? I would sincerely appreciate it.

Karl,

I'm going to post a similar topic on the general forum in hopes of a better response.  I'm planning a trip up north, too right after the Elk tourney.  I will post if I get any recommendations.

Good luck.

Kevin

Thanks, I,m anxious to get some info. I went last year without a Yak, fished Sunset Bay from the rocks and caught some Kelp Greenling, kind of a wierd looking fish, almost trout like in some ways.

Karl,

When are you heading up there?  I'll be traveling around the week of Aug 15th (probably later in the week).

Kevin

kelp greenlings are the best lincod bait!!!!!!

-Brian

I will be in the Coos Bay area from the 24th of July through the 4th of August.

The greenling I caught were pretty big,probably10 to 12 inches and a good 16 t0 18 oz, if they make great Lincod bait, and I'm assuming you are talking about using them live, Ill have to invest in a bigger outfit then what I have. Any suggestions for an inexpensive set up. I am using  a smaller Abu Garcia bait casting reel and an ugly stick. I am primarily a Fly fisherman and that is where the majority of my dollars have been spent. A bait casting outfit has been sort of an afterthought, but the idea of catching my own bait and then trolling it, I have to admit, is very apealing to me.

Greenling are an awesome ling bait.  I don't think you can go too big.  Most keeper lings won't have a problem engulfing a 10-12" greenling.  Rig them live on an 8/0-10/0 hook.  Keep them 4-5 feet above the bottom so they don't swim into a hold and hang you up.

-Allen

Last time  was at Sunset Bay, I caught the greenling off of the rocks using ghost shrimp, which are very plentifull in the area. Using the Kayak as I will be this time and not being totally familiar with the tides and currents in the area coupled with the fact that It looks like I will be solo, I prefer to stay away from the plentifull rocks. What are my chances of nailing a few of the Greenling on sabikis?

2"-3" curly tail worms or shad on 1/4 ounce leadhead head will get them going.  Or if you like bait, sand shrimp, worms, or squid pieces. Fish the edge of the kelpbeds.

-Allen

In your experience are the Greenling my best bet as far as bait goes, for larger fish? What other species besides Ling Cod, should I be targeting in that area?

If the greenlings aren't biting you can use small blues (or most other small rockfish) as well.  Doesn't necessarily have to be live either, a fillet can be just as deadly.  Not sure what the regs are up north regarding finfish as bait, you may want to look into that.  Of course you can almost never go wrong with good old fashioned Diamond jigs.  

If you're looking for a heavier outfit to target bigger fish I'd check out ebay or craigslist for a used penn jigmaster and pair it to a 20lb rated conventional rod.

agarcia, thanks for the info. I just bought a Penn 330 GTI level wind and a seven foot ugly stick, a fairly inexpensive purchase but I hope it does the trick. I will have to look into Oregon live bait regs, I just bought a live bait well too. I thought it would look impressive on my Kayak plus it might even help me catch some fish.

Greenling are tops on my list for lings and it's less of a mouthfull of spines for the lings to take.  Sometime with the rockies, they won't take it as deep and are often not even hooked and are just holding them in their mouths as you pull them in.  I don't really set the hook when fishing live bait because you can yank the bait out of their mouth.  I just real in steadily with no pumping either.  In the case where they are not really hooked, be prepared with the gaff or net lest they let go and sink away.  Don't pull their head out of the water either.

When using a live greenling or rocky, you are specifically targeting lings.  With an iron jig or rubber worms/scampis, you'll also have a shot at other fish.  Whole herring or squid also work well for dead bait.

-Allen

Thanks for the info. I just looked into Oregon regs and there was no mention of any restrictions affecting live bait, in the marine regulations. When you talk about using live rock fish as bait, is there a limit on the size of fish you will  use to target Ling. I've caught some pretty big rockfish in California, that would seem to big to use as bait, but then I have been a freshwater flyfisherman for the majority of my life and my saltwater experience is fairly limited to the surf.