Newbie Ling question

Been out thrice so far and have caught various RF, and have a question about the lings y'all are catching out there.
Is there a certain depth range where lings are more likely to be?  Or is the answer more alongs the line of "where there's lot of baitfish or small RF".  It looks like they are being caught on a variet of lures...
I'm just trying to do some research (for next year's season) on what will increase my chances of getting my first ling.  Thx.

You never know when or where you may get lucky.  I've caught them between 60' and 20' deep.  Along side the kelp, out in the open, around rocks.  Bait happens to be what ever they want, I've used 4oz lead heads with 6" brown paddle tails, shrimp flies with squid teasers, frozen anchovies, frozen mackeral.  Look through this web site and you will see that many others have used a large variety of baits and lures.  I got lucky this year and managed to bring home an 18lber and a variety of smaller ones.  Many that were released are next years crop hopefully.  Good Luck!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

lings like rocks. when you hook up they try and wedge in the holes and flair out their fins. One bit of advise is when you hook one and get them off the bottom they sometimes come un-buttoned you should drop right back down. I have seen many re hook the same fish on the drop.

Alot of it is the numbers game.  If you use smaller tackle you're more likely to catch more smaller fish because that's more of what's out there.  If you use big ugly tackle you're likely to not catch as much fish at all, but you're more likely to catch a ling because it's the one that is more likely to attack something big and ugly.  Lingcod will hit a shrimpfly, but so will a bunch of smaller fish.  So ditch the shrimpfly and just go with a big terminal tackle.

Play those numbers and you will catch more lings.   

Yep - big lures = big fish.

BUT, I can't tell you the number of times I've seen Lings caught as a hitchhiker. In fact, my biggest ling this year took a 12 inch black, which in turn hit a shrimpfly 2 ft above the big jig I was using.

So the smaller lures will definitely keep you busy taking the smaller rockies off your line, but don't be surprised when a small hit suddenly turns into an unexpected heavy run for te bottom!

Yep, lings like big food.
Also, they often charge as soon as they scope their prey so you'll get hit on the drop, or just as the lure hits bottom.
On charter boats the anglers who get their rig to the bottom first usually hook the big lingcod.

Back when I was diving (SCUBA) alot and shooting ling, I shot most of them in 15 to 30 feet of water.  Lots of them just a handful of yards out from breakwaters or other structure.  All the ling I shot where laying in or on rocks or in the kelp, and almost always sitting on the bottom or rock.  I rarely saw ling swimming around unless I spooked them on approach.  I never saw ling on sandy or eel grass bottoms.   

Fishing I use my biggest plastic and whatever weight it takes to get it to the bottom, and I feel I am doing alright. 

My biggest spear fishing, 32 lbs, hook and line to date only 27 inches and considerably lighter.

Yup big swimbaits and curly tails work great> i like white or rootbeer

Back when I was diving (SCUBA) alot and shooting ling, I shot most of them in 15 to 30 feet of water.  Lots of them just a handful of yards out from breakwaters or other structure.  All the ling I shot where laying in or on rocks or in the kelp, and almost always sitting on the bottom or rock.  I rarely saw ling swimming around unless I spooked them on approach.  I never saw ling on sandy or eel grass bottoms.   

I was checking out some ling spearfishing on YouTube and what you say is right on.  In the videos, I couldn't even find the lings and cabs all camouflaged, but the spearfishers seem to be able to see it.

Thanks everyone for the advice.  I'll just have to continue researching until the next season starts up... or until Bajareefer gets his replacement yak so I can try spearfishing.