Key Reef

Tackle & technique

Sablefish

Sablefish live on soft bottoms along the continental slope, and sport anglers find adults in 700 to 2,000 feet. Fish a multi-hook deep-drop rig with glow squid skirts and squid or herring on circle hooks, using several pounds of weight and an electric reel. It takes a long run offshore and a calm day to keep the line near vertical, so most trips happen in summer.

Lingcod

Lingcod ambush prey from rock outcrops, reef edges and kelp where current runs, most often in 30 to 300 feet, and males move shallow to guard nests in winter. Drift over the reef bouncing a lead-head swimbait or metal jig on the bottom, or fish herring or squid on a heavy leader, since their teeth cut light line. From jetties and rocky shore, work bait or jigs along the rocks on the incoming tide.

Pacific cod

Pacific cod school over mud, sand and gravel bottoms and shelf edges, moving shallower than 300 feet in summer and deeper to spawn in winter. Drop a heavy metal jig or a lead-head with a herring or squid strip to the bottom in 100 to 300 feet and work it a few feet up. They often come up on the same drifts as halibut, and a school can mean fast fishing once you find it.