Hook and Line

"Hook-and-liners," as these fishermen are sometimes called, are an historic and important part of California's fishing industry. Commercial hook-and-line gear dates back to the 1800's in California and encompasses trolling, jigging, the traditional horizontal longline, and a vertical longline that is also called Portuguese longline or "buoy gear."

Vertical Longline

Typical of buoy gear, the vertical longline employs a 300-pound test monofilament gangion and circle hooks spaced about 12 inches apart, attached to the gangion with monofilament leader. A weight is tied to the bottom end of the gangion. At the other end is a length of 1,000-pound test seine twine just long enough to put the first hook on the bottom. The buoy, tied to the seine line, holds the gangion vertical in the water. Wind and waves jiggle the buoy, which wiggles the line while the baited hooks attract fish. Especially in southern California, fishermen use buoy gear to catch a variety of rockfish.

Longline

The traditional longline consists of a groundline run horizontally across the ocean bottom. Anchors hold the line in place, and buoys and a radar reflector mark its position on the surface. Floats and leads alternate with hooks on the line. In California, these longlines are often housed in galvanized tubs (called tub gear). Each tub holds about 168 hooks, which are spaced three feet apart on the groundline. The hooks are meticulously stuck around the tub rim while the line is coiled inside. Fishermen sometimes string 20 tubs of gear in one set, covering two miles of bottom. Longline fishermen may bait 10,000 hooks or more in a day, beginning at 4 AM and working until dark or until the last string of gear is pulled and reset. In northern California, fishermen use longline gear to catch black cod (sablefish) and rockfish.

Troll gear

Typically used to catch salmon, troll gear consists of up-to-6 stainless steel main lines unwound from hydraulic gurdies, or spools, mounted on the fishing vessel. The wires are suspended from outrigger poles on either side of the boat, which helps spread out the gear. Monofilament leaders with hooks attached are clipped onto the main wires, usually at three-fathom intervals (18 feet). The number of leaders on each main line varies with the depth and fishing conditions. For example, if fish are near the surface, only a few leaders may be clipped to each line; conversely, a line may carry as many as 10 hooks if fish are deep or scattered in the water column. Each wire line, with its series of leaders, is held in place at a particular depth by a lead cannonball clipped to the bottom of the line. Trollers sometimes also clip a float onto the line at the surface to help regulate its depth and spacing relative to the other lines fishing. Herring or anchovy bait, or spoons, plugs, or hoochies, called "hardware," are fastened to the hooks, and the gear is trolled slowly through the water. Running the gear, fishermen unclip the leader from the main line, pulling hooked fish to the boat by hand. The fish are then gaffed or netted aboard. Albacore trolling employs a similar concept, although the lines are fished solely at the surface.

Species caught with hook and line gear include king salmon, rockfish, black cod (sablefish), albacore tuna, California halibut, and lingcod.