Went to DP harbor 7am-10am.
Wide open on halibut, bait or jig. Most around 18." I lost count of those. More than 10. A lot more. Three obvious keepers. I got bored- and my arms were tired from catching those guys on 6# trout gear, so I went back to the bait receiver and got 6 10" sardines.

A pelican got one. I dropped two trying to bait them. (don't laugh, it ain't easy!) Two were slammed explosively, farmed one, broke off the other. The last one made it to the dock on the troll on the way in. When I examined it- it was completely skinned and shredded from 2/3 of the way to the tail, with big teeth slashes all the way around.

Lessons learned. 1. I ran out of trap rigs early, and had to keep making them while fishing. 2. I miss way to many hits with the halibuts, even using a trap, I need to make better ones, and learn how to put the hook in the tail better. All my biggest fish came on bigger chovies/sardines. The bigger the better. 3. almost every fish was hooked on the trap hook, VERY important!

If you are not getting bit immediately, move. The fish are VERY aggressive, I caught a number on the cast or on the retreive near the surface. Halibut are NOT sluggish bottom feeders, they are active predators and move shallow just like bass.

Halibut are concentrated in the Harbor. Move if you don't get bit. If you do, work that area, they are never alone.

I'm gonna get a MONSTER out of Dana Point, you just wait.

Quietman