I actually enjoy shore casting for bottom fish and salmon and often wonder where people find success. So I figure someone else might find this useful as well.

I went south island from Sooke around to Millbay for this thread as that's where I can get to from where I live.

I generally fish Ogden Point, Cattle Point and have fished Saxe Point (Although I'm not sure if I'm allowed to from there?) I plan to start fishing out in Sooke as a friend moved out there recently.


I only have limited gear. Last year I was using a jig and grub on 20lb test with my Zebco genesis combo off the break water and caught a few rock cod. Good eating once I got one big enough to eat.

Late last year I was told to get an ocean rod and a deadly dick and anything above 30lb mono. So now I've been casting off a few beaches in gordon head with my beefstick 80lb test with a big and small deadly dick and had 2 bites from salmon but lost them. I'm used to little lake trout and docile rock cod. The fight the salmon put in almost dragged me off my rock into the ocean.

don't do to much off shore casting but i know the deadly dick is a good way to go from what i have done. if i were you i would go back to the 20 lb test or 30 at most. any time i'm casting (most of the time on the river) i fish 14 lb but in the salt chuck i will go up to 20. with 80 lb you will not be able to cast as far to get out to where they are. there is some good fishing from island view to sidney off the shore from what some of my friends have been telling me but have not got around to trying them out yet.

I imagine the heavier pound test line would keep the lure from sinking too fast off the shore...is that why you are using it?

What size of the Deadly Dick are you using...and what color?

I used to use those back in the day....and they were fairly productive.......but later on I found other lures would outfish them a lot.

A buzzbomb will cast a lot farther than a D/D, pound for pound I found.....

Some of the Spinnows, Perkins, Gibbs Minnows aren't too bad either.

Deadly dick: I've only found two sizes in silver. When I bought them I was told they were perfect for chinook or coho I don't remember which. And there were only two left in victoria that I could find. One is for lakes I think with a single hook and the size of my thumb. Tthe other is a treble and the size of my hand in length.


80lb Line: I went for the line honestly because it was $3 for 3000 yards on ebay. I also fish off the breakwater and am tired of losing lures. If I can bend the hook to get the lure back it's a lot cheaper... Until I get my diving license and gear that is


I have a few packs of mock diamond shaped deadly dick lures coming off ebay from the states. I'm hoping they are the right weight. The last ones I got were hollow plastic with a hole in the middle and aren't good for casting at all. Kinda of good for trolling lake trout though.


Anyone ever catch a halli from shore? I hear it can be done at william head somewhere.


My goal this year is a ling and a hali and a pink from shore. But my buddy has to do the cleaning because it's his idea.

You would have to get more than two years to fish from there . I know a guy got one off Otter Pt the year before last. The pinks will be easy

I used to shore cast alot before I got a boat. 50 lb braided line is the way to go, casts for miles with a 1-1/2 oz zinger and you can pull the hooks off bottom. I like ugly sticks for the money and a shakespeare tidewater reel, they go for about 50 bucks and hold up in the ocean really well. I've caught some pretty big lings from shore, no salmon besides pinks and chum though and those wer'e on light tackle.

Monday 04-Aug-2011
Maps.Google.ca: 48.527779,-123.365355
Google calls it Haro Strait
8:30pm to 10pm in the dark

3 of us went here at cordova Bay on the rocks near the beach. The tide was in and people were crabbing from shore and from a boat. We were using a buzz bomb pink, Deadly dick and a white rubber thing on a jig.

It was a bit of a gong show and we were being eaten alive by bugs. I have over 100 bites on my legs and the other guys have 20+ ichy freaking bites.

Going to go back to the breakwater I think.

I have been shore fishing for two years from Nanaimo to Nile creek. Very few places to get near salt-water and then you have rocks galore to contend with. However it is MUCH cheaper than going out with a guide and getting two salmon for $800!

So far I have had luck getting rock fish, flounders (poor man's halibut), and two pinks plus of course a few dogfish that became fertilizer for the veggie garden. I will continue as it is a lot of fun and my poor old legs can stay on land.

I went back to the breakwater and had a blast. I don't remember the date, but the tide was in and the waves were miserable in the wind. I spent maybe 30mins fishing total before giving up.

I've had luck in the past using a medium sized gold grub on a jig head. I toss it in and let it sink and just pop it up and down about a foot and wait for the jig to fall and tighten the slack. I do this over and over and I get rockcod. Yellow, red, black ones.

The first night I ever did this I had almost 7 caught and releases because I didn't know the right size to keep and eat. Since then I get maybe 1 or 2 bites in every three trips out.

I've tried buzz bombs, big jigs, and I lose them all to the kelp. Any suggestions on how to keep my geer and what to use? I'm not after salmon or ling. Just the rockcod for the time being.