Halibut, Lingcod, and Family Memories: A Day Aboard The Current Lady

Homer, Alaska | July 5, 2025

This wasn’t a fly fishing trip—but it was one I’ll never forget.

During our recent trip to Alaska to scatter my dad’s ashes, I wanted to take Heather and Max on a few of the same adventures my parents took me on when I was growing up. One of those was halibut fishing out of Homer, a tradition my mom especially loved—and let’s be honest, my family loves eating halibut, so it didn’t take much convincing.

We booked with Dakota Ocean Charters and fished aboard The Current Lady with Captain David Bayes, a seasoned sea captain who was both a pro at the helm and a pleasure to spend the day with. Simply put—this guy finds the fish.

https://dakotaoceancharters.com

We motored 30 to 40 miles offshore from Homer into some heavy weather. It made for an exciting ride, and we did our best to fish around the storm at first. The initial bite was slow—just a few small halibut at our first stop—but halibut fishing isn’t exactly fast and furious to begin with. You drop bait down to the ocean floor using 2 to 8-pound sinkers, sometimes as deep as 300 to 400 feet. Just getting your gear down and back up takes some work. Once you hit bottom, you reel up a few feet and start jigging. We used circle hooks, which means you don’t “set” the hook like you would with other fish—the halibut essentially hook themselves, and it takes a few fish to get the hang of it.

After moving to a new location, things lit up. Heather, Max, and I all started getting consistent action, and we quickly put our limits in the boat. In Alaska, each angler is allowed one halibut over 28 inches and one under, and we made the most of it.

With halibut checked off the list, we switched gears to target lingcod, rockfish, and cod. This is where it really got fun for me—lighter tackle, big jigs, and aggressive takes. I got into the lingcod in a big way and landed a couple of monsters. Heather and Max weren’t far behind, pulling in their own solid fish. We rounded out the day with a nice mix of cod and rockfish.

Along the way, we spotted whales, seals, and even a bear on the beach. It was a wild, beautiful day on the water—everything you hope for when fishing Alaska.

By the end of it, we’d packed up nearly 100 pounds of fish to ship home. Max couldn’t stop talking about how much he loved the trip, and we’ve been eating fresh fish multiple times a week since. Not bad for a day’s work.

If you’re ever heading to Homer and looking for a top-tier charter, I can’t recommend The Current Lady and Captain David Bayes enough. Great boat, great captain, and one unforgettable day on the water.