How to Fish for Hake

Hake is a member of the cod family

Hake is a small sea fish, usually weighing between 1 and 8 lbs., although much larger ones are sometimes caught, that comes from the same family as cod and haddock. Commercially, the demand for hake is traditionally greatest in mainland Europe, especially Spain and Portugal and most fish used as a food are caught by trawling. There are12 sub species of hake, found everywhere from the Mediterranean to the USA and across the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. The silver hake is also known as whiting, whilst the red hake is also called the ling.

Things You'll Need

• boat
• fishing tackle

Instructions

1. Hire a boat for the day, if you do not possess one suitable for offshore use. Most hake are caught by boat fishing. The larger, commercially caught fish are often in depths of 500 feet or more, but whiting and ling can be taken from boats closer to shore. If you hire a boat with a fishing captain familiar with hake, he can take you to the areas where you are most likely to find the fish feeding. Weather, bottom conditions, water temperature and the time of year can all affect where the fish will be found that day.

2. Equip yourself with medium to heavy duty rods and tackle to allow for rough seas and also the possible sea bed conditions your tackle may be encounter. A heavy duty reel and fairly high breaking strain line are recommended, tested to at least 25 lbs.

3. Check local catch reports for help in gauging where fish are currently biting and whether you are in the peak season for catching hake. If you are hiring a boat with a captain, he will be able to guide you in this. Generally the peak season for catching them in North America is between December and April, although silver and red hake can be found in waters off the North East coast all year round.

4. Attach a sinker weight to your line before casting to get your hook down deep enough to reach the fish. This will also help in strong currents, where hake are often to be found.

5. Bait your hook with small baitfish, such as: squid, crab, lugworm, mackerel or live shrimp. Keep the bait on the bottom as much as you can. If you are not getting bites, try jerking the rod and shifting the bait around on the bottom, to simulate fish movements

Tips & Warnings

• Check any local regulations concerning your catch. There may be minimum sizes of fish that you can take, or a maximum number that can be caught from any one boat. Return any fish that are too small, or over your daily catch limit.

References

• NYSeafood: Hake
• NJFishing;forums; How to Catch More Ling
• UKSeaFisherman: A How to Guide to Sea Fishing