Live eel rigs for head boat this weekend

[chirotrout]

Calling on the collective wisdom of the fisherman hive here...

I need a brief description of how to rig for live bottom fishing eels for rockfish. I am cashing a gift cert my wife got me for a headboat out of Lewes, DE this saturday. The captain said 300 yards of 40 lb mono and eel rigs.

Thanks,

Jason

[jffoley]

Keep it simple. 9/0 hook on a 50lb leader tied to the main line with a quality swivel. Use an egg sinker with just enough weight to get down on the main line.
Or, you could use a slide to change weight more easily.

Keep the eels chilled to slow 'em down. Hook 'em through bottom and top jaws or through the bottom jaw and out the eye. Get 'em into the water quickly otherwise they curl up your line.

Kayak Kevin has more details:

http://kayakkevin.com/kiptostriperhowtos.html

[chirotrout]

UPDATE...

Left the dock at 8am and air temp was a toasty 24 degrees with winds up to 8mph. We made our way to a popular area of underwater hills and valleys where we joined an ARMATA of boats doing the same thing. I counted 48 boats at one point. We live lined eels in 30-60 feet of water with little success. One rockfish was caught in 8 hours of fishing by 10 anglers. We did boat about 10 spiney sharks.

I enjoyed the time on the water and the conversations with the seasoned anglers aboard.

The water temp was 40 degrees and the mate said that most of the fish had moved on. The prime time for that area apparently was early to mid November.

Jason