Author Cal Kellogg drifted a live anchovy next to the old Berkeley Pier, and this 22-pound California halibut decided to strike. Photo courtesy of Cal Kellogg.

Ask Bay Area saltwater anglers what their favorite game fish is, and you’ll get a number of different answers. Stripers, lingcod and chinook would be at the top of their list.

Here are some of the attributes the best game fish needs to display:

• Strong fighting ability • Potential to attain hefty proportions • Accessible to a large number of anglers • A long fishing season • Topnotch table fare

So is there a Bay Area saltwater species that meets all these criteria?

Absolutely! It’s the robust population of California halibut that inhabits San Francisco Bay.

The halibut in the Bay average 10 to 12 pounds and range beyond 30. Halibut have a clumsy appearance, but they’re able to put up a spirited fight and can display bursts of lightning speed.

When it comes to good eating, halibut have few rivals. These flatfish yield firm white fillets. Whether baked, broiled or beer-battered, they taste great.

Bay Area halibut are highly accessible. You can target them effectively from your own boat, or from one of the Bay’s numerous charter boats. Because you’ll be fishing in the Bay, weather is typically not a big factor. This is a welcome contrast to fishing outside the Gate, where wind and swells can keep you off the water.

You can catch halibut all year long, but the prime time for targeting them begins in late April and extends through the end of October.

TECHNIQUES
Trolling and drifting are the two basic approaches to catching Bay Area halibut. Trolling will generally put more fish in the box, but it’s tough to match the adrenaline rush you feel when a halibut grabs your anchovy as you drift with light tackle.

1. Live-Bait Drifting
On most charter and private boats, live-bait drifting is the standard approach. If you’re fishing on a charter boat, they will supply live anchovies. If you’re fishing from a private boat, you’ll need to purchase your own live bait. Live anchovies are available at both the Berkeley Marina and Fisherman’s Wharf in San Francisco.

Another option is shiner perch. You can buy live perch at various Bay Area bait shops. You could also use a light spinning rod baited with bits of pile worm to catch your own perch around piers and other structure.

For the private boaters, perch are actually the best choice. Much hardier than anchovies, they also tend to draw strikes from larger halibut.

When I get out on the Bay to drift for halibut, I take along two outfits. The “all-around rod” needs to be capable of handling sinkers up to 8 ounces. Since bites can be light, you’ll want a sensitive stick.

But in its lower section, it’ll need enough backbone to lift a husky fish off the bottom.

Your second rod should be a light baitcasting or spinning outfit. Use it when the conditions let you get away with a 1- or 2-ounce sinker. It’s quite a thrill to land a good-sized halibut on a black bass rod.

The standard end-tackle for live-bait fishing is a three-way rig.

Attach a 36-inch, 25-pound monofilament leader tipped with a No. 1, 1/0 or 2/0 live-bait hook tied on a perfection loop to one eye of the three-way swivel. Next, connect a short, light monofilament dropper to the second eye of the swivel.

Your sinker will be attached to this dropper. The dropper is light line so that the sinker will pop off if you get snagged on the bottom. That way, you’ll have to put on only a new weight, rather than a whole new rig.