[Bill McIntyre]

This response may sound weird. For open water, I don't want a float line that is any longer than the depth of my dives (and that ain't much). Any extra is just more to mess with getting in and out of the water.

But for in the kelp, I like 100 feet no matter how shallow the water. You can't use a float in the kelp because you can't pull it down after you under kelp and come up on the other side, and even if you stayed on the surface it would tangle and drive you nuts. Most people use some sort of small egg float just for a handle when it hits the end. But a white sea bass can go to the bottom, under some kelp, and then be off with your line. You can't keep a straight line between you and the fish. My favorite story involves a friend who shot a 60 pound fish in just 25 feet of water with a 100 foot line, but he was being pulled straight down, struggling up to get a breath, being pulled under again, and was about to turn loose of everything when the boat arrived and he was able to grab the swimstep.

But while that may be ideal, there isn't much kelp left on the coast this year anyway, and 80 feet should be fine.

BTW, I used to use float lines but now use reels almost exclusively, and one reason is that I can have 150 to 180 feet of line, depending on which reel and line thickness.

The photos show some examples of floats for the kelp.