California Fishing

[Ken]

Hi guys,

I know there are some people on this board who have lived in California for some time that now live in Hawaii (or vice versa).

It's been confirmed that I'm attending a conference in San Diego between April 12-16th. I'll be there from April 11th to April 18th...and then I'm heading north to Long Beach to visit my aunt for 3 days.

I have 2 solid half-day to fish. I'm hoping to hit Shelter Island Pier, Ocean Beach Pier, Crystal Pier or Imperial Beach Pier.

I'm saving one day for a 3/4 day party boat ride.

I need some info on what to use and how to fish off those piers (or even in the surf).

What kind of fish species can I hope to catch in mid-April? I would really like to catch one of the croakers (or corbina). Is there a good chance I'll get into them in April?

If there are any good spots you can suggest, please PM me. I won't be renting a car, so I can only go where the bus can take me.

Mahalo guys!

Ken

[bsp]

Ken,
www.scsurffishing.com is going to be a gold mine of infromation for surf fishing. Have Fun!
I forgot to add that www.fishingnetwork.net will also be very helpful.
The people on both of these websites are more than willing to answer any questions, so just ask away.

P.S. Long Beach is a halibut paradise.

[Ken]

Hey bsp, thanks for the link! It is a great help. I'm already reading it a lot and learning a lot.

I even managed to have someone volunteer to take me out fishing with them. People say she's a croaker specialist.

Hope to post a good report in mid-April. I hope I'll luck into some favourable weather conditions and the fish will be actively feeding. The tides look good so far...so at least I have that on my side (4-5' incoming tide in the evening hours )

[kahuna bass]

Aloha Ken,

I'm not sure if I'll be here, when your here(might be in Singapore, not sure yet). But if we can hook up, I might be able to take you bass fishing for a day.

April and May is usually the time when the big girls(large mouth bass) start to spawn. It's about wading in the shallow's and looking for the big girls.

But if you really want, I can take you surf fishing. Just let me know what type of tackle you have, I always have plenty to use

Bass regards, Mel "kahuna bass"
Dark side live baiter and swim baiter

[Ken]

Hey kahuna bass,

Yeah, it would be fun to fish with you if you are in SD when I'm there.

Although the big largemouth sound interesting, I'm just itching to hit the salt again. I'm salivating just thinking about it I can always find some largemouth here (granted not the same quality fish offered in CA). I can't find any saltwater species here in Ontario though. So I would rather fish the salt.

I'm bring very little in terms of tackle this time (since it's supposed to be an educational trip ). I'll likely bring a 6'6"-7" 3-piece spinning rod rated either 6-12lbs or 8-17lbs...and I'll also bring a 6-wt fly rod (or maybe I'll leave it at home...we'll see.)

I'll PM you at the end of March.

Thanks for the invite!

Ken

[David77733]

I'll be there around the 18 of march what is biting around then???

[Ken]

From what I've been reading online, they are getting barred surf perch and the odd yellowfin croaker in the surf. In the bay, people continue to find spotted bay bass, barred sand bass and california halibut of all sizes in Mission bay, San Diego Bay and South Bay. There is also the rare bonefish and croakers in the bay.

You'll pretty much find the same species biting in mid March. As the water warms, the fishing should continue to improve.

For lures, use motor oil red flake 1.5" grubs (aka MORF) and camo color Gulp! Sandworm (aka crack) for the surf, and Big Hammer 3-5" swimbait on jigheads in the bay. Use lots of Unibutter to spice up the lures.

As for bait, sand crabs in the surf, ghost shrimp in the bay.

Check out www.sdfish.com and www.scsurffishing.com

I'm hoping by mid April, the fishing will be more consistent.

[Ca_Bass]

Never hurts to had a squid strip on those swimbaits with the the jig heads.

[OO7:BASSINASSASSIN]

What is unibutter?

[Ken]

What is unibutter?

Unibutter is some kind of local miracle juice. It is an attractant similar to Gulp! attractant or I think Ultrabite in Hawaii.

[bsp]

What is unibutter?

Unibutter is some kind of local miracle juice. It is an attractant similar to Gulp! attractant or I think Ultrabite in Hawaii.

It is a type of scent/attractant that is made out of uni (sea urchin) eggs. It has a really thick consistency, hence the "butter" part of the name, and supposedly attracts everything. I am going to pick some of this up at the Fred Hall show this weekend along with some more Smelly Jelly. If anybody is interested they have a website http://www.unigoop.com/order.htm but I am not sure about shipping.