Hot weather, hot fishing

Dock Totals July 1 – July 7: 5,236 anglers aboard 171 boats out of San Diego landings this past week caught 307 bluefin tuna, 221 yellowfin tuna, 1 dorado, 4,681 yellowtail, 28 white seabass (28 released), 2,645 calico bass, 607 sand bass, 669 rockfish, 74 whitefish, 1 lingcod, 858 bonito, 408 barracuda, 12 sculpin, 24 sheephead, 6 halibut, 1 thresher shark, 1 leopard shark (released), 5 treefish, 1 opaleye, and 4 black seabass (released)

Saltwater: Fish in the relative cool of the Pacific Ocean didn’t seem to miss a beat from the week before. Nor did the anglers: For the second week in a row, the San Diego fleet hosted over 5,000 anglers for trips from twilight runs to 2.5 day outings, and I am guessing that the heat wave that arrived in time for the second unofficial Fourth of July weekend of 2018 helped inspire a few decisions to get out on the water.

Yellowfin tuna have been moving into the one-day range and above the border/outside of Mexican waters, but the best shot at them, or the big bluefin tuna that are around, is a 1.5- to 2.5-day trip that includes Mexican waters in the plan. Yellowtail are being found offshore on paddies by boats while hunting the tunas, along with a few dorado, so odds of getting a mix of pelagic species in the coming weeks are looking good to great, with warming water and great offshore weather predicted. The Coronado Islands are popping with yellowtail, barracuda and bonito, though bits of that action are happening up the line from off La Jolla to the fisheries from Oceanside to the Channel Islands.

The better white seabass bite has been to the north off the Channel Islands, though a few larger models have been caught off the edges of the local kelp beds. Oceanside boats have been reporting short white seabass released, and I have noticed San Diego Bay anglers posting shots of small juvenile fish. Most anglers know what they are and release them with care, but some folks get them confused with the shortfin corvine that have no size limit, whereas the white seabass has a minimum length of 28 inches. Though there are several identifying factors for either fish, the easiest way to tell the difference is by the mouth. The shortfin corvina has two fangs in the inner top of their jaw. The white seabass does not have these fangs.

Back along the coast in the shallows, the inshore fishing, like the weather, has been hot. Surf perch are eating lugworms and sand crabs, especially on incoming morning tides as are setting up this week. A good tactic for surf perch is to work the holes and cuts during the early morning low while keeping an eye out for sand crabs for bait. Lugworms or Berkley Gulp! baits sold in most bait stores can get one through a tough spot if no sand crabs are present. Once you find an area with bites, or sand crabs, work the area until after the high tide. Usually, as the tide tops out and starts dropping back, the fish will get one last flurry of feeding in before they move back into deeper water. On days that can be too hot for the house, boat or kayak, a wide-brimmed hat, some surf gear, and a pair of board shorts taken to some cool knee- to waist-deep water can make for a pleasant day.

Other than being too hot, about the only thing that fusses up the ocean this time of year are the occasional hurricanes down south that can drive lumpy seas north and the rare chubasco, or thunderstorm, off our coast.

Fish Plants: July 13, Santee Lakes, catfish (1,000), July 16, Jennings, catfish (season ‘reopener’ 1,000)