10.1 pound halibut caught by five year-old

Dock Totals Jan 6 – Jan 12: 461 anglers aboard 29 half day to three day trips out of San Diego landings this past week caught 89 yellowtail, 3 white seabass, 1 bonito, 62 calico bass, 241 sand bass, 7 halibut, 884 rockfish, 48 whitefish, 4 lingcod, 392 sculpin, 15 blacksmith perch, 43 rubberlip seaperch, 2 triggerfish, 3 sargo, 1 blue shark (released), and 39 spiny lobster (243 released)

Saltwater: As the stormy weather pushed large surf this past week, the angler count for the San Diego landings was low. But those that got out on the water saw good fishing inshore and along the coast. Most of the boats that got out were half day runs concentrating on bass, sculpin and rockfish, but the 1.5 day trips are now running and finding success along the Baja coast for yellowtail and rockfish. The New Lo-An returned on January 6 from their last 1.5 Baja Costal trip with 67 yellowtail, 48 whitefish, and limits of 115 rockfish for the 23 anglers aboard.

Locally, sculpin, sand bass and calico bass have been biting well for anglers aboard half day runs, while halibut and a few white seabass have been coming over the rail. The Dolphin has recorded a few more halibut to add to their halibut derby running every Wednesday through February 27, including a 10.1 pounder caught by five year-old angler, Anthony. The fish, currently in second place in the derby, was the youngster’s first ever fish caught. Other than that, and the usual half day array of rockfish, sculpin, and bass, the Dolphin reported a chunky white seabass in the 50 pound range caught during their afternoon run on January 8.

There has been no new news of the bluefin tuna that were spotted north of Oceanside last week, though as seas settle that might change. Over the past few winters, bluefin have been caught sporadically offshore in the chilly U.S. waters – as they can thrive in cool water, I expect we’ll hear news on the prized gamefish.

For this angler, I have made (and been sticking to) my New Year’s resolution, and am two weeks in without fail. I challenged myself to try and wet a line while actively seeking to catch a fish at least once every day for the entire year. I have had two shutouts to this point, but so far, the ongoing count is 4 yellowtail, 9 bonito, 7 halibut 1 shortfin corvina, and 3 California corbina.

Fish Plants: None scheduled this week