Inshore: Half-day boats are still concentrating on the great calico bass bite of the kelp in Point Loma and La Jolla. The inshore yellowtail bite slowed a bit, but the size of the fish are …
July 31, 2016
Fishing Report
Sheephead graze the reef; yellowtail dominate the fishery
Hot (tuna) fun in the summertime
Inshore: Half-day boats are concentrating on the great calico bass bite of the kelp in Point Loma and La Jolla. The legal-sized (14” or greater) count on the "checkers" nearly doubled last week over the …
July 24, 2016
Bluefin ban?
Bluefin should become an endangered species, thus banning all fishing of the large tuna on the West Coast, says the Center for Biological Diversity. Wayne Kokow of Rancho Peñasquitos is the executive director of the …
July 20, 2016
Yellowfin tuna count up dramatically; another opah hits the deck
Inshore: The total angler count for the San Diego sportfishing fleet topped 5000 for the first time in 2016 last week, after 4000 the week previous. The ¾-day boats are getting bonito some very large, …
July 17, 2016
Water temp edges up, along with yellowfin, dorado and bonito count
Inshore: The total angler count for the San Diego sportfishing fleet topped 4000 this week and it looks good for the operators for months to come. Last year’s epic season is so far mirrored this …
July 10, 2016
Avoid the bane of surf-fishing
Bill Varney, through his books and clinics, has been leading the light-tackle charge in California; no longer do surf anglers need a 14-foot surf pole and a five-ounce sinker. Varney recently led one of his …
July 6, 2016
Exotic pelagic species moving up the line
Inshore: The yellowtail numbers are still good locally along with a few white seabass and halibut for the inshore anglers. The calico bass fishing is very good along the kelp and even off the jetties, …
July 3, 2016
Silver spoons aren’t just for rich kids
Inshore: The yellowtail numbers came back up a bit this past week for the ½- and ¾-day boats, while calico bass, rockfish, and bonito are dominating the counts for the short trips. A few more …
June 26, 2016
Practice CPR on your bass
Inshore: As summer begins with a heat wave, the inshore yellowtail fishing has cooled slightly. The jacks are still there, of course, and the slow bite might just be moon phase and/or the plethora of …
June 19, 2016
Fat flatties on the flats
Inshore: The pelagic “tuna” crabs that have been painting many beaches red and sometimes requiring dozers to clean them up are also causing the inshore fishing to be a little iffy. Most fish caught, whether …
June 12, 2016
My personal best halibut at San Quintín — 44 pounds
San Quintín Bay lies in the shadow of volcanoes a couple hundred miles south of the border on the Pacific coast of Baja. The bay spreads out from over seven miles of channel into false …
June 8, 2016
First opah landing of the year
Inshore: With the majority of the fleet looking for yellowtail and bluefin in the top of the water column, the calico and sand bass counts dropped off a bit. Still, those ½-day and ¾-day trips …
June 5, 2016
Thresher shark parts sought by study
Weekly fishing report Inshore: Last week was a coolish, gray week on the water. The full moon phase put a bit of a damper on the upper-water column species, though the yellowtail were definitely out …
May 29, 2016
Opening day for catfish night-fishing this Friday
Lake Jennings, off the I-8 in Lakeside, is an 85-acre reservoir at about 700 feet in elevation. It holds channel catfish, largemouth bass, stocked trout, blue catfish, redear sunfish, and even “wipers” — a white …
May 25, 2016
Rare albacore hits the deck
Inshore: In spite of being fat-plugged with pelagic crab, the rockfish continue to bite well for the local bottom-fish trips. Most of these fish come up with mouths and bellies full of the hapless crabs, …
May 22, 2016