AS I SEE IT

No question about. Absolutely the best bait for winter and spring fishing along the coast and especially the Islands. Read that as Catalina and San Clemente mainly. From chunks to fresh frozen to live market type, colder water residents can’t resist these offerings.

The average angler has a couple of choices. He can join the small fleet off Palos Verdes, off Long Beach, Huntington Flats, Laguna, or for a better shot try the backside of Catalina Island. Metering spots alongside the fleet, then anchoring in 10-20 fathoms, using lights from 12 volt underwater kinds, to gunwale mounted 110 volt units, these are used to attempt to get the stuff to float. If this happens a dip net or crowder to fill the live tank is used. But even without a float, squid jigs are slowly pumped from 20-80 feet down. Single or multiple rigs can be purchased at most tackle stores. Mark Wisch at Pacific Edge in Huntington Beach is the acknowledged guru here.

Live and fresh dead squid are deadly for White Sea bass, Calico Bass, Halibut, and Yellowtail. Much of the best action is at night. Lead heads or white Salas type jigs topped with squid, or even dropper loops fished from a rod holder on clicker near the bottom work fine. Fish right near the bottom in the same area targeted for catching squid for bait..

Your other option today is the San Pedro Bait receiver or one of the light boats at the Island. Pricey but worth the effort. (half scoop-$30, full scoop-$60)

As the summer and fall months approach and water warms into the 60s, fin bait such as Anchovies and Sardines may be the better choice, even as squid will still work, especially inshore. Chunks always seem to work along the beach and over structure for smaller fish. Note: We are not talking about the Jumbo Humboldt sizes that are measured in pounds, not inches. These are usually caught in deeper water and are good to eat as Calamari or sometimes chunked for bait.

Some concern has been voiced over the huge nightly hauls that often exceed hundreds of tons by the purse seiners. Most of this is later frozen and purchased as bait to be sent overseas. Longliners are a large consumer of these packages. We saw a huge fishery going on off Burma and Northern Thailand a couple of years ago.

Supposedly these small squid congregate at the Islands to spawn and are in turn so vulnerable to the nets. The only place the larger (14-18 inch) types seem to work is on the kite for larger Yellowfin Tuna in the lower Baja.

If you are desperate and nothing else is available you can purchase the frozen market type at most tackle or bait stores. They are usually chunked and will usually get you some action.

The Real World

Part of my awareness of the fishing scene in Southern California and Baja involves monitoring the media, both print and radio. What I have seen over the past few years is an emphasis on extreme ventures by a hard core, hard fishing group who make 90% of the headlines. As overall fishing has declined on average, these few individuals tout their hard won catches.

Not taking anything from these people, the general fishing population should realize they often times represent tackle and equipment reps as well as fishing store principals. They fish hard and long, gather the best equipment available, and lean heavily on information groups.

What the average fisherman finds when he or she goes out is often a meager bite in the very same areas. That, or timing controlled by other pursuits such as their job itself limits them. Yes, there are times and places during the year that produce for anyone out there. But most of the time the bite doesn’t live up to their expectations. And it is not surprising that the media grabs these high liner photos and catch reports for the most part. That is what sells papers.

Here is a couple of examples from the 2007-2008 season already:

-75 light boats and almost as many small sport boats spend day and night on the backside of Catalina Island anticipating the start of the White Sea Bass run. So far, for weeks now, a couple of very knowledgeable and obsessed anglers have collectively caught a small handful of fish. The majority of the fleet goes cold, tired, and fishless. The very few fish caught are by industry people, small charter boats, and locals.

-Further south a couple of small boats have procured live squid and dropped very deep to catch a couple of large yellowtail off the La Jolla Kelp. Others draw a blank. Again the lucky anglers are tackle reps and their cronies.

-Last summer, in another instance, a few small boaters ran 250 miles in one day to catch one or two albacore, or not. Others fishing short often drew blanks in pretty water with the right conditions.

-Finally, with a willingness to travel 60 miles each way to San Clemente Island, first stopping to buy live squid at Catalin Island, a couple of boats outfoxed the weather now and then to get decent Calico Bass scores.

All of this does nothing to discredit the time and energy these few spend to catch a small amount of fish. What it does say though is that the headlines and stories you read are just a tiny tip of the iceberg. This iceberg is the large fleet trying to duplicate these few catches. I guess my point is not to judge any overall fishery by only the stories and reports in the popular media or even over the internet. You may well need a whole lot more and different dope before you confidentially head to the area.

The proper water temperature, clarity, availability of bait, and fishable seas remain of prime importance, not the report of one big fish by one boat. Did your buddy catch a 30 lb Halibut after going through hundreds of shorts over the winter, or did he just drop down once and come up with this trophy?

Sure, bad days are what makes the sport fishing. But anticipating more than is even there is often frustrating. But when we have done our homework, and all the stars line up, we can get those wide open days. Then it is worth it!