SALTWATER
20 April 23 , 2021 VOL . 40 • ISS . 8
BODEGA BAY
Rockfish Offer Consistent Action Until Beginning of Salmon Season
BODEGA BAY – The salmon season in the San Francisco Management Region , including Bodega Bay , will open on June 26 , according to the Pacific Fishery Management Council . Until the season opens , rockfish and lingcod will provide the top fishing on the Sonoma County Coast , “ We have caught limits of rockfish , along with a scattering of lingcod , by between 12:30 and 1:00 p , m on all 9 trips that we have made since the rockfish opener on April 1 ,” said Captain Rick Powers of Bodega Bay Sportfishing , “ We are catching bottom dwelling rockfish , including copper , canary , brown and other rockfish . The school fish aren ’ t showing now , We ’ ve been fishing a variety of depths from 120 to 240 feet deep .” On Saturday , April 17 , the New Sea Angler came in with 23 limits of rockfish and 3 lingcod . On a previous trip , 13 anglers aboard the boat landed limits of rockfish and 8 lingcod while using shrimp flies and bars . The New Sea Angler is currently booking salmon , rockfish and lingcod combo adventures that will begin on June 26 . Powers
SALTWATER REPORTS
recommended booking these combo trips soon , since available spaces are filling up quickly ,
- Dan Bacher
HALF MOON BAY
Boaters Bag Salmon and Rockfsih
EL GRANADA – The area below Pigeon Point is still producing solid salmon fishing , while rockfish enthusiasts are nailing limits of vermilion , copper , starry and other colorful rockfish at the Deep Reef . “ The Hulicat made a trip down below Pigeon Point with two anglers after the three other anglers cancelled on the trip ,” said Tom Mattusch of Hulicat Sportfishing . “ A grandfather and grandson made the trip . The grandson reeled in all four of the kings . We trolled with anchovies for our fish .” The Ankeny Street made salmon trolling trip on Saturday , April 17 , that produced 18 kings for 11 people , also below Pigeon Point . “ The rockfishing has been good in the 270 feet of water at the Deep Reef ,” said Mattusch . “ Seven anglers on our latest bottomfish trip caught limits of vermilion , copper , starry and other rockfish while using shrimp flies , tipped with squid strips . They also caught limits of Dungeness crabs .”
Quality halibut have been coming over the rail of the California Dawn . This angler shows off a beauty that he recently caught in the SF Bay . Live bait is now available so the bite should get even better .
Photo Courtesy of California Dawn Sportfishing
The 13 anglers aboard the Hulicat on April 17 bagged ¾ limits of rockfish and limits of crab off San Gregorio , Jeanne Tognoni from Belmont caught a 3 lb , copper on a shrimp fly .
The 13 anglers aboard the Queen of Hearts kept 9 salmon and released 4 kings during a trolling adventure on Saturday , April 17 .
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GONE FISHING continued from page 2
leader with a large dodger or flasher between the mainline and the hook . Most anglers rig these baits with a treble “ trap hook ” to increase hookups which we tied with a slip knot on top to provide a natural presentation . Tackle is fairly stout , with a braided mainline preferred to reduce resistance through the water and help maintain contact with the bottom , along with the protection of potentially losing a monster . In addition to dead bait , I have heard of many trollers having success by pulling swimming plugs or plastic hoochies behind flashers , which we did briefly try in spurts , but never for an extended period of time ! With no real experience fishing in The Bay prior , I was astonished once we finally got out looking at the depth chart and realizing we were only in 20 feet of water ! Fishing rivers there
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www . krippledbaitrigs . com4008 will be the occasionally deep pocket or slough , and I had built up this false reality that The Bay was much deeper . Come to realize now a large majority of The Bay is between 10-35 feet of water . Our morning began slowly until just after 9am when we had our first hook-up , Jake Kisner pulled in a beautiful shaker coming in just shy of the needed 22-inch mark that provided the motivation and proof that our presentation was what it needed to keep pressing forward with our strategy , but not enough to keep for fish tacos . Around this time boat traffic increased dramatically which was quickly followed by action . We had planned to fish various different flats close to the Alameda Rockwall which eventually led us trolling into fishy-looking waters . After multiple bites and the sun starting to pick up as the morning rushed towards noon , we took a break on the water to refuel , fill up on water , and scarfing down a premade hoagie we were ready to get back after it . We made a couple of small tweaks in our presentation , switched out our bait , and headed to the location where we pulled up our first shaker . With a change in tide and the sun high in the sky , you could tell the bite was on . One of the hardest things about fishing in areas that have high pressure from other fishermen is fighting the urge to peek over at the boat trolling next to you , or the kayak angler behind to see what they might be doing differently or how
their strategy might differ . This urge becomes increasingly hard when you see other anglers hook up and only adds that internal pressure to ‘ even the scoreboard ’ and land one yourself . With patience in mind , we rinsed and repeated until it was our time to shine and we were back on . Julian Diely pulled up another California Halibut that measured in at a premature 21-inches and was sent back into the water , the fire under our belly rekindled . I soon after had a bite myself which I missed and left us with one less herring . I quickly learned how hard it is to identify a halibut bite can be along with how surprisingly subtle the awkwardly shaped fish can nibble on a moving bite while avoiding a hook . This became increasingly evident as our frozen bag of herring vanished surprisingly quickly and before we knew it we were re-freezing bait with hopes in mind of keeping the natural texture and color . With bait running low and the bite still on we perceived by rotating between throwing swimming plugs and plastic hoochies hoping the appetite was the same as was for the herring . With our last bait down , and the sun high in the sky we headed back to the marina empty-handed in terms of halibut , but full in the sense of great times , fun , and adventures accompanied by great fishing and even better company . It was a fantastic experience getting to fish for a new species for myself on new water , and I am eager to get back out .