30 Oct 12 - 26 , 2018 VOL . 37 • ISS . 22

entirety of my time on the water chasing after little green fish from the

deck of a bass boat . I used to scoff at the idea of spending my valuable time fishing for anything but bass . It is ironic that a couple of my bass fishing friends used to tell me how much they enjoyed fishing off the coast for rockfish and lingcod . “ It ’ s a blast ,” they would say . “ You can fish

swimbaits or jig iron , but these fish pull way harder , it ’ s like bass fishing on steroids ” Well you know what , they were 100 % correct . Rockfishing is so much fun and it has become one of my favorite types of fishing . Thankfully , here in Northern California we are blessed with many excellent rockfishing opportunities . I appreciate the fact that I can make a reservation on a charter boat and it is basically turn key fishing . No boat to tow to the ramp and no post trip clean up . Charter boats run out of harbors up and down the coast . Closer to the Bay Area , boats leave from San Francisco , Emeryville and Berkeley . After more than a month of trying , including two trips lost to unfavorable ocean conditions and another canceled due to an error in booking , I finally found an opening on my calendar that allowed me to join Captain Jonathon Smith aboard the Happy Hooker for a day of much needed rockfishing . Indian Summer is typically a great time to be on the ocean , but this has been an uncharacteristically windy year on the coast . As we left the Berkeley Marina , the wind was already blowing inside the bay and by the time we reached Point Bonita it had picked up speed . In fact we were greeted by a steady stream of private boaters who had decided it was a bit too rough and were headed back inside the bay . When Captain Jonathon headed north up the coast I thought for sure that we were going to fish the Marin Coast Line . But I was wrong as he ever so subtly made course westward in effect running the swell troughs and smoothing out the ride . “ Local wind ,” said Captain Jonathon . “ It should lay down as we get further off shore .” Never doubt the Captain , he was spot on with his assertion . By the time we reached the Farallon Islands , the wind had subsided . At the safety meeting ,

deckhand Greg instructed the group to use shrimp flies for the rockfish and trap rigged herring for the lingcod . Fish Sniffer Editor , Cal Kellogg once told me . “ Listen carefully to the deckhand and the captain and follow their instruction . They fish everyday , they know what works best and they want you to catch fish .” Who am I to argue with that ? Within minutes of setting the drift , the rockfish started to come over the rail at a rapid pace . It was wide open fishing from the get go . Throughout the morning the folks around me were were consistently doubled up . My buddy Ian likes to fish for lingcod even more than I do , and it was not long before a big fish took his herring . He fought the fish briefly before it came unhooked . “ That was a big fish ,” he said in disgust . But he quickly bounced back from his disappointment and was hooked up again . This time the outcome was different and after a spirited battle , deckhand Greg skillfully gaffed a nice double digit lingcod and swung it aboard . While Ian was getting bit like mad , it took a while for me to get my first bite . Finally I felt the tell tale grab of a lingcod . I let the fish load up the rod and then with a strong reel set I was hooked up . Lingcod have a reputation for hitch hiking on the bait without getting hooked . To counter act this , I kept steady pressure on the fish and just kept reeling . Pumping the fish often results in disaster when the lingcod decides to open its jaws and let go of the bait . Soon I saw color as the fish came into view . “ Lingcod !” I shouted and Captain Jonathon was soon at my side gaff in hand . A quick swipe of the

Lingcod have been on the chomp for anglers fishing aboard the Happy Hooker ! Photo by MARK FONG , Fish Sniffer Staff . hook and the fish hit the deck .” As is common place with rockfishing , when the fish are biting , the day can turn into a blur and before you know it the Captain has the boat fired up for the ride back to the harbor . This outing was no exception , despite Captain Jonathon ’ s instruction to wind our lines up , I wished the day was not over . A day fishing on the Happy Hooker is always a pleasure and this was no exception . At the end of the day , the boat finished with limits of rockfish and a fish and half on the lingcod . As the calendar moves deeper into the Fall , the fishing will only get better . As an added bonus , the Happy Hooker along with many other boats in the fleet will begin running rockfish / dungeness crab combo trips starting on November 3rd . These trips always fill up fast so don ’ t wait , make your reservations soon . To book a trip with Happy Hooker Sportfishing please call 510-223-5388 .

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