Late-Season Fishing Booming

It's hard to believe with as warm as it was on Wednesday that it will be as cold as is forecast for the weekend. Besides cooler air temperatures, windy weather is also on the way. That makes fishing from jetties and the rocks very dangerous, so please pay attention to current weather conditions.

Nevertheless, Captain Shawn Morgon from Big Fish Tackle in Seal Beach is reporting excellent surf fishing action for a variety of species. According to Morgon, there are still corbina being taken off Huntington Beach and Bolsa Chica. The best bait has been ghost shrimp with 6- to 8-pound test line and a Carolina rig.

Addtionally, fair numbers of yellowfin and spotfin croaker continue to be caught off Seal Beach, with big sand crabs luring some croaker in the 2- to 4-pound class into biting.

Halibut fishing has been good around the Bolsa Chica outlet—one angler recently reeled in a 29-pound flatfish. There have also been some halibut caught off Belmont Shores around 52nd and 56th places. Anglers using an umbrella net to catch live smelt for bait have had the greatest success.

In the Santa Monica Bay, Marina del Rey has provided good halibut fishing. San Pedro resident Joe Bennington, who has caught multiple flatfish, said live bait has been the key.

Palos Verdes anglers have been catching good numbers of opaleye perch, along with a few sheephead and bass off the rocks, using frozen peas.

Surf fishermen in the Santa Monica Bay have also had some good fishing. There has been fair leopard shark fishing off Torrance Beach using mackerel for bait, and anglers have caught a few corbina off Redondo and Hermosa beaches.

Rockfish abundant in Southern California

Good bottom fishing has been the rule over most of Southern California again this week. Buena Park resident Ryan Klumper, 27, caught a 21-pound lingcod recently on board the Freelance out of Davey’s Locker in Newport Beach.

Captain Andy Siratt of the Enterprise out of Long Beach Marina Sportfishing reported excellent fishing for 2- to 4-pound vermillion rockfish, along with salmon grouper and other bottom grabbers.

In the Santa Monica Bay, the Redondo Special out of has been catching near limits of rockfish, as have boats out of Marina del Rey. The bay has also seen fair to excellent lingcod fishing.

Great white sharks steal fish from Islander anglers

On a recent six-day fishing trip in Northern Baja California, anglers on the Islander out of San Diego lost five out of every six tuna hooked to great white sharks circling the boat for an easy meal, according to Torrance resident and trip participant Pam Sharp.

Offshore, the fishing was excellent for 20- to 25-pound tuna. In a 45-minute stretch, anglers caught 85 tuna, Sharp said.

Yellowtail fishing at San Benitos Island was excellent. The group on the Islander landed 185 of the hard-fighting jacks in the 20- to 25-pound class. Sharp won the vessel's jackpot with an 88-pound yellowfin tuna.

Quick bites

• There continue to be some late-season white sea bass and yellowtail, as well as a few calico bass and lots of rockfish, caught at Catalina Island using live squid for bait. Most of the fish have been reeled in on the back—or weather side—of the island.

• Anglers aboard the Westerly out of Long Beach Sportfishing arrived at San Clemente Island at about 3 a.m. Saturday to wide-open calico bass fishing, according to Captain John Ackley. Passengers reached the 10-bass-per-angler limits before sunrise, and caught limits of whitefish and rockfish by 10 a.m.

• The Belmont Shores-based Sportfishing Conservancy is having a toss-back day on the half-day boat Southern Cal out of Pierpoint Landing in Long Beach on Saturday. Anglers who release the most fish will be eligible for cash prizes and more. The trip leaves at 6:30 a.m., and anglers can participate for free. Said Sportfishing Conservancy President Tom Raftican, "Why not reward anglers for doing the right thing?"

• Even though the blue whales should be gone by now, there are still plenty around. Whale sightings have been common over the past week, with more reports of fin, minke and humpback whale sightings.