28 • April 25 - May 8, 2014 • The Log


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SALTWATER


OCEAN FISHING REPORT By Terrence Berg 976-TUNA.com


LONG RANGE NEWS: The multi-day boats out of San Diego fishing the giant yellowfin tuna grounds off the tip of Baja California continue to see excellent action. While many of the boats are in San Diego doing maintenance, the Intrepid is en route back this week with a hold full of 170 to 190 pound yellowfin, and the big fish was a 278- pounder caught by John Hodes. Most of these trips are also seeing excellent wahoo fishing.


CORONADO ISLANDS YELLOWTAIL UPDATE: The Coronado Islands out of San Diego continue to produce yellowtail in varying numbers over the course of the week, along with good rockfish action. The San Diego out of Seaforth Sportfishing was out with 28 anglers and had its worst yellowtail day in a week with just four fish landed and then fell back on rockfish late in the trip to get 20 rockfish and two lings. The best catches for the boat this past week were Friday when the anglers landed 40 yel- lows and Saturday when 41 hit the deck.


ISLANDS BREAKING OPEN: The action at all of the off- shore islands has been broken wide open this past week with the unseasonably mild April weather. The first white seabass of the Catalina season was caught Monday this week by Captain Jeff Jones, and the bite has been pretty good since with several boats getting limits (one fish per angler) on seabass since, and on Tuesday this week, yel-


lowtail started showing on live squid for private boaters. Catalina has also been pretty good for calico bass, and the rockfish, sheephead, and whitefish action remains excel- lent. At San Clemente, the calico bite has been wide open on quality fish averaging from four to six pounds, and the early season bite on yellowtail is poised to break wide open. The Thunderbird out of Davey’s Locker was at Clemente and reported over 100 big yellows under the boat on Tuesday, but the anglers on board only managed to landed one 25-pound class fish. They did post limits of rockfish, mostly red snapper, from two to eight pounds. At San Nicolas Island, the Tornado was there this weekend on an overnight trip with 28 anglers, and they landed 280 rockfish, 51 whitefish, 44 sheephead, 24 lings, and one big halibut. The Pacific Star out of Pierpoint Landing was out with 25 anglers on an overnight trip and they caught 250 rockfish in addition to 45 whitefish and 40 sheephead.


LOCAL CONDITIONS IMPROVING: The warm weather and unusual lack of hard winds have really kicked the bites off for the half- and three-quarter day boats fishing nearshore waters all along the Southern California coast. While most of the skippers are still focusing on the excel- lent bottom fish action, the bass and halibut bites are also improving by the day with private boaters reporting good fishing. The rockfish are just exceptional, however, and tough to ignore. Scores on half-day boats have been aver- aging from four to eight fish per angler, while the three- quarter day boat anglers are getting from seven to 10 rockfish each along with a few sculpi, sheephead, and whitefish. On Monday, the Victory out of Pierpoint Landing was out with 15 anglers and they had 125 rockfish and 12 sculpin, while the Southern Cal on a half-day with 24 anglers returned with 196 rockfish. Those have been pret- ty typical scores from San Diego to Santa Barbara.


LANDING CONTACTS Southern California: Virg’s Sportfishing, Morro Bay, (805) 772-1222; Patriot Sportfishing, Avila Beach, (805) 595-7200; Sea Landing, Santa Barbara, (805) 963-3564; Harbor Village Sportfishing, Ventura, (805) 658-1060; Channel Islands Sportfishing, Oxnard, (805) 985-8511; Captain Hook’s Sportfishing, Oxnard, (805) 382-6233; Port Hueneme Sportfishing has merged with Channel Islands Sportfishing; Malibu Pier Sportfishing, (310) 328-8426; Marina del Rey Sportfishing, Marina del Rey, (310) 822- 3625; Redondo Sportfishing, Redondo Beach, (310) 372- 2111; Rocky Point Fuel Dock (skiff rentals for King Harbor), Redondo Beach, (310) 374-9858; 22nd Street Landing, San Pedro, (310) 832-8304; L.A. Harbor Sportfishing, San Pedro, (310) 547-9916; Long Beach Sportfishing, Long Beach, (562) 432-8993; Pierpoint Landing, Long Beach, (562) 983- 9300; Marina Sportfishing, Long Beach, (562) 598-6649; Newport Landing, Newport Beach, (949) 675-0550; Davey’s Locker, Newport Beach, (949) 673-1434; Dana Wharf Sportfishing, Dana Point, (949) 496-5794; Helgren’s Sportfishing, Oceanside, (760) 722-2133; Fisherman’s Landing, San Diego, (619) 221-8500; H&M Landing, San Diego, (619) 222-1144; Seaforth Landing, San Diego, (619) 224-3383; Point Loma Sportfishing, San Diego, (619) 223- 1627; Islandia Sportfishing, San Diego, (619) 222-1164. Mexico: Sergio’s Sportfishing, Ensenada, 011-526-178-2185; San Quintín Sportfishing, San Quintín, 011-526-162-1455.


FRESHWATER


Compiled by Jim Matthews OutdoorNewsService.com


Catalina Catches — Daiwa pro Tom Nitahara, and Seeker Rods pros Gene Yun and Mike Nguyen, fished at Catalina Island on Easter Sunday. They caught some nice calicos. Yun caught an 11 pounder and an 8.25 pounder, Nitahara hooked a 7 pounder and Mike a 6 pounder for a total five fish limit of 36 pounds. Fish were caught on both the front and back side of the island. All the fish were caught on swim baits that Yun had made for the trip.


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FRESHWATER HOT SPOTS TROUT: Big Bear Lake is the hot spot for holdover trout with limit-style fishing. There is good action at all the private waters still getting big weekly plants. Those include Santa Ana River Lakes, Corona Lake, and Irvine Lake. In the High Desert, Jess Ranch and Hesperia Lake are pretty good, but Hesperia received its last plant last week. All five San Bernardino County Park Lakes — Mojave Narrows, Glen Helen, Cucamonga-Guasti, Yucaipa, and Prado – are slow- ing. DFW plants are over for the season in the Inland Empire urban waters and at Los Angeles park lakes. In San Diego County, almost all the lakes are seeing their trout sea- sons wind down with only one or two plants left on the sched- ules. Jennings continues to be a top spot with trophy fish even though it received its last plant the last week of March.


BLACK BASS: Across Southern California, the largemouth bass are well into the spawn throughout the region. Some waters are full-on spawn


(maybe even almost done), while others are just begin- ning. There are lots of males on beds with some bigger females up with them. Most of the San Diego region waters are very good. Skinner, Perris, and Diamond Valley are also very good bets. Puddingstone, Casitas, and the Central Coast of Santa Margarita and Lopez are also very good. On the Colorado River, the bass bite is good in the lower river backwaters, Havasu, and up into Lake Mojave but flows are very high making fishing tough. Smallmouth are also starting to perk in the main river all along the Colorado.


STRIPED BASS: The striper action is fair with flurries of good action most places. The aqueduct at Taft is the top pick for volume, but most of the inland valley waters are better for quality. Lake Skinner is turning back on after month-long lull. Water is coming in at the inlet. Silverwood and Pyramid are all pretty decent on cut baits for smaller fish in good numbers and bigger trout–like swimbaits for the odd bigger fish. Diamond Valley has been spotty with most of its fish coming on swimbaits hurled into boils. Havasu and the Willow Beach stretch of the Colorado River are both getting very little pressure but the bite is improv- ing.


PANFISH: Isabella, Elsinore, Cachuma, and Lake Perris have decent crappie bites. Isabella is wide open with 25-fish limits common on minnows, while the other are a little tougher. The redear and/or bluegill bites have also improved. Top bets are Lake Perris and Lake Skinner. Skinner cranked out a lake record 3.69-pounder. The Salton Sea tilapia bite is also wide open at the state park jetty when the wind isn’t blowing. Hundred fish days are possible when the weather is good.


CATFISH: The best bite in the region is probably Corona Lake thanks to weekly stocks for two months and almost no fishing pressure. Other bites have been pretty spotty with only a few fish showing at Lake Skinner in Riverside County. Santa Ana River Lakes is getting planted each week but almost no one is fishing for cats. Lake Isabella in Kern County is also pretty good. The Colorado River may be the best bet. While flows are very high in the lower river, the channel catfish action has been very good, but with fewer reports on flatheads.


SAN BERNARDINO MOUNTAIN WATERS


SILVERWOOD: The best action has been on smaller striped bass, with the best bite off the marina docks, the mouth of Miller Canyon, and at the dam on lug worms, sardines, and anchovies. Most of the fish are from one to two pounds. David Turner, Hesperia, fishing from a boat with his family and friends, landed 62 stripers to three pounds on lug worms and sardine. Mario Mejia, Ontario, landed a two-pound striper in Miller Canyon on a swim- bait. DFW trout plant is slated for this week, but the trout bite has been spotty around the marina and up into Miller and Cleghorn canyons. The crappie bite is just fair with most of the fish showing off the dock. The largemouth bass are starting to show in better numbers. While most are small and showing on plastics in six to 20 feet, a few bigger fish are being caught on swimbaits. James Mason, Victorville, landed three bass on nightcrawlers in Outhouse and his best fish was a five-pound, all released. Anglers should be aware of health warnings for the con- sumption of fish from this lake because of high PCB and


Bob Vanian’s 976-BITE FISH REPORTS www.976BITE.COM


For Internet Reports Visit www.976bite.com For Personal Reports Call (619) 226-8218


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