Sample Reports

Thursday May 16th 2019

Report Updated: July 6, 2019 at 10:54 am

PM Updates marked in RED *****Attention iPhone and iPad users***** The new iOS FishDope app for iPhone and iPad is here! Search for FishDope in the App Store to download and install. We recommend a minimum of iOS 9 to run the app, and newer versions will give the best performance. Note: Please use your FishDope username, not email address, to log in. The app offers all the charts and the latest 7 days of fishing reports, and you can now stream live VHF radio while online. It automatically stores the fishing reports for offline use, and it also saves the last chart region and chart layers you’ve viewed so that you can take them with you on the water and out of wifi range. You can also continue to view the FishDope website with a browser like Safari or Chrome on your phone or tablet, but only the app will save reports and charts for offline use. We’ve created a FAQ page for the app (with instructions for using it) here: FishDope App Frequently Asked Questions If you have other questions or notice bugs, please post them up in our forums.

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—– Weather ALERT! —– All of SoCal is under a Small Craft Advisory through Friday night for winds in the 15 to 30 knot range with possible gusts to 35 knots. Early this morning it was raining from the Channel Islands to Dana Point and where ever the rain was falling AND behind it it was windy. Seas conditions in and after the rain was/is ugly. South of Dana there was a short window of good weather but that didn’t last long as the front slowly slid to the south into Mexico. The rain was done everywhere by the noon hour but the wind was just getting started. It blew hard in the afternoon hours. More rain and wind is expected on Sunday/Monday and Tuesday/Wednesday next week. Looks like winter isn’t quite over yet As always, please keep a close eye on the latest forecast and conditions for your local area before you head out! Synopsis for Inshore Waters of the Southern California Coast A strong cold front will pass through the coastal waters this morning, with south winds quickly turning westerly. A rain squall will accompany this front. Northwest winds and wind swell will increase this afternoon and continue through Friday evening, creating hazardous boating conditions. Moderate onshore flow will continue through the weekend, but winds and swell will increase again Sunday and Monday.

LIVE Weather Broadcast Northern Sector – Santa Barbara to LA Southern Sector – Orange and San Diego County and SCI Baja Sector (experimental, may not be updated every day) —– Bait Report —– Bait Barge Contact Info Everingham Bros Bait Company San Diego – 4-6″ sardine (5-7) Mission Bay – 3-6″ sardine (5-4) Oceanside Bait Barge Recording (760) 434-1183 – 5-6″ sardine (5-4). Dana Point – 5-7″ sardine (5-10). Newport Bait Barge (310) 461-5370 – 4-6″ sardine (5-15) Nacho’s Bait Barge (updated when members report) – 5-7″ sardine – NO squid (5-15) San Pedro Bait Barge (310) 365-2516 CH.11 – 4-6″ sardine (5-15) Redondo Bait Report (310) 372-2111 – medium size sardines – Available most mornings. Call 909 721-5849 for Mike at the bait barge (5-4) Marina Del Rey (updated when members report) – Sardines. $30/scoop, half scoops not available (5-6) CISCOS Bait Barge – sardine & anchovy mix (5-15)

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Inshore GPS Spots are here.

Sheephead news: As of Apr. 1st you can now fillet sheephead on board your boat thanks to a collaboration between SAC and CA DFW. Fillets must be at least 6.75″ long with the full skin attached. See the DFW press release for details. ***** Wind and Rain Delay ***** Rain and high winds kept most boats north of Dana Point off the water today. The rain and wind spread south of Dana into Mexican waters during the morning hours Where it was raining the seas were ugly with quite a bit of rain There are Small Craft Advisory’s up everywhere in So Cal today and tomorrow for 15 to 30 knots of wind with gusts in some areas up to 35 knots. Not a good day to be out on the water and tomorrow actually looks to be worse. Channel Islands SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY IN EFFECT THROUGH LATE FRIDAY NIGHT Wind and rain this morning! The seas were ugly. There were very few boats out at Santa Rosa fishing for seabass, halibut and yellowtail. Most canceled yesterday and stayed in port today. That said there was at least one that made the run out and they fished the Eagle’s Nest area on the south side of Santa Rosa to get out of the wind and they managed to score some seabass this morning on live squid. Most if not all of the boats are offline tomorrow as the wind is forecast to ramp up even higher on Friday. Wind in the 15 to 25 knot range is expected for Saturday and Sunday is forecast to be blown out again along with 80 to 90% chance of rain. Monday looks to be blown out too with wind just like today and Friday. NW 20-30kt with gusts to 35. Combined seas 8 to 11 feet. Bottom line here…. The area is pretty much unfishable for at least the next 5 days. Santa Monica Bay / LA Harbor / Long Beach Shelf / Newport Beach / Catalina Island & San Clemente Island …SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM 9 AM PDT THIS MORNING THROUGH LATE FRIDAY NIGHT… Rain and wind this morning kept most boats off the water today. Wind will be blowing tomorrow as well. Only Saturday looks to be fishable as rain and wind return on Sunday / Monday. We dis hear about a couple of boats that braved the elements today and they did well on the rockfish at the Southeast Bank. No reports of anything else. Be sure to check the Navy closure schedule before heading out. Always monitor VHF Ch. 16 and obey any requests to clear out of closed security zones. Click here for info on how to read the closure schedule. Dana Point / Oceanside / Del Mar / Imperial Beach …SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM 9 AM PDT THIS MORNING THROUGH LATE FRIDAY NIGHT… No report. While it was nice early in the day the rain hit the area by 9am and was followed by some very stiff winds. Most if not all decided to sit it out and wait for better conditions. **** Attention **** There is now an ice vending machine at the Shelter Island launch ramp for your convenience. It’s located right near the bathroom building at the top of the ramp. The machine takes credit cards and 20 lb. bags are $6.95 each. Swipe your credit card to open, take as many as you want, and it charges by weight when you close the door.

——— Mexican waters ———— Getting Permits To Fish Mexico – An Angler’s Guide To Baja by That Baja Guy-Gary Graham Coronado Islands / Rockpile …SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM 9 AM PDT THIS MORNING THROUGH LATE FRIDAY NIGHT… For the past 4 or 5 days the yellowtail fishing at the Islands has been very good to excellent. Today however was a different day. Some boats did hit the Islands and caught some yellowtail early in the day but high winds drove them off the water. The following is what was happening before the winds hit. Hopefully it will pick up right where it left off… Lots of yellowtail are on the weather side of North Island at Pukey Point and the Keyhole. On the lee side they are near the Lobster Shack. Perhaps the best yellowtail action of all is coming on the ridge that runs from the Middle Grounds to about the Gun Site as yellowtail are running up and down the Ridge. This is classic old school yellowtail fishing at the Coronados. They are biting the sardine fly lined on 25lb well but they are also jumping on a well placed surface iron good too. Guys that are good with the iron are having a blast! Blue/white, scrambled egg and MINT were the best colors. Watch the tern birds! They hover right over the yellows and when you see them do this in casting range fire out that surface iron just ahead of which way they are moving and give that jig a slow to medium wind back to the boat. Wind just fast enough that the jig “kicks” side to side without rolling over or spinning. It is not all about the sportboats either as private boaters are doing well too. Private boaters are scoring slow trolling sardines or rapalas while watching for bird schools. It appears right now that mid morning to afternoon hours are best as the early mornings have been just a slow pick. Not just yellowtail either as some of those big 8 to 15lb bonito are still around and there are some legal size up to 7-8lb barracuda too. The cudas are mainly being found at Ribbon Kelp, 5 Minute Kelp, South Kelp and the SKR / Rockpile area(s) Heads Up! Mexican Navy is checking permits and kicked out a few boats the past few days for no biosphere or fmm. Bracelets are now required to fish within Pacific Island Biosphere Reserve areas, including the Coronado Islands, Todos Santos, and San Martin Island. See the Mexico Info page in the Resources section for more info. **** ATTENTION **** You must stay at least 250 meters (820 feet) away from any tuna pens. If you don’t you are at risk of losing your boat and landing in a Mexican jail. Click here for more details on this subject *********************** The Mexican Navy regularly patrols the islands and checks boats for the required paperwork, including Mexican Fishing License, Vessel Temporary Import Permit, FMM and valid Country of Residence Passport for each person on the boat (can’t purchase the FMM (Tourist Card) without a passport anyway). Required permits are listed on the CONAPESCA website for fishing within 12 miles of land including the islands. The permits can be purchased through their website.

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——- MEXICAN WATERS ———— 425-101 / 475 Knuckle / Finger Bank / Upper Hidden Bank …SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM 9 AM PDT THIS MORNING THROUGH LATE FRIDAY NIGHT… Boats did get out today and fished in this area in spite of the Small Craft Advisory and the threat of rain. It was actually pretty nice this morning and the boats did start picking away at the bluefin early in the day. The afternoon however was different story as the seas got very rough due to high winds. Most are said to be in the 60-80lb class and are biting both the fly line sardine and the Flat-fall jigs. Kite fishing today was pretty productive as well. A new problem has come up… Sea Lions! They have moved out onto the tuna grounds in this area and are hunting for boats that are hooked up and then stealing the tuna. A good number of 60-80lb class tuna have been lost to these mammals over the past couple of days including today The rest of the info is unchanged for the past several days except for GPS numbers. Those below are from today. The bulk of the bluefin are still being found in the area from the 101 to the 475 Knuckle and west 4-5 miles. This area has a lot of bait and red crab which seems to be keeping the tuna from wandering off someplace else. There appears to be quite a bit of bluefin in the area right now. Far more than the counts show. This is because they smart and not really interested in a sardine with a hook in it. Boats are driving from school to school and once in a while one of them will give up a few biters. They rush the chum, boil around and then bug out. They are being found up on the surface and on sonar marks from 30 to 200 feet down Most bites if you can get them are coming on light line, no more than 50lb fluoro with 40lb fluoro being best and a hot sardine pinned on a small circle hook but some guys are getting bit on the flat fall jigs too. This zone is also holding kelps with yellowtail on them. Most of these are those little 3-5lb rats but there are some legit 8-15lbers in the mix. The following GPS numbers are where bluefin or kelp paddy yellowtail were found today but not necessarily where tuna/yellowtail were caught: 32 13 x 117 18 – Bluefin 32 13 x 117 19 – Kelp paddy yellowtail 32 12 x 117 12 – Bluefin 32 11 x 117 11 – Bluefin 32 10 x 117 33 – Bluefin 32 10 x 117 11 – Bluefin 32 09 x 117 35 – Kelp paddy yellowtail 32 05 x 117 23 – Bluefin Chad was out on the Madrugador yesterday and made this video and send in these pics. Note the GPS numbers in the pics Check the video out here

******************************************************************* All reports, good, bad, or otherwise are very helpful. If you go fishing please give us a call or shoot us an email. reports@www.fishdope.com 1 (619) 992-6099

Wednesday May 15th 2019

Report Updated: July 6, 2019 at 10:54 am

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—– Weather ALERT! —– Great weather today! Flat glass and little to no wind all day but it will be turning for the worse beginning this evening up north and spreading south during the night and early AM tomorrow. This is due to an unusual (for this time of year) winter type storm front that will be bringing us both rain and wind. There is nearly a 100% chance of rain tomorrow followed by 15 to 20 knot wind with gust to 25 on the inshore waters and wind in the 20-30 knot range offshore and at the Islands We expect there will be Small Craft Advisory’s posted up for ALL of So Cal by Thursday morning. Saturday looks ok except for the outer Islands where the wind is forecast to be blowing hard. Then we have yet another chance for rain and wind on Sunday and then again on Tuesday next week. Looks like winter isn’t quite over yet. Bottom line…. The next 4-6 days do not look very good weather wise. Might be best to sit and wait this stuff out before heading out on the water. As always, please keep a close eye on the latest forecast and conditions for your local area before you head out! Synopsis for Inshore Waters of the Southern California Coast Weak onshore flow will increase throughout the week, peaking Thursday afternoon through Friday night. Winds Thursday afternoon through Friday night will likely produce hazardous boating conditions.

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Inshore GPS Spots are here.

Sheephead news: As of Apr. 1st you can now fillet sheephead on board your boat thanks to a collaboration between SAC and CA DFW. Fillets must be at least 6.75″ long with the full skin attached. See the DFW press release for details. Channel Islands WEATHER ALERT! Rain tonight and early tomorrow morning followed by 20-30 knot NW wind Thursday afternoon through ALL of Friday. Expect to see a Small Craft Advisory or maybe even a Gale Warning posted up tonight for tomorrow and Friday as well. After that 15 to 25 knot wind out of the NW is expected to continue to blow right through the weekend. As for the fishing the seabass bite is still happening. Boats are getting them this morning along with some really big halibut and a few yellowtail. That said the bite was not limit style fishing like it has been. Some boats got a few and some boats didn’t. What was most interesting today was the number of really big halibut in the 30-40lb class. Most of the fleet out there got at least one and we know of one boat that got 5, all on live squid fished on dropper loop rigs Lately the seabass bite has been more of an all day deal instead of just early am hours only. It has not been as wide open as it was before with boats all scoring limits by 8am. This is right in the middle of the ideal moon phase and they should continue to show between now and the 18th. Sometimes they bite after the full moon too but not always. Most of the time the bite slows way down until a few days before the new moon, then dies off again until that 1st quarter to full moon phase returns. The bite, when on has been happening at Santa Rosa Island in the Becher’s Bay area. Some squid moved back in and the seabass followed it. These seabass are running in the 15 to 25lb class with a few bigger in the 30-35lb range. There is still a chance for seabass in the Yellow Banks area of Santa Cruz Island but there is a better chance for big log barracuda. Water is green and not really the kind of green seabass want. Santa Monica Bay No sign of any legal size barracuda yet but they might show up show as there are a bunch at Catalina now and they might make there way across soon. If they do they will most likely show up under birds where ever there is anchovy from off Rocky to up off MDR. Keep those binos handy, a jig stick rigged up and fingers crossed… There is a bunch of barracuda around right now but they are all shorts. They are at Rocky Point and along with them is a decent calico bass bite. Bass are biting up in Malibu too. Of course there is always the rockfish and sculpin on the South Bank to fall back on if need be. LA Harbor / Long Beach Shelf / Newport Beach The surface action is slow. No more sign of those yellowtail and so far no numbers of legal size barracuda either. That might change soon though if those cuda at Catalina make a move. Until then it is all rockfish and sculpin or sand bass and sculpin on the inshore rocks and reefs. Typical locations. Southeast Bank and the West Slope spots for the rockfish and the 150 for the sculpin. Calico and sand bass along with some sculpin are biting plastic’s and the leadhead and squid combo at Izor’s, the various wrecks and down at the New Pipe #2 area. The PV coastline is worth a shot too but just be sure and stay out of the MPA. Catalina Island Squid; No boats are at the Island selling squid. The Long Beach Carnage will likely be back out Thursday night (weather permitting of course) and could have squid for sale Friday morning. Until then you are on your own. Mills Landing is the location for the squid but it is very hard to catch right now. The stuff is not coming up to the surface and there isn’t much volume. Be sure and bring the squid jigs as you might not be able to scoop any at all. Fishing; Even though the counts are not showing this there are in fact quite a few yellowtail scattered around the Island. Getting them to bite is a different story. It is all about conditions #1 – CURRENT. Without it the yellows just seem to go to sleep and not do much of anything. #2 – Live squid. The sardine and jigs were working early last week but not so much anymore. The yellows have been fed the squid and now they are spoiled. #3 – Clean water! Right now much of the front side is green. Not a clean green either. It’s not the kind of water that normally see’s good fishing. The back side has much better water right now. #4 – Light boat pressure. The yellows are being spooked by big parking lots of boats. In recent days all of the best bites have come away from the crowds. In general here is the run down around the Island; Front side action for yellowtail has slowed way down. Water has greened up. Guys are catching a yellowtail here and there but the big bite between Little Gibraltar to Red Bluff appears to be over. We got word of some signal of yellows at Isthmus Reef, Ship Rock and Black Rock areas but they don’t or are not interested in biting anything. On the backside there are yellowtail around and now there are good numbers of big barracuda too. Starting at the East End and working west the Under the Light spot all the way to Salta Verde there is a lot of legal size barracuda now with some yellowtail mixed in. There are yellows on the Farnsworth Bank. They don’t bite everyday but when they do it can be pretty good. Mill’s Landing area has some yellowtail and seabass on the squid bed. From there there is a decent chance of finding yellowtail and a bunch of barracuda from Little Harbor to the West End. Seabass are showing a little bit. Most being caught right now are BIG in the 40-60lb class. For the most part they are up in tight to the beaches on the back side in the classic milky greenish white water that is 30 feet or less in depth. This bite might get a lot better in the coming days leading up to the full moon. Bite time for the few being caught is 4am till 7am and then in the evening at sunset till about 9pm. One thing is certain here. You need squid! Live is greatly preferred but very fresh dead works good too. Frozen works sometimes and is a better choice than sardines or mackerel right now. Guys are pinning 1 or 2 live squid to either a leadhead, a 1/4oz sliding sinker rig or on a dropper loop. Use a big hook. A 6/0 to even a 9/0 ahi twist works perfect. Calico bass fishing is also turning on all along the back side of the Island. They are on the boiler rocks and all the kelp and shallow rock piles and biting the plastics, live squid and the smaller sardines very good. On top of that a lot of them are legal size fish over the 14″ size limit. San Clemente Island Yellowtail can be found in at least 3 areas now and possibly more now. These are listed below; #1. The Dunes / Runway area continues to give up really nice big yellows in the 20-25lb class with a few pushing the 30 or even 35lb mark. There is some signal of squid in the area and that in turn is holding the yellows to the area. Some days it is an early morning thing. Some days an afternoon thing and some days a steady pick all day long. That said if you are there and not getting bit wait. You probably will in time. Keep a steady chum line going and be patient. #2. There is now squid in Pyramid Cove in 110 feet of water. Seiners / light boats are on it and there is plenty to make bait with. There are also some of those big yellowtail on the squid. We here it in the general area of the Caves. Find the bait and you found the yellows. #3. The Gold Bluff / White Rock are still has yellowtail although these are smaller fish than the other 2 areas. These are mixed rats in the 3-5lb class and 10-15lbers. They were willing to bite the sardine good but we heard they want to squid now at least 5 to 1 over the sardine and it is getting worse. They have developed a taste for the candy and as long as it is around that is what they will want. The bite is dependent on at least some current running. This is typical for yellowtail at Islands and along the coast. No current generally mean no yellows or very few yellows. This bite is also dependent on having live squid. While a few are falling for the yoyo iron or the sardine the squid is becoming the best and possibly the only thing working. In addition to the yellows the guys are catching a few of the “3 B’s”. Bass, barracuda and bonito. Be sure to check the Navy closure schedule before heading out. Always monitor VHF Ch. 16 and obey any requests to clear out of closed security zones. Click here for info on how to read the closure schedule. Dana Point / Oceanside Nothing new to add to this… Typical stuff for this time of year. Bass fishing is ok if you can score some small bait. The big sardines are just to much for them. Plastic’s are working good if you run a chum line of squid bits. Those chum buckets work too. Rockfish is going good and steady at Box Canyon in the 220 to 240 foot depths. The shallower area still has a decent sculpin bite going. Del Mar to Imperial Beach Early and late in the afternoon there is still a reasonable shot at catching a 10-25lb yellowtail. Skiffs and kayakers are getting them by either slow trolling sardines or mackerel OR by trolling the rapalas or nomad plugs. The plugs might be the best choice as sea lions have been a major pain in the a$$ stealing a lot of sardines and mackerel that are being trolled. They are smart and grab them behind the head so they don’t get hooked. You end up with a fish head left on the hook. The area is from the upper edge of the MPA to the Hotel and out to the NW Corner. There has also been a few up the beach as far as Torrey Pines. Guys are jigging up both mackerel and sardines along the kelp line in the same area. To the south off Point Loma the local fishing is slow for surface fish with just those little rockfish biting at the Drop-off and the Whistler. **** Attention **** There is now an ice vending machine at the Shelter Island launch ramp for your convenience. It’s located right near the bathroom building at the top of the ramp. The machine takes credit cards and 20 lb. bags are $6.95 each. Swipe your credit card to open, take as many as you want, and it charges by weight when you close the door.

——— Mexican waters ———— Getting Permits To Fish Mexico – An Angler’s Guide To Baja by That Baja Guy-Gary Graham Coronado Islands / Rockpile The past several days has seen some very good yellowtail fishing and today is no different. Boats started to report in with 50 to 60 yellows per boat by 12 noon. The Middle Grounds / Gun Site area has been biting good. The yellows are running the Ridge and setting up on the anchor along it has been working great. There has also been good showings of yellows along the weather side of North Island at Pukey Point and the Key Hole and on the lee side at the Lobster Shack. On top of that not only did they bite the sardine well but they were HOT for the surface iron. Blue/white, scrambled egg and MINT were the best colors. Watch the tern birds! They hover right over the yellows and when you see them do this in casting range fire out that surface iron just ahead of which way they are moving and give that jig a slow to medium wind back to the boat. Wind just fast enough that the jig “kicks” side to side without rolling over or spinning. It is not all about the sportboats either as private boaters are doing well too. Private boaters are scoring slow trolling sardines or rapalas while watching for bird schools. It appears right now that afternoon hours are best as the mornings have been just a slow pick. Not just yellowtail either as some of those big 8 to 15lb bonito are still around and there are some legal size up to 7-8lb barracuda too. The cudas are mainly being found at Ribbon Kelp, 5 Minute Kelp, South Kelp and the SKR / Rockpile area(s) Heads Up! Mexican Navy is checking permits and kicked out a few boats the past few days for no biosphere or fmm. Bracelets are now required to fish within Pacific Island Biosphere Reserve areas, including the Coronado Islands, Todos Santos, and San Martin Island. See the Mexico Info page in the Resources section for more info. **** ATTENTION **** You must stay at least 250 meters (820 feet) away from any tuna pens. If you don’t you are at risk of losing your boat and landing in a Mexican jail. Click here for more details on this subject *********************** The Mexican Navy regularly patrols the islands and checks boats for the required paperwork, including Mexican Fishing License, Vessel Temporary Import Permit, FMM and valid Country of Residence Passport for each person on the boat (can’t purchase the FMM (Tourist Card) without a passport anyway). Required permits are listed on the CONAPESCA website for fishing within 12 miles of land including the islands. The permits can be purchased through their website.

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——- MEXICAN WATERS ———— 9 Mile Bank / Coronado Canyon / 226-302 Guys there are bluefin on the Lower 9 and in the Coronado Canyon but very few boats are taking advantage of it. There has been some spots of foamers on mini, micro anchovy, puddlers, jumpers and sonar schools found over the past several days. There are some yellowtail on kelps too so those should be checked out if you see any. We didn’t however get any numbers for this area today. 425-101 / 475 Knuckle / Finger Bank / Upper Hidden Bank From what we have been able to gather up as of post time it sounds like today was a much slower day for bluefin catching. We heard they are still seeing a lot of tuna both on the surface and on sonar marks but for what ever reason they just were not in the biting mood much today. Best time was early this morning until about 9-10am and then it got really slow. The rest of the info is unchanged for the past several days except for GPS numbers. Those below are from today. The bulk of the bluefin are still being found in the area from the 101 to the 475 Knuckle and west 4-5 miles. This area has a lot of bait and red crab which seems to be keeping the tuna from wandering off someplace else. There appears to be quite a bit of bluefin in the area right now. Far more than the counts show. This is because they smart and not really interested in a sardine with a hook in it. Boats are driving from school to school and once in a while one of them will give up a few biters. They rush the chum, boil around and then bug out. They are being found up on the surface and on sonar marks from 30 to 200 feet down Most bites if you can get them are coming on light line, no more than 50lb fluoro with 40lb fluoro being best and a hot sardine pinned on a small circle hook but some guys are getting bit on the flat fall jigs too. This zone is also holding kelps with yellowtail on them. Most of these are those little 3-5lb rats but there are some legit 8-15lbers in the mix. The following GPS numbers are where bluefin or kelp paddy yellowtail were found today but not necessarily where tuna/yellowtail were caught: 32 15 x 117 17 – Kelp paddy yellowtail 32 15 x 117 15 – Bluefin puddlers 32 13 x 117 13 – Bluefin sonar school 32 10 x 117 11 – Bluefin sonar school Report from Peter at the Carefree Boat Club of San Diego; I went out with a couple of our members yesterday and found a lot of action. We first saw bluefin tuna boiling at 32 12.829N 117 11.664W As soon as we got close they would dip straight down. Couldn’t get one to bite but they had schools of birds just sitting on top of where the boils were happening. We found a kelp patty holding a couple of small yellowtail at 32 15.870N 117 18.546W Finally we found the Liberty and hung around there but still couldn’t get one to bite. A lot of action though. here is one more coordinate where the bluefin were found later

390 This area got looked at early and except for a good sonar mark and a couple of night time bluefin caught on flat-fall jigs at 32 07 x 117 46 the area seemed pretty lifeless and our contact left to go fish the 475 Knuckle / 101 – 425 area instead. ***** General Info updated on 5-12-2019 ***** During the daytime there has been a few balloon or kite/double trouble rig bluefin caught over the past several weeks and this along with fishing the Flat Fall jigs is the #1 way to get these really big tuna to the boat as it is nearly impossible to land a 150+ tuna on 40lb flyline gear. For most guys the bites continue to come on the fly line sardine fished on 30-40lb fluorocarbon, a small circle hook and a HOT sardine. Take some time to pick the best sardine possible! You want a pale green back and NO red spots on the body. Generally speaking the hardest one to catch in the bait well is the one you want to be using. A few have been successful lately rubber banding a 4-6oz torpedo sinker to the line and dropping the sardine down deep where the tuna are holding. See the pic below. Lately there has been more flat-fall fish too. Not just at night either. Some guys are getting them during the daytime too. These are generally coming off stops where the bluefin are showing down around 150 to 200 feet and refuse to come up for the chum. Fish the flat-fall with at least a 100lb fluoro leader. 130-150lb is even better. Use at least 60lb. main line. 80 to 100lb gear is much better when fishing the flat-fall jigs. The night time hours from 7pm until 6am is all about the Flat-fall jigs. Here is a great trick/tip…. Take a black permanent marker and put a mark(s) on the braid every 50 feet. One mark for 50 feet, 2 for 100, 3 for 150 and so on. This will allow you to know exactly how deep you are fishing. You find the tuna on the sonar you know to drop down to just past the 3rd mark to allow a little extra for scope. Below is a pic of the rubber band sinker rig some guys are using to get a sardine down deep to the fish.

Tuesday May 14th 2019

Report Updated: July 6, 2019 at 10:54 am

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—– Weather ALERT! —– Another day of great weather. Tomorrow looks great until late in the day when some rain is likely to begin moving into the Channel Islands area. Thursday most areas have a 100% chance of rain and/or showers. Wind is expect to pick up quite a bit in the Channel Islands area. The seabass grounds at Santa Rosa might not be fishable. Expect to see a Small Craft Advisory up if not a Gale Warning for this area. Elsewhere Small Craft Advisory’s will likely be posted up for Thursday afternoon and Friday. More rain and wind is expected Sunday and again next Tuesday. It appears winter isn’t quite over just yet. As always, please keep a close eye on the latest forecast and conditions for your local area before you head out! Synopsis for Inshore Waters of the Southern California Coast Weak onshore flow will continue through Wednesday, becoming stronger Thursday afternoon through Friday night, before decreasing Saturday.

LIVE Weather Broadcast Northern Sector – Santa Barbara to LA Southern Sector – Orange and San Diego County and SCI Baja Sector (experimental, may not be updated every day) —– Bait Report —– Bait Barge Contact Info Everingham Bros Bait Company San Diego – 4-6″ sardine (5-7) Mission Bay – 3-6″ sardine (5-4) Oceanside Bait Barge Recording (760) 434-1183 – 5-6″ sardine (5-4). Dana Point – 5-7″ sardine (5-10). Newport Bait Barge (310) 461-5370 – 4-6″ sardine (5-8) Nacho’s Bait Barge (updated when members report) – 5-7″ sardine – NO squid (5-10) San Pedro Bait Barge (310) 365-2516 CH.11 – 4-6″ sardine (5-8) Redondo Bait Report (310) 372-2111 – medium size sardines – Available most mornings. Call 909 721-5849 for Mike at the bait barge (5-4) Marina Del Rey (updated when members report) – Sardines. $30/scoop, half scoops not available (5-6) CISCOS Bait Barge – sardine & anchovy mix (5-9)

****************************** INSHORE / ISLANDS Section ******************************

Inshore GPS Spots are here.

Sheephead news: As of Apr. 1st you can now fillet sheephead on board your boat thanks to a collaboration between SAC and CA DFW. Fillets must be at least 6.75″ long with the full skin attached. See the DFW press release for details. Channel Islands Weather Alert! Wind and rain is coming late Wednesday and well into Thursday. Small Craft Advisory’s, if not full blown Gale Warnings will likely be posted up sometime tomorrow. The white seabass bite exploded on the 12th with limits for all type fishing. Yesterday was even better with limits for all by 8am. This morning the hot bite continues rolling right along. The Pacific Dawn reported in with limits for 24 passengers and other boats in the area did really good too. This is right in the middle of the ideal moon phase and they should continue to bite between now and the 18th. Sometimes they bite after the full moon too but not always. Most of the time the bites slows way down until a few days before the new moon, then dies off again until that 1st quarter to full moon phase returns. The bite, when on has been happening at Santa Rosa Island in the Becher’s Bay area. Some squid moved back in and the seabass followed it. These seabass are running in the 15 to 25lb class with a few bigger in the 30-35lb range. There is still a chance for seabass in the Yellow Banks area of Santa Cruz Island but there is a better chance for big log barracuda. Water is green and not really the kind of green seabass want. Santa Monica Bay Surface fishing is perking up with calico bass and a bunch of short barracuda at Rocky Point and up in the Pepperdine area off Malibu. No legal size barracuda yet but if history is to repeat it’s self this month normally sees those big barracuda come around. If they do they will most likely show up under birds where ever there is anchovy from off Rocky to up off MDR. Of course there is always the rockfish and sculpin on the South Bank to fall back on if need be. LA Harbor / Long Beach Shelf / Newport Beach Yellowtail fishing is slow. Barracuda have not shown up yet. There were a few reports of seabass at Izor’s and the Newport Reef about 10 days ago but nothing since. What is biting is rockfish, whitefish and sculpin. Typical locations. Southeast Bank and the West Slope spots for the rockfish and the 150 for the sculpin. Calico and sand bass along with some sculpin are biting plastic’s and the leadhead and squid combo at Izor’s, the various wrecks and down at the New Pipe #2 area. The PV coastline is worth a shot too but just be sure and stay out of the MPA. Catalina Island The following is a re-post from yesterday as there is no change at all…. Squid; No boats are at the Island selling squid. The Long Beach Carnage will likely be back out Thursday night and could have squid for sale Friday morning. Until then you are on your own. Mills Landing is the location for the squid but it is very hard to catch right now. The stuff is not coming up to the surface and there isn’t much volume. Be sure and bring the squid jigs as you might not be able to scoop any at all. Fishing; Hit and miss yellowtail action. There are yellows pretty much all around the Island but if conditions are not right they just refuse to bite. #1 CURRENT. Without it the yellows just seem to go to sleep and not do much of anything. #2 Live squid. The sardine and jigs were working early last week but not so much anymore. The yellows have been fed the squid and now they are spoiled. #3 Light boat pressure. The yellows are being spooked by big parking lots of boats. In recent days all of the best bites have come away from the crowds. In general here is the run down around the Island… Front side action for yellowtail has slowed way down. Water has greened up. Guys are catching a yellowtail here and there but the big bite between Little Gibraltar to Red Bluff is now history. On the backside from the east Under the Light spot all the way to Salta Verde there is a lot of legal size barracuda now with some yellowtail mixed in. There was also some good fishing for barracuda at the mooring cans inside of Cat Harbor Saturday night. Lots of big 7-8lb ones. The entire back side calico bass fishing is also turning on. They are on the boiler rocks and all the kelp and shallow rock piles and biting the plastics and the smaller sardines very good. On top of that a lot of them are legal size fish over the 14″ size limit. The Farnsworth Bank is also holding a good number of yellowtail. These are biting the squid and yoyo iron. The Mills Landing squid area gave up some more yellowtail today and from there there is a decent chance you can find yellowtail from Little Harbor up to the West End. Seabass are showing a little bit. Most being caught right now are BIG in the 40-60lb class. For the most part they are up in tight to the beaches on the back side in the classic milky greenish white water that is 30 feet or less in depth. This bite might get a lot better in the coming days leading up to the full moon. One thing is certain here. You need squid! Live is greatly preferred but very fresh dead works good too. Frozen works sometimes and is a better choice than sardines or mackerel right now. Guys are pinning 1 or 2 live squid to either a leadhead, a 1/4oz sliding sinker rig or on a dropper loop. Use a big hook. A 6/0 to even a 9/0 ahi twist works perfect. Evening Email Report from Ryan at SlayDay SoCal: Not much for the community today other than EXCELLENT west end humps rockfishing. (Renters stopped there first crossing and limited in less than an hour). Backside barracuda bite BIG TIME around Whale Rock and Cape Cortes. Saw a lot of smaller light boats anchored backside. Squid coming up tonight? Will Nacho FINALLY get some live for the next week? Ryan San Clemente Island This Island has been seeing a good bite on big yellows in the 20-25lb class with a few stand outs up around 35 to 37lbs over the past several days in the Dunes / Runway area. Today however the bite wasn’t happening in the morning like it has been. The boats were seeing plenty of yellows but they didn’t want to bite good. They were catching a few but nothing like it has been. Why? Lack of current! We keep stressing this detail because when it comes to yellowtail current is extremely important. No current = no yellowtail at least when fishing inshore spots. Offshore kelp paddy fishing this isn’t always the case though. Late in the morning and into the afternoon the bite did improve as current started to run. A number of boats ended up scoring well. The bite, when it is on is coming on live squid that is rigged either with a sliding egg sinker or on the dropper loop. As for hooks the guys are using size 4/0 to 7/0 ahi twist style hooks and pinning 1 or 2 squid to the hook. In addition to the yellows the guys are catching a few of the “3 B’s”. Bass, barracuda and bonito. There is a high likely hood that there is squid in the Dunes / Runway area. Something is holding these yellows to the area and squid will for sure do that. That said we have not heard one way or the other if there is squid there though. Best bet is to bring some with you from Catalina. BTW those 5-15lb class yellows are still biting in the Gold Bluff / White Rock area on the front side but the boats are focused on the big stuff on the back side. Be sure to check the Navy closure schedule before heading out. Always monitor VHF Ch. 16 and obey any requests to clear out of closed security zones. Click here for info on how to read the closure schedule. Dana Point / Oceanside Typical stuff for this time of year. Bass fishing is ok if you can score some small bait. The big sardines are just to much for them. Plastic’s are working good if you run a chum line of squid bits. Those chum buckets work too. Rockfish is going good and steady at Box Canyon in the 220 to 240 foot depths. The shallower area still has a decent sculpin bite going. Del Mar to Imperial Beach 10-20lb grade yellowtail continue to show in the area from just above the MPA to the Hotel and out to the NW Corner. Private boaters and kayaks are getting most of the yellows but the afternoon half day boat has been fishing them and getting some as well. Some boats, mainly the 1/2 day boats, are getting them fly lining sardine but most are getting these by slow trolling sardines or rapalas. **** Attention **** There is now an ice vending machine at the Shelter Island launch ramp for your convenience. It’s located right near the bathroom building at the top of the ramp. The machine takes credit cards and 20 lb. bags are $6.95 each. Swipe your credit card to open, take as many as you want, and it charges by weight when you close the door.

——— Mexican waters ———— Getting Permits To Fish Mexico – An Angler’s Guide To Baja by That Baja Guy-Gary Graham Coronado Islands / Rockpile Yesterday was a very good day for yellowtail. The Middle Grounds / Gun Site area bit good. The yellows were running the Ridge and setting up on the anchor along it worked great. On top of that not only did the bite the sardine well but they were HOT for the surface iron. Blue/white, scrambled egg and MINT were the best colors. The Mission Belle and the Grande both scored full Mexican limits and a number of private boaters do so as well. Private boaters are doing well slow trolling sardines or rapalas while watching for bird schools. Not just yellowtail either as some of those big 8 to 15lb bonito are still around and there are some legal size up to 7-8lb barracuda too. The cudas are mainly being found at Ribbon Kelp, 5 Minute Kelp, South Kelp and the SKR / Rockpile area(s) Today The Mission Belle called in at 11am with 50+ yellows and more hanging so the bite continues rolling right along. At 1pm they called in again with full Mexican limits of yellows (90) in the 10-20lb class. The Grande was also fishing the Islands and they reported in with full limits of yellowtail too. Heads Up! Mexican Navy is checking permits and kicked out a few boats the past few days for no biosphere or fmm. Bracelets are now required to fish within Pacific Island Biosphere Reserve areas, including the Coronado Islands, Todos Santos, and San Martin Island. See the Mexico Info page in the Resources section for more info. **** ATTENTION **** You must stay at least 250 meters (820 feet) away from any tuna pens. If you don’t you are at risk of losing your boat and landing in a Mexican jail. Click here for more details on this subject *********************** The Mexican Navy regularly patrols the islands and checks boats for the required paperwork, including Mexican Fishing License, Vessel Temporary Import Permit, FMM and valid Country of Residence Passport for each person on the boat (can’t purchase the FMM (Tourist Card) without a passport anyway). Required permits are listed on the CONAPESCA website for fishing within 12 miles of land including the islands. The permits can be purchased through their website.

****************************** OFFSHORE Section ******************************

——- MEXICAN WATERS ———— Lower 9 Mile Bank / Coronado Canyon There are bluefin in the Canyon and inside on the Lower 9 with very few boats chasing them. They are far more show than go however. They don’t seem interested in the sardine, mini macks, poppers, stick baits etc… Water temp is 62.5 to 63 degrees and very clean. One of these spots of bluefin was reported to be at 32 28 x 117 19 as of 10am today. 425-101 / 475 Knuckle / Finger Bank / Upper Hidden Bank Good bluefin tuna fishing the past several days and today was no different. Boats started calling in around 10am. The New Lo-An was the first reporting that they had 10 in the hold and several more hanging. Capt. Adam said they were willing to bite the 50lb fluoro today which is different than before when 40lb was the heaviest they would bite. At 11:20am the Old Glory called in with 3 bluefin and 23 kelp paddy yellowtail. At noon the Liberty reported in with 9 bluefin in the 50-75lb class with several more hanging. The bulk of the bluefin are still being found in the area from the 101 to the 475 Knuckle and west 4-5 miles. This area has a lot of bait and red crab which seems to be keeping the tuna from wandering off someplace else. There appears to be quite a bit of bluefin in the area right now. Far more than the counts show. This is because they smart and not really interested in a sardine with a hook in it. Boats are driving from school to school and once in a while one of them will give up a few biters. They rush the chum, boil around and then bug out. They are being found up on the surface and on sonar marks from 30 to 200 feet down Most bites if you can get them are coming on light line, no more than 50lb fluoro with 40lb fluoro being best and a hot sardine pinned on a small circle hook but some guys are getting bit on the flat fall jigs too. This zone is also holding kelps with yellowtail on them. Most of these are those little 3-5lb rats but there are some legit 8-15lbers in the mix. The following GPS numbers are where bluefin or kelp paddy yellowtail were found today but not necessarily where tuna/yellowtail were caught: 32 14 x 117 18 – Bluefin 32 12 x 117 19 – Bluefin 32 11 x 117 13 – Kelp paddy yellowtail 32 10 x 117 14 – Bluefin ***** General Info updated on 5-12-2019 ***** During the daytime there has been a few balloon or kite/double trouble rig bluefin caught over the past several weeks and this along with fishing the Flat Fall jigs is the #1 way to get these really big tuna to the boat as it is nearly impossible to land a 150+ tuna on 40lb flyline gear. For most guys the bites continue to come on the fly line sardine fished on 30-40lb fluorocarbon, a small circle hook and a HOT sardine. Take some time to pick the best sardine possible! You want a pale green back and NO red spots on the body. Generally speaking the hardest one to catch in the bait well is the one you want to be using. A few have been successful lately rubber banding a 4-6oz torpedo sinker to the line and dropping the sardine down deep where the tuna are holding. See the pic below. Lately there has been more flat-fall fish too. Not just at night either. Some guys are getting them during the daytime too. These are generally coming off stops where the bluefin are showing down around 150 to 200 feet and refuse to come up for the chum. Fish the flat-fall with at least a 100lb fluoro leader. 130-150lb is even better. Use at least 60lb. main line. 80 to 100lb gear is much better when fishing the flat-fall jigs. The night time hours from 7pm until 6am is all about the Flat-fall jigs. Here is a great trick/tip…. Take a black permanent marker and put a mark(s) on the braid every 50 feet. One mark for 50 feet, 2 for 100, 3 for 150 and so on. This will allow you to know exactly how deep you are fishing. You find the tuna on the sonar you know to drop down to just past the 3rd mark to allow a little extra for scope. Below is a pic of the rubber band sinker rig some guys are using to get a sardine down deep to the fish.

Thursday May 16th 2019

Wednesday May 15th 2019

Tuesday May 14th 2019

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