BASS FISHINGBass Fishing Sports Blog

After a honest season for hunting ducks, the last two days were complete disasters. according to Cal Van Zant, their club members not only didn’t shoot a duck they didn’t see many ducks over their blinds.

The previous Wednesday, Cal brought back a limit of big ducks, mallard, sprig, canvasback and a couple of teal. As you probably know, duck clubs only shoot on Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday and as always the best shooting is on Saturday and Wednesday. so now the duck season is history and Tom Schlauch, Pat Schlauch, John Schlauch, John Florence, Ali Husainy, Steve Woodard, Van Zant and Simon the wonder Dog can go look for white sea bass and catch up on those missed lobster nights.

According to Western Outdoor News, there is a ray of hope left for goose hunters. Licensed hunters can hunt geese in certain areas from Feb. 18 through Feb.22. By providing hunting opportunities in the late season it will help reduce potential crop depredation by lowering the goose population. some of the areas are in the Imperial Valley and the farmers are complaining the geese are beginning to tear up their crops.

Local saltwater: The near offshore is holding plenty of squid as testified by the presence of Rizzo’s Dolphin over the area. but it can’t be too exciting with water temperatures at 56 degrees.

Further, the latest is a 60-pound white sea bass that was landed this week even though they tried desperately to keep it a secret. Pictures of the 60-pound fish can be found on JD’s Report. those silver things jumping around the channel have been identified and reports were that they might be barracuda or salmon, but they are Mola Mola’s or Sun Fish.

I can remember in the 1940′s chasing them around offshore Catalina and being fooled by their jumping antics. From a distance, they looked just like a school of bluefin tuna chasing anchovies. The problem was many times they did turn out to be tuna and could be hooked only with a number 8 or No. 10 hook and 3-inch lively anchovy.

The chase technique was to run into a spot of anchovies the bluefins were eating and throw a giant net full of anchovy chum over and watch the tuna eat the chum in seconds, passing up every anglers anchovy bait. once in awhile somebody hooked one and less than that somebody landed one … but not many.

The hook had to be stuck in the corner of the tuna’s mouth or in the tail to get it to gaff. The only two I landed were hooked in the hard part of the tail. Over that period of time I missed at least 20 hookups.

Two for twenty isn’t too terrible unless you look at the average for 50 years or more. What I can’t relate to you is the hundreds of times we hunted the bluefin, gave up and anchored over a Catalina kelp bed and finished the day catching calico bass. I sure wish the bluefin would come back like they used to. with new braid lines, fluorocarbon leaders and foolproof hooks, we could possibly land those baby tuna.

Mullet Days: while we anglers were trying to identify those “silver things” that were jumping around the Catalina channel last week, it reminded me of the Mullet Days when schooled mullet swam along the Long Beach surf line and also swam by the hundreds up the San Gabriel River, jumping wildly at the confluence of Coyote Creek and the San Gabriel river.

They gathered in the head waters swimming closely to the spill ways and jumped some more. I used flys and typical glide-fishing techniques to catch them. I used a No.10 olive or black wet fly, Palmer tied. Mullet are really quick and strong and jump like crazy.

They are not edible, so I released them immediately. Being very touchy and hard to hook, when I finally hooked one, it seemed that the entire school rolled on top of the water at the same time to scare my pants off.

I haven’t seen them in more than a year and I don’t know why they are gone.

There was a group of guys using 30- to 40-pound test line, heavy rods casting a weighted treble hooks and snagging them off the Belmont Pier. From the pier, you could see the schools coming in big groups to pass under the pier and traverse the beach line.

If you ride the river bike trail, keep your eyes open on the water from the San Gabriel River up to the junction of the two waterways. If they are in the river you can’t miss them as they clear the water in magnificent jumps all over the place.

Fred Hall show: The well-known outdoors show will be held March 7-11 at the Long Beach Convention Center.

This is really the only fishing show that I can highly recommend. The show always has some new tackle on display and the kids can catch a trout out of the kids’ fishing pond. The 65-year-ancient show features the largest boat and travel destinations of the West.

Irvine Lake Presidents Day tournament: This annual event will be held Feb. 18-19. a special stocking of steelhead trout is plotted just for the tournament. there will be 10 places of winners with the first-place trout worth $875.

For info, call 714-649-9111.

Upcoming events: April 14 – Southern California Troutfest; May 19-20 – Lake Havasu Striper Derby; Oct.6-7 – big Bear Lake Troutfest.

MATTHEWS’ PICKS

1. While the trout bites are excellent throughout Southern California in planted lakes, the action at Orange County’s Laguna Niguel Lake has been particularly excellent thanks to 2,000-pound plants every Tuesday, and a nice mix of trophy trout in these plants. top fish this past week was the season’s best a 14 pounder. Bait, lure and glide anglers are all getting fish. for an update on this action call the lake at 949-362-3885.

2. Diamond Valley Lake’s largemouth bass bite is staying in the No. 2 spot this week. The warm days have just continued to push the largemouth bass up into shallower water, and trout plants have some of the big girls up chasing the rainbows. The larger bass are keying on DFG trout or sculpin so you can throw swimbaits on the points or small three- to four-inch plastics along rocky structure and get fish.

3. A sleeper pick for the No. 3 spot is the brilliant trout action that has been quietly perking along in the Laughlin-to-Bullhead stretch of the Colorado River. This water is planted each month with 4,000 pounds of rainbows from Willow Beach, but it is also cold enough so holdover fish hang around for a few seasons. Both fresh plants and holdovers to six pounds or more are showing in excellent numbers each week. The monthly plant went in this week.

FRESHWATER HOT SPOTS

Trout: Trout action is about as excellent as it gets throughout Southern California with action at all of the stocked waters hitting the mid-season stride that translates into lots of limits of nice fish, along with the chance at a trophy fish. top bets are western Riverside County’s Corona Lake, the Orange County trio of Irvine Lake, Santa Ana River Lakes, Laguna Niguel Park Lake and both the High Desert waters of Hesperia Lake and Jess Ranch. In San Diego County, Poway, Jennings Cuyamaca, Morena, Dixon, and Wohlford are all pretty excellent bets. Other top bets include all the San Bernardino County Park Lakes. Check the water-by-water reports for details, but the bites are excellent just about everywhere trout are planted now. The sleeper pick remains the Colorado River from Laughlin to big Bend where this season’s plants and holdover fish to six pounds are showing in excellent numbers. The Sierra general trout season is over, but glide anglers are experiencing brilliant action in the year-around stretch of the Upper Owens on fish up to five or six pounds.

Black Bass: most of the lakes in the region slowed down, but there have been a couple of patterns worth noting. first, the warm weather this past couple of weeks has seemed to have started a pre-spawn movement of fish up out of the depths, with fish in less than 20-feet at water like lower Otay and Diamond Valley north to Casitas, Cachuma, and Santa Margarita. The early fish are usually larger fish, too. second, in lakes getting trout plants there are some larger bass on trout-like swimbaits. This is best after DFG plants (because these trout are usually smaller than the fish from the private hatcheries). Last, the deep water bass bite is pretty excellent for finesse anglers who know how to fish ice jigs, jigging spoons, and small plastics. so, that means you need to be prepared to fish from top to bottom. top bet is probably Diamond Valley with the fish in 15 to 30 feet, mostly feeding on sculpin right on the bottom in excellent cover.

Striped Bass: Striper bites all are very spotty right now. there are still fish showing at all the usual places – Diamond Valley, Castaic, Pyramid, Skinner, and Silverwood – but there are two types of action. there are some larger fish up chasing trout in the top 20 feet of the water column or in water from 40 to 80 feet hanging on structure or under balls of bait. It’s usually larger fish on the trout and smaller, school-size fish in deep water where they are showing on cut baits. Keep an eye on the trout plants and fish within the first two or three days after a plant. The top bet may be the California aqueduct near Taft, which has been producing a lot of fish to four to eight pounds. On the Colorado River, there have been a few quality fish to 20 pounds or better at Willow Beach. Havasu is fair to excellent in the main body of the lake and toward the dam and the fish are still focused on shad.

Panfish: top picks for crappie in a scanty field are Cachuma Lake, with a fair bite on quality fish over a pound, and the Buena Vista Lakes, which has continued to produce some nice fish in a night bite and small minnows. The Salton Sea tilapia bite looks to be turning around with the warmer weather again this week and a few catches have been reported. that is one to watch. The Lake Silverwood crappie bite was off even more this week and may be winding down. The Perris panfish bite is tougher again this week and there weren’t any crappie reports. few other panfish bites are of note in this region. On the Central Coast, Lopez and Santa Margarita have been producing some quality crappie, but no big numbers, and these bites have slowed, too.

Catfish: there continues to be reports of some nice catfish at Lake Skinner, but it seems like all the reports are coming from one angler and he didn’t report any fish this past week. Lake Skinner is producing some nice stringers of cats, including fish over 10 pounds. The Silverwood fall bite seems to be slowing with the cooling water temperatures. The Colorado River and local drainage ditches slowed with the annual drawdown of these canals, but there’s been fair action in the main river on channels. Flatheads are very slow.

INLAND VALLEY LAKES

Cucamonga-Guasti: Excellent action on the planted rainbows with many of the fish in the two to three-pound class. County fish are planted each week and the DFG also planted trout this week and two weeks ago. most trout are being reported on floating dough baits in rainbow and chartreuse with garlic. Inflated nightcrawlers with garlic are also a excellent bet and some fish are showing on the small trout jigs and plastics. Dominic Madrid, Fontana, landed a 5-8 rainbow on white Power Bait, while Nick Escohedo landed a 4-8 trout on green Power Bait.

Prado: County trout plants are each week and the DFG planted this week and two wqeeks ago. The best bite has been on rainbow, chartreuse, and garlic floating baits, and adding garlic oil or scent to all baits and lures is improving the action. most of the rainbows are from one to two pounds. The third event in the San Bernardino County Park trout derby series will be held here Feb. 11.

Yucaipa: The second event in the San Bernardino County Parks Trout Derby series was held last Saturday and there were 413 entrants in the event. The top fish was a 15-10 rainbow caught by Brian Carter, Ontario, on an orange Shaun’s Smoking Jigz from the bottom lake. Carter also had a 10-10 rainbow. Richard Valencia, Yucaipa, came in second with a 15-5 trout caught on a tube jig, while Alex Crux was third with an 11-8 trout landed on a Shaun’s. Fourth went to Greg Schowen, Fontana, with a 10-12 rainbow landed on Drew’s Custom Bait, while David Broadway, San Bernardino, was fifth with an 8-6 rainbow on a Power Worm. (The next event in this series will be held Feb. 11 at Prado Regional Park.) overall, the trout action has been excellent with county trout plants each week and DFG trout were planted last week and three weeks ago. The best action has been on the small trout jigs and trout plastics, but the usual array of floating dough baits is also taking a lot of fish.

Glen Helen: Brilliant trout action after both county and DFG plants last week. The county plants are weekly, and this week’s plant is from Calaveras. Power Baits, inflated nightcrawlers, and small trout jigs and plastics have all be scoring fish. top rainbow reported was this past week was a 14.17-pound rainbow landed by Megan Ard, Highland, fishing Drew’s Custom Bait in orange in the small lake. Tavita Tuia, 11, Fontana, landed a limit of five rainbows topped off by an 8.09-pounder caught on garlic Power Bait in the large lake.

Mount Baldy Trout Pools: The heavily stocked pools are open every Saturday and Sunday. No fishing license is needed.

Puddingstone: DFG trout plants this week and last week. The bite has been fair to excellent off the north shore and swim beach areas on small trout jigs, plastics, and floating baits. The water level is still low (pending some launch ramp work). there has been a pretty fair bite on redear up to 1-8 on drop-shot nightcrawlers. Bass are slow to fair with a few fish on plastics. A few catfish also continue to show off the north shore and RV Park areas on shrimp. Crappie slow. No carp reports.

Seccombe Lake: DFG trout plants last week and three weeks ago. few reports.

SAN BERNARDINO MOUNTAINS

Silverwood: DFG trout were slated to go in this week and they were also planted two weeks ago. The trout action has continued to be excellent around the launch ramp, marina, Sawpit, and into Cleghorn and Miller canyons. Floating baits, small trout plastics and jigs, and inflated nightcrawlers with scent have all been excellent bet. The crappie bite finally slowed down off the marina docks with only a few fish showing this past week on small jigs tipped with meal worms or Crappie Nibbles. The bluegill bite also slowed way down. Stripers are fair with a few showing on cut baits or trout-like swim baits in Chemise and at the dam. Tim Taylor, Hesperia, caught three stripers topped by a 10-pounder fishing nightcrawlers in Chemise. A few catfish have also continued to show on the same cut baits working for the stripers. Michael Anthony, San Bernardino, had two cats to 4-8 fishing shrimp off the docks. The warm weather also seems to have perked the largemouth action, with some fish showing on jigs, plastics, and nightcrawlers in 20 to 40 feet of water. Jan Brady, Ontario, landed two bass to three pounds fishing jigs with Crappie Nibbles off the marina docks.

Huge Bear Lake: Not a lot of change with the nice weather this past week. The best trout action has been mid-day between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. at the dam, the aerator, Windy Point, Juniper Point and Serrano. Also not as much sheet ice this week with the warmer weather. The best bite is in 12 to 18 feet of water with floating baits, mostly Power Bait and Gulp!, on a three-foot leader. top flavors/colors have been garlic chartreuse, rainbow salmon egg, and chunky cheese garlic. Light fishing pressure.

Gregory Lake: No recent DFG plants. No reports.

Jenks Lake Region: Parking area closed, but anglers walking in have found pretty fair action on holdover trout, especially on small tube jigs. No DFG plants in over a month. No recent plants in the Santa Ana River or the South Fork.

HIGH DESERT LAKES

Hesperia Lake: Trout plants are weekly and the action has been very excellent with a lot of quality fish from eight to 12 pounds and some larger, but most anglers are getting nice stringers of fish averaging about 1 1/2 pounds. Best action on Power Bait and inflated nightcrawlers with the north shore and east bank the top spots. The catfish bite has slowed down with the cold weather, but the occasional sturgeon continues to show up.

Jess Ranch: Excellent trout action this past week with a lot of limits of two to three pound rainbows on Power Bait in salmon peach, garlic, spring green or orange, nightcrawlers, trout jigs, small trout plastics, and small spinners or spoons. top spots have been the Lake 3′s logged eastern shoreline and the west shore. Lake 2 has been best along the west and southwestern shorelines. The catfish, panfish, and bass bites have all be slow.

Mojave Narrows: No report. County trout plants are weekly, and there were DFG plants last week and three weeks ago.

SELECTED LAKES

Diamond Valley: Mt. Lassen rainbows were planted last Thursday, and the bite has been fair to excellent in the marina are on Power Bait, small trout jigs, and Kastmaster-type lures. The top trout reported was an 11-pound rainbow landed by Sea Christie, Hemet, on a Berkley Power Worm. Mike Piceno, Temecula, landed rainbows at four and five pounds on Power Bait. DFG trout are slated for this week. there will be a Tagged Trout Derby from Jan. 20-29 with each $10 entry getting a raffle ticket and become eligible to claim prizes for tagged fish landed during the 10 days of the event. The largemouth bass bite has continued fair to excellent in 15 to 40 feet of water. Also larger fish showing on swimbaits after they come up to chase trout after plants. The two to four-pound school-size fish are still showing in 50 to 60 feet of water on cut baits, trolled umbrella rigs or flies. The catfish and panfish are getting little pressure right now.

Perris: Trout have been providing the best action here over the past week, with fair to excellent action for anglers fishing the east end from Lots 11 and 12 to the marina. Also some fish showing in Sail Cove and at the dam. The fish are staying in less than 10 feet of water, and the bite has been best on garlic or hatchery formula Power Baits in orange or rainbow with a few showing on small lures. there were DFG trout plants two and four weeks ago. A limit of five rainbows to nearly two pounds was posted by Tim Allen on Power Bait. The bass have been slow with only a few fish reported on plastics and swimbaits in 18 to 30 feet of water. Crappie also continue to show in very spotty numbers off the marina docks, and other scattered locations.

Skinner: The trout bite has been fair to excellent on rainbow and corn floating baits or garlic marshmallows in the coves between Launch Ramps No. 1 and No. 2. there were county plants set for this week and two weeks ago. Not a lot of limits, but the fish are running up to two pounds. Joe Copeland landed four trout on rainbow Power Bait from the east end and his best was a two-pounder. The striper bite has been fair with the best action at the inlet and Ramp No. 2. The warm weather has seemed to spark the largemouth bass bite, especially in the afternoons.

Elsinore: Tough fishing with very little action for those testing the bite. The catfish are very slow and the crappie bite has not started yet. The largemouth bass, bluegill and wipers are also very slow.

Corona Lake: The trout action has continued fair to excellent this past week with most of the rainbows in the two-pound class. Last week the trout plant consisted of Sierra Bows, and this week Nebraska Tailwalkers will be planted for the three-day weekend. The top rainbow reported was a seven-pounder landed by Adrian Pintor fishing a jig. Boat and float tube anglers have also been having better success than shore anglers. there is also three night fishing days this weekend because of the full moon and Martin Luther King holiday on Monday.

Evans Lake: Slow fishing with just a few bass on small reaction baits. Panfish, catfish, and carp all very slow.

Rancho Jurupa: Excellent trout action with DFG plants this week and two weeks ago. there was also a county plant last week and another slated for Jan 13. Alex Padenieau, Colton, had a four-pound rainbow topping his four-fish catch. Four-trout stringers were also posted by Issac Silvera and Ray Moreno, Ontario, and both stringers had two-pound trout.

Small Lake: DFG trout plants two and four weeks ago. Slow to fair trout action. A few catfish and bluegill also being landed.

Lake Hemet: The trout bite remains fair to excellent. most anglers fishing from shore are casting spinners or small tube baits, and bait anglers are fishing Power Bait. Best trolling action has been from the point east to the marina. No DFG plants in over a month.

Santa Ana River Lakes: The trout action has remained excellent over the past week with a lot of limits of one to two-pound fish and a few larger fish to sweeten the deal. The top rainbow reported was a 10 3/4-pounder landed by Obed Sandoval fishing a nightcrawler off La Palma Point to go with the 3 1/2-pound rainbow he also landed.

Irvine Lake: The trout action has been excellent for both bait anglers (from shore or boat) and for trollers working along the west shoreline and Santiago Flats. top tactic has been to drift one of the new Gulp! Pinched Crawlers under a bobber with a small split shot to pull is down. The best color has been natural in the clear water with chartreuse a excellent bet in areas where the water might be less clear.

Laguna Niguel Lake: The trout bite has continued brilliant here with 2,000-pound plants every Tuesday. The best action has been on inflated nightcrawlers dipped in garlic scent and floating baits in chartreuse and white fished on small leaders in shallow water. A wide variety of trout plastics, small jigs, and small cranks are working for the lure anglers. Glide fishermen throwing bead head midges in black and red are also scoring. Tom Moua, Diamond Bar, landed a five-fish stringer topped off with an 11-5 on an orange Power Worm.

Cachuma: The trout action has remained fair with some diligent anglers getting limits. The best action has been for trollers fishing Cachuma Bay from the surface down to about 15 feet deep with shad-like spoons and lures.

Casitas: The big plant of Nebraska Tailwalker rainbows three weeks ago continues to fuel a pretty fair trout bite with quality fish showing each week. top trout reported this week was a nine-pound landed on Wednesday this week by Brandon Green on Power Bait. Richard Jost landed a 7-10 last week and then posted a 21-pound, five-fish limit on Tuesday with a seven-pounder his top fish. He’s been fishing nightcrawlers and Power Bait. The warm weather has perked the bass bite and in the afternoons the fish have actually went up some into 12 to 20 feet of water

Castaic: The trout bite has continued fair to excellent after a 2,700-pound DFG plant at the west launch on Jan. 5. there was also a plant the previous week. Quite a few limits reports on Power Bait, nightcrawlers, and small gold Kastmasters for both shore and boat anglers in this area.

Piru: Very light fishing pressure, but the bass bite has continued pretty week for anglers fishing deeper water with plastics, jigs, and nightcrawlers. The reaction bait bite is not as excellent as it has been. The redear, bluegill and crappie bites have all continued to slow down with very few reports.

TROUT PLANTS

San Bernardino: Cucamonga-Guasti Park Lake, Prado Park Lake, Silverwood Lake.

Riverside: Diamond Valley Lake.

Los Angeles: Alondra Park Lake, Belvedere Park, Cerritos Park Lake Downey Wilderness Park Lake, Kenneth Hahn State Recreation Area, La Mirada Lake, lake in Hollenbeck Park, Lincoln Park Lake, MacArthur Park Lake, Puddingstone Reservoir, Pyramid Lake.

Orange: Centennial Regional Park Lake, Laguna Lake, Mile Square Regional Park Lake, Ralph Clark Regional Park Lake,Tri-City Park Lake, Yorba Regional Park Lake.

San Diego: El Capitan Lake, Morena Reservoir, Murray Reservoir.

OCEAN REPORT

Long Range Tuna: The long range yellowfin tuna bite for the 18- to 22-day trips running south out of San Diego is simply as excellent as it gets. On Tuesday this week, the Excel reported in with a one-day tally of 120 yellowfin from 80 to 200 pounds. The Royal Polaris had at least two fish over 200 pounds one day this week. all of the long range boats fishing the region off the tip of Baja have been on the big tuna grounds and reporting scores like this every week, and there have already been a number of yellowfin over 250 pounds this season.

Mexican Rockfish: While there are new Mexican license and visa requirements and fees for Mexican waters, it hasn’t changed the brilliant fishing for the 1 1/2 and two-day boats fishing Mexican waters for rockfish. A weekend 976-TUNA charter aboard the Legend out of H&M Landing saw all anglers on board return with full limits of rockfish, consisting mostly of red rockfish to 12 pounds with a solid five or six-pound average, and a nice mix of lings to 25 pounds.

Panga Yellowtail: Yellowtail from 15 to 25 pounds have been showing in honestly excellent numbers over the past week for the Mexican pangero fleet out of Ensenda. these have mostly been yo-yo iron fish in this part of the Mexican coast that is off-limits to San Diego-based boats.

Visa Confusion: there has been some confusion about the new visa regulations for anglers fishing Mexican waters, and two San Diego-based sportboats were booted out of the waters around the Coronado even though all the anglers on board had the right visa paperwork. there is a press conference and briefing today to clarify the rules and the action.

San Diego Local: with rockfish season closed and new fees keeping most of the half- and three-quarter day boats out of Mexican waters, the nearshore fishing has been tough, with just a pick on the calico and sand bass.

Dana Point Bass: with coastal squid numbers surging again since the full moon on Monday, there has been a pretty excellent bass bite for the Dana Point region sportboats.

L.A.-Orange County: The squid that are massing off Dana Point are also in very excellent numbers off Long Beach and the Santa Monica Bay, which has led to some decent action on bass, sculpin, and even a decent pick on halibut, with private boaters and six-pack charters getting more halibut than the party fleet.

Channel Island Area: most of the sportboats in this region are running whale watching trips (and it’s a fantastic season), but the few fishing trips being run right now are focusing on a very excellent sand dab bite.

Local islands: San Clemente Island has been quietly producing a decent number of white seabass from 15 to 25 pounds for private boaters and the few sportboats heading to this distant island. with a fantastic volume of squid at both Clemente and Catalina and the seabass already starting to show, it’s a excellent sign for an early season at the islands.

Lobster : Private boaters and sportboats running lobster-crab trips are still reporting an brilliant season, especially out of San Diego and at Catalina. On Sunday, the Jig Strike out of H&M Landing went out with six anglers and the captured 19 lobsters, 25 rock crab, and five spider crabs. On its Tuesday trip this week, there were seven anglers on board who came home with 15 lobsters and 10 rock crab.

And all year long, you had the best of intentions.

You promised yourself in January you were going to do your shopping in July, when the stores were empty.

Then summer turned to fall turned to Thanksgiving, and you had that meeting. and those errands. and then the kids … were …

Who are you kidding. you messed up.

But the malls are insane right now. Where can you go? what can you do?

SouthCoast Procrastinators, we are here to help. here are some local last-minute gifts.

For those out-of-state relatives who are endlessly fascinated that you’re from Melville’s New Bedford, give a gift from The Whaling Museum Store, 18 Johnny Cake Hill, from Scrimshaw bracelets and seaglass teardrop earrings to Moby-Dick ties and White Whale sweatshirts. Hours are 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Of course, nothing says Whaling City like a black whale t-shirt from Elaine’s T-Shirts, 767 purchase St., New Bedford. Hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

TL6 the Gallery at 100 William St., New Bedford, specializes in handmade, unique and custom gifts made by SouthCoast artists, who make everything from jewelry and pottery, to handmade t-shirts and knits, to fine art paintings and photography. TL6 also carries fine retail lines such as Maruca handbags, designs by Glass-Eye Studios, and Elias hand-blown glass. Hours are 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.

For gold, silver and upscale jewelry, try bejeweled on 26 Centre St. in New Bedford.

For the vintage lover on your list, head to the Artificial Marketplace at 104 William St., where they hold a variable treasure trove of antiques, vintage and collectables, from record players and vintage albums to 1950s housewares. Hours are 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Calico, at 173 Union St., features indie designer lines and hand-picked vintage clothing and accessories from the 1950s to 1990s. as a special last-minute holiday deal today and tomorrow, Calico offers a free $25 gift card when you buy a $100 in gift cards. Hours are noon to 5 p.m.

For the skateboarder you like, head to Solstice Skateboarding at 102 William St. for everything from skateboard decks to T-shirts and more. Hours are 11 to 5 p.m.

Why buy an expensive trinket from a crowded department store when you can buy hand-crafted jewelry from SouthCoast artisans?

Partner’s Village Store on Main Road in Westport also offers hand-made jewelry, along with other hand-crafted Westport-centric gifts, such as bags, books, clothing, toys and cards.

Sticks and Stones on Main Road in Westport offers a gorgeous collection of hand-crafted items made by local artists and artisans, from ceramics to hand-blown glass to silver and glass jewelry.

Euro at Pheonix Store on Center Street in Fairhaven is a favorite shop of locals and visitors alike. a one-time fishing supply store, it’s now an eclectic mix of fishing supplies, hand-made ceramics and jewelry, and upscale clothing and shoes from Ugg, HellyHansen, Dankso and more. Hours are 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.

SouthCoast spirits make great gifts for everyone over 21 on your list.

Just Beer, brewed on Horseneck Road in Westport, is an incredible little brewery. with beers names like “Moby D” and “Horseneck IPA,” the 22-ouncers make great gifts. They’re sold at CV Variety in South Dartmouth, Barry’s Fine Wine in New Bedford and Lees Supermarket in Westport.

Travessia Urban Winery at 760 purchase St. in New Bedford sells a variety of great wines made from locally-grown fruit. also, Westport Vineyards, on Hixbridge Road in Westport, makes incredible wines that are sold at many SouthCoast wine and spirit stores. Hours are noon to 7 p.m.

For the foodies on your list, we’ve got some incredible restaurants in historic downtown New Bedford.

Candleworks, 72 North Water St. (508) 997-1294. From Coconut calamari and Lobster BLTs to New Bedford Fish Stew and Esperesso-encrusted tenderloin, it’s the consummate SouthCoast seafood experience — especially for out-out-town relatives.

Cork, 90 Front St. (508) 994-9463. The oceanfront wine and tapas bar offers wines, beers, spirits and tapas from artisan cheese board and pan-seared scallops to chocolate cake and fried calamari. what more can the foodie on your list you question for?

Freestone’s City Grill, 41 William St. (508) 993-7477. a New Bedford Institution in a restored 130-year-ancient bank building. Chowderheads will like their award-winning fish chowder.

Other restaurant thoughts: The Kinsale Inn in Mattapoisett, The Black Bass in South Dartmouth, Not Your Average Joe’s in North Dartmouth, Bittersweet Farm in Westport, and Waterfront Grille, no Problemo, Spicy Lime, and Ginger Grill in New Bedford.

If all else fails, there are always Netflix subscriptions, magazine subscriptions, and lottery tickets.

Lauren Daley is a freelance writer. Contact her at

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A couple of weeks ago, a couple veterans looked Catalina over, primarily in search for white sea bass.

They fished from Mike Hall’s 28-foot Carver. Mike and Cal Van Zant searched the East end around and up the backside spots where they spent the night netting market squid. as in the past, the Risso’s dolphins stole the show while the guys gathered their bait.

These giant dolphins charged the squid schools under the lights with their massive hulks moving volumes of water. They said the Risso’s went so much water at times the boat nearly rolled over.

The next day they fished around the West end spots for hard-to-catch calico bass and large sheephead. Many of the sheephead were in the 20-pound class. They soon concentrated on bass but that petered out too so next came an attack on rockfish. They went off the island and metered by fish finder the 200-foot area.

They came across a small showing off the fish finder and quickly dropped live squid bait down as quick as possible. at about 150 feet, Mike got a pick-up that ran off more than 100 yards of line before it turned. both Cal and Mike suspected a black sea bass had eaten Mike’s bait but 30 minutes later a yellow hit the deck at 40 pounds. then to make matters worse as far as Cal was concerned, Mike caught a 30-pound yellow with the next cast.

Cal figured that his straight 40-pound monofilament frightened off the fish because Mike’s tackle was 60-pound braid with a dropper off of a 40-pound fluorocarbon leader. this rig is called a kelp cutter and it has more invisibility than Cal’s traditional set-up. The kelp cutter tackle requires excellent knots especially at the braid to fluorocarbon juncture.

Japanese-American anglers: Japanese-Americans were inspired to carve out from their fishing culture a spot in the tuna fishing industry around San Diego in the late 1800s. it is very obvious that the Japanese-Americans were brilliant fishermen but spent all of their commercial fishing time gathering abalone and not much time fishing with a hook-and-line. at that time, fishing with a hook-and-line in the United States was unheard of except for a small recreational approach.

Two things happened that inspired the Japanese-Americans to start commercial fishing in the tuna industry. Aided by World War I, Americans’ dietary habits were modified when they had to survive the meatless days of the war and a number of protein alternatives, one of which was canned tuna. The real kicker came when the sale of albacore reached $14 a ton and then many Issei (Japanese immigrants) switched from other businesses to go into their ancestral background of fishing and forever change the techniques of commercial fishing.

By 1918, Japanese-Americans had taken over the San Diego tuna industry and introduced new fishing techniques that the ancient guard of Italian and Portuguese and incorporated into their way of fishing.

One astute Issei made the following statement – one that will forever dictate the quality of successful fishing by anybody in the ocean, “Amateurs see the ocean and they think the sea is clear, but we fishermen see it differently. when the sea is clear to the deeper part and you can see the fish swimming then the fish will bite. Blue and a little brownish color is all right but the green tide is terrible. The tides and the color of the sea are connected to each other. They are most important to those who can read them.”

A truer statement has never been said. this statement was coined at a time when all fishing was done with nets and most advanced techniques were yet to come. to this day the water conditions are all important to the fisherman who can read them and the Issei are the ones who can and still do. They were born with the aptitude.

Irvine Lake: The Trout Opener has passed and unfortunately the weather kept most anglers at home. Because of that, the Veterans Day Tournament was postponed to this Saturday and Sunday. as a result, most of the 20,000 pounds of trout remain in the lake but the weekly stocking continues, increasing the trout numbers. The outstanding catch to date was a 12-pound rainbow caught by Jordan Leader of Riverside.

He caught the fish on a Gulp Pinched Crawler at Woody’s Point. for you trollers the favorite lake-trolling lure is a Firetiger colored Rapala.

The jumbo squid that were biting and providing anglers with a unique fishing experience vanished on Tuesday.

“They’re gone,” said Eric Hobday, of the Redondo Special.

Hobday didn’t try to hide his glee that the voracious mollusks had exited much of the Southern California coast.

“They eat everything and do a fantastic deal of harm to our local fisheries,” he said. “Excellent riddance.”

The Redondo Special and other boats in the Santa Monica Bay continue to head out at night and fill their bait tanks with market squid. Market squid is called the candy bait by anglers, as it seems to get a bite like no other bait.

The Redondo Special and Betty G. have been catching lots of small white seabass as well as several legals. in addition, there have been sheephead, rockfish, perch and some calico bass. The Tradition out of Redondo Sportfishing has been catching much of the same but has also had some brilliant rockfishing.

The Humboldt Squid appear to have left plenty of fish behind as Captain Andy Siratt reported limits of rockfish, some sand bass and calico bass as well as some sculpin. Jose Orozco of Carson took his family fishing on the City of Long Beach out of Marina Sportfishing and reported excellent bottom fishing.

“We caught lots of rockfish and the kids had a fantastic time,” Orozco said. “I’m looking forward to the ceviche.”

While the Humboldt Squid may have vacated the waters off Long Beach, lots of market squid have taken their place. Native Sun skipper Gabriel Ceballos reported copious amounts of the bait squid and hopes it will attract predators.

“There is a lot of excellent food around for a nice fall bite,” Ceballos said.

Passing: there is sad news from Long Beach Sportfishing. Dave Aird passed away at age 54.

Aird was known affectionately as “Psycho Dave” because of his antics at the landing and fun-loving spirit. Aird worked in the ticket office, did dock maintenance and entertained anglers and the crews of the boats for the past 15 years.

Mike Redlew of Long Beach Sportfishing said Aird was one of a kind.

“There is a void here without Dave that just will never be filled,” Redlew said. “We are all going to miss him for a long time to come.”

There will be a memorial celebration of his life on Thursday at 9:30 a.m. on board the Native Sun out of Long Beach Sportfishing, followed by a burial at sea. please RSVP to 562-432-8993 or to .

Tuna update: Captain Larry Moore of Philip Friedman Outdoors called in from the Ocean Odyssey on Thursday evening while fishing 150 miles southwest of San Diego and reported brilliant fishing.

“There is a lot of yellowtail on kelp paddies and some bluefin and yellowfin tuna still around,” Moore said. “The tuna/offshore season is still going on but you will have to be on at least a two-day trip.”

Moore said the yellowtail were 5 to 10 pounds and the tuna were 12 to 18 pounds. there were also some nice dorado being taken in the area.

Philip a. Friedman Philip Friedman Outdoors 424-237-0250

The blue whale watching season, which has been fantastic, continued in dramatic fashion again this week.

Will Ebersman from Los Angeles was out of Harbor Breeze Cruises in Long Beach on Tuesday and saw more than a dozen blue whales. On Wednesday, two humpback whales were seen frolicking with the blue whales.

Dawn Hammondtre from Cypress was also on board with her husband Mike and son Caden. “It was fabulous” she said after the trip. “We saw blue whales blowing, surfacing and putting on an incredible show. Words really can’t describe what we saw.”

The Voyager out of Redondo has had similar experiences on a regular basis, reporting great blue whale watching in the deep water canyon a few miles from Redondo.

The major reason the whales are here is the abundance of krill, tiny shrimp-like creatures that are the main food source for the gigantic creatures.

But is the abundance of krill having an adverse effect on local fishing?

Don Ashley from Pierpoint Landing in Long Beach believes so.

“Our half-day boat is reporting clouds of krill everywhere and the fish are full of them,” said Ashley. “I think all this food has the fish full and not wanting to bite something with a hook in it.”

Lately, however, the bite has showed signs of life. the half-day Monte Carlo out of 22nd Street Landing in San Pedro had 64 calico bass and hooked and lost a few white seabass for only 12 anglers Thursday morning.

Out of Redondo, things have been slow but Redondo Special skipper Eric Hobday expects big things. “The water temperature has gone from 62 to 69 degrees,” Hobday said. “It’s ready to get rolling again.”

The Tradition out of Redondo is offering two-for-one fares on Tuesday and Thursday. last Friday, they caught four white seabass to 12 pounds and two yellowtail to 35 pounds. the largest yellow was caught by Hai Dang from Gardena.

The Slammer and Highliner have also been catching white seabass, calico bass and lingcod and rockfish.

Tuna fishing: It was fantastic in San Diego before Tuesday when the bite died.

Brilliant bluefin-tuna fishing had been the rule around the floating tuna pens used to contain live bluefin destined for Japan. the pens have been located about 55 miles southwest of San Diego; about 25 miles off the Baja Coast. the vast majority of the tasty tuna have been in the 12- to 18-pound class.

The Toronado out of Pierpoint landing in Long Beach has been running 1<MD+,%30,%55,%70>1/<MD-,%0,%55,%70>2-day trips to reach the bluefin and having excellent success. On their last trip, they caught 70 bluefin and will be going again on Saturday night. the 1.5-day trip will cost you $175 and you will fish until sunset.

The Condor caught over 100 tuna on Wednesday while many other boats had from 30 to 50 fish. For the time being, tuna fishing is on the spotty side. Joe Davis from Newport Beach fished 150 miles southwest of San Diego and had wide-open yellowfin tuna. Davis said the fish were 18 to 25 pounds. Water temperatures will dictate whether this fish moves closer to San Diego.

Philip Friedman Outdoors 424-237-0250

Im leaving for a twilight deep sea fishing tonight from [7pm-12am] and i need to know what tackle to use. Such as size hooks and sinkers. Thanks

Calico Bass:
Sand Bass:
Barracuda:
Halibut:
Jacksmelt:
Tuna:
Perch:
Sheephead:
Whitefish:
Rockfish:
Yellow Tail:

Calico Bass: 12"
Sand Bass: 12"
Barracuda: 28"
Halibut: 22"
Jacksmelt: none
Tuna: none
Perch: redtail surfperch, 10 1/2", all the rest, none
Sheephead: 12"
Whitefish: none listed. groundfish regulations change during the year. check them.
Rockfish: none. see whitefish.
Yellow Tail: 24" fork length except that 5 fish less than 24" fork length may be taken or possessed.

you really need to read this. it will cover everything:
dfg.ca.gov/marine/pdfs/oceanf…

if you have to measure it, it's too small.

Link doesn't supply all of the species ya' listed but, does has some of them <);-3

Southern Cali 2011 (click on specified fish under what's open):
dfg.ca.gov/marine/mapregs5.as…

Northern Cali 2011 (again click specified fish species):
mlpa.dfg.ca.gov/marine/mapregs1.a…

Greetings! I will be taking a sport fishing trip to Catalina Island soon with Long Beach Sport Fishing, and I was wondering what kind of set up I would need (line, tackle, weights). I think I will set up one heavier rod with 25 lb test line for trolling/jigging for yellowtail and bonito. the other lighter rod I will use 15-20 lb test line for bottom fishing and live bait fishing. Can you guys please shed some light on some proper and efficient set ups? I am honestly new at this so it would be fantastic if you can be very descriptive. I will probably be fishing for Calico Bass, Yellowtail, Bonito, Sand Bass, and Rock Fish.

i would dis agree with artie because sandeigo is way to expensive ….. when going fishing i would take a overnight trip or a 2-day out of daveys locker. because they are nice cheap helfful and they are excellent at catching fish, i would take 2 combos when going light gear and hevey gear……..for the yellowtail and big bonito i would use a 65lbs spectra line with about 10 yards of monofiliment tied toghter with a albight knot on a choice of a reel of a shimano torium 20 190$, daiwa saltist 30 180 dollar$ or a daiwa sealine that is about 130 doallrs if uu want a stronger reel i would use a avet mxl , i have all these reel but i like the avet the most! on a 30-60 lbs rod. with a small half once sinker witha ringed live bait hook and for the light gear i would use 15-20 lbs test with a 8 oz sinker for rock fish 3 oz sinker for bass. with a size 1 hook hope this helped !:)

On Tuesday, the Redondo Special game plot was an simple one. Captain Brian Walker was going to head towards Bluff Cove where the Special and her passengers had been experiencing brilliant fishing. Huge calico bass, sargo, perch, and an occasional white sea bass and halibut had been providing anglers with great action.

But this Tuesday was going to be a different day. as Walker cleared King Harbor he could see a lot of activity around the area he had been fishing.

The Coast Guard had dispatched a MH-65 Dolphin helicopter from Air Station Los Angeles, as well as a 45-foot Response Boat and the 87-foot patrol boat Narwhal to conduct searches for occupants of a capsized Mexican panga that was reported to authorities around 6:30 a.m.

“Damn, that’s just where I wanted to fish,” Walker said as he and the passengers of the Redondo Special approached. By 8 a.m., two Sheriff’s boats, two Lifeguard boats and several news helicopters added to the chaotic atmosphere.

Walker anchored in a less desirable area so as not to intrude on the search. Fishing was slow, however. There was an occasional bass and perch, but it was nowhere near as good as it had been.

Walker then chose to make a go. With a Coast Guard helicopter zooming over the bow of the half-day boat, the Redondo Special moved to within 50 yards of a Sheriffs boat. “I don’t know if they are going to let us fish here, but they’re not warning us off yet. Let’s give the reef a try.”

The go brought the desired results. a large supply of live squid was the key to a steady flow of huge calico bass, sculpin and other fish. Off the starboard bow, Carson resident Patrick Friedman was ecstatic with his catch, a 6-pound halibut.

In the background, one of the Coast Guard vessels was slowly towing off the downed panga on a long tow rope, with the other boat following close behind.

Will Ebersman, of Los Angeles, commented, “It’s like watching a reality TV program. There’s four news choppers filming overhead, trucks with flashing red lights up on the bluffs, the Coast Guard on scene and we’re 100 feet away. It can’t get any more real that that!”

Odds and ends: The tuna bite out of San Diego has broken open with catches of 100 yellowfin and/or bluefin common. The fish are 140 miles south of San Diego. …

The Voyager out of Redondo treated a group of whale watchers to a rare sight on Tuesday – a sperm whale. Sperm whales are toothed whales that prey almost exclusively on squid and are normally not seen off Southern California. Besides the sperm whale, the group also witnessed a minke whale that breached 11 times. …

The Christopher out of Harbor Breeze had incredible whale watching on Thursday as multiple blue whales were lunge feeding on masses of krill just feet away. There were multiple leviathans coming out of the water to consume the tiny shrimp-like creatures.