 |
|
Brought to you by:
Brought to you by:
Brought to you by:
The only port between Albion and Bodega Bay, rural Point Arena offers anglers top-notch fishing opportunities for rockfish and lingcod, as well as abalone and perch. “The fishing for bottomfish here is better than in any other area off the North Coast than Punta Gorda north of Shelter Cove,” said Jim Martin, West Coast Director of the Recreational Fishing Alliance. “It is relatively hard to get to, compared to other areas on the coast, and the fish are lightly pressured.” The scenic city on the Mendocino Coast, population 474, features a pier with a hoist launch. Point Arena, along with a number of other Mendocino County coastal communities, has since the late 1960’s been associated with hippies and the counterculture, along with its historic role as a commercial and sportfishing center. The town is also headquarters of the Manchester Band of Pomo Indians of the Manchester-Point Arena Rancheria. Point Arena is one of the most environmentally active cities on the North Coast. The community is in the forefront of a fierce battle by environmentalists, seaweed harvesters, Native American activists and fishermen to oppose Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger’s fast track Marine Life Protection Act (MLPA) process, a privately-funded fiasco that kicks fishermen and seaweed harvesters off the water to pave the way for offshore oil rigs, wave energy projects and corporate aquaculture. The North Central North of Point Arena Management Area, extending from Cape Mendocino (40°10' N. latitude) to Point Arena (38°57.5' N. latitude, is open to a three-month rockfish and lingcod season to boat-based anglers from May 15 through August 15. Fish may be only taken in waters less than 120 feet deep. The North-Central South of Point Arena Management Area, from Point Arena (38°57.5' N. latitude) to Pigeon Point (37°11' N. latitude), is open for 4-1/2 months from June 13 through October 31. Fish may be taken in waters up to 180 feet deep. “We went up to Irish Beach near the Point Arena Lighthouse and caught four lingcod ranging from legal-sized to 12 pounds in 70 feet of water,” said Martin. “I fooled my fish with an 8 ounce Gibbs Minnow, while Milo caught his on swimbaits and jigs. We also released four legal-sized lingcod ranging from 26 to 28 inches long.” Curiously, they didn’t hook any rockfish at this spot. “There were so many lingcod in this area that it appeared like the lingcod ran away,” noted Martin.
While fishing other reefs in the Point Arena area, the pair bagged 15 rockfish, including a 6 lb. copper, two 5 lb. vermilion rockfish and quality black rockfish. “We could have caught full limits of rockfish, but we already had our limits of lingcod and some large rockfish, so we decided to call it a day,” said Martin. Martin emphasized that they caught all of their fish while fishing inside of a massive no fishing zone proposed under the corrupt Marine Life Protection Act (MPLA) process. On the same day, John McManus, media director of Earthjustice, had a great trip on the south Mendocino County coast while fishing with his wife, Katrina, and John’s friend out of Point Arena. “We caught 25 fish in an hour of fishing, including vermilions, China, gopher and black rockfish,” said McManus. “The vermilions were all quality fish ranging from 5 to 10 pounds. We also bagged one 28 inch lingcod.” They fished a variety of metal bars to entice the bottomfish. The amazing thing is that they only fished for about an hour. “The water was flat calm, so calm that we could see humpback whales surfacing 2 miles outside of us,” he added. Ironically, the majority of boats that weekend fished north of Point Arena, that had already been open to fishing since May 15, rather than the area south of the point. “The most popular area was the Wash Rock area north of Point Arena,” said Point Arena Harbormaster Peter Bogdahn. Anglers who nailed quality rockfish that weekend include Gary Giannani and Evan Lombardi of Walnut Creek and their fishing buddy. They bagged around 25 rockfish and lingcod. “We used everything, including shrimp flies, jigs, swimbaits and bars," said Lombardi. They managed to nail quillback, vermilion, black and China rockfish and one lingcod.
Joe Cilia of Novato and Greg and Rod Leo of Sacramento also had a good day of fishing, nailing their limits of abalone. After finishing abalone diving, they landed half limits of assorted rockfish, two lingcod and a hefty cabezon. However, fishing from a boat is not the only way to catch rockfish, lingcod, cabezon and rockfish at Point Arena. Anglers nail rainbow perch, calico perch, greenling and lingcod from the pier and surrounding shoreline while using an array of baits, according to Bogdahn. Fishermen also battle grass rockfish off the rocky beach in the cove south of the pier. As has happened elsewhere in California, the imposition of the Rockfish Conservation Area along the North Coast from 120 to 180 feet deep has resulted in the closure of many deep-water areas where anglers traditionally targeted big lingcod and rockfish. However, there are still many great areas to target lingcod, as evidenced by the recent success of Martin and Volkovich. Bogdahn said the largest lingcod weighed in at the harbor to date was a 25 pounder caught in mid June. The Point Arena Harbor features hoist launching for $25.00 per day. The launch is open from 7 a.m to 4 p.m. However, the guys who work there are occasionally willing to stay later if there’s a hot albacore bite. No charter boats are available out of Point Arena, so the region is mainly fished by private boaters. However, Bodega Bay boats occasionally fish Saunders Reef and other reefs on calm days. Expect light crowds out of the harbor even during the summer, especially now that salmon season is closed. “On the busy holiday weekends, we used to launch 30 boats per day,” he said. “However, launching 15 boats is a big day now.” Besides its great fishing opportunities, Point Arena is known for its historic lighthouse, the tallest of its kind on the West Coast of the United States. The Point Arena tower is the only West Coast lighthouse of significant height (115 feet) that you can climb to the top.
The lighthouse is also the closest location on the mainland (excluding Alaska) to Honolulu, Hawaii at a distance of 2,045 nautical miles (2,353 statute miles) or 3,787 kilometers. Guided tours of the light station as well as self guided tours of the grounds are available daily. For more information, contact the Point Arena Lighthouse Museum, (707) 882-2777, www.pointarenalighthouse.com Point Arena Fishing Facts Location: Point Arena is a small coastal city in Mendocino Count. Point Arena is located 31 miles (50 km) west of Hopland at an elevation of 118 feet. The population was 474 at the 2000 census, making it one of the smallest incorporated cities in the state. Its main street comprises part of State Route 1, California's coastal artery. The North Central North of Point Arena Management Area, extending from Cape Mendocino (40°10' N. latitude) to Point Arena (38°57.5' N. latitude, is open to a three-month rockfish and lingcod season to boat-based anglers from May 15 through August 15. Fish may be only taken in waters less than 120 feet deep. The North-Central South of Point Arena Management Area, from Point Arena (38°57.5' N. latitude) to Pigeon Point (37°11' N. latitude), is open for 4-1/2 months from June 13 through October 31. Fish may be taken in waters up to 180 feet deep. Season: RCG Complex (including all species of Rockfish, Cabezon and Greenlings). Depth limit: May only be taken or possessed in waters less than 120 ft (20 fm) deep Bag and size limits: 10 fish in combination per person; sublimits of two fish total for cabezon, greenlings and bocaccio. The size limit is 15 inches for cabezon, 12 inches for kelp or rock greenling and 10 inches for bocaccio. Camping and Lodging: The Mendocino Coast area is blessed with plenty of camping and lodging facilities. For more information, contact the Mendocino Coast Chamber of Commerce, http://www.mendocinocoast.com. Point Arena features the Sea Shell Inn, 35 Main Street | Point Arena, CA. 95468, Tel: 1 707 882-2000, www.mendocinoseashellinn.com, Boat ramps: Point Arena Pier (Hoist Launch. Fishing information: City Harbormaster at 707-882-2583 or go to www.cityof pointarena.com
|
The Fish Sniffer & FishSniffer.com by NCA Publications
Problems, Comments E-mail Us Please • Privacy Statement
Fish Sniffer Editorial Policy