"The waters off Half Moon Bay are very rich with forage that salmon feed on such as krill, anchovies, and sardines, just to name a few," noted Ingles. "Our latest trip was fantastic, since the fish moved in closer to the marina with the warming water conditions. We ran out about 8 miles out from the harbor and located fish down to 70 feet. The 17 anglers caught limits of chinooks."

That trip also produced the biggest salmon caught to date aboard the Queen of Hearts, a 28 pounder taken by Charlie Ottina from Castro Valley, added Ingles.

On the same day, the 17 anglers aboard the Ankeney Street trolled up limits of king salmon to 25 pounds for 17 passengers, while the 22 anglers aboard New Captain Pete returned with limits of fish to 22 pounds.

"What a great day Sunday, April 21 turned out to be aboard the Riptide," said Captain William "Smitty" Smith of Riptide Sportfishing. "The fishing was red hot first thing in the morning fishing outside and below Deep Reef. There was virtually no wind and only little swells."

"The fish seem to bite in groups, so if one rod gets hammered, you had better watch the others because the fish are hitting in numbers," he advised.

Claudell Washington from Berkeley Marina Sport Center confirmed the hot action taking place along the San Mateo County coast. The 23 boaters aboard the El Dorado II went down south to Half Moon Bay and landed limits of king salmon to 28 pounds. Six anglers fishing on El Dorado I ventured up north, returning with 6 salmon.

According to Frank Salazar at Emeryville Sportfishing, the New Seeker and its 9 anglers were the only boat targeting salmon over the weekend of April 20 and they managed to pull in 7 fish to 19 pounds. "They caught the fish near Half Moon Bay," added Salazar.

Salmon fishing off Bodega Bay is also starting to perk up with better bait and weather conditions. "There are a number of reports coming back from boaters spotting balls of anchovies and squid in the bay," reported Shauna Harbarth of Aggressor Adventures out of Bodega Bay. "So hopefully the salmon are feeding and we can get some to take our bait."

Captain Rick has been taking his passengers aboard the New Aggressor to fish inside the weather buoy in 350 feet of water, where the fish are holding from 25 to 75 feet deep.

"Our last trip out in the bay was very productive," Harbarth said. "The 29 anglers, a group from All Pro Auto Parts, boated 29 kings to 28 pounds. They fooled the fish while trolling anchovies. John Carey of Sacramento landed the 28 pounder, the day's jackpot fish and also the largest salmon weighed in so far this season."