By: The Fish Sniffer Staff June 6, 2005 Last Issue
Opening day of the rock fishing for California's most northern zone was May 8 this year. The weather was nice, so was the ocean off cape Mendocino. We caught some nice fish that Sunday playing hookie from church. My boy's friend pictured on the left is Deven Nelsen, my oldest son Travis Michel middle, right is my youngest boy Trevor. The ling cod in the middle weighed in @ 30 lbs. Thomas Michel

MORRO BAY/AVILA BEACH
If you want to tangle with big numbers of quality bottom fish, head for the Central Coast.

"This season the regulations allow us to fish deeper water and as a result we are having very good success," reported Roger York at Patriot Sportfishing. "Yesterday we had two boats out with 68 anglers combined. They landed 492 assorted rockfish, 188 red rockfish, and 8 lingcod to 8 pounds,"

The story is similar at Virg's Landing where anglers are catching mixed bags of good quality, great eating bottom dwellers.

On Saturday the Admiral went on a 3/4 day with 32 anglers and returned with 224 vermillion rockfish 20 lingcod, and 96 assorted rockfish. The Lot of Fun and the Harbor Pathfinder both went on half day adventures. Combined they took out 49 anglers and returned with 245 vermillion rockfish, 7 lingcod, and 245 assorted rockfish. The Princess ran a 3/4 day trip and ended up with 196 vermillion rockfish, 6 lingcod, and 84 assorted rockfish for 28 anglers.

Virg's is offering 3/4 day trips on Saturdays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays, long range full day trips on Sundays and Fridays, and half day trips on Saturdays, Sundays, Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays.

MONTEREY
King salmon fishing continued to be tough over the Memorial Day weekend in Monterey Bay.

"Captain Tinker aboard the Checkmate came back with 7 fish for 20 anglers on Sunday, May 29,' said Todd Arcoleo at Chris' Fishing, Inc. "They caught the fish while mooching anchovies at 150 feet deep near Moss Landing. The striped bass and halibut fishing has also slowed down in the bay."

"Fishing was very slow this weekend," reported Chrissie Chonacki at Randy's Fishing Trips. "The 8 anglers aboard the Sur Randy on Sunday, May 29 landed 3 salmon."

"Today was a pretty good day to be on the water," said Captain Norm Chapin of Hook 'em Up Sportfishing after this last trolling adventure. "We ran south towards Monterey where some real big chinooks were caught yesterday. Unfortunately, someone leaked the information to the sea lions!"

They put the lines down with an assortment of Hoochies and spoons and trolled at 40 fathoms. They weren't down long before things started popping from the downriggers.

"We hooked (5) undersize kings and released them," he said. "We also released 3 silver salmon at the side of the boat. Finally, Rich caught an 18 pound chinook."

Meanwhile, charter boat captains and private boaters are getting ready for the opening of rockfish season on July 1. After an eight-month closure, anglers are expecting great fishing for a colorful assortment of rockfish and lingcod. Anglers will use shrimp flies, bars, swim baits and live bait for the rockfish.

SANTA CRUZ
The salmon and halibut fishing is tough in Monterey Bay, though a few lucky anglers are nailing stripers and halibut off the Capitola Wharf.

Jo Jo Urbanich of Capitola nailed a 7 pound halibut off the wharf, according to Frank Ealy of Capitola Boat and Bait. Andy Koehler of Capitola also demonstrated his angling prowess by nailing a 6 lb. halibut on a live anchovy off the wharf. Another angler nailed an 8-1/2 pound striper off the wharf.

"The fishing has been slow for the rental and private boats," stated Ealy. "Anglers are catching a few salmon and a halibut here and there."

The Wild Wave tried halibut fishing on Sunday, May 29, but the fishing was very tough. "We released lingcod and rockfish while trying to avoid them, but we didn't get any halibut," said Roland Robertson of Shamrock Charters.

"The salmon fishing was slow today with anglers catching 0-2 fish a boat," confirmed Todd Fraser at Bayside Marine. "The best scores were out near the Soquel Hole in 180 feet of water and near Mulligan Hill in 300 feet of water. The salmon are still being caught on the troll 150-200 feet down. The best lure was the Watermelon Krippled Anchovy."

The best bet was halibut, with scores ranging from 0-6 fish a boat. "The halibut are being caught in 40-80 feet of water in front of the harbor," said Fraser. "The highest score came from a angler working dead squid in deeper water on dead squid. The water was flat calm all morning but the wind did come up around 11:30. The stripers are still being caught in the early mornings on the southern beaches."

On May 28, the 4 anglers fishing with Joe Stoops of Chartle Charters had great weather but a tough day on the salmon. They fished west of Waddell Creek in 360' of water and had one bite to boat a 22 pound salmon. We will be on the beach for the next few days until a new batch of salmon moves in.

HALF MOON BAY
Ten days ago the salmon out of Half Moon Bay were in deep water and private boaters with downriggers were having the best success. Now with the surface temperature back down to 54 degrees the kings are once again holding in 23 to 40 feet of water and charter boaters are back into the fish.

"The ocean is flat and we are taking some quality fish," reported Tom Mattusch from the wheel of the Huli Cat. "We are fishing in the Gulf of the Farallons about 14 miles out of the harbor. The fish we have on the boat today average between 12 and 14 pounds.

The salmon are hitting all the standard baits and the bites come in spurts. "You'll troll for a while without any action and then suddenly five fish will be hooked at the same time. Then things quiet down again," added Mattusch.

"Our charter boats have been doing pretty well on salmon," reported Phyllis Adams at the Huck Finn Sportfishing Center.

On May 28, the Gravy had 7 limits to 16 pounds, the Que Sera Sera had 6 limits to 12.5 pounds, the Ankeney Street had 13 salmon for 16 anglers to 15 pounds, the Siesta had 7 fish for 9 anglers to 18 pounds, the New Captain Pete had 14 fish for 18 anglers to 13 pounds and the Tiger Fish had 10 salmon for 10 anglers to 15 pounds."

SAN FRANCISCO
Trollers are heading north of the Golden Gate to Point Reyes and the North Farallon Island to bag limits of chinook salmon. Meanwhile, striped bass and halibut fishing is heating up in south San Francisco Bay.

"The fishing is great when the weather cooperates with us," said Jacky Douglas, captain of the Wacky Jacky. "The 13 anglers fishing with me on my last trip, May 27, caught limits of salmon to 16 pounds. The fish averaged 8 to 10 pounds each... I even took home a salmon myself."

Douglas and the anglers trolled with bait 5 miles south of the Point Reyes Light.

Douglas has also been experiencing excellent halibut and striped bass fishing on the days she isn't salmon fishing. "The boats have been catching limits and near-limits of stripers, along with an average of 4 to 5 halibut per boat," she explained. "The best fishing has been in the south bay off Candlestick Point and the Alameda Rockwall."

Big fish honors go to Ed King of Fremont, who landed a 20 pound halibut aboard the Wacky Jacky. Michael O'Callahan landed two chinooks weighing 22 and 19 pounds while trolling aboard the New Rayann on May 29.

Erik Anfinson, captain of the Bass Tub, reported solid bass and halibut fishing in south San Francisco Bay on Saturday, May 28. The 19 anglers on the boat landed 10 stripers and 4 halibut. The largest striped bass was 15 pounds, while the heftiest halibut weighed 19 pounds.

"We experienced good action in spite of poor tides," said Anfinson. "The fishing should get even better with the good tides coming up this week."

SAN RAFAEL
Halibut and striped bass fishing slowed down on Memorial Day weekend with the onset of big minus tides, but fishing in San Francisco Bay is expected to rebound as smaller tides return.

"We had a -1.2 feet tide on Saturday, but the 10 anglers aboard the Morning Star still caught 13 fish, a mixture of bass and halibut," said Keith Fraser at Loch Lomond Live Bait and Tackle. "The halibut fishing should get much better with the smaller tides."

Sherri Herkel leads the current Loch Lomond "Lord of the Sea" Halibut Derby with a 22 lb. halibut. She enticed the fish with a live shiner perch on a trip with Captain Armand Castagne of Imagine Charters.

Sturgeon fishing pressure has been very light in San Pablo Bay. Howie Miller of San Rafael caught a 7 pound striper and a 50 inch sturgeon on one anchor fishing trip in the bay. On the following venture, he nailed another keeper sturgeon while using ghost shrimp, according to Fraser.

On Monday, May 30, anglers reported good trolling for striped bass at the top of the tide at the Brickyard, added Fraser. Anglers are using chartreuse and white wormtail jigs to entice the feisty bass.

BERKELEY
Anglers fishing aboard Berkeley Marina charter boats are experiencing top-notch striper fishing with good halibut and salmon action on tap as well.

Last weekend Captains James Smith and Chris Duba encountered the best south bay potluck fishing they have had in several years. The California Dawn and the Silver Fox have been fishing the area around the Alameda Rock Wall in 20 to 25 feet of action. The striper action there is described as red hot with stripers weighing over 20 pounds and halibut weighing up to 30.

"Most of the bass being landed now a good quality fish. Yesterday the Silver Fox ran a trip with only 4 anglers aboard and they came back with 5 bass to 22 pounds and 9 halibut," disclosed Rich Larsen.

For a week or so, the salmon had been holding 60 to 70 feet deep due to an upswing in water temperature. The temperature has now dropped back into the normal range and the fish have moved up in the water column. Overall, anglers are averaging around a fish per rod while fishing off the Marin coast. The fish are of mixed quality with some weighing as much as 26 pounds.

"Yesterday the New Easy Rider had 24 salmon to 18 pounds for 13 anglers, the New Eldorado 3 had 28 fish to 22 pounds for 20 anglers, the New Golden Eye had 19 kings to 20 pounds for 19 guys, and the Eldorado had 21 salmon to 16 pounds for 20 anglers," reported Larsen.

The striper action off the Berkeley Pier and shoreline had been very good. On Saturday May 28 there were 18 keeper caught from the pier on both bait and Hair Raiser jigs. There is an unconfirmed report that an angler throwing plugs near the race track landed a 35 pound striper.

EMERYVILLE
The Marin and San Mateo coastline is playing host to an improving salmon bite after warm water and rough seas slowed things down two weeks ago.

"At this point we are averaging close to a fish per rod overall," related Rob Taylor of the Emeryville Sportfishing Center. "We have had some boats with limits. It's all about being at the right place at the right time."

"Yesterday our skippers took out 95 salmon anglers and returned to port with 84 salmon to 18 pounds. They caught the fishing using standard trolling methods," continued Taylor.

Anglers taking live bait potluck trips have been rewarded with very good striper action with plenty of halibut in the counts as well. Yesterday 64 anglers went potluck fishing and returned to the dock with 35 stripers to 18 pounds and 25 halibut to 22 pounds. The most consistent live bait action has been taking place in the south bay.

Anglers fishing for salmon on private boats need to use caution. There are large numbers of silver salmon showing in the catches. If you hook a silver, it must be returned to the water immediately.

Game wardens are routinely checking anglers and if you have a silver expect a stiff fine. Silvers can be difficult to distinguish from chinooks.

Typically, silvers move faster in the water when hooked they often jump. The sure way to tell is to look at the gum line around the teeth. If there is white skin against the teeth, it is a silver salmon. If you suspect you have hooked a silver don't net it, as that will likely kill the fish. Instead shake it off the hook aside the boat.

RICHMOND
Charter boats fishing out of the Richmond Marina are splitting their time fishing for stripers, halibut, and salmon.

"My clients have been taking limits of stripers," related Captain Barry Canevaro of the Fish Hookers Sportfishing. "We have been getting the bass at Paradise Cay and near the Brothers, while drifting live shiners. Our biggest striper so far weighed 17 pounds. The average size of the bass has been good with most of the fish running between 7 and 10 pounds."

"On May 28, I took my first salmon trip of the year. We fished out at Duxbury and ended up with 3 salmon in the 12 to 16 pound range, while trolling," added Canevaro.

John Badger of Barbarian Sportfishing has been targeting halibut within the bay exclusively. Badger has been landing limits on most days while trolling rigged anchovies behind dodgers.

Greg Squires of Access To Angling Sportfishing has been targeting salmon out of Richmond with great results when the weather cooperates. Squires has been trolling to the west of Point Reyes.

On May 28, Squires headed up the coast with 4 anglers aboard. After a 2 hour run to the fishing grounds, they landed 14 kings to 33 pounds and 8 silvers that were immediately released. Most of the fish were taken on FBR's rigged with 5 inch anchovies soaked in Liquid Krill.

BODEGA BAY
The afternoon chinook salmon bite off the Sonoma County has been really good when the krill comes up toward the surface.

"Yesterday we had a fair morning, but ended the day with excellent action in the afternoon," disclosed Rick Powers, captain of the New Sea Angler. "We boated 36 salmon for 19 anglers. Today we have about a fish per rod on the boat and it's about 12:30, so I'm hoping that afternoon bite kicks in again,"

Powers has been fishing 5 to 7 miles west of Bodega Head. The fish are holding between 20 and 50 feet deep, which is just about perfect for trolling. Anglers have been catching fish on all the normal trolling baits.

"Watermelon Apex lures have been especially good. The salmon we are getting average 12 pounds and run up to 18," added Powers.

Will's Bait and Tackle also reported solid salmon action. "Our boats are fishing about 2 miles outside the harbor 25 pulls deep," related Bourn. "We've been seeing lots of limits in the 8 to 28 pound class. Red and green Rotary Salmon Killers are working well. When the skippers get into brown water they've been using glow in the dark rigs,"

Captain Mike Harbath and Vince Orsini of the Calico reported great salmon action between periods of strong wind. Captain Mike said there is a large concentration of fish just outside Bodega Harbor.

On the latest trolling adventure, the anglers on the Calico experienced a wide open bite. They hooked between 30 and 35 salmon and ultimately returned to port with 13 kings. Several fish were broken off and several others were eaten by sea lions.

NORTH COAST/FORT BRAGG
After weeks of mediocre salmon action, big numbers of quality kings have arrived in the Fort Bragg area and they are hungry.

"The fishing is really good now," reported Sarah Rossetto of the Lady Irma II. "The salmon showed up last Monday and we have had one fish per rod to limits ever since. Yesterday we had 18 anglers on the Lady Irma II and they landed 28 salmon to 25 pounds."

On his last trip, the fish averaged about 15 pounds each. "We could have easily had limits," he noted. "We lost about 40 fish before they could be brought to the net."

The salmon are located from the mouth of the Noyo River to the mouth of Pudding Creek. Rigged anchovies and herring, Apex lures, and hoochies are all taking fish when rigged behind a dodger.

"The salmon bite for private boaters has turned on," confirmed Lance McGrath of Fort Bragg. "We caught limits to 13 pounds in a hour while trolling Rotary Salmon Killers 2 miles straight out the harbor over 340 feet of water on my latest trip."

The salmon are feeding heavily on krill. "The fish all have that rich orange that they get when gorging on krill," he added.

After an outstanding crab season charter boats operating out of Noyo Harbor have stopped crabbing for the season, now that the salmon have arrived in force.

Even though salmon action is very good right now, it is expected to get even better as larger fish move into the area. The Fort Bragg area gives up numbers of trophy kings in the 30 and 40 pound class every season and this year should be no exception.