We may have to pay a little more attention to wind, waves and weather conditions before planning our outings these days, but there’s still plenty of fishing to be had all around the Monterey Bay. In fact, this time of year will often produce some of the best fishing and biggest catches.

In an unusual pattern, smaller halibut are still hanging out in the shallower edges of the Monterey Bay this year. While we would expect to see groups of flatties on the inside during spring and even in summertime, anglers are delighted this year to discover they are still on the bite in the 30-60-foot depths. Bounce ball trolling with a flasher or dodger is the best bet, though seeing live bait will always elicit a halibut to bite. Using anchovies, smelt, kingfish or even sanddabs can result in a nice halibut catch. Just remember, the bigger the bait, the longer you have to let that halibut chew before setting the hook. Get them while you can, they are on their way out to deeper water.

Deeper reefs and wilder locations can result in fantastic rockfish and lingcod fishing for the next couple months as well. Rockfish and ling season continue through December 31, though fishing gets sketchier and fishing opportunities can be reduced. Stagnaro’s Sportfishing in Santa Cruz, the Kahuna in Moss Landing and the Check Mate from Chris’ Sportfishing in Monterey all reported full limits of rockfish from this weekend’s trips. The Kahuna noted a high percentage of copper rockfish and vermilion rockfish in the mix, as they are fishing near Big Sur these days.

A caution to my kayak fishing brethren, as well as to paddlers and swimmers near Santa Cruz. Local kayak fisherman Matt Porath fishes regularly out of the Santa Cruz Harbor. He got a bit more fish than he bargained for a week ago Sunday. As he glided towards the Mile Buoy and got ready to fish, his boat was hit from behind and below. Porath was dumped in the water with his overturned kayak on top of him. “I was paddling or maybe coasting. Next thing I know I’m over. I’m 200 pounds, not a small guy. The impact felt like a car crash. It hit me on the left rear and lifted up the boat. I was dumped in the water with the kayak on top of me.” Porath righted the boat and climbed back atop his Ocean Kayak Scrambler in an instant, as you might imagine.

“I’m kinda like, ‘Try to calm down, do NOT go back in the water!’ I never saw it. I got back on the boat, took a big deep breath, probably cursed a little bit and paddled back in.“ Bite marks on Porath’s boat were measured about 15-inches across which suggests a Great White Shark in the 10-12 foot range. Thankfully, Porath was not injured during the incident, and plans to get back out kayak fishing as soon as he can.