The weather is finally starting to cooperate for local anglers. Salmon scores and big rockfish catches are increasing, as the boats are more able to make it out with fishable conditions.

According to Todd Fraser at Bayside Marine, the salmon bite has remained steady with Monday being the most productive day this week. "The water was flat calm until four o'clock. The fish turned on late with the tide change and the moon going down." Fraser himself caught limits of salmon Monday afternoon fishing the West side of the Soquel Hole, and mentioned several boats fishing near the Easy Money also caught limits. The fish were caught from 120-180 feet down on a variety of lures and bait. Captain Jim Rubin found his salmon on Sunday, netting a fish per rod for his clients of quality salmon weighing from 20-33 pounds each.

On Monday, Rubin fished the Monterey area for rockfish. The deep reefs near Pt. Pinos have been a preferred destination this season for quality bottom fish. Rubin and anglers aboard the Becky Ann had their limits by 9:30am. Our North Coast reefs were more accessible this week also, as long as the wind stayed down. Stagnaro's Sportfishing worked the Ano Nuevo area both Saturday and Sunday and found limits of rockfish up to six pounds and a few lingcod each day.

The water is warming, and halibut are moving in. Ed Burrell at Capitola Boat and Bait received reports of four halibut caught in 50-60 feet of water straight out from the Capitola Wharf, and assisted an angler with an 11-pound flatty caught from the pier on Wednesday.

Shiner and Walleye perch are on the bite from the Capitola wharf, especially in the early afternoons, according to Burrell, though he is most excited about the recent striper action. A few keepers were landed on the wharf this week, including a 16-pound striper caught by Steven Stevenson of Capitola.

The area below Capitola has also been productive for stripers in the surf and other, more exotic species. A number of White Sea Bass have been sighted in the area and a few have been caught, though information is always sketchy on these prized game fish. A few thresher sharks in the 50-70 pound range have also been reported caught. Most notable were the two threshers caught and released by surf-fisherman Ben Hall, who used dead squid on one the beaches just below Capitola for his exciting catches.