Despite some nasty afternoon sea conditions, fishing near Santa Cruz was good and getting better for the most part. Salmon slowed down last week but it's been limit-style rockfishing with plenty of lings in the mix, and halibut are moving toward the shallows en masse.

Anglers searching for king salmon found a slow and steady pick last week, with the emphasis on slow. Ken Stagnaro on the Velocity managed to find a decent school of kings by the Soquel Hole Friday morning. The retention rate could have been better, according to Stagnaro. "There is still lots of action. The fish were shallow and hot, causing us to miss opportunities." On the Velocity's twilight trip Saturday, 14 anglers brought home limits of rockfish after working the area near the Mile Buoy. "The fish were biting 'till sunset. We saw lots of browns, blacks, vermillion and a few ling cod." As a bonus, Stagnaro is seeing quite a few whales on their fishing and sanctuary tours, less than a mile from the beach.

Captain Jimmy Rubin on the Becky Ann reported similar action on the rockfish. His clients bagged limits every trip this week, noting the same mix of reds, browns, vermillion and lingcod. Like Rubin, Gerry Brookes from Reel Sportfishing fished a little further up the line near Natural Bridges for a wider variety. Beside the blacks and reds, Brookes noted big blues, coppers and China rockfish in the mixed limits.

Meanwhile, private boaters are hunting halibut with increasing success. The flatfish have moved into shallower water now. The sandy areas from Lighthouse Point to New Brighton are producing very nice flatties, caught mostly on whole squid or swimbaits. Tom Odell and Allen Sansano paddled fishing kayaks from the Santa Cruz Harbor Sunday morning, and returned with three flatties ranging from 15-22 pounds. They were fishing 40-50 feet of water from the Mile Buoy to Black's Point. Ashley Rominger checked in at the Capitola Wharf with another nice halibut caught using whole squid. Other reports indicate halibut are biting closer to Lighthouse Point as deep as 70 feet, and a few have been reported near Mitchell's Cove as well.

The coming weekend look fishable, with an increasing swell through Saturday. Afternoon winds will remain strong and gusty, so keep a weather eye out, and check the forecasts prior to launch.