Isn't it nice to have a real salmon season in Santa Cruz finally? The fish are definitely here, though it may take some time and patience to get one or more in the box. First, you have to get them to bite, and then you have to get them in the net. Neither is particularly easy these days.

The krill-feeding kings are hitting shallow, from 35-50 feet down. This means they have plenty of spunk once you get them near the boat. One way to help ensure a better catch rate is to loosen up the drag a little. Let the fish run, so it's tired when finally at the boat. Using a soft rod with a good parabolic bend and monofilament line for the stretch factor can make a difference as well. Sometimes there's just nothing for it, and the fish spits the hook. Oh well.

Gerry Brookes on the Doble knows the feeling. Regarding Monday's charter he said- "We hooked 11 Salmon today and boated six. Because these fish are being caught so shallow they are hot rods. We didn't hook a fish deeper than 50 feet." Captain Jimmy Rubin has the same tale to tell: a good hookup rate, but only about 50% in the net. The quality of salmon is high, averaging 14-20 pounds and going upwards to a few 30-pound fish reported this week.

Local angler Jim Ready, pictured above, can testify to the "one day a zero, next day a hero" concept. He fished the Soquel Hole eight hours on Wednesday with nothing to show, then went back out Thursday for limits. I ran into him at the Harbor wash down area, and he proudly displayed a giant king that was 30 pounds if it was an ounce.

Meanwhile, the inshore fishery is slow but steady. Rockfish scores are up and down depending on the daily weather and sea conditions. Stagnaro's Sportfishing posted reports of limits last Wednesday and Thursday, and even got 3/4 limits on their short twilight trip Friday evening. On Sunday Mike Baxter skippered the Velocity. He rolled the dice and steamed up past Ano Nuevo looking for bigger cod. While the numbers reflected were not quite "limits," the fish were high quality, and the lingcod count was significant. "Despite rolling seas and a stiff breeze, we bagged 11 keeper lings, and near limits of big black and red rockfish for 30 anglers." Hot stick on the Velocity Sunday was Eric Berg from Saratoga who took the back corner of the boat, and brought in four keeper lingcod (but only kept one limit).

Halibut fishing was also hit-or-miss last week. A few fish were reported caught near the Harbor and off the reefs in Capitola, but the cold murky water makes halibut fishing tough. We are expecting the water to warm within the next couple weeks, and the wind has to die down sometime. When the conditions improve we will be ready for more successful halibut hunting.