Nights are getting colder, which means nippy mornings for those getting up early to fish. Most days, the layers of clothing come off and the sunscreen goes on by midmorning. Anglers fishing locally may have to pick their spots a bit more carefully, but there is still plenty of action to be had.

Salmon fishing slowed to a trickle before the season closed earlier this month. Likewise halibut are moving out and away from the local beaches and are much harder to find. We've had a few halibut reports each week, though, mostly from the West Cliff area and on up the coast to Davenport Landing. The flatties can be found on the deep side of deeper kelp beds, from 60-80 feet of water. Drifting squid or using live bait seems to be working best.

Speaking of live bait, it's lingcod season as the big fish move in for wintertime spawning. Most will agree that lingcod love live bait. Whether it's anchovies, sardines, mackerel or jacksmelt, lings will latch on like a bulldog. Keep the gaff handy because they often are not hooked, just holding on all the way to the surface. Get them to the top and gaff them before they spit the bait. Just make sure they are undeniably legal sized before gaffing. Otherwise, use the net.

Of all live bait, lings prefer sanddabs. It's easy to cruise out to 120 feet of water with a large-size sabiki rig, and catch a mess of 'dabs for the bait tank. Then, it's an easy motor over to South Rock or the West Cliff reefs for a ling-fest.

This week we were blessed with a few very nice days offshore. As usual the tuna hunters were out, and yes the albacore are still there and biting! Todd Fraser at Bayside Marine tracks tuna action religiously. Fraser described the tuna as "finicky" on Tuesday, but Wednesday was different. "The albacore bite was wide open today and the weather was perfect. The fish were caught from 36'03/122'42 up to 36'15/122'46. The fish were all over and on the bite. The anglers close to the Davidson found some fish but it was better closer to Santa Cruz and Monterey."

The Kahuna out of Moss landing got in on the fun Wednesday. "What a fantastic day! Perfect flat calm weather and jumpers everywhere! For nine anglers we landed 69 albacore and one bluefin and even quit fishing at 4:30. Everyone was done with plenty of fish going 20-35 pounds."

Fish on Sportfishing's Tom Joseph headed south on the Sara Bella Wednesday and found the right spot also. "Today we had today lines in at 8:15 and plugged the boat by 11:30 with 28 fish. Average weight over was 25 pounds and our biggest weighed in at 39.5 pounds."

The weather looks good through this weekend, with light winds and very small swell and wind wave action. Great chance to get offshore for tuna, soak live bait for halibut or lingcod, or just break out the shrimp fly jigs for a sack full of cod. If all else fails, hit the beach with your surfcasting equipment, and send the perch pictures in for next week's report.

Pictured Above: Ed Burrell from Capitola Boat and Bait hooked this nice ling near the Mile Reef using live bait.Ed Burrell from Capitola Boat and Bait hooked this nice ling near the Mile Reef using live bait.