Salmon fishing was a bit more difficult this week due to a number of factors. Primary among them was the stiff winds caused by the latest pressure gradient offshore. The result is good for upwelling, and providing cool nutrient-rich water that feeding salmon love, but not so good for boaters trying to navigate in choppy conditions over a big swell further complicated by howling winds.


Mornings remained fishable except for Tuesday, when many salmon anglers decided discretion is the better part of valor and stayed tied to the docks. The bite, though slower, is still centered generally towards Moss Landing, with salmon schools concentrating variously near Mulligan's Hill, the Pajaro Hole, and even some reports coming in from the west side of the Soquel Hole. The fish have been deep, and jellyfish are beginning to frustrate some trollers by fouling the downrigger wires. The wind will die down slightly over the weekend, but the forecast also includes a medium-sized southwest swell that can hit the northern portion of Monterey Bay dead on.


Most party boats struggled this week to get a fish per rod. Chris Fishing Trips and Randy's out of Monterey reported working hard for half-limits or less. Stagnaro's weekly report called the bite "spotty." Skipper Ken Stagnaro said "On Monday Velocity landed five salmon for 15 people. But that score was not due to lack of action. The sea lions snatched fish on four different occasions and we released three undersized fish as well. We also had a couple of fish spit the hook up near the surface." Six-pack charter Fish-On Sportfishing did a little better. Captain Tom Joseph reported, "Saturday the 19th our party of five boated seven fish eight-13 pounds. We lost one to a sea lion and four others popped off."


Closer to the beach the halibut bite is heating up. Reports of flatties caught in 40-60 feet of water are increasing daily. Near the Santa Cruz Harbor, water temps were as high as 58 degrees on Saturday, perfect for the big flatfish. At least one 15-pound halibut was caught there by a kayak angler, while slow-trolling squid. Sunday featured another kayak-fishing halibut caught in that same area. A few undersized males were caught and released from those flat sandy areas, indicating an early pre-spawn. With the early halibut bite going on in San Francisco Bay for the past month, it looks like this year is shaping up to be a "regular" good year for flatties.


Jay Yokomizo, skipper on The New Huck Finn out of Emeryville Sportfishing, has been capitalizing on the abundant halibut these past few weeks while waiting for the striped bass to begin their descent through the bay on towards open ocean waters. Yokomizo's patience was rewarded on Tuesday. "We found a great bass bite in the deeper part of the central SF Bay. We caught limits for eight anglers with just half a dozen quick drifts. The fish were mostly in the six to eight-pound range, but one weighed in at 16 pounds," Yokomizo enthused. Might be worth a quick mid-week trip up to Emeryville for some fast action and good-eating bass.



Bushnell can also be heard on The Let's Go Fishing Radio Show Thursdays at 8 p.m. on KSCO radio 1080 AM. Send your photos, comments or questions to [email protected]