Due to the high winds offshore, most local anglers concentrated on inshore species this week. No one except the die-hard tuna hunters is complaining, though, because the fishing is really pretty good. ??

Earlier in the week, salmon fishing was best between the Soquel Hole and Pajaro, near the black can buoy. A few fish continue to be caught daily in that area. According to Mike Schell from Bayside Marine, Tuesday and Wednesday saw decent scores of salmon in 200 feet of water from Santa Cruz up to the Three Trees area on the North Coast for the few anglers fishing there. "This is the first real bite I've seen in that area this year, and the fish were good, averaging 12-15pounds each," Schell said. He added that it has been far too windy to make it offshore to the warm albacore waters this week, and it looks like those conditions will persist through the weekend.

Ed Burrell from Capitola Boat and Bait is excited by the surge of White Sea Bass in the Capitola area. "I saw a school of 60-100 of them by the Mile Reef area on Wednesday," Burrell said. A few of the locals have been catching White Sea Bass in the area for a few weeks now, usually in the 12-30 pound range. These fish are easily spooked and slow to bite, but it's good to know they are around in some numbers this year. Burrell notes there is good bait around the Capitola and Santa Cruz wharves. A number of feisty mackerel have been caught at Capitola, and the halibut scores are going up in that area, near the kelp beds and by the Mile Reef as well as off Pleasure Point. Burrell also mentioned the surfcasters are doing well on striped bass from the beaches, including one 40-pounder caught at Rio Del mar this week.

As fall approaches, the fishing for rockcod and lings is improving. Captain Jim Rubin and Gerry Brookes have been making the trip to Ano Nuevo for limits of quality rockfish and up to four lingcod per trip, some as big as 15 pounds. Ken Stagnaro from Stagnaro's Sport fishing has concentrated on the local reefs near Natural Bridges and South Rock reef for full limits of rockfish. Stagnaro's twilight trips are yielding 3/4 limits for the early evening fishing expeditions.