This week featured picture-perfect conditions for ocean fishing in our area. With the recent swell dropping now and light winds forecast, the coming weekend looks ideal as well.

Rockfish and Cabezon season remains open in our area through the month of November. While a few of the commercial sport fishing boats have been making the trip to Franklin Point above Ano Nuevo to fill the bags with quality rockfish, the local reefs continue to produce when the weather cooperates. Santa Cruz Reef, which essentially stretches along Santa Cruz's West Cliff area from Lighthouse Point to Natural Bridges, is a very good place to fish this time of year. Typically holding schools of blue, black or olive rockfish, the larger vermillion rockfish, cabezon and lingcod can also be found in this area. Most anglers fish a bit deeper this time of year, from 70-140 feet of water.

November 3 marks the 2007 Dungeness crab opener. Local skippers Jim Rubin from Captain Jimmy Sportfishing and Gerry Brookes from Reel Sportfishing will be hosting rockfish/crab combo trips. Many of these trips in local waters result in limits of both crab and fish for the clients aboard.

Though conditions have become increasingly mild as this week progressed, fishing over the weekend was tough. A large swell combined with stiff early morning wind posed an extra challenge to participants in the Santa Cruz Harborfest Trees to Sea Fishing Derby. A number of lingcod were weighed in at Bayside Marine on Saturday afternoon, and all anglers bemoaned the nasty fishing conditions. First place was awarded to Hugo Barreto for a 6.8-pound lingcod. Barreto won a new Avet JX fishing reel. Wally Smith took second place with a 5.9-pound ling followed closely by Al Castro with a 5.8-pound lingcod.

Though it is late October, don't count out albacore as a fishing possibility. A quick look at the sea surface temperature charts indicates a large pool of warm water just offshore. "It is a classic break, though the water is plankton rich and green," says Mike Baxter, who is recognized as the area's top albacore skipper. "They are still catching tuna from Morro Bay, and recent history has demonstrated October as a very productive month for our area. ??" There is always a chance." Confirming Baxter's prediction was a report from Todd Fraser at Bayside Marine of at least one albacore caught by boats trolling the offshore Monterey Bay area on Tuesday.