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SP-LB Maiden Voyage, Fri, 3/12

2K views 11 replies 8 participants last post by  flyliner 
#1 ·
I finally got out on the water on Fri, 3/12 for the first time since I last posted on 12/26/09. http://www.allcoast.com/discussion/ViewTopic.cfm?page=1&startrow=41&topic_ID=103924. Between then and now, I made the move from MDR and got settled in Cabrillo Marina, dealt with a year of overdue maintenance on my boat, and waited for a weather window combined with decent tides to explore San Pedro-Long Beach Harbor and San Pedro Bay, and the once fabled Horseshoe Kelp area. Friday looked like the day. With a new Garmin GPS, I first looked to input some WPTs for the shallowest potential rockfish areas I could find ? I refuse to fish rockfish deeper than around 300 ft, preferably up to 250 ft. Just no fun deeper. Found some promising areas holding some small reds and bocaccio and assorted other critters, but nothing spectacular. My next order of business was to re-enter WPTs for the Horseshoe Kelp. Most of my numbers in my old 1995 Garmin 220 were entered during the period the Pentagon deformed readings for security reasons, and I wanted to get on them and enter automatic repeat settings in my new Garmin 541. I headed first for some stones in 100 or more feet where I had some great years in the past on YT during the Fall, when good sized yellows showed and the ticket was live mackies. I?m sure a lot of guys on AC remember those years. It just hasn?t happened for quite some time. I wondered why. Well, most of the reasons were quickly apparent. The first stone I hit, one of my favorites, had the black flag of a gillnetter planted right on it!!! I then headed to another about 1.5 miles away and watched another gillnetter drop in the black flag. One of the several reasons I left MDR after 22 years there was the daily presence, 365 days a year, of gillnets out 5 to 6 miles in Santa Monica Bay. Like SM Bay, there is a ton of bait, but few gamefish getting through. It?s no different in San Pedro Bay. We got gillneters out of state waters within 3 miles, but they blanket the entry routes out beyond 3 miles. But one good thing I have to report is that without gillnets spead like the old days right in front of Angels Gate and Queens Gate, the halibut do make it in numbers into SP-LB harbors. I fished the Long Beach area when the wind came up strong with just swimbaits and hardbaits and caught 2 barely short flatties. So that?s a hopeful sign. I haven?t hit the Huntington Flats yet, but I sure hope the gillnets are not there again. I did hit Izors, but couldn?t plug in most of the reef because party boats and private boaters were all over it. Caught a few small calicos and sand bass but gave up two leadheads to to the structure. Nasty stuff. So it looks like the offshore islands for me mostly, paddy hunting later in the season, but local with light tackle days inside the harbors for mostly flatties. The water is very warm given all the winds and storms, so this waning El Nino year could be real good for PB rec anglers. And it looks like a volume of schooly tails is already at the Coronados and will bust open at Clemente, then Cat and SBI within next couple of weeks. Good luck to everyone.

This post edited by freddie 03/14/2010
 
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#2 ·
Hello freddie,
What is the plan for fishing that toad yellowtail spot you turned me green with not long ago?
It's a long uphill cruise, no?
Anyway, I'm know you thought long and hard about moving south. I hope you feel at home soon in the new harbor.
And, for those who have followed, certainly you'll be scratching out your numbers before long.
From your description of the process, I guess there was no way to download your old waypoints and then upload them to the new box. That sounds about par for business as.
Thanks for the update and look forward to reading your future fish tale adventures.
FC
 
#3 ·
Hi Freddie,
Welcome to Cabrillo! Hope your enjoying it so far, and not located on the Hurricane Gulch side of the Marina.

The Gillnets are a problem here to. Other than Bass fishin up the line, I pretty much stick to the Islands.

Good luck on your trips, and am sure we will see you around.
 
#4 ·
The biggest halibut I've seen caught locally was about 20ft off of Pier J.,30+ on a blue and white double A while we were picking up bait.
I've caught alot of big halibut inside and outside the breakwater.Big fish.There was a place called the Halibut Hole when we were kids that was a locals only spot inside near the` launch ramp and out towards the small marina wall.Those fish still come in there to spawn.Another hot spot is near the fish processors around the mouth of the harbor entrance.Just have to watch out for the port police.Personally,I've never really liked the taste of them and I've always considered them a kind of bycatch nuisance when the calicos wanted it slow and deep
 
#8 ·
Fishcat,

There is a way but requires I purchase a program. In any case, I have so many WPTS in the old machine that I would spend as much time deleting them. Most are just numbered, so I don't what they are until I am close. 2/3 are for PV to Oxnard where I doubt I'll be fishing again, although I did copy down my killer ling spots off Malibu, but most will be in the new reserve at PT Dume to Zuma later this year or early 2011.

I did copy crucial spots at all the islands including San Nick. I am slowly entering them in the new machine.
 
#9 ·
HD,

Yep I'm prime center in Hurricane Gulch and on some of those windy days lately, I wondered what the heck I did by choosing a slip there. But I think the breeze will be good in the summer. I'm so close to everything getting out of there, I like it, the parking, and there are good folks on my finger. A guy named Turk is a livaboard, diver, sailor and knows a lot about everything, and he has been real helpful to me, even put on fresh pare of stainless duo-props for me from his skiff. Maybe you know him, a tall, rugged looking guy. So I'll put up with the winds. With so many 30' slips available, I can move at any time behind the hotel. Hope we run into each other there.
 
#12 ·
Thanks for the report Freddie.

Jenn and I had a very similar experience on Sunday. We are also still getting re-introduced to the area after being up in MDR for so long. I remember so many wide open yellowtail bites off the horseshoe when I was a kid....it's a shame.

Only fished locally twice now since we have been in Cabrillo, and the problem is that with Catalina only 18 miles away, it's hard not to just head to the Island.

Hope we run into each other in Cabrillo. I have a feeling our boats are probably fairly close to each other.

Hope this Summer makes the move worth it!

Jonathan
 
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