AnglerBob
08-15-2008, 11:03 PM
Fished on the So CAL 8/14—originally had planned to meet my friend Bassmaster Jack on the Victory, but our wires got crossed and he ended up on the 3/4 day, I on the So Cal. Worked out OK for both of us as fishing had picked up a bit since the dismal counts of last week.
We picked up bait at the "Provider" boat and headed out the Long Beach light. The captain cruised the breakwall initially looking for Dorado, but none were in evidence, so he proceeded on a SE course and ended up on a sandy spot directly seaward from the Alamitos Bay entrance, only a mile or so from the edge of the breakwall, I'd guess. We found pretty good numbers of sand bass there and most people did well. We were plagued by several seals, who enjoyed playing the game of let's-grab-this-fish-and-run-with-it, and several anglers enjoyed the resulting few seconds of drag-screaming excitement followed by reeling in a severed head. Mackerel were also out in force, so clipping on a good-sized sinker was in order to get the bait to plummet.
The boat was more crowded than I would have liked, although not ridiculous. Lots of dads and grandpas with kids, and kudos to the ones I saw with enough sense to take them to the bow where they wouldn't tangle others. The crew—a couple of which did not seem old enough for employment other than babysitting and paper routes—did a decent job of unhooking fish, detangling lines and preventing novice anglers from impaling themselves on sculpin.
I ended up with eight sand bass ranging from barely-keeper to an impressive 5+ lber. At the time, I thought most others had gotten limits, but the report for that day shows only about 4-5 per rod; I actually think that was low. Using enough weight to bypass the macks, a lively fresh bait and a dropper loop with enough extension to give the bait some swimming room seemed to be the key. Tight lines all, see you on the lakes in the fall when it's a bit cooler:)
BTW: Quick lunch tip: ABS Market, 1605 Wardlow Road in LB (562) 989-8109 has terrific sandwiches and oddly enough, a freezer full of exotic game meats including antelope, kangaroo and reindeer. Always a stop on my way back!
We picked up bait at the "Provider" boat and headed out the Long Beach light. The captain cruised the breakwall initially looking for Dorado, but none were in evidence, so he proceeded on a SE course and ended up on a sandy spot directly seaward from the Alamitos Bay entrance, only a mile or so from the edge of the breakwall, I'd guess. We found pretty good numbers of sand bass there and most people did well. We were plagued by several seals, who enjoyed playing the game of let's-grab-this-fish-and-run-with-it, and several anglers enjoyed the resulting few seconds of drag-screaming excitement followed by reeling in a severed head. Mackerel were also out in force, so clipping on a good-sized sinker was in order to get the bait to plummet.
The boat was more crowded than I would have liked, although not ridiculous. Lots of dads and grandpas with kids, and kudos to the ones I saw with enough sense to take them to the bow where they wouldn't tangle others. The crew—a couple of which did not seem old enough for employment other than babysitting and paper routes—did a decent job of unhooking fish, detangling lines and preventing novice anglers from impaling themselves on sculpin.
I ended up with eight sand bass ranging from barely-keeper to an impressive 5+ lber. At the time, I thought most others had gotten limits, but the report for that day shows only about 4-5 per rod; I actually think that was low. Using enough weight to bypass the macks, a lively fresh bait and a dropper loop with enough extension to give the bait some swimming room seemed to be the key. Tight lines all, see you on the lakes in the fall when it's a bit cooler:)
BTW: Quick lunch tip: ABS Market, 1605 Wardlow Road in LB (562) 989-8109 has terrific sandwiches and oddly enough, a freezer full of exotic game meats including antelope, kangaroo and reindeer. Always a stop on my way back!