QUESTION: RE : Seal Beach / Bolsa Chica Wetlands

Get down there and Fish! The tides are perfect for late evening. Bring a head lamp...duh....and something more than a Stupid t-shirt
I would love to. I waiting to catch up monetary. I live 65 miles east of San Diego. So it takes planning and dinero..
I hate making excuses tho.
 
Send me a PM re: meeting up to do some fishing. I don't have a fishing license yet though... so it's my understanding I'd have to fish off a man-made structure. Do they sweat you about fishing in that inlet area?
 
So today was the first time EVER I didn't bring anything ashore. The tide and surf were "weird". The waves were small until sundown and high tide didn't get that high. Not enough violence in the surf to give it a more natural look. I had lots of strikes however nothing was hammering the bait. I am almost convinced my weight was about a 1/4oz to heavy. In all my years going down there I have never seen surf fish jump out of the water like a trout, never. Corbina were coming out of the water like crazy. Has anybody ever seen this before. These were not little Corbina, they were way over a foot long. I did see a very big dorsal fin move along the surf I am thinking leopard shark. I have hooked them down there before with Berkley Sandworms. It was one of those evening where I should have tried different stuff. Wind was howling and is about 15 degrees colder than at my house 2 miles away. Hardheaded for not trying something other than the sand crabs. Me thinks I am gonna go under the bridge and see if I can suck up some ghost shrimp for the next time. So that is your surf fish report from a Northern OC beach. No dogs pee'd on my junk tonight... that's a first in a very long time...
 
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I have only fished the jetty at Bolsa Chica once before and got skunked...I was drifting old smelt.. it was about 10 years ago, it was another get me out of the house thing, didn't care if I caught anything that night..anyhooo @Larry wants to give it a try so I went and scouted the place out and to see if I could gather up some ghost shrimp and gather some info on the layout at low tide around 6pm tonight. Not a sign of ghost shrimp. Not a fan of fishing low tides, but after tonight I found a way around the tide dilemma. I spent an hour or so looking for shrimp and then I spent an hour or so fishing the state beach side after I gathered some sand crabs and even tried some Berkeley perch grubs....nothing. I crawl up the rocks and head over to the dog beach side. I get there make few casts with a really bad attitude about a low tide and fishing on the jetty...about the 3rd cast I say to myself this is it. I am done "last cast" I say to myself, the sun was barely above the san andres mt right over Long Beach and as soon as I real this thing in I am gonna break the bad news to @Larry about no luck...no sooner than that thought crosses my mind I slip on those jagged edge muther pucking boulders covered in barnicles and baby mussels and I ricochet off the rocks in to the Ocean about 3/4s of me gets wet and I got skinned up on a few places with jetty rock rash. Now I am pissed OFF. And I say a lot of cuss words that everybody within a mile could hear me. I am soaked bleeding and mad as a cage badger. So I said there is no way I am leaving now you son of a girl dog! NO WAY. I am gonna fish until I am exhausted so i don't mope back to my rig bleeding and miserably wet with no fish. So I gather myself together. I keep a Wool pull over in my bag cuz I don't like being surprised. Not like the other night when I went totally unprepared. Wool is amazing kept my core warm and I was good. Things went OFF after that. SandCrabs are just incredible bait. I spent another hour or so catching fish and I missed a monster.... but managed to get his brother...or sister. They were still biting when I left ...I was start'n to stiffen up a little from the ricochet 40347
 
Ugh... sorry man. Glad your slip-and-fall didn't turn out expensive like mine did. (Thinking after this years season I need to have them go in there and yank the plate and all the screws in my wrist. It bugs constantly.)

Is that a .17 HMR cartridge for size reference there? That is one heckuva good sized fish man!
 
Ugh... sorry man. Glad your slip-and-fall didn't turn out expensive like mine did. (Thinking after this years season I need to have them go in there and yank the plate and all the screws in my wrist. It bugs constantly.)

Is that a .17 HMR cartridge for size reference there? That is one heckuva good sized fish man!
.223 round
Don't be sorry! It was a hoot. I need to scope it out. There was some kind of divine intervention there. I was ready to hoof it out of there. Got a spot to fish so its all good. I was pissy about the jetty cuz I never hear of anything being caught there. My Bad.... And it helped me hone my surf fishing. Having you suggest going down there was a blessing. I don't hook that monster if I don't scout for you and you boy. The rocks there have got to weight 10 tons a piece. That's why I cussed the jetty. I was wearing water shoes full of sand taboot and that was like walking with sandpaper on my feet trying to act like a goat carrying my bag and a pole. The Record for Spotfin Croaker is 30in 9lbs
 
Oh damn! That's a .223 round? Whoa!... That's a damn good sized fish!
 
croakers right?
ya those are nice fish, I have had better luck off the jetty...
so you did well with those little sand dabs, crabs, fleas. lol
how did you setup your rig just to compare notes..
I like to use swivels with beads to keep it off the bottom.
I lose lots of setups at the rocks lol
 
croakers right?
ya those are nice fish, I have had better luck off the jetty...
so you did well with those little sand dabs, crabs, fleas. lol
how did you setup your rig just to compare notes..
I like to use swivels with beads to keep it off the bottom.
I lose lots of setups at the rocks lol
The trick is to not let the rig bang on the rocks, If you have ever done river fishing in a riffle you just drift the bait and when it gets about 5 ft from the rocks start reeling in. Once the bait stops drifting "fast" with the current. its gonna slowly make its way towards the rocks Don't let it drift into the rocks Work the current. Lots of casting. Not like fishing the surf. Its more like fishing a river like the American or the Sacramento rivers. You want it to look as natural as possible. I learned a lot about this yesterday thanks to @Larry getting me out there. One side of the jetty is a giant sand bar that you would see on a river. If the river is narrow enough I would fish off that sandbar. The jetty is so wide casting from the sandbar into the deep side didn't work for me, the current would take the bait right into 12in water. So I fished the deep side of the jetty casting straight out about 40 ft MAX and then letting the current drag the bait into the deep holes about 10 feet off the rocks. If the bait didn't settle into a hole and kept moving I would reel in. Not sure how this is going to work with an incoming tide there but we are gonna find out. 40362
 
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22in and I guess about 4lbs. I think I am gonna grab you son and take him into the surf and teach him while you figure out how to fish the high tide in the Jetty ;)

That might actually be quite the blessing. You know how kids are less patient when it's there own parent giving them instruction.
 

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