Great surf fishing continues this week with some outstanding
fish reports. I tried to get down to
the beach several times this weeks as the tide was rising from high to
low. Because corbina and spotfin are
only eating the largest soft crabs it took quite a while to find the perfect
bait. Although there are more sand
crabs at the beach than I’ve ever seen most are hard and softies are tough to
come by.
We have had a southwest swell and now a combined south swell
pushing warm clear water up the beach.
The temperature has risen to around 70 degrees, which is up from 65 last
week. I found a good trough to fish and
flung out the Carolina rig and sand crab.
The perch bite has been so wide-open they have turned into a menace and
you really have to work to get through them to catch the big one.
Luckily, this yellowfin found my bait and got there before
the perch!
In the meantime I hooked this huge (24+” wings) sting ray
and took me for a ride. Lifeguards have
been treating dozens of folks with “stings” so please remember to shuffle your
feet when walking our and back in the surf.
If you are unlucky enough to meet up with one soak the area in the
hottest water you can stand and it will quickly reduce the pain…
Besides plenty of big corbina swimming around the surf has
been full of little guys like this…
Time was running short and I had one big softy left. I cast it out—but not even a tick. I decided to walk down the beach a piece and
ask another angler how he was doing.
Perch for him too so I moved on about 100 yards and cast out. Once my bait hit the bottom my line
stretched out in the current and ran north.
Line pulled tight, rod tip bent and I was on. I fought the fish up and down the beach for about ten minutes
until she washed up on the shore. Warren
was nice enough to take my picture so I could quickly let her go…
Warmer water coming up from the south is never bad. This week I saw 17 corbina splashing on crab
beds in the shallow surf, 2 big spotfin fighting over a crab bed in four inches
of water and a school of grunion the size of home depot moving up the coast in
anticipation of their evening landing.
Surf fishing does not get better than this. Here are my suggestions for this upcoming 4th
of July week: I would watch the tides
and fish the period from low to high tide.
That’s not to say other tides might be good too—but fish are keying in
on sand crab beds and like to ride the tide up and over them. I would fish with a large soft sand crab,
mussel, ghost shrimp or bloodworm.
Morning and evening have been good.
If I were to fish for halibut I would go to www.fishthesurf.com and
click on the grunion run link and fish beaches just after the previous evening’s
run. Lastly, I’d move along the beach
to try to cover as much sand as possible in hopes of finding the really big one
and catching it!
Check out my seminar page for information on the upcoming
on-the-beach seminar in San Diego at South Carlsbad State Beach on July 19 and
20th. Have a great 4th and
remember: “There is a fine line between
standing on the beach and catching fish and standing on the beach and looking
like an idiot!” unknown…
Home of the All-in-One Surf Tackle Kit
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