Braved the tsunami warnings and made my way down to the beach on Friday to find some huge waves. The interval was insane. No more than about 2 seconds between 6’ sets for two hours. For surfers--lots and lots of paddling and very little surfing!Rustled up some bait from the rocks. The usual characters: sidewinders and littleneck clams. With the water still cold in the OC I knew they were still enjoying these baits. The big question was whether the fish could get to the bait with such strong current.
After a dozen casts my first perch was a medium sized barred perch. He nibbled the crab then crushed it to pieces.
Then came one on the clam.
And the biggest gal back on the sidewinder.
Great flowers blooming on the beach right now must mean springtime is on the way. Bring on the corbs and spotfin!
Well, now we will have to wait for the weather to clear up before we'll get another shot at the trash can lid sized perch. This week has some small tides and it looks like we will see rain and wind most of the week. That means it's a good time to work on your equipment, rigging and baits. The following week has some good tides and our season's first grunion run ( you really know it's spring when you see that!). Look for halibut fishing after the run to heat up along with just about every other surf fish.
I'm still working on the times for Fred Hall seminars at Del Mar and will up date my site as soon as my schedule becomes avalilable. Until then stay dry and pray for bites!
surf fishing report, Orange County California
