Fishing Forum

Saltwater Yellowtail Bonanza Hopes Fading Fast!

Here we are in mid-September and the dreams of an early Yellowtail bonanza are gone with further disapointments on that bite continuing up here in the northern half of Southern California. Now, San Diego is a different story with the yellows again putting on a show in the last few days with excellent counts.

We may have been spoiled by the fantastic White Sea Bass fishing we had in the early spring up here and the early albacore showing up off San Diego.

Although we will be seeing larger yellows at Catalina and later at Santa Barbara being caught into late fall (good size are being caught now too at Catalina) there are also a large number of small 6 to 10 pound fish around with the intemediate size fish being scarce from reports I've read and my own experience going out 3 to 4 times a week.

Water conditions at both Clemente and Catalina are not the greatest and the water temps are not exactly great. ( high sixtys and low seventys)

Although I may be proven wrong (nothing new there), it's going to be a long rockfish season and action otherwise will be pretty much gotten by these long, boring boat rides for a couple of hours of wild fishin' on the big 5 species we look forward to catching locally.

With this prediction, tomorrow should be the start of the best yellowtail season in years! ha ha Crow is delicious when served in a humble pie.

The red tides have not helped the shore anglers much either although that is a temporary condition that shouldn't last over 3 to 4 weeks overall normally.

JapanRon
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[cool] Hey JR, we're going to have to go into drastic measures now in SoCal. I've gone from almost bare sleeping at night to a light blanket now and then before you know it, its like 90 degrees by 11:am. That marine layer sets in here in the SFV and then burns off real fast. But that is why God invented LMB. yeeeee haaaaaa. Hey, going tubin Sat at Castaic. Got time to join my son and I up there? 5am till about 10??? Should be exceptional bluegill, LMB and someone has spotted a few trout only available from the tubes down in the lagoon.
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Hi there tubeN2 and son,

I've got 'mom duty' (not really a burden) Saturdays and 'get ready for the next weeks fishin' Sundays but it sure will be fun fishing with you guys one of these days.

If they close Castiac to fishing, it will be interesting how they will justify abandoning the fish stocks if they have not already done so from last year and just did not tell us.

I honestly shudder at the thought of seeing thousands of scrawny, big headed fish desperatly snapping at anything to survive! I would never, I mean never fish in such a fishery and hope other sportsanglers wouldn't either. Better to poison the whole lot first!

A scary thought, Castiac may be the first in a list of lakes to be shut down. (That's if other lakes haven't been done in that I don't know about! ha ha)

I added a bit more to my original post for balance.

Good luck and have fun.

JapanRon
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