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All,
To make a long story short, JMIG, BEAN and I usually go fishing someplace new every summer. Since the war screwed up our plans we will have to postpone until fall, Oct - Nov time frame. Since time will be limited (week) JMIG and I are looking to do some west coast fishing. We are after big fish so saltwater is the main focus. I have never fished the west coast south of Washington. I know some of you have and would like some ideas. I would love to say money is no object, but, the hard truth is Mrs IFG would get half in court so to presevre the peace it has to be. Try to keep it around a grand. I would love to go on one of the offshore Tuna trips out of San Deigo but I don't know anything about them or anyone who has gone. They seem a little spendy to me and I don't think I have the gear. I have all kinds of offshore stuff but its all trolling gear. If I have to spend a grand on a couple of Newell two speeds I'd be outdoors. While the Llamas are warm and fuzzy, Mrs IFG smells a lot better than they do. Has anyone ever fished Oregon or California for Halibut? I'd love ideas from you guys. Thanks for any help.
IFG
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hey IFG take a 2or 3 day albacore it wont break your bank a penn 6/0 with 80# for trolling a 3/0 or 4/0 with 40# if they are taking the paint off the side of the boat and a penn jigmaster with 25# s hould suffice you could also keep an eye on the catalina reports that would be a little early for live squid but if the water gets cold enough they could float then its large calicos and white seabass for all maybe even some BIG home guard yellowtail best of luck to you where ever you end up
aquaman
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Here are the two sportfishing outfits out of San Diego that have treated me well (price and service) and have almost always put me on fish. Check out their prices and schedules. Do a long-range multi-day tuna trip into Mexican waters.
[url "http://www.hmlanding.com/"]http://www.hmlanding.com/[/url]
[url "http://www.pointlomasportfishing.com"]http://www.pointlomasportfishing.com[/url]
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Aman,
Is that out of San Deigo? Do you have a boat that you have fished with? I have no idea what calico or seabass are. I have caught yellowtails but they are snapper in Fla and don't get very big. I looked up yellowtails on the web and they appear to be what I caught off Baha, but, they called them Mossbacks, do you know if they are the same thing? Our guide said the ones we got were "puppies" and they were all 20#+. If so I think that would be a hoot since the 20#ers gave all I wanted. I have 3 penn 114H's with 50# and several 309M's with 20#, I also have a 2, 9/0 Diawas without line but I'll have to find them. The Penns are mated to custom 5' full rollers with a bunch of backbone and flex tips, think that will sufice? The 9/0 are currently without rods but that could change. Any additional info would be awesome. Thanks for the reply.
IFG
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yeah your mossbacks are yellewtails sounds like you have all you need short of a 80# trolling rod
aquaman
p.s. h&m and point loma are out of S.D.
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[cool]I've fished the whole coast, from Southern Cal to Washington. October and November can be iffy...weatherwise. That's when the big Pacific storms start moving in...usually by the middle of October in a "normal" year.
All the larger salmon are up in the rivers by that time, but are dark colored and not good eating. There are stripers coming back into the San Francisco bay, after a summer in the open ocean, and of course sturgeon and sharks...also known locally as "mud marlin".
From San Francisco northward, you can still get some nice halibut...if the weather lets you get out of the harbors. Some will still be in water less than 100 feet deep, although the best shallow water fishing is during the early summer. After spawning, the big halibut usually head for deeper water. These flatties are California halibut, not the giant northern halibut that grow to be several hundred pounds. You don't start getting into those until you reach northern Oregon, and not in quantity much below British Columbia.
By October, the albacore have turned west and are headed for Japan. They are not likely to be within reach of most boats.
This is the time of year that "rock fish" fill the dance cards on most short trips along the coast. Depending on where you go out of, you can plan on fishing anywhere from sixty feet deep to six hundred feet deep. Your catch will be a whole range of species collectively called "rock cod". some reach weights of thirty pounds or more, and all are great eating. The boat trips are reasonable and you can rent any gear you do not have for only a few bucks a day.
If you want to fish the moving waters, for steelhead and salmon, this is the time...before the big storms fill them with mud and debris. If you have never caught a big steelie, that needs to go on your "do before you die" list.
Further south, you can still count on catching a few yellowtail, along with the bonitos and barracudas, around Catalina Island and the Coronados. If you want a Mexican adventure, without paying the prices for a multiday boat trip, head south of San Diego to Ensenada...a free port a couple of hours south. I have taken good yellowtails down there until after Thanksgiving some years.
By the way, the yellowtail of California is not a snapper. it is closely related to the jacks. "mossbacks" or "homeguard" yellows are the ones that grow over 40 or 50 pounds and tend to hang out in one area a lot. In New Zealand, this species of fish is known as the "kingfish" and they reach weights in excess of 90 pounds over there.
If you search out some of the smaller landings, outside the big cities, you can often find better rates and better service...as well as fishing grounds that are not as badly abused.
Pick an area and surf the net. For example, if you enter "San Francisco Bay fishing" in a search engine, there are hundreds of good informational sites to help you keep up on what is going on. Many sites have message boards and chatrooms, to allow local anglers to post info and swap tips.
As it gets closer to the time of your departure, post your intended destination and the species you will be targeting and you should be able to get some more specific input.
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[url "http://www.bigfishtackle.com/cgi-bin/gforum/gforum.cgi?post=40088;sb=post_latest_reply;so=ASC;forum_view=forum_view_collapsed;;page=unread#unread"][size 1]GRAPHITE USA / BOOYAA ULTRA LIMITED LOAD[/size][/url]
[font "Comic Sans MS"][size 3]Check out Booya1's Trip for Oct 16. I've been eyeing this up pretty hard. You guys go and I'll book my resevations too! Should see good exotics because of the warm waters.[/size][/font]
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