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Just booked our family trip to Disneyland and we'll have a free Saturday. I really want to go to the beach and fish off a pier. The BFT California forum is not very active. Can anyone recommend any sites, people, locations, tackle rental shops, etc. This will be my first time fishing in the ocean, and I'll be with my 13 year-old (the rest of the kids will probably be playing in the sand and surf). I don't want to go out on a boat, just fish from a pier.
Thanks in advance!
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We have a trip planned late September to the Disneyland and I would also be interested in any and all information that could be provided on some pier fishing.....
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Looking at Google Maps, Huntington Pier is the closest pier to Disneyland. If a better fishing trip is to be found driving an hour farther up or down the coast, or inland to a different spot (Sierra Nevadas?), I'm game for any recommendations.
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You poor man. (Not now, but you certainly will be after Disneyland...) LOL!
It's forbidden to post links to other fishing forums here, but there are many of them that focus on SoCal fishing of all kinds. Start with the Calif. Fish and Game website.
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We just got back from Disneyland. We book Jakes locker out of Newport Beach. 2 of my friends have gone and they liked it. After going I have learned that this is not the time to fish the ocean if your expecting to catch "bigger fish." All the fish caught in the boat were 16" or under which was a shocker for me. We launched out of newport and actually fished directly out from Hunnington beach. The crew wasn't the best. They have a fish count on their website every day but I'm not sure where they get their #'s from because they had no clue of what people were catching on the boat that I was on. To their credit, they did say this was their "down time" of the year so I was taking it that we wasn't fishing their good spots or probably even the regular guides or captains. If I was to do it over again I would fish off the pier like you said. Hunnington should have a peir, just take a rod and some 1-2 oz weight and buy some bait there. That's what I would do if I go back.
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Send me a pm and I'll dial you in.
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Just learned that fishing off a pier in California does not require a license. Cool!
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[#0000FF]Huntington Beach is where I (mis)spent a lot of my younger years...surfing, fishing and checking out the finer points of femininity.
Spent many hours dangling lines off that pier. Caught many different species...from small to pretty big.
You didn't say what time of year you were going. That can make a big difference in the type of fishing you will have available, where you should fish along the pier and what kinds of tackle and bait you should use.
Most of the year you can count on catching a few surf perch and corbina right in the surf zone...using light rods and small hooks...baited with sand crabs, clams or mussels.
Further out you can soak pieces of anchovy for a multitude of species...or jig next to the pilings for queenfish, perch, smelt, etc. Some of those make good bait to throw out away from the pier to fish live for halibut or other larger fish.
Out around the end...depending on time of year, water temps and clarity, current weather conditions, etc...you can catch anything from mackerel to croakers...fishing anywhere from just below the surface to down on the bottom...using anchovies or other cut bait.
The good news is that unless you are going to be soaking some big baits for halibut or sharks you can get by with medium freshwater spinning gear and 10# line. Just be sure to rinse everything in fresh water after your trip or your reel may not turn very well next time you use it.
If you enter "Huntington Beach Pier, CA" into your favorite search engine you will find a few websites that can provide good additional info. There are also several bait shops in the area and used to be at least one right on the pier. They can clue you in on the best spots, baits and techniques.
Good luck. I was down there last year but it is a whole new pier from the days of my youth (big storm damage). Couldn't even find a trace of the surf board I wrapped around a piling while shooting the pier during a big south swell. But I still got some scars.
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Thanks for the tips. Going in June. I am finding a lot of information on the web. There are at least 5 piers within 90 minutes drive of Anaheim, that I can tell. Gonna have to decide which to hit, or spend the money for a license and try one of the bays. Gonna take me until June just to make a decision. I hate planning so much for one day of fishing, because I have in my mind that it's gotta be the perfect day (place, gear, etc.) and I get paranoid that I'm not making the right decisions. When I fish so infrequently I get so antsy about each outing being a "perfect fishing trip". I need to learn to relax, take what comes, and just simply have fun.
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It sounds crazy, but when I lived in Oceanside I used to fish off the pier with night crawlers. The locals thought I was crazy , but I caught fish. You can take the boy outta Idaho . . .
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Alright here is a little something different. As with TD, I spent many days in this part of the world and have had some very formative times on those beaches. Attached is a Google earth screen shot of a spot near Bolsa Chica just off of PCH. It is an access beach to the marina, we would take our float tubes and fish the marina dragging live ghost shrimp on the bottom with light to medium tackle. We caught everything that could be caught out of that marina. Something to think about. Look at the bottom of the pic, you can see the GPS coordinates.
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[#0000FF]Ahhhh June! The best of times and the worst of times. Some of the best fishing for the most species but also the time when the beaches are packed with sun worshipers...and others. If you want to fish the piers you have to get there early, dump about a pound of quarters in the parking meters (no free parking any more) and be prepared for lots of company. Besides a lot of other "pier rats" there will be hordes of tourists and locals walking the piers and bugging the anglers. "Catchin' anything?" Make a fun game out of it. Keep a clicker on a cord around your neck and keep count. Then you can reply "Well, that's 110 counting you."
June is a great time for halibut. Fish live or dead anchovies out away from the pier. Make a long cast and then periodically lift and drop slowly back to the pier. If a fish picks it up, freespool for a ways and wait for the fish to stop. Then reel down until you feel weight and set the hook. Might even be a banjo shark, shovelnose shark or a bat ray.
Out on the end of the pier there are sometimes a few bonito, barracudas, sand bass or even a stray small yellowtail once in a while. But catching them requires specialized tackle and techniques.
Good luck. Hopefully the time passes quickly and you are able to find good weather and good fishing.
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I miss SoCal ocean fishing so bad! I was in the Navy stationed in Coronado for 10 years and fished almost daily! Yes, the municipal piers are free to fish and dont require a licence. In the early summer, the fishing can get real good! The halibut (yes there are halibut in Southern California) come in the bays to spawn! If you ever get a chance to go down October - March, lobster fishing is awesome too! They are every bit as good tasting as the New England bugs, just dont have the big claws...[inline Butt.jpg]
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