Sunday, August 17, 2014

There were a few halibut taken on the bar this weekend, both by fishermen and divers. Hog Island gave up a few as well. There were a few schools of anchovies moving into the bay this morning so there may be a salmon or two in the bay now. There was a bit of a salmon bite this morning in the usual spots but after that it was a grind without much payoff. The average number of fish taken per boat hovered around one today with a couple of limits and more than a few skunks. As the salmon bite slows a bit the rockfish catch is starting to increase. More mackerel are being caught, and while most are being thrown back I recommend using them for live (or dead) bait for lings and halibut. Lingcod in particular enjoy the speedy critters. You may need to slow them down before your target species can get a hold of them, though.
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6 comments:

  1. AnonymousAugust 18, 2014 at 3:53 PM

    Im a bit nervous sometimes to attempt shooting the mouth, any tips?

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  2. Willy VoglerAugust 18, 2014 at 6:27 PM

    I have a habit of shooting my mouth off too much, but I think that you're asking about the mouth of the bay. That mouth, the bar in particular, can be deadly when the swell is up. The basic rule is not to go out if the swell is over 6 feet high, especially if the period is longer than 10 seconds. Long period swells pack a lot of energy and make for big breakers. By all means, give us a call at (707)878-2443 for our opinion of the bar that day.

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  3. AnonymousAugust 19, 2014 at 4:09 PM

    thanks for the response. What website do you recommend for looking up the ocean weather

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  4. AnonymousAugust 19, 2014 at 4:43 PM

    After reading this I double checked the regs and pacific halibut is closed until Sept 1st. Are you talking California halibut?

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  5. Willy VoglerAugust 20, 2014 at 7:59 AM

    There's some decent links on the left of the home page, especially the Bodega Bay weather buoy. Also try stormsurf at this link http://stormsurf.com/locals/ncal.shtml andd click on Bodega Bay.

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  6. Willy VoglerAugust 20, 2014 at 8:01 AM

    Yes, California halibut is the only halibut that we expect to catch. I know of one Pacific halibut caught in Tomales Bay in my lifetime. To target the Pacifics you need to go out pretty deep and be very lucky.

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