Rockfish is closed and halibut is over. The crabbing is slow but some people are still getting a few keepers. Surfperch and clamming are probably the best bets for a while. Clamming should be very interesting this year considering that the Gulf of the Farallones National Marine Sanctuary has new regulations the will be going into effect this spring that will ban anchoring on the clam islands. You'll still be able to dig for clams but not drop your anchor. This law is to protect the eelgrass beds. Eelgrass absolutely needs protection, however this law only punishes people who remember to set their boat's parking brake. The closed area is mapped above. How it will be marked on the water remains to be seen, and an unmarked "no parking" area will be very hard to ticket. It's almost like they want us to bring back some kind of clam barge....

It is still possible to catch enough Dungeness for dinner but you'd better have a backup plan just in case. Inside Tomales Bay is probably the best bet, but not by a large margin. The rockfishing is excellent and the lingcod have finally come in to spawn. Rockfish closes on Sunday night and the weather should be good this weekend so if you want any more fish this year, now's the time.

According to the news reports the Dungeness crabbing is very slow. They are correct. There are some sport-sized crabs to be caught, not many, but people are catching a few for dinner. There are probably as many being caught in the bay as out at Ten Mile. The rockfishing was very slow during the nice weather last weekend but has drastically improved since. On Wednesday three boats limited on rockfish in 90 minutes. The best bite was pushing the 120' mark from Elephant Rock south.

More effort than success to report. Most people crabbing are catching enough for a nice crab dinner as long as there aren't too many guests. Ten Mile beach is loaded with crab pots, sport and commercial. The outer bay has a bit less effort and even less crab. Tomales Bay proper has had a pretty good showing, especially for a slow year. I had felt pretty good last Tuesday with 8 crabs for 8 pots on Ten Mile until I spoke to a man who had landed 6 crabs with two pots on the pier. Rockfishing is slow for most but a large number of mackerel and sardines are off of Ten Mile so fresh bait is available and fun to catch on light tackle.

The weather was great on Friday and most of Saturday, giving crabbers and fishermen a chance to go outside the bay. The outer bay held a few legal Dungeness and many, many short ones. Ten Mile beach was very particular about where the pots were placed and what the pots were baited with. Apparently, hanging bait is great if you want starfish and red crab. Otherwise, stick with squid. Rockfish catches varied from quick limits of quality fish for some to others scratching for a few keepers. Elephant reef seemed to be the most reliable place to catch decent numbers.