Recent content by Ken Jones

Back in the day when I would visit the dark side — and do some fishing from boats. A couple of stripers I caught when lived in the East Bay in 1977.

Although this weekend sees Mother's Day, I was thinking of Dad this morning and how after he retired he took up fishing. He lived on a hill overlooking Mission Bay in San Diego and would daily drive his Ford pickup down to the bay. Once there he would pump up his daily limit of 50 ghost shrimp...

Good job and thanks for the report.

https://risingsunnewspapers.co.za/288981/fisherfolk-march-to-open-up-all-beachfront-piers/

https://winknews.com/2024/05/08/caught-on-camera-teen-catches-alligator-while-fishing-for-peacock-bass/

In my opinion yes. There is often quite a difference in the boats themselves as well as the skills and attitudes of the skippers and there are some landings I will no longer use if and when I might decide to take another trip to the dark side. I decided to compare a couple of landing and...

Live/Fresh Versus Frozen Bait Live/Fresh Bait — There is no comparison between fresh fish used as bait and frozen fish. Although it’s true that there are times when any bait seems to work (as during a “mac attack”), generally you need good bait and fresh bait out performs frozen bait. By fresh...

Mudsuckers. This is the name given by anglers to the longjaw goby, Gillichthys mirabilis, and excellent bait for striped bass in the San Francisco Bay Area. Unlike bullheads (staghorn sculpin), you’ll generally have to seek out this bait instead of simply sitting back and waiting for the fish to...

Lizardfish. If there were a “Hall of Fame or perhaps Hall of Shame” for fish disliked by anglers, lizardfish, Synodus lucioceps would rank up near the top alongside the white croaker (aka kingfish, tomcod, and roncador). They are most common in cold-water years but when they show up they are...

Bullheads. This is the term commonly used for staghorn sculpin (Leptocottus armatus), one of most frequently caught fish on CenCal and NorCal piers, and a fish that is largely considered a nuisance. However, it is also one of the top baits for striped bass in the San Francisco Bay Area. Live...

Brown Bait — This is simply a term used for small white croaker, Genyonemus lineatus (aka tomcod or kingfish) and queenfish, Seriphus politus (aka herring) that are used for bait (generally live bait). Both are among the leading pier caught fish in southern California while white croaker are...

Mackerel. Two species of fish are sold as “mackerel” in California bait shops although only one is a true mackerel. The most commonly seen is the Pacific mackerel, Scomber japonicus, the true mackerel. Most often it is simply called mackerel but sometimes it is given the appellation chub, green...

Herring. The Pacific herring, Clupea harengus pallasi, is very similar to sardines as bait and used in the same manner. However, herring are primarily used as salmon bait in the north and will often cost more in a store than sardines if both are available. Locals who know what they are doing...

Sardines. There was a time when the commercial fishery for Pacific sardines, Sardinops caerulea, was the largest fishery in North America. Boats in California in the ‘30s and ‘40s saw peak catches of as much as 700,000 metric tons. Monterey was the center of action, although the fishery extended...

Smelt/Silversides. Although not as good as live anchovies, 3-6-inch long smelt, are actually the main “live bait” used by most halibut fisherman in SoCal and the Bay Area. Small topsmelt, Atherinops affinis, and jacksmelt, Atherinopsis californiensis are the two species of “smelt” used although...