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It's been quite some time since I posted a report but that doesn't mean I haven't been wetting my fair share of lines; lots of day trips from SF as far as the Carmel Highlands on the south end and up past Salt Point on the north. Over the past six months I've really taken a shine to the Sonoma coast up past Jenner-- everywhere with "Cove" in its name and northward. The water's deep, the sandstone structures are like grip tape on my boots, and the fish tend to be large and hungry.
This time I was looking at borderline (but still manageable) swells, an outgoing tide for the whole morning and early afternoon, and the chance of some wet weather. Since the swells would keep me away from spots around Timber Cove, Jenner, and even some prime spots around Salt Point State Park, I decided to study the maps and explore some new spots in the same area.
Moving past Salt Point State Park's Gerstle Cove Campground-- but still staying within the Salt Point SMCA-- you're afforded a range of cast out spots that are an easy, even hike-in from numerous turnouts, and tend to have ledges that are high enough to keep you dry even if the swells aren't cooperating.
One of the areas I explored had a winning combination of things I look for in a rockfishing location:
- Ledges comprised of sandstone or other rock that isn't as prone to becoming slippery when wet.
- Ledges high enough to cast out from and keep my line from rubbing against structure closer to shore.
- Water 10ft or deeper within reasonable casting distance.
- An easily accessible section that was close to the water and could be use to land a fish if it turned out to be too large to haul up the cliffside.
- Safe access to tidal pools that allow for cleaning and bleeding of harvested fish.
- A variety of structure (channels, kelp beds, rocky structure to target and explore).
Here is a 40 second video I shot of the general structure I was working with:
It took a few casts to get a feel for where the deep pockets were that I could cast to and not get my rig hopelessly hung up, but once I sorted that out things were rockin. Greenlings, Perch, Rockfish, and cabs were the order of the day. No legal greenlings for me per usual, but the cabezon bite was unreal; I hit my legal limit early on (even after releasing a couple 15"ers) and kept catching & releasing legals well after. It was my first time successfully catching quality sized groundfish with circle hooks and allowed me to experiment with different setups. I also managed to nab my PB grass rockfish clocking in at 16.25" and a nice 12" striped surfperch to round things out. A cooler this full is an aberration in my experience, not the norm, and I was a very happy camper, not the least because there was enough cab here to share with friends and family, which always brings me pleasure.
A limit of cabs-- my first-- all a little bigger than 17". I continued to catch and release other similarly sized cabezon till the end of the day.
My PB grassy at a little over 16.25". 4/0 and 5/0 circle hooks with huge hunks of squid felt like cheating at times but it helped keep the smaller fish at bay.
I prefer firmer-fleshed fish, but I've started to settle in on some recipes that are amenable to the perch's softer meat. Good thing too because I can never seem to not catch these guys.
Definitely not the norm but I'll take it.
With October in full swing it's only a matter of time before some of these spots are closed off for a few months due to larger swells and inclement weather, but that will just encourage more exploration. Something I always look forward to.
This time I was looking at borderline (but still manageable) swells, an outgoing tide for the whole morning and early afternoon, and the chance of some wet weather. Since the swells would keep me away from spots around Timber Cove, Jenner, and even some prime spots around Salt Point State Park, I decided to study the maps and explore some new spots in the same area.
Moving past Salt Point State Park's Gerstle Cove Campground-- but still staying within the Salt Point SMCA-- you're afforded a range of cast out spots that are an easy, even hike-in from numerous turnouts, and tend to have ledges that are high enough to keep you dry even if the swells aren't cooperating.
One of the areas I explored had a winning combination of things I look for in a rockfishing location:
- Ledges comprised of sandstone or other rock that isn't as prone to becoming slippery when wet.
- Ledges high enough to cast out from and keep my line from rubbing against structure closer to shore.
- Water 10ft or deeper within reasonable casting distance.
- An easily accessible section that was close to the water and could be use to land a fish if it turned out to be too large to haul up the cliffside.
- Safe access to tidal pools that allow for cleaning and bleeding of harvested fish.
- A variety of structure (channels, kelp beds, rocky structure to target and explore).
Here is a 40 second video I shot of the general structure I was working with:
It took a few casts to get a feel for where the deep pockets were that I could cast to and not get my rig hopelessly hung up, but once I sorted that out things were rockin. Greenlings, Perch, Rockfish, and cabs were the order of the day. No legal greenlings for me per usual, but the cabezon bite was unreal; I hit my legal limit early on (even after releasing a couple 15"ers) and kept catching & releasing legals well after. It was my first time successfully catching quality sized groundfish with circle hooks and allowed me to experiment with different setups. I also managed to nab my PB grass rockfish clocking in at 16.25" and a nice 12" striped surfperch to round things out. A cooler this full is an aberration in my experience, not the norm, and I was a very happy camper, not the least because there was enough cab here to share with friends and family, which always brings me pleasure.
A limit of cabs-- my first-- all a little bigger than 17". I continued to catch and release other similarly sized cabezon till the end of the day.
My PB grassy at a little over 16.25". 4/0 and 5/0 circle hooks with huge hunks of squid felt like cheating at times but it helped keep the smaller fish at bay.
I prefer firmer-fleshed fish, but I've started to settle in on some recipes that are amenable to the perch's softer meat. Good thing too because I can never seem to not catch these guys.
Definitely not the norm but I'll take it.
With October in full swing it's only a matter of time before some of these spots are closed off for a few months due to larger swells and inclement weather, but that will just encourage more exploration. Something I always look forward to.
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