Seal Beach Pier 8/14

#1
I arrived at Seal Beach Pier on an incoming tide at about 6:30 PM, yesterday. The nearby Eisenhower Park appeared to be very crowded, with lots of families and dog-walkers. Anglers in the surf area had some success, with one catching a small Yellowfin Croaker, but they were all using mussels. I made my way down the pier, but I could not determine the success of the other anglers. At the end, which seemed to have a large congestion of anglers, I saw a large school of Topsmelt under the pier, and one angler had successfully caught one of the smelt on cut anchovy. I noticed other anglers using very large tackle, with one angler even using a Sculpin rig.

I set up at the end of the pier, directly across from the Oil Boat Landing (which has always been a good spot, as there is some structure underneath that part of the pier). I fished one rod with a triple dropper loop rig with size 10 live bait hooks baited with squid strips on a 2 oz torpedo sinker (which received nibbles the entire time) and a 6 lb flurocarbon leader, one rod with a Lucky Lura Sabiki with size 8 hooks, one rod with a carolina rig with a 2/O live bait hook with a whole squid on a 3 oz egg sinker and a 15 lb mono leader, and a hoop net baited with some Salema that I had caught on a previous trip. I also had another rod rigged with a small sardine-colored jig from Daiso Japan on a 6 lb flurocarbon leader for Bonito, that remained out of the water for most of the trip.

The bite was steady, and I feel that if I had smaller hooks, I would've caught more fish. The squid received much more attention than the Sabiki, but I did receive some action on the Sabiki. I noticed that other anglers were getting their bait cleaned off by the Topsmelt, but I did see a small Jacksmelt caught next to the boat dock on chunks of anchovy. I also saw one angler fishing at the very end, using squid strips on a double dropper loop rig catch a Round Stingray. Lots of kelp was drifting by, and I was contantly pulling Red Algae and Eelgrass off of my line.

At about 7:45, I noticed a few jumping Topsmelt, and casted my jig. I intially snagged a nearby kelp patty, then I hooked a nearby plant that was growing on the bottom. On my third cast, I felt the familiar "bump" of a fish. I assumed that I had hooked a small mackerel or smelt by the jiggling of the line. As I reeled my line in, I saw the familiar shade of blue moving directly towards the pier, and the fish then turned on its side and I saw the pattern. Bonito! I immediately began to reel as fast as I could, pulling the fish out of the water. Only then did the Bonito begin to put up a fight, as it began to thrash around on the deck of the pier. I bled the fish out and put it into my cooler. Afterwards, the surface action had died down, and I put away the extra rod and recasted my Sabiki.

After the sunset, the bite died down. I had gotten only a couple fish on the Sabiki, while the rest (minus the Bonito) were on the squid. Other anglers did not have much success either, and began to leave. I pulled in my hoop net for the final time, and only found Red Algae coating the entire net. The hoop net and my heavy setup received no action the entire trip. I donated the rest of my bait to another group of anglers who were just arriving with a bucket of mackerel as their bait. I left at about 9:15 PM. On the way back in, I noticed the angler with the small YFC had also caught a much larger Spotfin Croaker. The other surf fishermen had left by this point.

Tips/Notes:
-Smaller-sized hooks will catch more fish
-Squid is much more durable than cut fish, even though it is less oily
-Always have a rod ready for pelagics, whether you are pier or boat fishing

Fish Count:
-3 Pacific Chub Mackerel
-2 Jacksmelt
-1 Pacific Bonito
-1 Pacific Butterfish

(I will try to post pictures later)
 

Ken Jones

Administrator
Staff member
#4
I missed you by one day. I was down in the southland for a film shoot on Wednesday at the Oceanside Pier. I decided to stop at "Big Fish" in Seal Beach for some bait and since I was running early decided to fish at the Seal Beach Pier for a couple of hours before heading further south. I threw out a Sabiiki on one rod (using the green-colored Sabiikis that many prefer for mackerel) with a hi/low on the second rod. I fished from 2:50-5:35 p.m. just past where the gates are at near the end section—and the mackerel were running. I'm not a fan of Sabikis but they do produce when fish are around. Most of the mackerel were the small-sized variety but a half dozen were the larger variety. The bonito surprised me but it was a pleasant surprise. I will give a longer report tomorrow.
The visit produced:
33 Pacific mackerel
3 Salema
3 Grunion (a little surprising)
1 Pacific Bonito
1 Queenfish
1 Topsmelt.
 
#5
I missed you by one day. I was down in the southland for a film shoot on Wednesday at the Oceanside Pier. I decided to stop at "Big Fish" in Seal Beach for some bait and since I was running early decided to fish at the Seal Beach Pier for a couple of hours before heading further south. I threw out a Sabiiki on one rod (using the green-colored Sabiikis that many prefer for mackerel) with a hi/low on the second rod. I fished from 2:50-5:35 p.m. just past where the gates are at near the end section—and the mackerel were running. I'm not a fan of Sabikis but they do produce when fish are around. Most of the mackerel were the small-sized variety but a half dozen were the larger variety. The bonito surprised me but it was a pleasant surprise. I will give a longer report tomorrow.
The visit produced:
33 Pacific mackerel
3 Salema
3 Grunion (a little surprising)
1 Pacific Bonito
1 Queenfish
1 Topsmelt.
That sounds like a great trip! I understand what you mean about sabikis, and I only use them when I see intense surface action. I've found that sabikis are only good for mackerel, sardines, and anchovies, which is why I tie dropper loop rigs with several hooks instead.