California Pier Report
September 2022 Fishing Report, Southern California (#278)
Remember that the lobster season is closed.
San Diego County Piers
Imperial Beach Pier – Reports indicate that the mackerel bite is good and that small bonito are also making a showing. This is the time to go! How To Get There: From I-5 take the Palm Ave. (Hwy. 75) exit and follow it to where Palm Ave. and Hwy. 75 divide. Follow Palm Ave. to Seacoast Dr., turn left and it will take you right to the pier.
Ocean Beach Pier — Liz at the Ocean Beach Pier Bait and Tackle had scant knowledge of what was being caught but said she did know people have been catching quite a few barracuda. I imagine some mackerel and bonito are also around. How To Get There: From the north, take I-5 to the Sea World Dr. exit and follow it until it turns off to Sunset Cliffs Blvd. From the south, take I- 5 to the Nimitz Blvd. exit, then follow that road to Sunset Cliffs Blvd. Follow Sunset Cliffs Blvd. to Newport Ave., turn right and follow the road to the pier parking lot.
Crystal Pier – Unfortunately the bait shop has closed and now need a reporter. How To get There: Take I-5 to Garnet Ave. then take Garnet west to the foot of the pier.
Pepper Park Pier — No report. We need a reporter! How To Get There: From I-5 take the 24th Street off-ramp west to Tidelands Avenue and go left (south) on Tidelands to the end.
Bayside Park Pier — No report. We need a reporter. How To Get There: From I-5 take the J Street off ramp and go west. Take J Street to Tidelands Ave.; turn right. Take Tidelands to Sandpiper Way; turn right. Take Sandpiper to Bayside Parkway, turn left and follow the road to the park.
Embarcadero Marina Pier — No report. We need a reporter. How To Get There: From the I-5 south, take the Front Street exit south to Market (just stay on Front Street, it runs into Market), take Market west to Harbor Dr. Turn left on Harbor Dr. and take it to 8th Ave., turn right onto Convention Way (formerly Harbor St.). Follow it a short block to 5th Ave. and the pier. It seems that with the new Convention Center the city is constantly working on these streets near the pier and renaming them; if you get confused remember that the park and pier are immediately to the southwest of the Convention Center. From I-5 North, approaching from the south, take the J Street exit, then go straight, three blocks up to Market, turn left and take it from there.
Ferry Landing Pier (Coronado) — Need a reporter although bass (kelp, sand and spotted) always seem to be around as well as a mix of sharays (mostly round stingrays and bat rays). How To Get There: From San Diego, take the Coronado Bay Bridge (Highway 75) to Coronado. Once over the bridg e you are on Third Street. Simply follow it to B Avenue, turn right, and follow it to the front of The Old Ferry Landing — the intersection of First Street and B Avenue. The pier sits behind the shops in the complex.
Shelter Island Pier — No report and we need a reporter. A report from Ray619 on Aug. 31 said, “Went fishing from 9pm to about 1230am. First 2.5 hours just a small ray on squid. Then around 1130pm...a nice run of mackerel. A bit bigger than usual. Caught all on strip squid with the assistance of a glow stick. Fun on spinning gear with 6-pound test.” How To Get There: Take I-5 or I-8 to Rosecrans (Hwy. 209) and go west, turn left at Shelter Island Dr. and follow the road until you see the pier and the entrance to the parking lot.
Oceanside Pier — A report from my friend Bill said the main action has been out at the end on small bonito and guys are having their own derbies on the fish (just hoping they aren’t keeping more than five). Funny thing is the mackerel are pretty much absent. He said the sharkers have also landed some good-sized sharays. Mid-pier is kicking out quite a few halibut but they are mostly shorts, 18-20 inches long and they are joined by sublegal-size white seabass. Inshore, anglers continue to pick up some nice spotfin croaker although the tides have been kind of funky and not cooperating too well with the guys who like to fish the morning shift. It is what it is. I would fish the pier on August amidst filming a segment from Channel 8 news (San Diego). My report: “I fished a short time after the filming but the fishing was very slow. I actually wasn’t feeling good and called it quits after an hour. I was very hot and it was very muggy and I think I just had too much sun. I needed to find a spot to relax and get a real cold drink (which I did). August 17, 2022, 10:45-11:45 a.m. Hours: 1.00, Fish: 3. 2 Queenfish; 1 Topsmelt.” How To Get There: From I-5 take Mission Blvd. west to Pacific, turn left and follow it to the pier.” How To Get There: From I-5 take Mission Blvd. west to Pacific, turn left and follow it to the pier.
Oceanside Harbor Pier — No recent reports but expect the occasional croaker, sargo and bass on the bottom, jacksmelt and possibly a bonito or two in the top waters. Some perch and bass may show while fishing by the rocks. I visited the pier on August 16. My report: “I had a meeting set up for late in the afternoon so had some time to fish this small pier. I had been here in May with desultory results and hoped for some improvement. When I arrived it was basically high tide so I decided to concentrate on the inshore rocks with one rod while casting parallel to the shoreline with the second rod (mainly using lug worms, some frozen mussels from my freezer, and some market shrimp). The rocks would produce most of the fish of which several were noteworthy. The first kelp bass I pulled from the rocks was nearly legal-size while the two garibaldi were large fish with their usual tenacious, rugged fight. Of course they had to be returned to the water. Two small fish were the rock blenny and the bay blenny. Although I have caught several rockpool blenny over the years, the bay blenny was a new species for me, the 132nd species (whoopee). A short visit but some fun fish. August 16, 2022, 12:00-2:30 p.m.
Hours; 2.50, Fish: 12. 4 Kelp Bass; 2 Garibaldi; 2 Topsmelt; 1 Opaleye; 1 Giant Kelpfish; 1 Rockpool Blenny; 1 Bay Blenny.” How To Get There: From I-5 take the Harbor Dr. exit off the freeway, follow it and it will wind down to the harbor; where the road splits stay to the right on North Harbor Dr., and follow it to the pier.
Orange County Piers
San Clemente Pier — Skyler at Hogan's Bait and Tackle (34320 Pacific Coast Hwy. says it’s pretty much all the normal stuff. Expect some corbina, croakers and surfperch inshore, some croakers, bass and small halibut mid-pier, and some small bonito at the end (remember the limit on the small bonito is five). There’s not much in the sharay department although quite a few leopard sharks have been showing up. I visited the pier on August 16. My report: “San Clemente is one of my favorite piers. It usually shows some good action and a good variety. Although anglers said the fishing had been good the day before, this day would not be the same. There was absolutely no water movement, which I always think is a bad sign and it would prove true again. The same anglers who said they caught halibut and white seabass the previous day would, like me, see few if any fish. Actually not a totally accurate statement since some anglers, using fresh mussels and fishing just inside the restroom area, showed some decent-sized spotfin croaker for their efforts. August 16, 2022, 7:55-10:40 a.m. Hours: 2.75, Fish: 11. 10 Jacksmelt (not exactly what I wanted but at least there were some decent-sized jacksmelt); 1 White Seaperch.” How to Get There: From I-5 take any of several exit streets west to El Camino Real, follow it to the center of town, and from there take Del Mar down to the pier.
Dana Harbor Pier — Skyler at Hogan's Bait and Tackle (34320 Pacific Coast Hwy. says it’s the normal bass, perch and small halibut providing most of the action. I would fish the pier on August 17. My report: “After the filming at Oceanside I would begin heading home (although spending the night in Newport Beach). I would stop at Hogan’s Bait and Tackle in Dana Point, get some additional lug worms—and a new reel. How about one more pier? I decided to head down to the small pier in the harbor. I would catch one spotfin croaker on lugworms and farmed what seemed a good strike but would stop after one hour. I still didn’t feel well, my back and legs were really hurting, and after an hour I needed to head to the hotel and a bed. Getting old? August 17, 2022, 1:50-2:50 p.m. Hours: 1.00, Fish: 1. 1 Spotfin Croaker.” How To Get There: The pier is located in the Dana Cove Park area of Dana Point Harbor. From the Pacific Coast Highway take Green Lantern Road south to the harbor, turn left on Cove Road, and follow it to the pier.
Balboa Pier — Our reporter Snookie says, “Things are really looking up this month. The end of the pier is loaded with fishermen until about ten a.m. They are catching lots and I mean lots of small mackerel plus some bonito (which are too small to keep more than 5, but they do). I have been getting my bait near them. The Spanish mackerel hang out there under the pier. The halibut love them. We have been getting lots of halibut and small White Seabass. On Monday there were 4 keeper halibut caught. My friend got his first keeper halibut this year at 25 inches on a sardine in the surf area. Yesterday, a day later he got a 29 incher on a sardine. He is a very happy man. What a beautiful fish. We have also gotten some Calico bass, but not quite at keeper size, just nice. Although it has been quite warm (hot) we usually get enough wind to keep us comfortable. How To Get There: From the Pacific Coast Highway take Newport Blvd. which will turn into Balboa Blvd., follow it west to Palm Street. Turn right and follow it to the pier and the adjacent parking lot.
Newport Pier — Generally the action mirrors, for the most part, that seen at Balboa although when the fishing is hot the mobs will be bigger and the railing space more limited. I imagine the holiday weekend will be a zoo. At least the end area should not be quite as crowded given the removal of the restaurant. How To Get There: From the Pacific Coast Highway take the Newport Blvd. turn off and proceed west watching for signs directing traffic to the pier. The pier sits at the foot of McFadden Place.
Huntington Beach Pier — We need a reporter. A report from evanluck on August 23 said, “Got to HB Pier around 4PM on Sunday with the intention to fish the incoming tide. High tide was around 6:10PM. Got on an intermittent mackerel bite with decent size fish. Got them on a Majorcraft Jigpara Spin, Sabiki, and a carolina rig with squid. My girlfriend was fishing a hi lo rig with squid and shrimp and got a smaller mackerel and jack smelt. As the sun was setting, bonito rolled in. Dramatic boils of baitfish had everyone target casting at boils. We got a hit on a float rig with a Sabiki. Thinking it was a mackerel I had my little cousin start reeling it in. As he got the fish above the water, I saw that it was a bonito and shouted “reel faster.” First bonito from a pier for us! Left around 7:30PM. Cooked up a couple mackerel for dinner, pan searing them coated with paprika and chipotle and finishing them in the oven with butter and lime. Added some mustard to stir-fried broccolini and crimini mushrooms with pickled beets and cucumber, radish salad. How To Get There: Highway 1 (Pacific Coast Highway) to Huntington Beach and the pier.”
Seal Beach Pier — Bdat(?) at Big Fish Bait & Tackle, 1780-C. Pacific Coast Hwy, said fishing has been fairly good. Anglers at the end continue to pull in mackerel while halibut show mid-pier and some croakers and perch inshore. As far as the sharays, it’s mostly bat rays and thornbacks. I visited the pier on August 15. My report: “Heading out on the pier I saw a couple of anglers calling it a day and I asked how they had done. “Good mackerel fishing on the left side of the pier just past the gates,” (near the end of the pier, about where the pier widens). I always say listen to the locals so that’s where I went. I would cast out two rigs, one a Sabiki with green feathers, the preferred Sabiki for mackerel anglers, and a second with a hi/low rigging (with a variety of baits (cut fresh mackerel, lug worms, pieces of market shrimp, and even some squid). The mackerel were indeed available and I managed a few fish in the time I was there. August 15, 2022, 2:50-5:35 p.m. Hours: 2.75, Fish: 42. 33 Pacific Mackerel (both small-sized and good-sized fish. Most were released but some were kept for fresh bait.); 3 Salema; 3 Grunion (a little surprising); 1 Pacific Bonito (a pleasant surprise); 1 Queenfish; 1 Topsmelt.” How To Get There: From the Pacific Coast Highway simply take Main St. west and follow it to the pier.
Los Angeles County Piers
Belmont Veterans Memorial Pier — Bdat(?) at Big Fish Bait & Tackle, 1780-C. Pacific Coast Hwy., said some small bonito are showing at Belmont along with a few croaker but he hasn’t heard of any halibut. A report from FishmanFishman on August 24 said, “A variety of fish caught this morning. Bonito and Mackeral caught on splasher/feather and Sabiki rigs around mid pier. Some short Sand Bass caught with live smelt and queenfish. Short Halibut on live smelt. Lots of baitfish in water. I caught and released a small Round ray and small Gray Smoothhound shark (99.9% sure). Haven't caught a shark in years! Lost one good size Bonito as it got close to pier. Bonito hit a sardine colored jig. Fun day! How To Get There: From the north take I-405 to the Lakewood Boulevard turnoff, and then go south to 7th Street, turn west (right) until you come to Ximeno Ave. and then turn left. Follow it to Livingston Dr. and go west. You will see signs by Ocean Ave. and Termino Ave. indicating the pier. From the south take the Pacific Coast Highway to 2nd. Street (Westminister becomes 2nd. Street when it crosses PCH), go west, follow to Livingston Dr. Follow it to signs by Ocean Ave. and Termino Ave. indicating the pier and parking lot.
Shoreline Aquatic Park Piers (Long Beach) — Expect the usual when casting straight out from the pier(s), some white croaker on the bottom and possibly some mackerel (or bonito) on top. Casting parallel to the shoreline rocks should produce a few croakers, some sargo and a possible perch using mussels, lugworms, or shrimp. How to Get There: From downtown Long Beach, take Pine Avenue south to Shoreline Drive. For the northernmost pier #1 follow Shoreline Avenue west and follow it around the lagoon to where the street ends. For the southernmost piers #2-#5 follow Shoreline Drive east to the markings for Shoreline Village, continue past the shopping complex, and follow the road out to near the end of the peninsula. You will see the piers
Pier J Piers (Long Beach) — White croaker are available most days as are a variety of fish, mackerel on top and rock frequenting species along the rocks. I fished the pier on August 18. My report: “I wanted to fish one more pier, the J Pier in Long Beach. I had only fished it once, been impressed, and wanted to see how it was during a summer visit. I would again fish two rods, one a light action rod that I used to fish around the inshore rocks (with lug worms), the other would be cast out straight or parallel to the rocks (with lug worms, cut mackerel, shrimp or squid); the inshore waters parallel to the shoreline proved more productive than a longer cast into deeper waters. The visit produced a nice mix of fish with a couple of decent-sized blackperch, a nice-sized opaleye, a large mackerel, and several more blenny, one another bay blenny (a new species and two in two days). August 18, 2022, 7:05-10:50 a.m. Hours: 3.75, Fish: 16. 3 Blackperch; 3 Shinerperch; 2 White Croaker; 2 Rockpool Blenny; 1 Opaleye; 1 Kelp Bass; 1 Pacific Mackerel; 1 Queenfish; 1 Topsmelt; 1 Bay Blenny.” How To Get There: From I-710 follow the signs saying S. Harbor Scenic Drive. From downtown Long Beach follow Queens Way past the Catalina Landing and on to the Queens Way Bridge over the water and take the S. Harbor Scenic Drive.
Cabrillo Pier (San Pedro) — Alex at the Rusty Hook, 245 N Gaffey St., San Pedro, said it’s about the same report as previous. Locals with know how are still catching halibut, most on soft baits using a Carolina-rig, while a few mackerel are showing up, assorted bass, and a variety of sharks and rays (mostly bat rays). He hasn’t had any reports of bonito. He says the local waters (including the bay/harbor and areas even out by the Horseshoe Kelp) are cooler for some reason than waters to the south; normally they are about the same. No reason why. A report from FishmanFishman on Aug. 31 said, “Good steady fish bite this morning at Cabrillo Beach pier. Caught Pacific and Spanish mackerel on squid, shrimp, anchovy, mackerel and metal jig. Caught Shiner perch, Queenfish, Topsmelt and a surprise, 7-inch, Bocaccio. Shiner perch on shrimp, Queenfish, Topsmelt and Bocaccio on Sabiki. Tried Shiner perch, Topsmelt and Queenfish as live bait, no hits.” How To Get There: Take the Harbor Freeway (I-110) south; it will turn into Gaffey St. Follow it to 22nd Street and turn left. Follow 22nd St. to Pacific Ave. and turn right. Follow Pacific Ave. to 36th Street and the entrance to Cabrillo Park.
Green Pleasure Pier (Avalon, Catalina Island) – Expect the normal species—kelp bass, rock wrasse, senorita, opaleye, halfmoon, and sheephead. How To Get There: The trick here is to get to Catalina. Ships and helicopters make the journey several times a day from the Port of Los Angeles, Long Beach, Newport Beach (near the Balboa Pier) and Dana Harbor. Information is available on all of these by calling the Avalon Chamber of Commerce on the Pleasure Pier (213) 510-1520 or the Visitor's Information & Service Center (213) 510-2500. Once in Avalon there should be no problem in finding the pier, which is located at the foot of Catalina Avenue.
Cabrillo Mole (Avalon, Catalina Island) — Expect the normal species—kelp bass, rock wrasse, senorita, opaleye, halfmoon, and sheephead and ocean whitefish. Bonito are in and out, barracuda are around, and anglers are hoping for a dorado or some other exotic species. Also expect a lot of kelp. A report from fish-ninja on August 17 said, “Arrived at the mole around 7 and started to fish for bonitos with five or so Filipinos anglers next to me. It was mostly sunny. Starting at low tide then up tide to 1pm. Not much wind. Water looked fishy. I used my usual metal jig shorejigging setup to fish the distance and the column. My neighbors were trying bobbers and Sabikis. Well, no bonito, despite water was thick with anchovy’s. For the entire morning, I had one Spanish mackerel and a neighbor found a short barracuda on his floating Rapala of about 5 inch. Neighbors changed their rigs to bait fishing with single dropper rig with squids or shrimp and finding some whitefish and short sheephead. I tried a Sabiki to see the baits. Below anchovy’s I found lots of topsmelt. With it, I saw some usual faces of senoritas, short calicos and short sheephead. Mid-day around high tides were very slow and hot. Neighbor cooked me a nice bowl of Ramen noodles which I happily took and enjoy it. After million cast & jigging, I finally received a hit on a short blue-pink jig. It felt heavy on my rod so I was hoping it was my target fish finally. My first artificial caught keeper sheephead. We kept going for next hours for nothing to show. Finally some boils started around 5pm. They were barracudas and calicos. I found a few short barracudas and one keeper at 28”. Million calicos as well with a 17”. So no bonito but a nice variety of 6 species with some fun actions toward the end of the day. I’d call it a good fishing day! FN reporting.” How To Get There: The trick here is to get to Catalina. Ships and helicopters make the journey several times a day from the Port of Los Angeles, Long Beach, Newport Beach (near the Balboa Pier) and Dana Harbor. Information is available on all of these by calling the Avalon Chamber of Commerce on the Pleasure Pier (213) 510-1520 or the Visitor's Information & Service Center (213) 510-2500. Once in Avalon when you walk off the ferry onto the landing you are at the Mole.
Redondo Beach Pier — No report this month but I expect mackerel and/or small bonito are available. How To Get There: From the Pacific Coast Highway, take Torrance Blvd. west to the foot of the pier and the parking lot.
Manhattan Beach Pier — No report this month. How To Get There: From Sepulveda Boulevard, turn west on Manhattan Beach Drive and follow it to the pier.
Hermosa Beach Pier — No report this month. How To Get There: Take the Pacific Coast Highway (Hwy 1) to Pier Avenue and follow Pier Avenue west to the pier.
Venice Pier — No report this month. How Get There: Highway 1 to Washington St., turn west and follow Washington St. to the pier.
Santa Monica Pier — No report this month. A report from Reel Newbie on July 14 said, “Fished Santa Monica pier from 9am-1pm on Thursday with an incoming tide. Got a little bait this time, but there were only queenfish. Gave away 5 of reasonable size and threw back the small ones. Only saw about 5 mackerel caught if not before I arrived.” How to Get There: From I-405 take Santa Monica Blvd. west to Ocean Ave. Turn left, go to Colorado Ave., and turn right onto the pier.
Malibu Pier — Ginny at Wylie’s Bait & Tackle (18757 Pacific Coast Hwy Malibu) said the fish reports from the pier have been really good, especially during the grunion runs. Inshore action has been great, a combination of corbina, lots of BIG yellowfin croaker, and halibut (probably due to the grunion runs). Mid-pier sees some perch and bass. At the end the number of shark fisherman has decreased but some threshers are still being taken. Shovelnose sharks (guitarfish) and leopard sharks are plentiful while a large angel shark surprised an angler one day. How To Get There: The pier fronts on the Pacific Coast Highway (Hwy 1) so just drive until you see it.
Paradise Cove Pier — Ginny at Wylie’s Bait & Tackle (18757 Pacific Coast Hwy Malibu) said anglers are still reporting a good variety of fish including a few white seabass, some halibut, and large bat rays. She says due to the high cost of parking most anglers are walking in from the street. It used to be free but she’s heard they are now charging $5 to walk in. How To Get There: Take Highway 1 to Paradise Cove Dr., turn west, and follow the road back into the parking lot. It’s very expensive unless you buy a meal at the restaurant and then you are allowed to fish for, I think, three hours.
Ventura & Santa Barbara County Piers
Port Hueneme Pier — No report this month but a variety of fish should be available. How To Get There: From Highway 1 take Hueneme Rd. west until it turns into Port. At Ventura Rd turn left and follow it to Surfside Dr. Turn left again and follow it to the park.
Ventura Pier — Waiting for a report from Boyd Larson at Hyun’s Tackle, 3695 E Harbor Blvd.
How To Get There: From Highway 101 take the Seaward Drive exit west to Harbor Drive, turn right and follow it to the pier.
Stearns Wharf — Ben at Hook Line & Sinker, 4010-5 Calle Real, Santa Barbara, says the pier is still kicking good numbers of large baitfish—mackerel, sardines, and smelt. He says a couple of days saw bonito but only a couple. Halibut continue to show around the pier while crabbing remains very good, most are red crabs but there are also some rock crabs. How To Get There: From Highway 101 take Castillo St. or State St. west to the beach and follow signs to the pier.
Goleta Pier — Ben at Hook Line & Sinker, 4010-5 Calle Real, Santa Barbara, reports that Goleta has slowed a little. He says some bass are showing, both kelp (calico) and sand bass and an occasional halibut is seen but not the numbers seen last month. A few angel sharks have been caught as well as numerous bat rays and thornbacks. The white seabass seem to have moved on to newer pastures. The pipe-reef should continue to kick out its usual rockfish and bass. How To Get There: From Highway 101 take the Hwy. 217/Airport exit. Follow it to Sandspit Rd. and the Goleta Beach Park turnoff. Follow this to the park and the pier.
Gaviota Pier — The pier has now been closed for somewhere around eight years but I have been told that the state has now allocated money to rebuild the pier. My fingers are crossed. How To Get There: From Highway 101 simply take the Gaviota State Park turnoff down to the beach and pier.