Shiner Perch Archives - Pier Fishing in California

Santa Cruz Wharf

Public Pier — No Fishing License Required When I first sat down to write about this pier, I almost didn’t know where to start. Should I talk about the pier itself, the municipal wharf built in 1913, the wharf which is the longest of the…

Crystal Pier — San Diego

Public Pier — No Fishing License Required Small though it may be, this pier has long held special affection for me for a number of reasons. Most prominent is the fact that it was the pier where my initial introduction to ocean fishing took place…

Lucas Wharf — Bodega Bay

Private Pier — Fishing License Required The Lucas Wharf is the first wharf encountered by most visitors heading to Bodega Bay from inland areas and sits just up the road from the Tides Wharf. An attractive restaurant and fish market await the visitor, as do…

Shiner Perch

Surfperches: Family Embiotocidae Species: Cymatogaster aggregata (Gibbons, 1854); from the Greek root words cymo (foetus or fetus) and gastro (belly) and the Latin word aggregatus (crowded together, referring to the schooling nature of the fish). Family Embiotocidae, subfamily Embiotocinae. Alternate Names: Commonly called shiner; also…

Stearns Wharf — Santa Barbara

Public Pier — No Fishing License Required What’s with these travel writers anyway? Santa Barbara seems to get more than its fair share of articles in newspapers and travel magazines and I guess that’s natural for a city that officially calls itself “America’s Riviera.” Still,…

Adorni Pier — Eureka

Public Access Area — Status Unclear — Fishing License May Be Required In late October of 1991 I visited Eureka to both fish and take pictures of the new Del Norte Street Pier. Imagine my surprise when I discovered that Eureka had two new piers…

Port Hueneme Pier

Public Pier — No Fishing License Required This somewhat out-of-the-way pier is located in the pleasant Port Hueneme Beach Park. It has a weird zigzag shape, is made of wood, and presents, on clear days, a view of the not-too-distant Santa Cruz and Anacapa Islands.…

Pismo Beach Pier

Public Pier — No Fishing License Required This pier, together with the other piers along this stretch of coast, provides both recreational fishing and a relief from the summer heat for those who come over from the hot Central Valley (and the summertime influx of…