Half Moon Bay Fishing Report and Whale Watching

They were out filming the second Mavericks movie this Thursday 1-5 afternoon which is a pretty good indicator of the size of the ocean swell. Captain Tom Mattusch had the ESPN crew out on the Huli Cat to film the action, and Captain Dennis Baxter of the New Captain Pete was on call as the ‘Hot Boat.” Baxter said, “The surf was cresting at 18 feet this afternoon, and it looked three to four times as high as the surfers out there,” adding, “With the tide going out at 2:00 p.m. this afternoon, private boats that went out in calmer conditions in the morning were in for a rude awakening upon their return to the harbor.” He said the waves were breaking over the reef that is just south of the harbor. For crab, many of the commercial crabbers are stacking out, and ‘the parking lot is filled with more pots than boat trailers right now.” The pots counts have dropped off dramatically in the past few days with the remaining commercial crabbers moving out to deep water between 50 and 70 fathoms with the expectation of getting from 5 to 7 Dungeness per pot. Baxter is leaving his pots in the water; and after taking a few weeks off for Coast Guard inspections and some R and R, he will be back out to gauge the interest in sand dab/crab combinations until salmon season arrives.

Rockfish season ended on Saturday 12-31, and local party boats continued to bring home limits of rockfish and crab with the occasional ling cod in the mix. With the end of the rockfish season, local boats have transitioned to crab/sand dab trips. The commercial pressure has made a dent in the crab counts, but Captain Dennis Baxter of the New Captain Pete continues to pull up between 10 to 15 Dungeness per pot after an extended soak in the deeper water. He plans on running combo dab and crab trips as interest and weather allows.
Up the coast, Sheryl Jimno of the Rusty Hook in Pacifica reported on Tuesday 1-3 that snares loaded with squid or mackerel continue to produce crab from the crowded pier. Some fishermen are also picking up surf perch with blood or pile worms from both the pier and the beaches.

Winding down to the last week of the rockfishing season, crab and bottom fish limits continue to be the rule. The party boats are gearing up for the next fishery, consisting of sand dab/Dungeness crab or crab-only combination trips. Captain Dennis Baxter when to the Farallon Islands on Monday, December 26^th, and they returned with 22 limits of big rockfish to go with 22 limits of Dungeness crab. Baxter said, “The quality of olive and yellow rockfish at the Islands has been outstanding.” He is also running crab-only trip for $60.00/adults and $50.00 for children under 12, in addition to hybrid rockfish/crab combination trips, and straight rockfish/crab combinations through the last day of the season, December 31^st. The ocean conditions remain flat calm.
The commercial crabbing pressure has eased; and limits of crab are still there to be had, although more and more females are working themselves into the pots.
Up the coast, Sheryl Jimno of the Rusty Hook in Pacifica reported snares loaded with squid or mackerel continue to produce crab from the crowded pier. Some fishermen are also picking up surf perch with blood or pile worms from both the pier and the beaches.

Government Agencies stand by as Wild Steelhead Die
For over 16 years since California State Parks completed their so call wetlands restoration project thousands of San Mateo County steelhead have been killed as a result of this mistake annually. Please take a few minutes to watch this short video. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ntKO3Ni0Yoc&list=UU_HNBcrJpf2BkMwIxJa_xZw&index=1&feature=plcp

Regulations for the MLPAs are now in effect from Pt Arena to Pigeon Point. Anglers need to know which areas are affected and the regulations and the boundaries of the different zones. Please use this link and be sure to print a map for these areas to carry with you.

Upcoming Events:
USAFishing supports the many fishery and wildlife organizations that benefit anglers and hunters throughout Northern California. Does your organization have an upcoming event? Contact us at fishsite@aol.com and we will gladly post your group's information on our reports pages.

California Waterfowl Dinners and Youth Events Calendar

Golden Gate Salmon Association Events Calendar

Party Boat Contacts:
The Huck Finn Sportfishing Center is taking reservations for rockfish and ling trips 650 726-7133

New Captain Pete Sportfishing with captain Dennis Baxter is now taking reservations for charters (650) 726-6224

Great Links:
Fishermen, check out DF&Gs easy-to-use California Ocean Sport Fishing Regulations Map. Simply click the marine location where you plan to fish, and you will access a list of Sport Fishing Regulations for that area.