Santa Cruz Party Boat Fishing Report

SANTA CRUZ

Captain Tom Joseph 408 348-4866

Captain Brad Miller 831 566-9407

November 14, 2011 Headlines Crab / Rockfish Limits!

Monterey:
It was another ho-hum, easy day of rockfish and crab limits out of the boats from Chris’s Landing on Sunday 11-13. Todd Arcoleo reported the Checkmate came back with 15 limits of crab and rockfish on Sunday with rockfish limits as well on the Caroline. The crab are large in the 1.5 to 2-pound range. Private boats working the flats off Santa Cruz and Pajaro are finding limits of crabs in as little as 80 feet of water but better scores are being found in 150 to 250 feet. Chris's is running daily and has light loads scheduled all this week.

Santa Cruz:
Crabbing is also great out of Santa Cruz, and there have been a few white sea bass taken by patient anglers drifting dead squid near Davenport. Brad with Ultimate Charters is putting his clients into limits of both rockfish and crabs and says he needs only more clients so they can turn more pots. Rockfish has been best north of the harbor near Natural Bridges or Four-Mile Beach. Tom on the FishON is running combo trips out of Half Moon Bay and reporting 20 plus crabs per pot off Pillar Pt and easy limits of mixed grade rockfish.

Crab counts remain solid off Santa Cruz and Pajaro for both party and private boats. Most are pulling limits or near limits of crabs working the 100 to 200 foot depths but there are a few pulling good numbers in as little as 70 feet of water. Bayside Marine in Santa Cruz reported on Thursday 11-10, “The sea bass are still being caught by anglers putting in their time with the best action near the bottom at depths to 120 feet.” Rockfishing has been very good near Four-Mile Beach and Natural Bridges with crabbing remaining fantastic.

Santa Cruz Area Report from Allen Bushnell of the Santa Cruz Sentinel|
Fall is turning towards winter, but the abrupt weather change last week did not put the bite off for long. Anglers who got out early last weekend found good fishing from the local reefs and along the North Coast. The weekend afternoons were very windy and nearly unfishable, but limits were common for those who made it out at the crack of dawn.
Gerry Brookes from Reel Sportfishing dropped his crab pots on Saturday, and has been pulling limits of Dungeness ever since. Running “combo” trips, his clients have also enjoyed full limits of rockfish. Jim Rubin on the Becky Ann has similar reports. “The crabbing is great, we took 30 crab yesterday from four pots. “ Rubin says the dungies are big and meaty. “We only threw two softies back, great quality so far this season, and these were all six-inch or larger.” The Becky Ann also boated limits of rockfish; mostly blues and blacks, with a good mix of olives and vermillion as well. The rockfish were caught in 80 feet of water off West Cliff, using jigs and swimbaits. On the flagship Velocity, Ken Stagnaro traveled a bit further up the coast. Stopping on a productive reef, Stagnaro reports “Rockfishing has been excellent up at the Four-Mile area. Great quality black rockfish have been the norm with a few big reds and an couple ling here and there.” Carl Azevedo from Boccie Boy Bait checked in with the “exotics” report. “They are still getting some white sea bass up the coast. Just look for the birds, you’ll find the fish.” Azevedo says he’s surprised at the amount of market squid still on this side of the bay. “It’s kind of late in the year to have squid over here (Santa Cruz), but as long as they are here, the sea bass should stick around.” In past years, he has seen the fall sea bass bite extend into December. Last year, there were a few good days for the big croakers near Monterey in January and February. He adds the warm offshore currents are receding to the south now. A few reports are still coming in of albacore caught out of Morro Bay, but chances are slim for further tuna action in our area this year. A final chance to enjoy a delicious albacore dinner will occur this weekend. The Monterey Bay Salmon and Trout Project, a non-profit organization seeking to restore the native salmon and steelhead trout population in our area, is hosting their 34th Annual Fundraiser at the Castroville Recreation Center. Dinner is at 7pm on November 12, and features great door prizes and silent auction items. Tickets are under $20, and available at the door. Call MBSTP (831) 458-3095 for further details.
Bushnell can be heard with the fish report on KSCO 1080AM Friday mornings at 6:45. Please send comments, questions and photos to scruzfishing@yahoo.com

Tom is following the lead of Brad Miller and is setting up and email list for the upcoming tuna season. When the weather looks cooperative and the fish are within range he will be sending out an email 12 to 48 hours in advance. With trips limited to four anglers the early bird will get the spot on the rail. Tom is a diehard tuna angler and has posted some very impressive counts the past few years. To sign up for Tom's tuna list you can email him at tom@fishonsportfishing.com

Brad with Ultimate Charters is giving anglers the oppertunity to get on board when the conditions and fishing is best. When the tune are biting and the weather is cooperative Brad will be sending an email alert to those you sign up. Once the alert goes out the first people to respond will get the four spots available. He is going to work hard to pick the best weather days and fishing days so those who respond first will be on board. To sign up email Brad at ultimatefishcharters@yahoo.com

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