Fishing’s picking up

Jim Niemiec

Good coastal and off shore fishing awaits anglers making plans to

head out into the ocean over Memorial Day weekend.

Over at Catalina Island, the white sea bass bite has been producing limit

fishing (one per angler) for the past two weeks. Both bait and water

conditions all around the Catalina are ideal for a continued showing of

croakers weighing up to 60 pounds.

In addition to white sea bass, anglers on board sportfishers running out

of Davey’s Locker, Bongos sportfishing and Newport Landing Sportfishings

are getting into good yellowtail action, backed up by a pretty steady

harvest of calico bass, barracuda and halibut.

Paul Underwood of Newport Beach fished on board the all day sportfisher

“Thunderbird” operating out of Davey’s Locker this week and decked a

20-pound white seabass that sucked in a live squid close to the suds off

the east end of the island. Jessie Smith of Newport Beach was also on

board the “Thunderbird” and hooked into an 18-pound seabass that picked

up a live squid fished just off the bottom in a cove on the back side of

the island.

Skippers of both party boats and private yachts report good action at

Catalina with excellent water conditions holding in the mid-sixties.

Schools of yellowtail are being targeted by sport boats after anglers on

board limit on sea bass and Eric Wiethorn of Newport Beach was only one

of the lucky anglers on board fast sportfisher ‘Freelance’ who sacked a

22-pound yellowtail that chomped down on a live squid.

Along the coast breezing schools of legal barracuda are popping up

between the Newport and Balboa piers and off the main beach at Laguna.

The bite has been up and down with the weather, but when breezers or

diving birds are spotted by skippers it has resulted in a pretty decent

catch of ‘log’ barries that are biting on both the iron and live bait.

According to Davey’s Locker spokesman Howie Howerton, fishing should

continue to produce good catches of a variety of small game fish at both

Catalina and San Clemente islands. Rain condition are OK and there should

be ample bait in the receivers to accommodate anglers over the holidays.

Bay fishing is picking up with good catching of legal spotted bay bass

and some legal halibut making up of the daily fish being landed by

anglers fishing skiffs out of Davey’s Locker or launching private boats

at the Dunes. One of the better catches made this past week in the bay

was by Rob Meinhardt of Newport Beach, who hooked into a legal white sea

bass fishing under the docks off 19th street. Meinhardt’s sea bass

weighed nearly 15 pounds and was caught on only eight-pound mono.

The word on albacore is that they are still too far for the Newport-based

sport fleet to reach. According to Captain Buzz Brizendine of the deluxe

sportfisher ‘Prowler,’ operating out of Fisherman’s Landing in San Diego,

(619-222-0391) the albies are about 60 miles south of Point Loma and

fishing conditions are perfect for a good showing any time. In the same

area, sport boats are fishing yellowtail under floating kelp and near

limit fishing for yellows has been the pattern this past week. Local

anglers can look to albacore and yellowtail to begin moving northward in

small schools by the first week in June, if currents and water temps

remain the same.

-- The 19th Annual 552 Club Benefit Shoot is set for June 7 at the Prado

Olympic Shooting Park in Chino on June 7. The event is one of the oldest

clay target shooting events in the Southland and proceeds from the fun

shoot go to provide funds for special projects and improvements in

healthcare facilities at Newport’s Hoag Memorial Hospital.

The annual benefit shoot is organized by the 552 Club of Hoag Memorial

hospital and serves as a fundraiser for the Newport Beach hospital. Since

its inception, the 552 Benefit Shoot has raised more than $1 million for

Hoag Hospital, making it one of the most successful and popular events in

the history of the 552 Club. For more details on a fun day on the target

range and an opportunity to mix with local sportsmen call (949) 574-7208.

The annual Shooting Sports Fair 2000 will take place at Raahauge’s

shooting Sports Complex in Norco on June 2, 3, and 4. The event is the

only ‘hands on’ approach to the world of shooting sports where spectators

are allowed to participate. Sports Fair is co-sponsored by the shooting

industry and the event is one of the best ways to introduce new shooters

to the sport of recreational shooting.

A full schedule of entertaining events will keep everyone on the move at

this year’s Sports Fair. In addition to being able to live fire a variety

of new rifles and handguns in a wide variety