Salmon

I fish Bodega fairly often and have caught two good sized salmon there. I caught one on the south side of the head and one on the north side of the head. Generally you have to wait till later in the season for the fish to get nearer to shore.

I've fished from the just  beyond the outer Bodega Head Bouy to the Bouy north of the Island. In fact you will often see boats troll this area. Salmon are also caught on both sides of the island . In fact Salmon can be caught anywhere in the area later in the summer. The trick is to watch the fishing reports in the early season and you will notice the salmon tend to make a counter clock wise rotation from Point Reyes to School House Beach in the early season moving along the north side of Point Reyes to Dillon Beach to Bodega Head and so on. Bottom line find bait fish and there will be good chances for Salmon.

Stuart left out Capitola in his list.  During the Summer, Capitola is great because even if the salmon fishing is slow there are plenty of alternatives and the cliffs protect you from much of the afternoon winds.  The reefs and kelp beds are always good for halibut (caught a 27#er on the edge of the kelp), seabass, lings, stripers (23#er inside kelp dragging shiner perch) and rockfish.  I like to drive my kayak onto the pier and drop it at the public boat landing for a nice dry launch - same for Santa Cruz wharf if I want to head uphill to kelp or out to the yellow can (~4.5 miles out).  I like to mix it up, troll while traveling and mooch during break.  I troll with weights on a slider so the fish doesn't rip the hook out of its mouth.  IMHO, carry a large net with telescoping handle and you will be prepared for any big fish - handling large halibut with a gaff may be ok for PB guys but not so great for kayakers.  A long handled net allows you to sink it under and draw the fish over it without worry of high-sticking the rod.

Other good launches:

Davenport Landing: great halibut/ling spot, salmon if not too far out
Pacifica:  launch southside of Shelter Cove (1.5 miles S of the pier)
Duxbury Reef/Bolinas:  interesting launch from lagoon mouth - outflow meets ocean waves=PAY ATTENTION

Jonathan

when you use the capitola wharf where do you park?do you just use the metered parking?

thanks for the info

eric

The bad news is that the Klamath populations are predicted to be at near all time lows and the latest word is that Salmon season my be closed midseason for a few weeks to allow more of the Klamath fish to make it back to spawn.

My understanding of this is a possible mid season closure of the North Coast Salmon Fishing season. This would be more like the Fort Bragg area north.

I think this is also related to the fiasco where Bush's henchmen let the farmers have water for the farms that they were not supposed to have and let the river levels get too low to support the salmon and had a large kill off off salmon in the lower river.

IMHO, carry a large net with telescoping handle and you will be prepared for any big fish - handling large halibut with a gaff may be ok for PB guys but not so great for kayakers.  A long handled net allows you to sink it under and draw the fish over it without worry of high-sticking the rod.

Jonathan

Actually the ocean regulations say you must carry a net over a certain size, I think it's 18 inches, but not sure. Also it is illegal to gaff salmon. This is supposed to save the coho you catch accidently. But nets scrape scales off and kill fish, so it is better to identify coho in the water and shake them loose.
The rubber nets are supposed to be better about preserving the fish scales and fish. Most other fish can be gaffed.

handling large halibut with a gaff may be ok for PB guys but not so great for kayakers.

Whimp!  

 

Just bring your fish billy!

Agree with jnthn here.  I've had a hellava time gaffing the big bad girls.  I think I'll be netting them this year (or shooting them with a speargun at boatside).  I don't want to risk looking my derby winning butts!!!  On one eposide last year, we had a 25 pounder jump off the gaff 2 times before we were able to land it.

-Allen

how about securing the beast with a game clip (instead of a gaff) that is already tied to your yak - for obvious reasons  

Because I thought the speargun idea was cool and satisfied my "hunter" instincts.  

I also may whip up a hand gaff using a large barbed hook or double hook.  That will solve the jumping off problem.  In reality I don't like the idea of my fishing partners having a loaded speargun on board with a hot fish at the boat.  And I don't really like having a large net topside ... too much clutter.

-Allen

it's a big no-no to have a loaded speargun out of the water.  For one, the recoil is huge out of water and can hurt you if you don't anticipate it.  For another if you shoot the spear into the air in some direction it'll pull the gun out of your hand OR the spear will hit the end of your shooting line and spring straight back at ya.  Last, most spearguns are just too long to use effectively like this.  Mines something like 120cm from butt to tip and it's not an especially long one.

Now you could cheaply use some spearfishing hardware to make a kick ass gaff.  Maybe use a polespear slip-tip on a short hand spear to harpoon the fish, or bend a kinked shaft into a J to use as a gaff with flopper(s).

Myself, I've got a huge net and don't even carry a gaff.  The net sits back in a rod holder and doesn't bother me.  When I hook into a fish I pull the net out and let it lay in the water while I keep fighting.  Once the fish is to the surface, I simply scoop it up and fold the net around it.  It doesn't matter if the fish is hot or what cuz once it's in there it's dinner.  

With salmon, scooping the bugger up fast is the name of the game.  Don't want to give it a chance to throw the hook.  I usually leave the net on my deck salmon fishing so I can grab it fast.

I have a baby speargun with not too much recoil, but enough power to puncture a butt.  But you're right.  No loaded spearguns on board for me.  Thanks for talking some sense into me.

I'm going to tie up a gaff with a barbed double hook.  I'll probably tie off the other end with a leash.  That way I can gaff a butt and let go if it goes wild boatside.

-Allen

I'd suggest a flying gaff that floats, with no line.  Mine is 1" pvc with epoxy plugs in the end and a 14/0 or so hook.  If it's tethered the butt will hit the end of the tether and probably rip the gaff out of himself (unless you use a hook with a 8" gap or something).  Halibut are known for tearing spears out of themselves unless you've got big double floppers.

My gaff still lives in my car, but I haven't carried it since I got my net...  If someone is using my other yak I'll have them carry it with my old, barely legal, net.

gto19,  I park in the free area just past the cliff meters or in front of the restaurant lot up Capitola Rd - both have limited spaces.

True, a net is required.  I see guys with 18" nets and a gaff - to each his own, though.

MolBasser, you need a kayak pic with a "big" halibut.    Oh, and another of you trying to get the hook out of a 23.5" lingcod's mouth.     I have beat the living *%$# out of haliut and still they "wakeup".  They should be called "zombie fish."  I just like having complete control of the fish and a gaff doesn't not provide this.  I have never lost a fish I got to my net - ask the gaff guys if they can say the same.

If anyone can carry an extra kayak and has room, I would love a ride from Oakland  down to the salmon opener.

Jonathan

I share the same feelings about gaffs and halibut... they just don't cut it.  Even on medium sized halibut (~30 inchers) I've to gaff them a couple times to get them landed.  When they are hot... they are tough to control.  

They are quite easy to coax into a net if you don't horse them when you bring them in and just get them gliding toward your net real gentile like... Keep their head under the water and they won't be lible to thrash and spit the hook.

If anyone knows where halibut keep their brain... let me know... I can't seem to hit it with my club either... they always seem come back to life no matter how well I think i've clubbed them.  Pretty crazy.

Erik

how about shooting it on the head with a BB gun?