Benicia Salmon

Just read on the Fish Sniffer forum that 2 fish over 30#'s were caught this weekend by shore fishermen throwing spinners from Benicia first street and Benicia State Park (Dillon Point) respectively.  


http://www.fishsniffer.com/cgi-bin/forumsyabb/YaBB.pl?board=salmon_steel;action=display;num=1112158621;start=315#315

I can't wait.

-Brian

Right on !!!! they're coming in...me too! can't wait !!!


Kiel

-Malibu Pro2 Tandem-

A bunch of us were out there last year (on our kayaks)....none of us caught any salmon   but the guys fishing from the rockwall were killing them with spinners!

Were you using spinners?  If not. THATS WHY!   I have a couple homemade ones that work great. I'll give you one.

-Brian

yeah we were using spinners....we actually bought a few from a local guy who fishes the area almost every day.

I still have a few of the spinners - but thanks for the offer  

Also try wiggle warts! Or maybe that's just a lodi thing =)

-Brian

o.k. were is Benicia

across the carquinez straits from concord, off 680. it is a unique little spot, when it is hot there are a couple hundred people there. and they do catch salmon, it is amazing. not everybody catches, but i have seen some big ones.

Ahhh ... estuary fishing.  I've been looking into that lately as there is a spot "out front" here that gets going in late summer that I'm hoping to work hard.  It's where the Green River dumps into Elliot Bay.  There are a number of ways I've found to fish the salmon when they are no longer actively feeding.  Surprising enough, trolling a plug cut herring bait still works when they are in the lower reaches as they still have that "kill bait" instinct.  Other tactics include spinners, or as Brian G is suggesting, large plugs like Flatfish/Kwikfish with a sardine wrap.   Many people scent their lures.  I've fished with and without the sardine wrap and can honestly say, it's much better with the wrap.  For the spinners, smear them with smelly jelly or the like.  Some people swear by anise scents with the believe that the scent irritates the fish into striking.

More important though is finding the seams that the salmon are either travelling though or hanging out in.  I've not fished Benecia, but have heard the currents there create just such a seam close to shore allowing the shore busters to have their fun.   You can be a couple feet off the seam and not be able to draw the salmon out of it.  Or you can be right in the seam and bonk them on the nose with your offerings hopefully enticing a strike.  Back troll through the seam instead of trolling with it.  It keeps your offerings in front of the fish longer.

-Allen

People up here (Columbia R. in NCW) use herring and flashers early in the season, and we're 500+ miles from the ocean!. Plugs and spinners are used later. My favorite spinners are copper- I don't know why, but they have been by far the most effective.

I have some antique spinners. Little single blade copper spinners called Bear Valley spinner. My great grandpa used them for salmon in the 20's in the central valley. I have made copies and they work great for the afternoon fish.

-Brian

when it is hot there are a couple hundred people there

http://www.norcalkayakanglers.com/index.php?set_albumName=Joel&id=Benicia_crew_2004&option=com_gallery&Itemid=63&include=view_photo.php

Definitely a prime example of "Combat Fishing". I remember lining up across the rockwall (with Chuck,John, Jeff and Erik) and you could see a million ripples on the water from all the lure casting (this went on all day). It seemed like the salmon were hugging the shoreline. We decided to give up fishing from the yaks and just hung out by the parking lot and witnessed the shore fishermen make a killing. There was an older lady who caught a 15 # salmon 5 feet from where she was standing  .

If you plan to fish from your yak - make sure you bring an anchor and anchor down across the rockwall. Just make sure you are not within firing range from the shore guys. Get there early to get a spot - a lot of the boaters will be anchoring as well. There were also a couple of local float tubers on the line up as well  

Good luck and try not to catch a salmon over 26 pounds