Sunday 8/24 New Brighton

Drove from Oakland down to NB arriving at the gate at 8:05, launched in windless glassy conditions. Paddled out a pretty good ways to about 40' depth dragging a rubber sardine, then dropped a frozen anchovie and slowly drifted. I saw lots of bait, little fish leaping all over the place with lots of fish on the meter, but couldn't get them to bite. Had one takedown that chomped off half of my anchovie and somehow avoided the tail hook, and caught two medium/small rock fish. I spoke to Alshobieoutback on the radio but never caught up with him. Al, I hope you did better than I did. I saw one group of porpoises, and there was a seal acting really weird at this buoy. It was a spherical float about 2 1/2 feet in diameter, red with white stripes, and the seal was swimming around it kind of sideways with one of his flippers stuck up in the air. I was within sight of the buoy for around half an hour, he stayed there and kept doing the same thing as long as I could see him. I checked out some of the kelp beds on the way in, got a bite or two there but nothing stuck. There was a definite brown tinge to the water around some of the kelp beds, and no action in those areas. Landed about 2:00, surfed a 1' wave into the beach. Wind was blowing but not strong. Saw a guy land a barely short halibut from the beach on a triple dropper rig with anchovie chunks. A fine day at the beach, and my quest for halibut continues...

Mike sounds like you had a great day at the beach. i love that place! Im so lucky to have a friend with a beach house at pot belly beach (btwn cement ship and Capitola).
If yer looking for hali, they are in your backyard. But you knew that

Most likely you saw a school of sardines. They like to breeze on top of the water .Small sabikis in shrimp patterns work well for them. They are very good cooked or sashimi when fresh. I've had the skunk on the boat the last five trips from Capitola. It looks like things are coming to a halt in the area. Maybe up the coast a bit.

Nice report, Mike.  Sounds like a good time.   

I've heard that seals swim with a fin in the air to cool off, similar to the same way that jack rabbits have big ears with many blood vessels to get rid of excess heat. i don't have an explanation for my it was swimming in circles, maybe to fishing was poor for him as well. at least it was a nice day.

I've heard that seals swim with a fin in the air to cool off

I heard they do it to avoid looking like Hobies to the Landlord