Sand Dabs

I have never fished for dabs and the gf and I will be in Monterey in the next couple of weeks. I am not even sure if we will get a chance to get in the water, but...I was wondering if anyone had any suggestions for how to catch some dabs? I am not even sure as to how to rig or what bait to use. Any info would be great!!

"dabs" are flat fish, like flounder, so you fish for them as you would flounder....over a sandy bottom with the bait near the bottom.

I have much experience flounder fishing (oregon coast) but none with "dabs" here.

I read in the Western Outdoor News just last week, that most dabs are caught in (what I consider to be) really deep water........90 feet and thereabouts.
Up until I read this (about the depth) I'd been wanting to go fish for dabs in Drakes Bay.   But you have to go WAY WAY out in Drakes Bay to get a depth over 25 feet.
I don't think even "The Buoy" represents 90 feet.

Dabs are small......use a smallish hook....don't overload it with bait.

If someone has something smart to say about dabs....I-for-one would very much like to hear it.

Judd

Hey scubamike, I've only ever fished for them twice in my life (from a pier) and never in monterey so I don't know of any spots...hoping to get out there to catch a few in a few weeks myself.

The couple of times I did fish for them I used a pretty light rod rigged with some 10lbs mono.  I attached two size 4 hooks onto dropper loops that I tied directly onto the mono about 12" apart from each other and about 10" above the sinker.  The bait I used was small strips of squid.

I was thinking about just baiting up some squid on the smaller hooks and fishing Del Monte Beach. I have seen dabs in there while scubadiving. I will let you all know how it goes. Should be fun just to get out in the water.

If you launch from San Carlos beach in Monterey near the coast guard pier, head towards the red buoy and drop down sabiki with a bit of squid attached and you should load up.  Small fish but tasty.

If you launch from San Carlos beach in Monterey near the coast guard pier, head towards the red buoy and drop down sabiki with a bit of squid attached and you should load up.  Small fish but tasty.

I'll second the rec for San Carlos Beach.  It's a pretty easy launch and straight paddle out to the red buoy where you'll be in ~90 to ~140 feet relatively quick.

you can see pics o the launch and a late season report here
http://www.norcalkayakanglers.com/index.php/topic,10682.0.html

san carlos is a pretty nice launch.  showers and plenty of parking nearby.  bring wheels if ya got em

e2g nailed it.  You can't go wrong.


\My oly addditions would be to add a split shot ABOVE your sabiki, so the hooks lay flat on the sand.  Once you get a hit, set the hook, but leave the rig on the bottom for a while for multiple hookups.

these fish are delicious!

Allen

I've only fished  for them twice - both times out from San Carlos/Del Monte, but I never got one over hand-sized.  They are tasty, but I wonder if anyone gets them bigger like the ones I see in the market?    I'll have to try that split-shot idea.  I only used little bits of squid on larger sabiki hooks (size 6?).

I'll confirm...I used the sabiki with #6 hooks and the rig comes with 5 hooks.  I'm glad it came with that many because during the course of the day I was down to 3 hooks.

Just put enough squid give it a taste.  What's funny is that you rarely lose your bait.  When you unhook the fish just make sure you don't mangle your bait and its good to go for the next drop.  I barely used 2 squid for a whole day of fishing.  Split shot or a barrel weight above the rig is a good practice.

The biggest dabs we caught were about 6 or 7 inches long.  They're really easy to clean, just make a diagonal cut to take off the head and the innards and you're done.

Gary

I have wanted to try eating sand dabs. Anyone have any cooking suggestions?. Can you cook them whole?

I have wanted to try eating sand dabs. Anyone have any cooking suggestions?. Can you cook them whole?

many ways to eat them.  Since the fillets are pretty small, frying them up whole is not a bad idea. 

Sand dab sandwiches which I love require fillets though. 

1.  Fire up the bbq
2. aluminum foil put down pats of butter
3. lay down the dabs on top of the patties
4.  More patties of butter atop thedabs
5. drench with dry white wine and squeeze lemon juice onto the dabs  throw the lemon pieces in with the dabs
6. close up the foil and put it on the BBQ for 5-9 minutes depending on amount of heat.
7.  Sprinkle with parsley.

(also have done this dish  including capers...pretty good)

Enjoy!

Allen

Thank you all so much!!  I am so looking forward to the weekend. We are staying at the Marina Dunes Resort and getting massages after a day in the water!! Should be a great trip. I will bring a cam for some pics.

Hey, thats right down the street from my house.
My friends and I have been catching some nice fat perch right in front of the Resort condos. Let me know if you need any tips/info.
And don't forgot to visit AJ Spurs while you're there! Good food.
PK

AJ Spurs has good food, but I haven't been able to consume those portions since my teen years bucking hay!