Rockfish Fishing: Am I Doing Something Wrong?

Obviously the old saying goes "it's called fishing, not catching" but my trouble is I'm so new to fishing that I don't know if my inability to catch anything is because that's the game, or if it's because I'm doing everything wrong. I'm mostly worried about equipment, since trying to figure out what goes with what is arcane and often clearly trying to just take all my $$$. I can try different jigging, different hours of the day, and different places without dipping into my student budget.

I'm fishing out of Santa Cruz Harbor in the shallower reefs and out at the mile buoy, not super far out.

For rod and reel I have a Penn Battle II (with matching reel), they were an unexpected gift from a distant family member.

For line I'm using 20lb braid with a swivel on the end attached to a purchased shrimp fly rig with size 3 hooks (I think). On the end I have a 4oz sinker. I'm using 1 inch sections of squid for bait.

I'm looking for rockfish. I don't really care about getting the biggest of big, I'm still new enough to fishing that cooking up smaller fish is exciting. Most of the advice online about equipment is clearly catering to people on party boats looking for gigantic fish.

Is there anything immediately obviously "wrong" about my setup, or am I good to go and just have to learn patience?

Two "well there's your problem" factors:
1. I don't have a fishfinder, I'm entirely just going to places that are "usually pretty reliable."
2. I have no idea what I'm doing 

 

There's no fish in Santa Cruz (j/k) 

Joking aside, any rod/reel setups should be OK for RFs.  Are you using swim baits?  Someday fishing is better with real bait like squid but RFs are not picky.  Keep trying and you'll catch them.  Fish finder helps to locate school fish and structures but I catch them many time without it.

Hey Tinybeetles. I would say 90% of the battle is finding the fish, and then dropping your hook in front of its face. Part of this comes through time on the water and figuring which spots produce. Without a fish finder you can use a hi-lo rig and bounce the weight on the bottom until you feel a rocky bottom and then fish those rocky spots. You'll get a feel for where your line/hooks are in the water column but I generally try to keep the bait right above bottom without actually touching.

What size reel do you have? I would suggest looking into a conventional reel (not spinning) set up for rockfish. I have stripped a few spinning reels (one being a penn battle 4000) while cranking up rockfish.

Your setup is fine, but you need to find the fish. The ocean is big, and finding the fish (or even the reefs, if there is no kelp on the surface) is probably the issue.

Without a FF, you might be better off staying near the kelp line--past the wharf near Steamer Lane would be  my recommendation. If you can get out there really early on a low swell day, you can often find a really hot bite.

LMK next time you go out, and I'll cruise around in my battleship (Hobie AI) and point out any fish that I see on my FF.

I also fish SC. Also don't have a fish finder. Personally I've done much better in the kelp than trying to find the reefs out by the mile buoy.

But I have always wondered - If I hook up on a big ling in the kelp, what are the odds it swims enough to get my line wrapped up in the kelp?

Your experience reminds me of my first ocean excursions In a kayak. After doing party boats, I sort of got the impression that the ocean is just full of fish, drop a line just about anywhere! Not surprisingly, this is not true.

My first trips out to the Monterrey kelp were frustrating, as I couldn’t seem to catch a damn thing and wasn’t sure what the problem was.

Like others have said, location matters more than bait most days. Rockfish are definitely not picky (though different setups appeal to them more or less some days). So first order of business would be studying charts, tagging along with others, or investing in a fish finder to start getting yourself a mental map of the areas you are fishing and what the bottom contour is like. If you would like, I have an older lowrance unit that I doubt has a ton of resale value, but would be better than nothing. PM me if you are interested in figuring out a trade...heck I may just give it to you if you come and pick it up!

I liked the suggestion to use a hi lo setup and just explore the bottom by feel with a weight, once you find rocks, there’s a good chance of finding fish too. Good luck, figuring it out is half the fun and makes the eventual success 10x more rewarding

Hey all! Glad to hear that it sounds like I'm at least "okay" to go. I have no problem with taking my time, getting skunked, and figuring out the lay of the land- I'm out here for a nice paddle and to enjoy the wildlife, and the potential fish dinner is a side benefit. I would just feel pretty dumb if I was out here with a rig that definitely was never going to catch anything!

I've been using the Google Earth trick to try to spot rocky areas. I think I was using the wrong terminology and referring to the kelp beds as reefs? I mean the kelp beds.

Are you using swim baits?  Someday fishing is better with real bait like squid but RFs are not picky.  Keep trying and you'll catch them.  Fish finder helps to locate school fish and structures but I catch them many time without it.

I used one the first time I went out fishing with a gearhead friend who loaned me a conventional setup. We later switched to the shrimp flies. Had a great catch day. I was holding off until I knew I was on the right "track" (and had a handle on messing with my gear while at sea) before investing in more gear to manage but it's not like a swim bait is gonna kill me. I'll pick some up. I would have just gotten a shopping list from my friend but his whole deal is the newest and fanciest, and I'm very DIY and discount bin, and unfortunately the two don't match perfectly.

I would suggest looking into a conventional reel (not spinning) set up for rockfish. I have stripped a few spinning reels (one being a penn battle 4000) while cranking up rockfish.

I was worried about this. The time out with my buddy with the conventional rods felt definitely more practical than wrestling with the spinning reels, and they were what I was originally looking at buying for myself. The curse of the surprise family gift...

LMK next time you go out, and I'll cruise around in my battleship (Hobie AI) and point out any fish that I see on my FF.

I'll hit you up! I felt silly enough trailing along behind my buddy's tricked out fishing Hobie in my ancient cobbled together Scrambler, I can only imagine how goofy I'll look struggling after an AI...
I have another friend of mine that has wanted an AI for ages, so I can brag to him about seeing one in real life.

Mother lode, I really appreciate the offer. I'm going to stick with trying to struggle along without the FF at least for now, I have a tendency to start forgetting bits and pieces when I have too much equipment to keep track of. One step at a time. Thank you for helping out a newbie though, the NCKA community has been incredibly welcoming and kind 

I was worried about this. The time out with my buddy with the conventional rods felt definitely more practical than wrestling with the spinning reels, and they were what I was originally looking at buying for myself. The curse of the surprise family gift...

surprise family gift is always a great start though! If it's any comfort, I still take my penn battle spinning set up out almost every time for use as a sabiki/bait rod. It's definitely possible to reel up rockfish (I started out rockfishng with this setup) but you'll need to pay more attention to finesse and technique (pump the rod and only reel up the slack) to make sure the gears don't strip. The penn general purpose levelwind 209 combo is a pretty affordable option that would work well for rockfish if the need to switch to conventional arises

Get the Navionics app for your phone and you will be able to find structure on the water. You can use their free webapp on your computer to find promising spots to try. Click the sonar icon at the bottom left to get the map with 1' contour lines.

You might consider spending some time and money with a local kayak fishing guide. They can show you how and where to catch fish.

I'm not sure if Allen is still doing this sort of thing.
http://santacruzkayakfishing.com

Good luck!
Al

I'm going to stick with trying to struggle along without the FF at least for now, I have a tendency to start forgetting bits and pieces when I have too much equipment to keep track of. One step at a time. Thank you for helping out a newbie though, the NCKA community has been incredibly welcoming and kind 

Getting a FF will massively increase your catch rate.  I was too broke and stubborn to get one at first, and wasted a lot of time not catching fish.  Lowrance hook 4 was worth every penny.

Your rod sounds fine.  For my lightweight rockfish rig, I use a broken/taped together "River Monsters" rod someone abandoned on a jetty paired with a $25 Walmart spinning reel. 

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Quantum-Optix-Size-60-Spinning-Reel/16652577

I'm going to stick with trying to struggle along without the FF at least for now, I have a tendency to start forgetting bits and pieces when I have too much equipment to keep track of. One step at a time. Thank you for helping out a newbie though, the NCKA community has been incredibly welcoming and kind 

Getting a FF will massively increase your catch rate.  I was too broke and stubborn to get one at first, and wasted a lot of time not catching fish.  Lowrance hook 4 was worth every penny.

Your rod sounds fine.  For my lightweight rockfish rig, I use a broken/taped together "River Monsters" rod someone abandoned on a jetty paired with a $25 Walmart spinning reel. 

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Quantum-Optix-Size-60-Spinning-Reel/16652577

This is very true. I'm sure I'm going to cave sooner rather than later (I've only gone out looking for fish twice, not counting the one time out with my buddy), I'm just very "one step at a time" when it comes to new hobbies. Gotta catch rockfish before I go after anything fancier, gotta figure out how to not flip a boat while trying to bait a hook before I try to mess with FFs.

.... gotta figure out how to not flip a boat while trying to bait a hook before I try to mess with FFs.

FFs are waterproof 

FFs are waterproof 

Ah, but are they chum-proof?

I'm glad I don't get particularly seasick and it's been getting easier every time I go out but the second I have to mess with anything on board my whole world starts lurching around.

FFs are waterproof 

Ah, but are they chum-proof?

I'm glad I don't get particularly seasick and it's been getting easier every time I go out but the second I have to mess with anything on board my whole world starts lurching around.

Now that's a different question. Looking at a FF in bigger swells might make indeed increase your chum output.