Dave

Ark

Kyle

 Trouts and Salmon—Family Salmonidae

Adult male — Picture courtesy of NOAA

Species: Oncorhynchus tshawytscha (Walbaum, 1792); from the Greek roots onkos  (hook), rynchos (nose), and tshawytscha (the vernacular name for the species in Alaska and Kamchatka, USSR).

Alternate Names: Chinook salmon, black mouth, spring salmon, tyee (large specimens over 30 pounds), quinnat, hookbill, tchaviche, and tshawytscha. In the 19th century these were called quinnat, California salmon, king salmon, choweecha, Sacramento River salmon (by anglers in California) and Columbia River salmon (by anglers in Oregon and Washington). Called salmón boquinegra in Mexico.

Identification: Body elongate, mouth terminal, large, and teeth moderately sharp. Upper back and all of caudal fin, dorsal fin, and adipose fin have irregular black spots; gums are black at base of teeth.  In saltwater their coloring is blue or greenish-blue to gray or black above, silver below. However, when spawning in freshwater their colors change. Males become very dark with smaller fish often a dull yellow. Larger males are often blotchy, dull red on sides.  Females become blackish in color.

Adult female — Picture courtesy of NOAA

Size: Up to 58 inches and 135 pounds; those caught off piers rarely exceed 20 pounds and most are under 10 pounds. The California record for an ocean caught king salmon is 65 lb 4 oz caught near Crescent City in 2002.

Range: Bahia de Sebastian Vizcaino, central Baja California, to Point Hope, Chukchi Sea, Alaska, with strays across northern Alaska to Coppermine River in the Canadian Arctic; along the Asian Pacific coast from the Anadyr River, Russia to Hokkaido, northern Japan.

Habitat: King salmon are anadromous, spending part of their life in fresh water and part in salt water. Most of their adult life is spent in salt water before returning to their home stream, spawning, and dying.

King Salmon caught by “Sitting BIll” at the Stearns Wharf in Santa Barbara in 1997

Piers: As a general rule, few salmon are taken from southern California piers. While I have witnessed a salmon taken at the Balboa Pier, and one at Stearns Wharf in Santa Barbara, I have not seen them from other SoCal piers. However, Snookie, the expert on the Newport and Balboa piers once caught a ten-pound king salmon at Balboa and reports she has seen several king and silver salmon taken at both piers. Perhaps their proximity to the deep water Newport Canyon and its cold waters helps explain the salmon. Most of the king salmon caught from California piers are taken in central and northern California. In central California they primarily are seen between Monterey Bay and San Francisco Bay. Best bets: Monterey Wharf #2, Seacliff State Beach Pier, Santa Cruz Wharf, Pacifica Pier and Fort Baker Pier. Top piers in northern California would be the Point Arena Pier, Trinidad Pier, and the B Street Pier in Crescent City. During some years large runs of salmon take place at Pacifica where as many as a thousand salmon have been landed in a single day. Runs generally start in late June or July and can run for a month or more. In the fall, when the salmon move into the Carquinez Strait on their way upstream (to the Sacramento and San Joaquin Rivers),  they are frequently caught at both the Benicia 1st Street and 9th Street piers. However, far more salmon are landed by anglers casting from the nearby shoreline areas.

Rose Costa and a king salmon from the Seacliff State Beach pier in 1997

Shoreline: Genereally not taken by shore anglers in ocean areas but caught by anglers in Carquinez Strait and in streams and rivers.

Boats: A major goal of boaters from Avila north to the Oregon Border.

King Salmon at Pacifica Pier, 1998

Bait and Tackle: Live bait is generally the best bait for piers. Usually this means using whatever you can catch via a throw net or a Sabiki (which can injure the fish). Most commonly a small smelt or shinerperch is used although small herring, sardine or anchovy are even better. A second approach is to use a whole dead anchovy on a live bait leader; a float is used in conjunction with a short leader to keep the bait floating just below the surface. It’s a different story when the salmon have moved upriver. By the time they reach the waters at Benicia they have quit eating and are primarily caught on lures. A panoply of lures are used but the favorites at Benicia seem to be spinners — Mepps #5 Aglia or Aglia-e, Mepps Flying C’s (various colors but especially green/yellow), and Vee Zee spinners (made and sold at Benicia Bait & Tackle). Spoons such as Kastmasters Krocodiles also are favored by many.

Snookie and a 10-pound king salmon taken from the Balboa Pier

Food Value: Excellent! One of the best tasting fish in our waters. Rich, dark orange meat with a high fat content. One of the best fish for baking, broiling and smoking.

Comments: Salmon are the most prized of the Pacific northwest fish and Chinook or Kings are the most prized of the prized. Although typically uncommon on piers, they one of the favorite fish for pier anglers. Salmon are one of the favorite fish for pier and boat anglers. Beginning in the mid-’80s, and  occurring several times since, the Pacifca Pier has seen tremendous runs of salmon, primarily king salmon. Some weekends have seen over a thousand fish landed and naturally when that happens  the rails will be lined with anglers. Nevertheless, the results can be worth the hassle.

An excerpt from an article by Tom Stinstra, the preeminent outdoor writer from the San Francisco Examiner, gives a feel of what it can be like during a run of salmon at Pacifica.

“Fine Fishing Off Pacifica”

WHEN IT COMES to fishing, some days you’re the windshield, and some days you’re the bug. At Pacifica Municipal Pier this week, fishermen have felt more like prisoners of hope than anything else, waiting for the annual arrival of salmon, and with it, the best fishing of the year from any public pier in America.

A high fog arrived Tuesday, and with calm seas beneath, schools of anchovies started migrating inshore, marked by gulls and pelicans, circling, diving and feeding. Birds never lie, you know, and most here figure the salmon can’t be far behind, chasing and corralling the anchovies.

“Fishing at the pier is like playing the stock market,” said Jim Klinger, a field scout and Pacifica resident. “One day it’s all limos and Lear jets, the next day you want to be perched on a window ledge on the 30th floor.”

Last year, the salmon arrived on July 8, when 300 salmon were caught at the pier in a few hours, a maniacal but happy scene, and as word circulated overnight around the Bay Area, the 1,000-foot pier became jammed with 800 fishermen the following day. At daybreak, the salmon charged inshore again, and more than 600 were landed by afternoon, then the next day, more than 1,000 were caught, with hundreds of others hooked and lost. It lasted for five days, then after settling down to 50 to 100 salmon per day, another siege ensued for a week, with 300 to 400 fish caught per day. Peaks and valleys, it went up and down like this through August.

To some level, this happens every year, just after the Fourth of July, but nobody knows exactly when the salmon will arrive, and nobody knows exactly how many fish will show, or when they will bite. And that’s when fishermen start thinking about prayer.

“From day to day, even hour to hour, it can be so unpredictable that you never know what’s going to happen next,” Klinger said. “‘Everything seems so temperamental and finicky. It can be the greatest day of your life or the biggest disappointment.”

Over the years, the scene at Pacifica Pier has become a microcosm of urban life in America. Cost is a factor in recreation these days, and not only is fishing at the pier free, but a fishing license is not required either. People can stand shoulder to shoulder here, and despite huge differences in backgrounds, with language and cultural differences the most prominent, they learn to work together anyway. Whether it be loaning a crab net to land and hoist up a big fish, or dipping under and over lines while playing a salmon to avoid tangles, people discover here that you get results by cooperating, just as in urban life.

And just like life elsewhere, everybody can be happy, excited and tense over what is possible on some days, yet surly, closed and grumpy over what seems impossible on others.

—Tom Stienstra, San Francisco Examiner, May 6, 2004

Day 1, August 19, 2015 — Monterey — I was greeted by beautiful, mid-70-degree weather, a slight breeze, and clear sun (enough to insure a sun burn). My initial visit was to the Coast Guard Pier, what is actually a jetty with a roadway built above it, a roadway which allows for fishing.

Monterey Coast Guard Pier

The Coast Guard Pier with the famous Cannery Row in the background

I would be joined in my time at the pier by a lot of lookie loos, some resident sea lions, kayakers, and the inevitable divers (since this is one of the favorite dive spots on the west coat and where more divers are hooked each month by anglers than any other spot).

Look at the sea lion!

The jetty is not a good place to be if a tsunami (tidal wave) hits

Results — Monterey Coast Guard Pier — 11 AM – 2 PM — The fishing was not that fast but did produce a mix of 11 small blue rockfish, 1 kelp rockfish, 2 black & yellow rockfish, 1 painted greenling, and one still unidentified sculpin.

Kelp Rockfish

Kelp

The sea, kelp, and kayakers

The tourists all like the sea lions aka sea dogs

The kayakers are seemingly oblivious to the angler lines extending from the jetty

Kelp and a sea star

A Black & Yellow Rockfish

Another, slightly different colored Black & Yellow Rockfish

An unidentified Sculpin

The end of the pier is populated by sea lions and cormorants

Signs discuss the sea lions and cormorants that cover the end of the jetty

The jetty is the best place in the state, in my opinion, to catch painted greenling. I average 2.3 of the small greenling, also called convict fish, per visit to the pier.

The pier always seems to have a few anglers

Monterey Bay was filled with a variety of boats

Monterey Wharf #2

I decided next to visit Monterey’s Wharf #2 where the mackerel were supposed to be biting. However, I decided to take a brief respite and headed up to the Old Presidio to take a few pictures of the bay and its piers.

Looking down on the bay and wharves. Monterey’s Fisherman’s Wharf is the wharf in the foregound while Wharf #2 (where I would be fishing) sits in the background. You can fish on the wharf until just about the buildings on the end.

Looking down to Breakwater Cove and the Coast Guard Pier (jetty) that protects it and provides fishermen a place to fish.

The end section of Wharf #2

The mid-section of Wharf #2

The inner section of the wharf

This monument sits in the Old Presido

Sloat Monument and its American Eagle (known to locals as “Big Bird”) sits on a hill above the Presidio’s museum office. It’s a monument to Commodore John Drake Sloat, and commemorates the capture of Monterey on July7, 1846, during the war with Mexico.

Father Sierra

A simple cross marks where Alexis Nino, an early pioneer in Monterey, is buried

It was now time to visit Wharf #2.

The wharf was still relatively uncrowded when I arrived at 4 PM. Mackerel bite best at sunup and sundown and it would become more crowded as nighttime approached, and anglers attracted by the mackerel would arrive.

Monterey Bay was calm like a lake

The first couple of hours were slow with no mackerel and only an occasional fish on the bottom. Unfortunately all were small—lizardfish, juvenile rockfish, and a lone senorita aka “world’s best bait stealer.” Things would approve as dusk, and the mackerel (BIG Pacific mackerel), arrived. However, the mackerel bite was never the “mac attack” mode that is sometimes seen. The mackerel would come and go. Brief flurries of action would see seemingly everyone hooked up followed by dead periods when no one was hooked up. Or, anglers in one spot would catch the macs while those a short distance away went fishless. People would rush over to where the fish were hitting but usually by the time the anglers had arrived the fish had moved on to a new spot. I caught enough to sate my appetite for mackerel and was ready to head to the hotel at 8:15.

A small, juvenile copper rockfish

Results — Monterey Wharf #2 — 4:15-8:15 PM — 15 California Lizardfish, 9 Pacific Mackerel (Blue Mackerel), 2 Jack Mackerel (Spanish Mackerel), 1 Senorita, 1 Blue Rockfish, and 1 Copper Rockfish (juvenile)

Capitola Wharf

A good night’s sleep was followed by a decision to head north to Capitola  to try a new pier. It would prove to be a wise decision. Parking spaces were available (something that can be a problem later in the day) and the pier was uncrowded. But the first cast produced a fish and I would see a steady mix of fish—mackerel, lizardfish, white croaker and extra large jacksmelt.

Capitola Wharf

The sea again was calm — but full of fish

Results — Capitola Wharf — 7:35-11:05 AM — 31 Pacific Mackerel, 12 California Lizardfish, 8 White Croaker, 4 Jacksmelt (LARGE), 4 Staghorn Sculpin, 2 Walleye Surfperch, and 1 Shinerperch.

A look under the Capitola Wharf

The wharf and old piling from an earlier wharf

Seacliff Pier

Wanting to get back to Fresno at a relatively early time, I decided I had time for just one more short visit, this time to the Seacliff Pier. It would be mid-day, and the fishing might be a little slower, but my need for fish had already pretty much been met.

The Seacliff Pier and its “Concrete Ship,” a relic from World War I. (Picture from an earlier less crowded visit).

The pier was crowded and apparently the mackerel had been biting — in the morning. The bite had stopped.

A plaque shows local fish

Several crabs decided to join in the fun on the pier

Although the fishing was slow, it was still an interesting visit. Adding spice were a good number of dolphins that decided to chase fish next to the pier.

Results — Seacliff Pier —12:10-1:40 PM — 1 Pacific Mackerel, 1 White Seaperch, 1 California Lizardfish, 1 Shinerperch (the largest I have ever caught or seen), and 1 Staghorn Sculpin.

I decided it was time to bid adieu to the pier and the coast’s beautiful weather. Arrival in Fresno saw a mild 96-degree day. I think I am ready to return to the coast!

Species

Alternate Names: Silver perch or surfperch. In Mexico called mojarra ovalada or perca.

Identification: Their coloring is silver with duskiness on the back and the tail is usually pink. They have no spots on the fins with the exception (generally) of a small orange spot on the anal fin. Often confused with walleye surfperch but the tips of the pelvic fins ARE NOT black and they do not have the large eyes like walleye surfperch.

Size: To 10.5 inches; those caught off piers are usually 6-8 inches.

Range: Rio San Vicente, northern Baja California to Schooner Cove, near Ucluelet, Vancouver Island, British Columbia.

Habitat: Shallow-water areas near both sand and rock. Common in both oceanfront areas and in bays.

Piers: Most common on central and northern California piers. Best bets: Pismo Beach Pier, Seacliff State Park Pier, Santa Cruz Wharf, Pacifica Pier, Fort Point Pier, San Francisco Municipal Pier, Elephant Rock Pier, Fort Baker Pier, Point Arena Pier, Commercial Street Dock (Eureka), and the Trinidad Pier.

Shoreline: One of the main fish for sandy shore anglers in central and northern California anglers.

Boats: An inshore species rarely taken by boaters.

Bait and Tackle: Silver surfperch can be caught similarly to walleye surfperch with the following modifications: silver surfperch are usually mid-depth to the top of the water so fish off the bottom; and silver surfperch are more likely to take a worm-baited hook than walleye surfperch.

Food Value:  Fair, although most of the fish are too small to have much meat available.

Comments: Silver surfperch are very attractive perch that, in northern areas, seem to average much larger size than silver surfperch in the south. They are one of the main fish caught by pier anglers in central and northern California.

White Seaperch from the Trinidad Pier

Species: Phanerodon furcatus (Girard, 1854); from the Greek root words phaneros (evident) and odons (tooth) and the Latin word furcatus  (forked tail). Family Embiotocidae, subfamily Embiotocinae.

Alternate Names: Splittail perch, forktail perch and white perch. In Mexico called mojarra lomo rayado.

Identification: White seaperch are often confused with pile perch. The tail is deeply forked and the first and second sections of the dorsal fin are about equal height; there is a black line along the base of the soft dorsal. The coloring is light silver or olive on the back, white or dark silver on the belly; often dusky with a rosy-orange cast; yellow at base of pelvic and anal fins. The fins are yellow or dusky. Sometimes with dark spots near the mouth but lacks the dark bar below the dorsal fin seen in pile perch.

White Seaperch from the Fort Point Pier

Size: To 12 1/2 inches; most pier-caught fish are 8 to 10 inches.

Range: Bahia San Carlos (and possibly Punta Cabras), central Baja California, to Vancouver Island, British Columbia. Tends to form small schools.

Habitat: Shallow-water areas both oceanfront and in bays, especially around combinations of rocks and fine sand.

White Seaperch from the Elephant Rock Pier

Piers: White seaperch can be caught on almost every pier in the state but in southern California they’re most commonly caught on piers inside of bays or harbors. Best bets: Shelter Island Pier, Oceanside Harbor Pier, Dana Point Harbor Pier, Redondo Sportfishing Pier, Santa Cruz Wharf, Pacifica Pier, San Francisco Municipal Pier, Santa Cruz Wharf, Berkeley Pier, Fort Baker Pier and the Commercial Street Dock (Eureka).

Shoreline: A common catch for shore anglers throughout the state, especially in bays.

Boats: An inshore species sometimes taken by boaters fishing in bays, especially San Francisco Bay.

White seaperch from the Seacliff State Beach Pier

Bait and Tackle: Normal gear is a high/low leader equipped with size 6 or 4 hooks fished on or near the bottom. White seaperch are not as finicky as pileperch or other seaperch and will take a wider variety of baits. However, live seaworms, fresh mussels, and live shrimp are the best bait.

Food Value:  Mild flavored but sometimes a little soft and mushy.

Comments: White seaperch are often found together with pileperch and blackperch.

Many thanks to Robert O’H for the help with the pictures.