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Has anyone had any or any consistent luck fishing the beaches, Bodega or there abouts, for surf perch or any other fish ? Now is a good time for me to get over there. I've hit it maybe 5 times in the past and haven't had a single detected a grab. I even purchased a signed Ken Hanley book. Apparently, that's not enough.
I had a customer who use to fish the north end of Dillon Beach around some rocks.
He liked the spring time but another friend says he gets them above Eureka year round.
My customer said he tipped his flies with some small pieces of squid for new coming to the surf.
Dungeness crab season now.
You've given me a starting point. Thank You Bill
Here are some resources you may want to consider.
Try this website, https://www.zenflyfishing.com. Unfortunately, this blog is no longer maintained but still has useful information.
On You Tube, look for richtroxler to learn how to read a beach. They are long videos but informative.
If you wish to take a class, call Geoff at Central Coast Fly Fishing in Carmel and inquire about his surf classes. Also, through CCFF, you can get in contact with Richard Gilliam who is now guiding around the Monterey Bay.
Good luck
I've been fishing Stinson Beach a few times a year for about three years now and have been pretty consistent at catching fish in the surf. Surf fishing in general can be confusing with tides, waves, and etc. Here are a few pointers that I've learned along the way.
I use a Teeny 250 that has a floating running line and sinking head that sinks at 6ips. I use a 5-7ft 12# flurocarbon leader with a clouser and a red shrimp pattern. A stripping basket is essential.
I believe finding a good beach for fly fishing is important. A beach that is too steep can be dangerous and difficult to keep your flies in the zone especially when fighting waves. A beach that is too flat doesn't have enough structure and cover for fish to be comfortable in. It's gotta be just right, gradual slope with an average 3-4ft depth is what I look for. There has to be some wave action to get the food stirring and moving around.
As for tides every beach is different but generally you want to fish an hour or two before high tide. These are the times when the fish will start rolling into the shore to feed. Cover water until you find fish. Perch are schooling fish so when you find them you find a bunch of them. Look for structure by observing breaks in waves. A soft spot along the breaks usually indicates a point of interest such as a hole. Be observant of your surroundings and keep safe, most of the time the fish are about 20-40ft in front of you no need to get too fair into the water and cast as far as you can.
I usually do the best in the late spring and summer. Stripers are a higher possibility during warmer parts of the year and big redtail perch are more consistent during the winter. Evenings about 3 hours before sunset are usually when I've had the best fishing regardless of tide changes. Overcast days are good as well. Water clarity is also important. I've always gotten skunked when fishing dirty water. This summer there was a red tide event at Stinson and I didn't catch any fish... I did catch a ton of dungeness crab though so I guess you never know what you'll catch out on the surf.
If all else fails it never hurts to try a light spinning rod with some gulp sandworms. Grubbing can be just as fun.
Bodega Bay proper and the surrounding Doran Beach I do not consider particularly good beaches for surf perch as there is not a lot of structure. You would be better off trying at Dillon Beach which has more rocks at the north end and more holes as you head south towards the mouth of Tomales. I fish Dillon a lot and I do good there but I often get blanked there.
Winter is good but spring is probably a little bit better as the ocean is less wicked and the days are longer. Fishing the surf is a numbers game. There will be many days when the period between wave sets is short, like 6 to 8 seconds or less and it will be hard to keep your fly fishing. Other times there will be so much kelp and eel grass from earlier storms and large surf that most casts will be fouled. Or the wind will be up.
Best advice is to go get a good look at the beach on a low or minus tide and see where the flats, hole,troughs and rocks are. Next best is to understand where the rips are. Hanleys' book has good info on reading the surf and understanding where the currents and rips are.
Early morning at first light the wind is usually down and the surf is generally calmer. I've done good at the top of the tide ad well as at the bottom of the tide fishing the holes.
Keep at it and try to keep your fly in the water and fishing as efficiently as possible and eventually it will come together often with a big surprise.
And lastly, be careful. Winter surf and the steeper winter beach profile can be especially dangerous.
Steve makes good points. Look for moving water, stay away from dead zones where you will notice sand crab debris in the non current sections of the water. Understanding and breaking down the beach structure while looking for prime areas of moving water is essential. It is close as you will get to streamer fishing via the salt. Find the currents of moving water and you will find a higher probability of fish working the surf zone. I have seen anglers fish floating lines with long leaders be just as successful as those with sink tips or T300. For fun, I have fished with spin guys throwing jigs or motor oil grubs. Sometimes they can locate the fish faster if they understand the concept of moving water or you can show them where the fish are.
Like everything, you have to put in your dues while in search mode. The water column is species specific as well. The higher in the water column you will encounter walleye perch while lower you will find barred perch. mackerel and stripers if they are in the area. One year I spotted a barracuda surrendering to the beach after getting beat up in the surf zone. If you don't get a grab, keep moving. Stick with it and you will find success. When you locate fish, remember the beach structure that provided the opportunity. Steep beach gradients normally associated with winter fishing will accelerate the back wash as it reenters the water. You think you are safe when the wave passes you only to be knocked down by the force of back wash. This is enough to wish you fished with a buddy. Know your limitations in this wild environ. I subscribe to Ken Hanley's mantra, "Be safe out there". You can never be too safe.
Wow - that's a lot of great info. Thank you all for giving me a plan.
Thanks, Tom
Maybe next summer we can have a Forum Outing to fish Dillon Beach/Tomales Bay staying at Lawson's Landing campground?
Sounds good Bill. Give a shout next time you're staying out at Lawson's
I'll be there. Just say wheyin (Val Kilmer)
Thanks for these posts - great info! I have fished the surf for several years now with pretty limited results - I still don’t read beaches very well, which I’m sure is my biggest limit.
What times of the year do you find redtail perch up here? I caught them on both fly and spin gear at a SoCal beach, and they were big and incredibly strong. Would love to tangle with some again.
I’d be in on a Bodega fish out as well!
Recreational Surfperch Fishery
https://wildlife.ca.gov/Conservation...onal-Surfperch
The Department of Fish and Wildlife manages California's diverse fish, wildlife, and plant resources, and the ha...
Surf perch identification:
https://nrm.dfg.ca.gov/FileHandler.a...D=36617&inline
Thanks for the info. I also decided to start fishing on the surf, so I faced the problem of choosing a board. The whole difficulty is in choosing the right manufacturer. I would be grateful if you can tell me, have you heard of such a surf brand as Fanatic( https://easy-surfshop.com/do/producer/FANATIC/FANATIC )?