San Jose / Pebble Beach Fly Fishing in Feb. ?

[texnfly]

Hello,

I'll be working at Pebble Beach the first weekend in Feb. and I'd like to know what fly fishing oppurtunities I might have close to Pebble Beach or San Jose at that time of the year.

I'll be working for nine days and then I'll have maybe two days free so I'd like to hire a guide if there's any promising opportunities.

Thanks,
Texnfly

[Nip Hadlock]

You might try looking at this site and contacting the shop.
I've fished the Little Sur and had a blast...light gear, lot's of hiking...
http://www.centralcoastflyfishing.com

[Cruzin4Metalheads]

February is great month for Steelhead but will all be dependant on the river flows at that time. Your best bet for actually hooking a fish would be.
1. San Lorenzo River
2. Carmel River
3. Big Sur River

All three have really big fish in the systems at the time, but you'll need to know where to go and be there at the right time.

[texnfly]

Thanks guys. I'd love to try for some steelhead.
What about the salt this time of year? Any winter action?
Thanks again and tight lines,
Texnfly

[PaulC]

Perch should be around year round. Just bring your waders.
Go out low tide to scope out where the structure is at. You're looking for buckets in the surf, rips and nervous looking water.
If you're not getting bit, just keep moving. Once you find one, others are around.
I recommend some form of stripping basket for line management.
Easiest setup is an 8wt with 300 grain line and chart/white clouser. Other bugs that work great are surf rats, gremmies, etc.
Sites with fly examples are:
www.garybulla.com
www.fliflicker.com

Perch honestly aren't that picky, so a clouser usually works well given its an easy tye.
You can always go smaller rod wise, but have to time your casts more dependent on the surge.
I'm in SoCal now, so maybe one of the guys up north can chime in with more recent reports.
Can't beat the scenery worst case.
-Paul

[Darian]

Texnfly,.... There're a couple of threads under the topic "Saltwater" on this BB that have info and some websites included in the reading. The first is, "Weekend in the Marin Surf" and the second, "Surf Report."

Also, there are a couple of websites available that have additional info for the Monterey Bay area:

www.zenflyfishing.com

www.danblanton.com

If you need some on-line tide info, there's a website listed under the topic area "Stripers", also on this BB at the top.

Along with all of the other info provided, you should be able to get into some fly fishing in the surf. Don't know how experienced you are in dealing with surf conditions (especially in NorCal), but I'd advise being careful and mindfull of the surf condition at all times. NEVER turn your back on the surf.

Good luck....

[Jay Murakoshi]

Texnfly,

Being that I lived on the Peninsula most of my life and fly fished the beaches since the mid '70s I'll try and fill you in on some of the locations.

Are you going to be right in the Pebble beach area, if so and you want to try some beach fishing. The beach at bottom of the hill could provide some fishing. This is going to depend on the swell conditions, beach structure and the RIP. You can park at the bottom parking lot, walk to the water and head towards the pebble beach area. One word of CAUTION. don't get backed up to any wall or beach head. You could become a statistic.... HEY, some guys out there might think I BS'ing you but I"ve surfed and fished these beach area for a number of years. I'll tell you right now, that there is now fly fishing site that's going to give you information for what I call the "otherside of the hill". Believe me, this is not an EGO thing. There is a couple spots withing the area you can try. I use to fish 13th street quite a bit but once again, you have to look at the tides, swells, etc.... Another thing you have to watch out for are the tourist. There are areas within the Seventeen mile drive that you can fish but the Pebble Beach corporation can get pretty stinky sometimes.
There are places down the coast you could also explore

If you want more info, send me an email

Jay

[larsj]

texnfly,

Closer to your arriving here, you should be able to get some pretty current info on the Santa Cruz board: http://fishingboard.gruk.net.

February can be hit'n'miss, depending on the weather, but the rivers can at least be fishable when the beaches are blown out (nice having some choices that time of year).

best regards, --Lars