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Huntington Beach, California

Thread Status: Hello , There was no answer in this thread for more than 60 days.
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aesthetic

status: grasshopper
Jun 18, 2007
147
1
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just wanted to stop in here, as ive already browsed most of the forums just to get an overview. new spearfisherman in the learning process, but luckily i have a medium-experienced buddy to help me :cool:

so just wanted to say hi. any southern california residents that would consider going out sometime? :)
 
also, ill be starting out with a JBL traveling polespear.. paralyzer tip.. mostly going for halibut.. bass, etc.. or anything else we may come across. maybe ill be lucky enough to come across some yellowtail!

anyone else know exciting species to hunt in southern california waters?
 
Our valuable forum member Bill McIntyre lives a few minutes drive from Huntington Beach. I havent' seen him on line in the last few days (maybe he's on holiday, don't know), but definitely he's your man to learn more.
Welcome on Deeperblue
 
it all depends what your motive to hunt is, what area you typically hunt, and how far out you wanna go. Inshore to Intermediate zone you will find a lot of Corbina (inshore only), Perch (yuck), Halibut, Small Calico (reefy areas), Striped Bass (reefy areas), Lingcod (reefy, cavernous areas), etc. Deep water will bring White Sea Bass, Sheephead (yuck), Yellowtail, Skipjack, Shark, Larger Calico, etc. I typically hunt to eat only and highly suggest that you do the same. I know how tempting it is to just shoot a helpless fish for target practice, but think about the long term effect. I avidly dive the Laguna area and have scored some pretty good hauls practicing what I preach. Drop me a line if you want to check it out.
 
Our valuable forum member Bill McIntyre lives a few minutes drive from Huntington Beach. I havent' seen him on line in the last few days (maybe he's on holiday, don't know), but definitely he's your man to learn more.
Welcome on Deeperblue

yeah i noticed in another thread that hes from san clemente, thats only about 20 or 30 minutes south of me :cool:

ill have to PM him one of these days and see if hes willing to go out sometime just for fun. ;)

thanks though, if i didnt stumble upon that thread i wouldnt have known that.
 
it all depends what your motive to hunt is, what area you typically hunt, and how far out you wanna go. Inshore to Intermediate zone you will find a lot of Corbina (inshore only), Perch (yuck), Halibut, Small Calico (reefy areas), Striped Bass (reefy areas), Lingcod (reefy, cavernous areas), etc. Deep water will bring White Sea Bass, Sheephead (yuck), Yellowtail, Skipjack, Shark, Larger Calico, etc. I typically hunt to eat only and highly suggest that you do the same. I know how tempting it is to just shoot a helpless fish for target practice, but think about the long term effect. I avidly dive the Laguna area and have scored some pretty good hauls practicing what I preach. Drop me a line if you want to check it out.

yeah i will be fishing only to eat also, i fish rod/reel so i know the importance of it lol.. and i wont be shooting fish for no reason.

anyhow, i think your descriptions sum up my expectations almost exactly. i plan on staying more inshore for starters, and will likely go for corbina, halibut, bass (most species), and lincod perhaps, if they are any good.

my friend was saying we will likely go out to 10th street laguna sometime this week. is it any good? i cant picture offhand what the shore looks like, but im hoping for sandy bottoms, clear and somewhat shallow water, and lots of rock with sporadic kelp. where are you from?
 
Orange County....10th is usually better for bodyboarding but some good sized bugs can be caught during open season which is over now, but to tell you the truth, I have never even considered diving there. I would opt for more like Treasure Island if you are willing to hike the 200+ stairs at 10th. As long as the swell stays down for a good period of time and the viz is cooperating, either Treasure Isalnd or 10th would probably be worth checking out. However, I would not suggest 10th due to the fact that freak sets can roll in and sweep you across the caves.
 
Oh yeah aesthetics.....did I mention the crushing hollow shorebreak at 10th. The shoreline is basically sand-reef mix out front of the stairs. 10th is actually all the way to the left and the same applies there. If you swim out past the breaker and head south, you will encounter a large rocky reef system with numerous caverns. This place is definitely for the beginner though. Maybe at the bottom of the stairs, but definitely not 10th itself. Maybe I can turn you on to some better spots. Hit me up.
 
Oh yeah aesthetics.....did I mention the crushing hollow shorebreak at 10th. The shoreline is basically sand-reef mix out front of the stairs. 10th is actually all the way to the left and the same applies there. If you swim out past the breaker and head south, you will encounter a large rocky reef system with numerous caverns. This place is definitely for the beginner though. Maybe at the bottom of the stairs, but definitely not 10th itself. Maybe I can turn you on to some better spots. Hit me up.

lol.. well the funny thing is, we went today.. my buddy had his stuff but i dont have mine yet :mad: not til tomorrow i think.

anyway, i was body surfing the shorebreak cause we left our bodyboards at home (we are usually at wedge and love the 8-10ft swells coming in).. so the waves werent much of an issue there. i DO however see what youre saying about them catching you off guard around that rock/reef system.

the southern part is actually where we went in. i just treaded water for awhile with my bodyboarding fins (diving fins are in the mail).. and he hunted a little bit. got a decent sized bass. he let me try, but i was diving without a snorkel so after treading all that water i was already a bit tired! the visibility kinda sucked because we were still close to all the commotion of the shorebreak and waves.. much more cloudy than i had anticipated.. the mask was constantly fogging too.

it was fun though, didnt really see any fish of decent size when i went down. anyway, any other suggestion spots for when im properly equipped and not so exhausted from playing in the shorebreak? on the way back up north, about 2-3 miles north of crystal cove, i saw a small rock island about 1/2 mile off shore, and thought maybe that would be a nice place to check if i can find a way down there.

fill me in on some better spots to give a beginner better chances of actually FINDING some fish! :t
 
I usually use my Vipers year round...heck I'm still a bodyboarder after all and get around pretty good with them...nothing in the mail for me yet. I like to make due with what I have and slowly progress from there. If you are good with crappy tools, then you can be even better with state-of-the-art equipment. I have a family so money can be tight at times.

As fot the fogging up - try rubbing toothpaste on the inside then wash off properly and that should take care of it. It has been over 9 months since my mask fogged. Make sure your mask fits as well. This can make a world of differencwe when it comes to fogging. Hope this helps.

I don't know the name of the rock you see out there, but I do know the spot. Save that for a calm, clear day cuz the surge can get you. It is also deep, I would imagine about the same depths as Dead Man's Reef, and you should probably gain more experience and training before going out there like a bat outta hell. I would suggest reading up on shallow water blackouts as well. They can come on quick and there may be a time where you think you still have a little bit left in you, and POW!!! you're out. The more you know, the better off you will be. There is no way to prevent them and that is what is scary.
 
Our valuable forum member Bill McIntyre lives a few minutes drive from Huntington Beach. I havent' seen him on line in the last few days (maybe he's on holiday, don't know), but definitely he's your man to learn more.
Welcome on Deeperblue

i think ive seen him running around on spearboard.. when i get a little more know-how and experience ill be sure to contact him for more advanced info and possibly schedule a dive or something ;) ;)
 
I usually use my Vipers year round...heck I'm still a bodyboarder after all and get around pretty good with them...nothing in the mail for me yet. I like to make due with what I have and slowly progress from there. If you are good with crappy tools, then you can be even better with state-of-the-art equipment. I have a family so money can be tight at times.

As fot the fogging up - try rubbing toothpaste on the inside then wash off properly and that should take care of it. It has been over 9 months since my mask fogged. Make sure your mask fits as well. This can make a world of differencwe when it comes to fogging. Hope this helps.

I don't know the name of the rock you see out there, but I do know the spot. Save that for a calm, clear day cuz the surge can get you. It is also deep, I would imagine about the same depths as Dead Man's Reef, and you should probably gain more experience and training before going out there like a bat outta hell. I would suggest reading up on shallow water blackouts as well. They can come on quick and there may be a time where you think you still have a little bit left in you, and POW!!! you're out. The more you know, the better off you will be. There is no way to prevent them and that is what is scary.

yeah i have been reading up on the blackouts.. pretty scary stuff. im an excellent swimmer and diver, but only self-taught. it would be nice to take a class to learn all the breathing techniques and start doing the tables.. i plan to, in the not too distant future.

i cant find my vipers i think i gave them to a buddy.. i was just using my toobs bluntcuts yesterday.. (i like to DK more than prone)..

and ill take your advice with the toothpaste.

one of the fish im very excited about finding is halibut.. its one of my favorite to eat, and it seems like it would be a little easier (if you can see them) to come down on them and hit them with the polespear.. in your experiences with them, what techniques do you use? just swimming over the sand beds looking for the distinct shape?
 
It's not always the shape of the halibut you are looking for......there is so much more to it. There are many different signs that they are present. You may be able to easily see turbots or sole, but true halibut are usually only visible through clues that lead you to their whereabouts. There are about 5 key things that I look for when looking for halibut. Just keep in mind that there may days where you don't find any, and days where you score....so don't be discouraged. It is all about patience and understanding of the hunt. You have to be willing to accept that if you are hunting a flat, buried fish, chances are that you are gonna fail without some extensive experience. It is common to see undersized halibut, but then it just becomes a waste of a shot and waste of a fish that could grow so much bigger until the next time you come around his territory. My rule is anything under 24" is probably lacking the meat you are looking for. If we go out a couple times then I can fill you in on some of the clues. Until then.....a good magician never tells the secrets to his tricks. C'mon....nice try thoug LOL.
By the way....thanks for the pic info. Did you spy my halli-butt.....nice yeah? Let me know what's up with the weekend....a hui hou
 
It's not always the shape of the halibut you are looking for......there is so much more to it. There are many different signs that they are present. You may be able to easily see turbots or sole, but true halibut are usually only visible through clues that lead you to their whereabouts. There are about 5 key things that I look for when looking for halibut. Just keep in mind that there may days where you don't find any, and days where you score....so don't be discouraged. It is all about patience and understanding of the hunt. You have to be willing to accept that if you are hunting a flat, buried fish, chances are that you are gonna fail without some extensive experience. It is common to see undersized halibut, but then it just becomes a waste of a shot and waste of a fish that could grow so much bigger until the next time you come around his territory. My rule is anything under 24" is probably lacking the meat you are looking for. If we go out a couple times then I can fill you in on some of the clues. Until then.....a good magician never tells the secrets to his tricks. C'mon....nice try thoug LOL.
By the way....thanks for the pic info. Did you spy my halli-butt.....nice yeah? Let me know what's up with the weekend....a hui hou

thanks man. yeah i hope sunday we all go out, cause itll be nice to get some tips and direction in the water.. where i can actually score some fish. im thinking if there are 2-4 of us out, we are bound to do well.

i was out at crescent today, i posted a quick summary of my trip in the other thread so you might wanna check that out and maybe give feedback.

and yeah i just looked at that halibut you got, nice one! i would love to come up on one of those guys sometime soon ;)
 
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