LJ 8/19
 

Got out early and headed through the darkness towards the lights of the pier. Lots of croakers on the bottom but no bait so I headed for the kelp. Lots of jack macs off the condo in about 70' of water. For about 30 minutes it was all you can eat on bait. Loaded up and headed to the NW corner. Nothing but ski boats and novice PBers trolling over and into each other. Saw a lot of boat and bird activity way south but headed there anyway. Got just shy of the SW corner and noticed the cattle boats were having some success on the right kind. Pretty slow for the PB crowd and myself though. I can't exactly say it was their chumming ability that gave them the advantage but I did hear the skipper over the speaker telling the deckhand not to chum too much since the yellows were picky and he'd rather have most the bait in the water have hooks in them. I guess it was more about the odds (lines out per boat). Anyhow, headed back to the NW and saw some good activity further outside but it was a bit too far for my tired arms. Wind picked up a bit and the sun was at full strength so I called it. In by 1pm.. just in time to catch the Padres game... Needless to say, the fish are there. It's just a matter of what, when and how much I guess....

Thanks for the replay and report. But once again Im remined why i never go on the weekends.

Sunday AM
 

Tough bait at the pier---
no signs of the right kind north-same story for the others I spoke to
found this barely legal almost back into the preserve-
http://www.bigwatersedge.com/bwegall...0/IMGP0240.JPG

Just my experience for the day.......made bait fairly quick and ran out of it fairly quick...lots,lots and lots of calico action, big chunky checkers were the order of the day, had a small yt pop off at the boat:farmer: , which was fine as I was planning on sending him back to grow some more anyway. Couple of smashed heads on my larger spanish which had me thinking mini yellows aplenty! My buddy Dan W. got a nice sized bonito and some calicos also. Fished right off the kelp in anywhere from 50-110' with most of the action right in the thick of the kelp. No points for me today, nice chatting with T-Man and Mr. Clay! Water was super warm and green on the inside just on the edge of the preserve. All the bait I got was right on the bottom in the kelp, all spanish varying from candy bars to porn stars. Oh well maybe later this week.....or in a different locale farther to the south!:D

Nice talking to you on the beach Mr. Easton and thanks for saving my pliers!! Oh yeah saturday afternoon at the launch was chaos like I have never seen, sunday wasn't a whole lot better but the scenery was quite nice!

There were a ton of boats south where I was at. I think that had something to do with the bite... I couldn't seem to get a good bite. I didn't fish the kelp though. By the time I got back to the point it was noon and heating up temperature wise.. I've got thurs. and fri. this week to fish so hopefully I can add something to my dismal WCW stats..

Ya Matt, thanks for giving the lad a Spaniard. Thought he had gotten it lost to the kelp, got it back and the head was crushed. Chit.

Was supposed to be the lads first solo trip, ended up going out in the tandem, lad brought a paddle and wanted to help out, that was the easiest paddling I've ever done. Had one guy in a yak ask me how long I've had the trolling motor, told him 4 years now, just got it working...lol lol lol

Had something follow my lure to the yak, turned off at the yak and just got a glimpse of a tail.

Glassy, fun day fishing, not catching. Thanks again Matt, owe you a cold one or two...

let me pick your brains for a moment.
 

I've only managed to get out to la Jolla 4 times in a year and am still unfamiliar
with the area. I'm familiar with the condo and the kelp bed closest to shore (right off the boomers break). I also know where the pier and the boundaries of the reserve are. I am however at a loss as to where the NW corner, the horseshoe kelp, best couple places to make bait (besides the pier), and what is meant by "outside" (how far off the edge of the kelp "outside" really is). It seems a lot of fish are caught "outside" but I have no reference as far as bottom structure, depth, or relationship to shore landmarks. How far, what direction, how deep, and how long it should take to get to a point given an even, brisk paddle (in my case a pedal since I have the hobie outback)? Thanks in advance for the advice.

The NW corner is in about 110' of water outside of the NWern most point of the kelp. The SW corner is about 1.5 nautical miles south of that. Other than the pier, there aren't any go to spots for bait. Over submerged kelp and on the edges of a floating kelp forests are good places to try and look for bait. This is were a fishfinder is worth it's weight in gold. Sometimes you'll finding popping on the surface as well. Lately I've been finding bait about 15'-25' below the surface.. When I say outside I mean anything west of Point La Jolla, but that's just my interpretation...

hmmmm.....I beg to differ. There are multiple spots that consistently hold bait. The can, the hump, canyon edges, etc. A blind devotion to the pier is not always the most economical or productive approach.

Inside usually refers to anything inside of the line that extends straight out from the face of the big square condo.

I usually refer to the first corner as the spot just past that, where the thick kelp is now. Also pretty close to what some call "the half". NW corner is a mile further SW, about 3 miles from the launch, usually identifiable as where the boats are stacked up.

Didn't mean to give the idea that the pier was the only place to go but I would say throughout the year it is the most productive single spot. Although it has been slow for a while now.. Bait can also almost always be found in spots along the kelp.. unfortunetely that is a lot of kelp line to search.

I think I went to the pier about 2% of the time my first year, and I always found bait in less time than it would have taken me to go all the way to the pier and then back out. There are other single spots that are just as good, if you spend the time to find them (the reef out from the condo, in 75ft, for instance). And having a series of pretty consistent spots is sometimes better than an all or nothing at the pier. All of the spots (pier included) are subject to changes with the seasons, water conditions, and who knows what other factors.

Don't get me wrong.. I 100% agree about the pier. I only occasionally go there and never rely on it... I as well have some productive spots. I'm sure not as many as you but they're usually productive nonetheless.. It's not hard to find bait most of the time.. It's just time OTW that will put you on bait without really having to think about it...

a few more questions
 

Does that refer to a line straight out to sea or longshore? If it refers to straight out to sea then is "inside" North or South of that imaginary line? I'm having a hard time picturing it. A rough map would be A nice addition to the website excluding secret spots of course. :D I think that a good compass would be be a nice addition to my YAK.

I usually seem a few boats centered around a general area that I estimate is about 1-2 miles off the point at la Jolla Cove and maybe 1/2 to 1 mile south if you traced the shoreline. Does this area have a name and what is the general Makeup of that area (i.e. bottom makeup, currents, and depth)? It's kind of hard to visualize structure without a fishfinder and the last two times I was out the current was ripping and the kelp was laying down. Thanks again.

The "line" starts from the condo and goes northwest, the direction that the condo faces.

dud i go were i see the first bait start poppin on top never went 2 the pier 1nce & always mad bait just past the condos:cool:

Exactly. If you can see the eastern side of the condo, you are "inside". If you see the western side, you are "outside". If you just see the face, you are "straight out". There's a bit of a reef just inside of straight out, almost always has some bait on it. The spot with boats further W & S is most likely NW corner.

It's tough without a FF or GPS. Next time you're out and you find a good spot try to find some landmarks to triangulate off of. I even took a picture of the landmarks once for the Torrey reef when my GPS was down and a friend with one led me out there. Kept the pic stored on the camera so I could reference it when necessary.