Bacher: Crab, Rockfish Combos Yield Holiday Season Action at Rittenberg Bank

BODEGA BAY − You don’t have much time left to go on a crab and rockfish combination expedition out of Bodega Bay and the San Francisco Bay Area, since all boat-based fishing for rockfish and lingcod closes after Dec. 31.

The fishing has been great when the boats are able to get out.

“The fishing at the Rittenberg Bank has been phenomenal,” said Rick Powers at the Bodega Bay Sportfishing Center on Dec. 16. “The 33 anglers aboard the New Sea Angler today landed 330 rockfish and 330 crab to 3 pounds. We were limited out on rockfish at 9:30 a.m.”

“The fish are a mixture of very large bocaccio, vermilion, yellowtail and canary rockfish,” he stated. “The yellowtail rockfish are in the 3 to 5 lb. range. Anglers are catching them on shrimp flies fished near the bottom.” The anglers also caught one 8 lb. lingcod on their latest trip.

The previous trip by the New Sea Angler on Dec. 14 produced 170 rockfish and 170 crabs for 17 anglers, according to Powers.

Powers will be booking rockfish/crab trips and some crab-only trips through the end of the year, weather permitting.

On Dec. 16, James Smith of California Dawn Sportfishing reported, “We had some bumpy weather offshore, but we managed to make a day out of it. Both boats had full limits of crab and some rockfish.”

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The California Dawn 2 checked in with 270 Dungeness crab and 200 rockfish for 27 people, while the California Dawn 1 had 1 lingcod, 170 Dungeness crab and 121 rockfish for 17 passengers, said Smith.

On the following day, the California Dawn 1 and 2 returned to the dock with a combined 41 limits of rockfish (410), 41 limits of Dungeness crab (410), and 1 lingcod.

Captain Mike Rescino of the Lovely Martha at Fisherman’s Wharf in San Francisco reported “another fantastic day on the ocean with beautiful weather and wide-open fishing” on a trip to Rittenberg Bank on Dec 17. The anglers ended up with 18 limits (180) of crab (180) and 18 limits of rockfish (180).

Down in Monterey, Chris Fishing Trips has been concentrating on deep water rockfish. Anglers have been fishing at the edge of the Monterey Marine Canyon, just three miles from the harbor, as well as off Point Sur.

The 15 anglers fishing aboard the Checkmate on Dec. 17 landed 15 limits of rockfish, reported Chris Arcoleo of Chris’ Fishing and Whale Watching. The fish have been a mixture of vermilion, chilipepper, bocaccio and yellowtail rockfish.

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Fishing was also very good on the previous day. The 22 anglers aboard the Checkmate checked in with 200 rockfish and one lingcod, while the 22 passengers on the Star of Monterey bagged limits of rockfish (230) and six lingcod.

“Captain Tinker Neece reported catching full limits of rockfish on just one drift on his latest trip to Point Sur,” said Arcoleo.

Don Pedro Reservoir rainbows: Both recently planted trout and holdover rainbows are hitting at Don Pedro Lake.

“Today’s trip was with four great people introducing their kids to fishing and catching their very first fish,” reported Monte Smith of Gold Country Sportfishing on Dec. 17. “We started catching fish immediately after leaving the dock at the Blue Oaks Launch Ramp.”

“I suggested a late start and it turned into a three-hour trip,” stated Smith. “We had plenty of action and they didn’t want to burn the kids out. They hooked nine and caught eight trout, as well as having other bites that didn’t stick.”

On the day before, the two anglers fishing with Smith — Mike and Trish — also found solid fishing. They were trolling Smith’s custom spoons at 10 to 15 feet deep on leadcore line.

“We were looking for bigger fish besides the recent plants and we found three quality rainbows, with the biggest being three pounds exactly and the other two over two and a quarter pounds,” he stated. “A few planters were also kept. We also had some lost and missed opportunities.”

Smith noted that the lake is in great shape, with a surface water temperature of 55 degrees. “Rain should push closer the trout to shore,” he added. “We have been catching fish about 100 feet offshore.”

West Delta Sturgeon: Sturgeon fishing is “really good” in the West Delta and Suisun Bay at Roe and Ryer islands and the Middle Grounds, reported Zack Medinas of Gatecrasher Fishing Adventures.

“The six anglers fishing with me caught and released eight white sturgeon ranging in size from two in the 30s (inches), a couple in the 40s and the rest in the 50s on Sunday, Dec. 17,” said Medinas. “We had one triple hook-up.”

On Saturday, five people landed and released four sturgeon, including one in the fifties, one in the forties and a couple in the thirties, said Medinas.

Friday’s trip with three children and three adults on donated trips for the Pittsburg Sturgeon Derby and the Diamond Classic Catch and Release Sturgeon Derby produced four sturgeon released, including a 7-footer and one going 56 inches. They fished off Pittsburg and at the Middle Grounds.

Medinas has been targeting the sturgeon with lamprey eel and salmon roe. The fish have been showing at 20 to 60 feet deep. Anglers hooked the fish over the weekend despite small incoming and outgoing tides.

Anglers are reminded that new emergency sturgeon regulations are now in effect.

This article originally appeared on Visalia Times-Delta: Crab, Rockfish Combos Yield Holiday Season Action at Rittenberg Bank